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Thread started 08/15/07 3:07pm

monotheism

REPORT VIP PROBLEMS ON OPENING NIGHT

please would all those who suffered a bad experience with their VIP package on the opening night please tell me what problems they experienced on the night in question. Also, what did you do? what was the outcome of your efforts? Many thanks.
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Reply #1 posted 08/15/07 4:15pm

blackbob

avatar

well just putting down a few lines of my two concerts and aftershow experiences on the 1st and 4th august at the o2 ...well i bought two vip tickets at a cost of 470 pounds for the opening night with my brother..
.
i already knew that i didnt get a seat on the floor or within the first ten rows as was advertised when i bought them but i just couldnt be bothered fighting with them as i knew i had made a mistake buying them in the first place so just decided to make the best of it...got to the o2 around six which was the time stated on the tickets that the vips would be allowed into the arena...well this , of course , didnt happen and they left us queing up until 6.30 before they finally opened the doors which was bad enough...so we got a wristband on and where given a free cd ...no programme, no goodie bag...nothing..!!!!..
.
so i said ok ...it can only get better as we have paid 200 quid over the normal cost of the ticket for this so it must be great in the backstage bar !!!!...got into the backstage bar and we were given a drink as we entered and we took a seat overlooking the arena which looked amazing...so we sat there having a drink and wondering when we would get some of our 400 pound buffet ???...time went by and i went to the bar to get another drink...we had three vouchers each...one for beer or wine and two vouchers for a spirit ????....so if you happened to prefer spirits...you could only get one free drink at the bar ??? ( am i wrong in thinking they are talking the piss with this ??? ) ..
.
so i got a beer and went and sat down and after about half an hour, we managed to grab some small portions of food off a passing waiter...( you had to move fast or you got nothing )...me and my brother both got a few small portions of food but were so hungry when we took our poor vip seats in the corner ...i had to get two hot dogs ???... the backstage bar was getting busy after about an hour and at this stage...the bar was so busy ...my brother took over half an hour trying to get a drink..(they only had three bar staff on ??? )...i just couldnt believe how bad it was and how little we got...i didnt feel like a vip at all...i just felt ripped off but as i said...i wasnt going to let it spoil my concert experience....so at 8.15 ...they told us to leave the backstage area and head for our seats...we were told that we couldnt go out the way we came in as thats were our corner seats were...we had to walk right round the whole arena to get to our seats and missed the start of the concert ???.....
.
once there ...we enjoyed the concert although the ending was a bit of a mess with the lights going up and then he came back for another 20 minutes which was a bit chaotic but he is great live.....
.
went to aftershow...was very tired and a bit drunk..stayed til 2.30...saw a bit of prince but was out on my feet so jumped a taxi back to hotel....
.
.
went to saturday 4th gig...went with my non fan girlfriend who now after the gig ..sees why i rate him so highly ..just had normal 31.21 tickets in lower tier but the experience was far better....has a better view of stage...sound was better...he was amazing ...didnt play enough hits for me as he is playing to a lot of casual fans so i really think if he is going to play these huge venues then he needs to pull out the big guns more often...just a small moan but as a diehard ...i dont care what he plays...he is just a fantastic performer...one of the best gigs of my life..
.
again went to aftershow...stayed until 2.00..seen a bit of prince again...enjoyed listening to the dj and having a wee dance.....dont know if its worth 25 quid but i paid it so it must be ...
.
.
so had a great few days...the vip experience was pretty bad for me but anyone going hopefully it will improve for you...just dont get your hopes up...
.
saturday gig was amazing....
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Reply #2 posted 08/15/07 4:33pm

endorphinuk

avatar

blackbob said:

