Monday 16th March 2020

Following recent news events, it is with heavy hearts that we have made the difficult decision to cancel our Alton Towers trip which was due to take place on Saturday 18^th April 2020. It would have been our 7^th annual trip to the theme park and we appreciate that those who have purchased tickets will be as disappointed as we are by this decision.

As the situation with COVID-19 (Coronavirus) continues to unfold, the safety of our community is paramount to us and we need to ensure we take appropriate and responsible action.

Anyone who has purchased Alton Towers tickets and merchandise from Alopecia UK will receive a full refund. Refunds will be processed as soon as possible. We hope all payments will be refunded before the end of March. If there are any delays, we'll keep you updated. 

We have considered (in great detail) whether we could offer a postponement of the event rather than a cancellation but given the continued uncertainty surrounding COVID-19, along with our small charity status, we do not wish to put the charity at any greater risk of further financial loss.

We recognise the cancellation of Alton Towers 2020 may result in great disappointment and sadness to those of you who had booked to join us this year. We share in these feelings of disappointment and sadness. Our annual trip to Alton Towers is a highlight on the calendar for the AUK Staff Team. It is always a day filled with much positivity, support and fun.

We appreciate that some of you will have made hotel bookings. If you have flexible bookings, you may be able to obtain a refund from your accommodation provider. Premier Inn has recently announced they’re amending their terms and conditions to give flexibility to non-flexible bookings. Please check with your accommodation provider to check the latest position.

The AUK Team hopes you can appreciate the difficult decision we have made and we very much hope that we will come back bigger and stronger to Alton Towers in April 2021 (date TBC).

For further information on the decision reached, please see our Q&A below.

Why has Alopecia UK cancelled the 2020 annual trip to Alton Towers?

Given the cancellation of public events across the UK in light of Covid-19, Alopecia UK wants to keep its community safe and do its part to help to prevent the spread of the virus.

Why has AUK chosen to cancel the event instead of postpone it until later in the year?

We have chosen to cancel instead of postpone because:

• The most sensible time to postpone it to would be September/October as queue times are significantly longer in summer months. We’ve always avoided Summer holidays for this reason.
• We believe there will be a huge demand on attendees’ free time later in the year – many will be pushing back holidays to later in the year and lots of other events (concerts, fundraising events, conferences etc) are being postponed until September/October.
• It reduces the pressure on our small staff team. We have other projects that we’re committed to, as well as the need to ensure our staff take their annual leave too.
• Unless we wish to move the time of year that we have our annual Alton Towers event, we would have two Alton Towers events within a few months and this could impact how many attend in 2021

I have already ordered tickets and merchandise. Will I get my money back?

Yes, we will be processing full refunds to anyone who has ordered tickets and merchandise. All refunds will be processed by 5pm on Tuesday 17^th March and should show back in your account within 5-10 days.

When will the next Alton Towers event take place?

We hope to return to Alton Towers, bigger and better than ever in Spring 2021.