Manchester hotel accused of cancelling Oasis fans
Greater Manchester's night-time economy adviser Sacha Lord urged Maldron Hotels to "do the right thing" after receiving numerous complaints
Last updated 28th Aug 2024
A hotel chain has been accused of cancelling Manchester bookings coinciding with Oasis concerts, and reselling the rooms for triple the price.
Greater Manchester's night-time economy adviser Sacha Lord urged Maldron Hotels to "do the right thing" after he received numerous complaints.
In a post on social media platform X, he wrote: "Hey @MaldronHotels. I'm being contacted by several people who booked your hotel for the Oasis concert, to say their rooms have just been cancelled and are now back up for three times the price.
"I'm sure this is a "computer error"... easy to correct. Do the right thing."
A number of disgruntled customers posted screenshots on X of an email appearing to be from Maldron Hotels, stating that "due to a technical error, you have received a confirmation for a booking that was not successfully made".
Recipients were told they will be sent a "cancellation request" and asked to "accept promptly".
The company operates two hotels in Manchester.
On Wednesday morning they both had no rooms available from the start of July next year onwards.
Oasis are playing at Manchester's Heaton Park on July 11, 12, 19 and 20.
"Substantially more rooms booked than available"
In a statement Maldron Hotels' parent company Dalata Hotel Group has apologised, blaming a technical error:
"Due to a technical error with our booking system on 26th & 27th August 2024, substantially more rooms were booked than were available for the nights of the Oasis concerts on 11th/12th/19th/20th July 2025 at Maldron Hotel Manchester City and Maldron Hotel Cathedral Quarter.
"As a result, we are unable to honour all bookings made on these dates, and we are actively engaging with customers regarding their bookings.
"The hotels are currently not taking any bookings while we investigate the issue. This is not an attempt to resell rooms at inflated prices, rather an overbooking issue due to a technical error with our booking systems.
"Additionally, due to the same technical error, a small number of customers were able to book the rooms at a higher price later that evening. We will also be unable to accommodate these bookings.
"We will be honouring all bookings made prior to 26th August.
"We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience caused."
Premier Inn, the UK's biggest hotel brand, only has available rooms in Manchester at the city's airport on the nights of the Oasis concerts.
Another major hotel chain, Travelodge, has rooms at its Oldham Chadderton site - five miles from Heaton Park - priced from £190 for those dates.
Rooms at the same hotel on July 26 - a week after the gigs - are available for nearly half the price, at £97.