well just putting down a few lines of my two concerts and aftershow experiences on the 1st and 4th august at the o2 ...well i bought two vip tickets at a cost of 470 pounds for the opening night with my brother..
.
i already knew that i didnt get a seat on the floor or within the first ten rows as was advertised when i bought them but i just couldnt be bothered fighting with them as i knew i had made a mistake buying them in the first place so just decided to make the best of it...got to the o2 around six which was the time stated on the tickets that the vips would be allowed into the arena...well this , of course , didnt happen and they left us queing up until 6.30 before they finally opened the doors which was bad enough...so we got a wristband on and where given a free cd ...no programme, no goodie bag...nothing..!!!!..
.
so i said ok ...it can only get better as we have paid 200 quid over the normal cost of the ticket for this so it must be great in the backstage bar !!!!...got into the backstage bar and we were given a drink as we entered and we took a seat overlooking the arena which looked amazing...so we sat there having a drink and wondering when we would get some of our 400 pound buffet ???...time went by and i went to the bar to get another drink...we had three vouchers each...one for beer or wine and two vouchers for a spirit ????....so if you happened to prefer spirits...you could only get one free drink at the bar ??? ( am i wrong in thinking they are talking the piss with this ??? ) ..
.
so i got a beer and went and sat down and after about half an hour, we managed to grab some small portions of food off a passing waiter...( you had to move fast or you got nothing )...me and my brother both got a few small portions of food but were so hungry when we took our poor vip seats in the corner ...i had to get two hot dogs ???... the backstage bar was getting busy after about an hour and at this stage...the bar was so busy ...my brother took over half an hour trying to get a drink..(they only had three bar staff on ??? )...i just couldnt believe how bad it was and how little we got...i didnt feel like a vip at all...i just felt ripped off but as i said...i wasnt going to let it spoil my concert experience....so at 8.15 ...they told us to leave the backstage area and head for our seats...we were told that we couldnt go out the way we came in as thats were our corner seats were...we had to walk right round the whole arena to get to our seats and missed the start of the concert ???.....
.
once there ...we enjoyed the concert although the ending was a bit of a mess with the lights going up and then he came back for another 20 minutes which was a bit chaotic but he is great live.....
.
went to aftershow...was very tired and a bit drunk..stayed til 2.30...saw a bit of prince but was out on my feet so jumped a taxi back to hotel....
.
.
went to saturday 4th gig...went with my non fan girlfriend who now after the gig ..sees why i rate him so highly ..just had normal 31.21 tickets in lower tier but the experience was far better....has a better view of stage...sound was better...he was amazing ...didnt play enough hits for me as he is playing to a lot of casual fans so i really think if he is going to play these huge venues then he needs to pull out the big guns more often...just a small moan but as a diehard ...i dont care what he plays...he is just a fantastic performer...one of the best gigs of my life..
.
again went to aftershow...stayed until 2.00..seen a bit of prince again...enjoyed listening to the dj and having a wee dance.....dont know if its worth 25 quid but i paid it so it must be ...
.
.
so had a great few days...the vip experience was pretty bad for me but anyone going hopefully it will improve for you...just dont get your hopes up...
.
saturday gig was amazing....




My opening night VIP experience was pretty much as above...

2 tix each at £235
Doors didn't open actually till nearly 645pm! Lots of complaints from ppl in VIP queue re late entry - no bar access - etc excuse was P doing sound chk and therefore can't be let in! Since bar overlooks the stage...

OK BUT! I was there on FRI night... door were open and I COULD hear soundcheck bieng done... let's go Crazy - U got the Look etc.... i asked security who confirmed it was sound check... I had regular ticket that night block C3...
SO that meant VIP peeps could see P doing his sound chk...

There really was nothing VIP about the whole experience... Seats where good but Bar - was manic 30 mins + to get a drink... 3 -4 bar staff... Hostesses with canapes etc scarce... Was a RIP OFF!

No probs with the ofcourse... loved evry minute... But someone is cashing in on the VIP - Quite scam I would say!

Havan't bothered complaining ... as AEG representatice said that on opening no guarntees to doors opening on time... etc dt sound checks and dunno wot else! Excuses really...

Regular tix in lower tiers have been good! just have ur own bevvie from one of the counters u get served quicker... no pushing and no pretentious corporate types! ya!

