The letter regarding admission to The Spinnaker Tower reminded me of our group’s failed attempt to visit The Deep in Hull last April during a break to the city.

As the morning was forecast as being rather damp, we decided to visit The Deep. We had received brochures from Hull Tourist Office and 43 of our group were keen to visit.

When we arrived, around 10.15am, there were 23 cars in the car park – some of those were probably staff. We then went to buy tickets but were refused because we had not booked three weeks in advance.

We showed the people on reception the brochure, which mentions group rates but not the fact that you must pre-book; however this was dismissed as being out of date or the wrong one. We left having been refused admission. Together with the admission charge and the cups of coffee and cake that our group would almost certainly have had, the attraction lost in excess of £400.

Isn’t it amazing how a tourist attraction, which must have cost millions to construct, can afford to turn away paying customers.

Be warned, future visitors to Hull, groups can only visit The Deep if booked three weeks in advance.

Our visit to Hull was nevertheless enjoyed by all and our hotel, the Portland, was a great place to stay.

Sylvia Ward
Group Travel Organiser
Teasel Holidays, Essex

GTO asked The Deep to respond:

I am sorry to hear of your unfortunate experience.

The Deep is a well established and popular attraction for groups. Our pre-booking period is two weeks – in order to receive the group rate we ask groups to book and pay in full two weeks in advance and this is well publicised via our website and advertising. This arrangement suits the vast majority of GTOs and we have established many good relationships in this sector over the years. The lead in time enables us to cater for all the GTOs requirements including swift service on arrival, driver and group organiser incentives and parking.

There may be occasions when GTOs arrive without pre-booking, perhaps due to weather; in such cases the Duty Manager makes a decision on the day. Unfortunately on this occasion, clearly our receptionists did not refer the matter to the Duty Manager, for which we do apologise, as this may well have brought a different outcome.

Also, we advise all GTOs to call our bookings team, even if it is short notice so we can do our best to accommodate their needs and ensure that all groups enjoy The Deep.

Thank you for bringing this matter to our notice.

Linda Martin
Communications Director
The Deep, Hull