After announcing that its facilities will be closed to visitors staying at its resorts today and advising new arrivals not to come on the day of the Queen’s state burial, Center Parcs came under fresh fire.
The vacation rental firm received a deluge of complaints after announcing that its five locations will shut at 10 a.m. on September 19 “as a token of respect,” leaving customers scurrying to find other lodging.
Earlier, the corporation was forced to do a humiliating U-turn after receiving complaints from hundreds of enraged families whose vacation plans had been ruined by Center Parc’s decision to evict them.
For visitors who intended to stay in the parks on Monday, they will now stay open; but, while the Queen’s funeral is still going on, the villages will remain closed and there won’t be many activities available. Restaurants, swimming pools, and sporting events are all anticipated to be closed on Monday.
The resort will now enable visitors who arrive before the state funeral to remain, but Center Parcs has warned anyone planning to come on Monday to postpone their plans and stated it would be providing discounts.
NHS nurse Penny Smith, of Dover, Kent, was advised by Center Parcs that she should wait until Tuesday to go for her vacation at the vast Elveden resort with her husband and daughter’s family.
Due to recent financial difficulties, she said to MailOnline, “We only have a five day break scheduled and it’s the last holiday we will be enjoying this year.”
“I work as a nurse for the NHS, and at times like this, we are still required to work; it’s simply bad luck if you’re scheduled to work that day. Why doesn’t Center Parcs follow suit?”
We are all extremely unhappy and shocked that they can treat individuals who pay a lot of money to this firm and yet are treated like way. “Our grandkids are very sad about just having four days there now. Although I am devastated by the Queen’s passing, I do believe that this is completely needless.
Other tourists criticised the idea to “penalise” clients on social media. So you’re allowing folks to remain but won’t welcome fresh arrivals on Monday? a Twitter user said. Because you’re just penalising one group of clients now rather than all of them, you’re still doing quite poorly.
A representative for the network of vacation villages told MailOnline in an amended statement: “Like many companies, we have decided to shut all of our UK villages on Monday, September 19th.
“This choice was made as a sign of respect and to enable as many of our employees to participate in this historic occasion as possible.
All of the visitors who are scheduled to come on Monday, September 19, have been notified and given a variety of alternatives. On September 20, our communities will be open to receive visitors.
“On Monday, September 19, the great bulk of our visitors are scheduled to arrive or leave.
However, we have changed our mind on the relatively few visitors who aren’t scheduled to leave on Monday, and we’ll now let them remain in our villages rather than have to leave and come back on Tuesday.
The villages will still be closed on Monday, and we’ll be giving you a discount since there won’t be any amenities open then.
Jamie Nice, who had last-minute plans to go to Center Parcs with his family and his dying mother-in-law, thought it was ‘crazy’ that they had kicked people out.
“My mother-in-law is terminally sick, and we arranged this vacation at short notice so she could enjoy it,” he said on Good Morning Britain. We’re just trying to spend as many holidays as we can with [her].
These aren’t inexpensive holidays, so having so much of the vacation taken away isn’t nice. Later, Mr. Nice emphasised that as a gesture of goodwill, Center Parcs had given him a 15% discount on his reservation.
Denzil Demarara, a different vacationer, said, “I have paid for a week and I have a signed contract indicating my arrival date and my departure date, I will not be leaving early.” I’ll have to be dragged out along with my kids.
Social media users were eager to make light of the holiday chain’s perplexing move amid the rage, posting their favourite memes and disparaging jokes about the circumstance.
Before the U-turn was revealed, many of those impacted vented their rage on Center Parcs’ Facebook page.
One person wrote: “We were five connected families travelling three hours to meet together for our yearly family vacation with two young children and two pets!
“Where in the world are we expected to spend the night?” That or postpone all or part of the eagerly anticipated holiday!
Sorry, but this is a terrible, terrible choice that has crushed us. Please shut down the eateries and entertainment, but allow us to remain in the park.
Another person wrote: “Center Parcs have really left us in shambles.” Six people are in the group, including a young child and an adult with special needs. Driving four hours to stay in a four-bedroom cottage for a weekend every Friday.
We’ll be ejected from our accommodations at 10 a.m. on Monday and won’t be allowed back until Tuesday at the same time. How in the world are we expected to proceed?
One traveller said on Twitter: “We are just beginning a two-week vacation, but suddenly are expected to drive all the way home on Monday, then come back the following day.”
It would seem respect only flows one way, and that respect for your guests is not something that is a priority, tweeted another user of Center Parcs. An awful choice made worse by the absence of any kind of compensation for individuals who are no longer able to utilise facilities they paid for on Monday. Unacceptable.’
According to official government instructions, it is up to individual companies to decide whether to shut on the day of the state burial. However, the Cabinet Office suggests taking into account the kind, setting, and mood of upcoming activities.
Elveden Forest in Suffolk, Longleat Forest in Wiltshire, Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire, Woburn Forest in Bedfordshire, and Whinfell Forest in Cumbria make up Center Parcs’ five UK locations. The holidays in the villages last three, four, or seven nights and begin on a Friday or a Monday.
The competitor resort Butlin’s will stay open, according to a spokeswoman, although new guests should come on Monday at 3pm instead of the regular 2pm. This would “give our employees time to pay their condolences and witness the funeral,” he said.
Other perplexing cancellations, closures, and activities meant to honour the late king during the nation’s time of grief have drawn questions.
The period of official mourning drove a local authority to modify signs prohibiting the use of bike racks after they received online mockery, while other local councils throughout England announced the decision to postpone rubbish collections as a “show of respect for Her Majesty.”
Following Norwich City Council’s decision to remove numerous bike racks around the city in honour of the late king, who passed away on Thursday, several people expressed their displeasure. From September 9 until September 21, the metal racks were off limits.
As a gesture of respect for the Queen, supermarket retailer Morrisons subsequently said that it had turned down the volume on its checkout bleeps and shut off music and tannoy announcements in its shops.
One consumer noticed the change and posted on Reddit that he was having trouble paying for his purchases since he couldn’t hear the “bleeps.”
While the country grieves, busking on the London Underground has also been suspended. The stoppage, according to Transport for London (TfL), is in effect at all subway and train stations throughout the time of national mourning, which concludes on September 19 after the Queen’s burial.
According to a TfL representative, “We have decided to halt the busking programme throughout our network for the time of national grief, and we will restore the scheme after this.”
In addition, the Met Office came under fire last week for declaring a temporary halt to its social media postings in honour of the Royal family in the wake of the Queen’s passing.
As a “mark of respect,” the forecaster informed its followers that it would “only be releasing daily predictions and cautions.” Though it is a crucial public service, people immediately questioned how releasing more specific weather predictions could be seen as “disrespectful.”