Back again this weekend for another fix

is that were all ur money goes? P Tix! razz
HE put my name across my thigh...
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Reply #3 posted 08/15/07 6:43pm

glyn

first time poster.


bought vip tickets for silver sturgeon cruise. Am vegan and don't drink, so basically paid a premium for good seats and a ride to the o2.

Tickets didn't arrive at my house via courier as promised so i had to pick them up at the boat. First got my ticket as i arrived off of the boat. block e1. row f,wrong end. Didn't realise quite how bad it was till about half an hour in, Seat was basically restricted view. Tried to move but was told to go back to my seat by security.

Phoned ticketmaster. Have written to customer services at the o2, who have forwarded my letter to the person at aeg who deals with hospitality. Am waiting to hear back. Have had email saying case is being processed. Will call tomorrow if i hear nothing. If not will enforce case with ticketmaster. (should probably have focused on them in the first place)

Seat was not as advertised, "best seats in first ten rows of floor section" so i am entitled to a full refund. It was more like "worst seat in the whole building if you like actually looking at prince."


have been 3 times since( Not vip)and had far far superior experiences.
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Reply #4 posted 08/22/07 3:56am

mpauls

monotheism said:

please would all those who suffered a bad experience with their VIP package on the opening night please tell me what problems they experienced on the night in question. Also, what did you do? what was the outcome of your efforts? Many thanks.



Hello,

I had a crap time at the so called VIP special package bla bla bla
It started out great, in line for VIP tickets pick up went smooth
got into the VIP buffet area and wasn't too impressed by it all, looked more like a school lunch room to us. Food was nice and we had 4 drink tickets for anything you wanted at the bar. First of all I ordered my tickets online May 11th for The VIP Aug 11th show, those suckers wouldn't show you where you seats were before you click ok... Anyway I figured for 425 pounds and they promised the best seats in the house that it was safe to click the order now button. WRONG! when we walked down to our seats they were in Block F2, Row C seats 18 & 19 at the back of the stage! All we looked at the entire show was the back of the drummer & key boardest head! It sucked big time I feel so cheated! I have sent at least 5 emails to ticket master and to AEG in the past 2 weeks with no response but a we will send your complaint to the proper box/person. I'm wondering what we can do? How can we make sure other fans don't get ripped off also! How can we get some or all of our money back?
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Reply #5 posted 08/22/07 4:27am

spud80

glyn said:

first time poster.


bought vip tickets for silver sturgeon cruise. Am vegan and don't drink, so basically paid a premium for good seats and a ride to the o2.

Tickets didn't arrive at my house via courier as promised so i had to pick them up at the boat. First got my ticket as i arrived off of the boat. block e1. row f,wrong end. Didn't realise quite how bad it was till about half an hour in, Seat was basically restricted view. Tried to move but was told to go back to my seat by security.

Phoned ticketmaster. Have written to customer services at the o2, who have forwarded my letter to the person at aeg who deals with hospitality. Am waiting to hear back. Have had email saying case is being processed. Will call tomorrow if i hear nothing. If not will enforce case with ticketmaster. (should probably have focused on them in the first place)

Seat was not as advertised, "best seats in first ten rows of floor section" so i am entitled to a full refund. It was more like "worst seat in the whole building if you like actually looking at prince."


have been 3 times since( Not vip)and had far far superior experiences.


Could you pleaase let me have the address to complain. I went last Friday to VIP - am a vegetarian - had three mushroom filo parcels and two glasses of wine for £235.00!!!
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Reply #6 posted 08/22/07 4:31am

spud80

endorphinuk said:

blackbob said:

well just putting down a few lines of my two concerts and aftershow experiences on the 1st and 4th august at the o2 ...well i bought two vip tickets at a cost of 470 pounds for the opening night with my brother..
.
i already knew that i didnt get a seat on the floor or within the first ten rows as was advertised when i bought them but i just couldnt be bothered fighting with them as i knew i had made a mistake buying them in the first place so just decided to make the best of it...got to the o2 around six which was the time stated on the tickets that the vips would be allowed into the arena...well this , of course , didnt happen and they left us queing up until 6.30 before they finally opened the doors which was bad enough...so we got a wristband on and where given a free cd ...no programme, no goodie bag...nothing..!!!!..

