Families were left heartbroken and children in tears after ticket holders for the immersive Jurassic World: The Experience show were turned away at the door, having purchased discounted vouchers through Wowcher.
The distressing scenes unfolded on Monday at Battersea Power Station, where a booking system error led to a significant overselling of tickets for certain time slots.
Around 30 to 40 individuals were reportedly affected by the glitch, according to Neon, the creators behind the dinosaur spectacle.
Among them was 11-year-old Jacob Harris, whose Christmas present outing was abruptly cancelled, leaving him in floods of tears. His mother, Kate Stevens, had travelled from Canterbury, Kent, to collect Jacob in Enfield, east London, before heading to the capital’s south-west for the highly anticipated show.
Jurassic World: The Experience marks the inaugural event at Neon’s newly opened venue within the iconic London landmark. Both the experiential entertainment company and Wowcher have since issued apologies to those impacted, promising resolutions. Neon stated it is liaising with visitors to offer alternative time slots or full refunds, while Wowcher confirmed it is contacting customers to process full refunds.
Ms Stevens, a mother of three, recounted the devastating experience to the Press Association. “It was supposed to be a nice day out for the both of us, you know, just the two of us,” she explained. “He was very upset and he cried, that made me cry. It’s horrible – it’s Christmas.”
The 39-year-old highlighted the disparity at the entrance: “When you go there they’re only allowing people who paid full price in – if you’ve got a discounted ticket, you’re not coming in.” She described the chaotic scene, noting, “There was a lady had two autistic children with her, they were having a meltdown, she was really distressed.” Another visitor, she added, had embarked on her journey as early as 5am.
Jacob, who has Autistic Spectrum Disorder and ADHD, was particularly affected. “My son himself is very upset, we’ve travelled quite a long way for him to go,” Ms Stevens told PA. She questioned staff about the duration of the issue but received no clear answer.
Recalling the moment she realised their fate, she said: “(My son) was standing next to me and then I could see other people being told and I went up to somebody, and I showed him my ticket, and I was like: ‘Does that mean us as well?’ And he said: ‘Unfortunately, yes.’”
Leading Jacob away, she delivered the news: “I’m really sorry, but we can’t come in.” His reaction was immediate and profound. “He just burst into tears and then got really upset and said: ‘I just want to go home, I just don’t want to be here, I hate my life.’ He gets quite dramatic, upset, bless him. It’s been quite a build-up, he lives in Enfield with his dad and I live down in Canterbury, so it was supposed to be a nice little day out for the both of us.”
Jacob’s hope for a rescheduled visit was quickly dashed. “He just said: ‘Ask them if we can go at another time… Can’t we come back later?’ And I’d already heard the other parents asking that, and they were just like, no – flat-out, no.”
Ms Stevens reiterated the widespread distress: “There were a lot of upset children. They were letting people queue up and then when they got to the front of the queue, telling them that… because they had vouchers they couldn’t come in because they were over-subscribed.” She had purchased the voucher in November, and Jacob had eagerly anticipated the show for weeks.
A PR company, speaking on behalf of Neon, confirmed that approximately 1,800 people visit the exhibition daily during the holiday period. They stated: “Some visitors holding Wowcher tickets were unable to enter Jurassic World: The Experience this week, which was the result of a booking system error which led to too many vouchers being sold for certain time slots. As the experience operates under strict capacity limits to ensure visitor safety, we were unfortunately unable to admit everyone at their original arrival time. All affected ticketholders were notified in advance, and we’ve been liaising with visitors to either accommodate them in alternative sessions or refund them for their tickets. We understand how disappointing this would have been for families – we sincerely apologise to anyone whose visit was impacted and are reviewing our processes to ensure this does not happen again.”
Wowcher’s statement placed the blame on the event organisers: “This event was overbooked due to a system error on Jurassic World’s side. They have contacted the affected customers directly, apologised and asked them to reach out to Wowcher. We are in the process of contacting impacted customers ourselves and will obviously be offering a full refund.”