I was there on Friday - there was a curtain across so we couldn't watch the sound check. I did get a bit upset about the whole VIP situation but my lovely hubby just said you live and learn just enjoy the show. .
so i said ok ...it can only get better as we have paid 200 quid over the normal cost of the ticket for this so it must be great in the backstage bar !!!!...got into the backstage bar and we were given a drink as we entered and we took a seat overlooking the arena which looked amazing...so we sat there having a drink and wondering when we would get some of our 400 pound buffet ???...time went by and i went to the bar to get another drink...we had three vouchers each...one for beer or wine and two vouchers for a spirit ????....so if you happened to prefer spirits...you could only get one free drink at the bar ??? ( am i wrong in thinking they are talking the piss with this ??? ) ..
.
so i got a beer and went and sat down and after about half an hour, we managed to grab some small portions of food off a passing waiter...( you had to move fast or you got nothing )...me and my brother both got a few small portions of food but were so hungry when we took our poor vip seats in the corner ...i had to get two hot dogs ???... the backstage bar was getting busy after about an hour and at this stage...the bar was so busy ...my brother took over half an hour trying to get a drink..(they only had three bar staff on ??? )...i just couldnt believe how bad it was and how little we got...i didnt feel like a vip at all...i just felt ripped off but as i said...i wasnt going to let it spoil my concert experience....so at 8.15 ...they told us to leave the backstage area and head for our seats...we were told that we couldnt go out the way we came in as thats were our corner seats were...we had to walk right round the whole arena to get to our seats and missed the start of the concert ???.....
.
once there ...we enjoyed the concert although the ending was a bit of a mess with the lights going up and then he came back for another 20 minutes which was a bit chaotic but he is great live.....
.
went to aftershow...was very tired and a bit drunk..stayed til 2.30...saw a bit of prince but was out on my feet so jumped a taxi back to hotel....
.
.
went to saturday 4th gig...went with my non fan girlfriend who now after the gig ..sees why i rate him so highly ..just had normal 31.21 tickets in lower tier but the experience was far better....has a better view of stage...sound was better...he was amazing ...didnt play enough hits for me as he is playing to a lot of casual fans so i really think if he is going to play these huge venues then he needs to pull out the big guns more often...just a small moan but as a diehard ...i dont care what he plays...he is just a fantastic performer...one of the best gigs of my life..
.
again went to aftershow...stayed until 2.00..seen a bit of prince again...enjoyed listening to the dj and having a wee dance.....dont know if its worth 25 quid but i paid it so it must be ...
.
.
so had a great few days...the vip experience was pretty bad for me but anyone going hopefully it will improve for you...just dont get your hopes up...
.
saturday gig was amazing....




My opening night VIP experience was pretty much as above...

2 tix each at £235
Doors didn't open actually till nearly 645pm! Lots of complaints from ppl in VIP queue re late entry - no bar access - etc excuse was P doing sound chk and therefore can't be let in! Since bar overlooks the stage...

OK BUT! I was there on FRI night... door were open and I COULD hear soundcheck bieng done... let's go Crazy - U got the Look etc.... i asked security who confirmed it was sound check... I had regular ticket that night block C3...
SO that meant VIP peeps could see P doing his sound chk...

There really was nothing VIP about the whole experience... Seats where good but Bar - was manic 30 mins + to get a drink... 3 -4 bar staff... Hostesses with canapes etc scarce... Was a RIP OFF!

No probs with the ofcourse... loved evry minute... But someone is cashing in on the VIP - Quite scam I would say!

Havan't bothered complaining ... as AEG representatice said that on opening no guarntees to doors opening on time... etc dt sound checks and dunno wot else! Excuses really...

Regular tix in lower tiers have been good! just have ur own bevvie from one of the counters u get served quicker... no pushing and no pretentious corporate types! ya!

Back again this weekend for another fix

is that were all ur money goes? P Tix! razz
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