It was pretty busy from 1pm til 4pm when we were at the Xmas Fayre... but never rammed.
I have several thoughts on the admission fee.
£2.50 is simply wrong, I have never been charged admission to any Xmas market in Europe, never mind the UK. If they MUST charge, then I think £1 is fair.... but I still have to wonder why.
Many of the more niche stalls were very quiet, many of the traders were sat looking bored and playing on their phones. Yet they were paying £1000 for the 4 day pitch. Not viable.
The food stalls were very busy indeed, and that is a theme which is seen in the high street these days. More coffee shops, more cafes are opening... but shops that sell ‘things’ are struggling and closing down.
If the organisers are using the Live Entertainment as a justification for the charge (and I noted on Facebook that they are), then that is a gross misrepresentation.
The vast majority of the ‘acts’ on the inside marquee were simply schools and school choirs.
I watched two sessions of line dancing pensioners, and they were so bad they were hilarious. They were having fun (I think?) but they were terrible.
Line dancing is a hobby, please don’t pass it off as entertainment... and please don’t pretend that they are being paid a lot of money to perform.
That said, the Xmas Fayre was the best one I’ve been to in Llandudno and we spent about £70 on the usual cheeses, bits to eat etc... but it is not anywhere near the size or quality of the Leeds, Manchester or Lincoln ones... and they are FREE to get into.
The prize for the cleverest entrepreneur goes to the lady who runs the Upper Crust cafe on Madoc St.
She pitched a gazebo outside the event (thereby not paying rent) and charged £4.50 for roast pork sandwiches, which were SIX POUNDS only 20 feet away inside the event. She was RAKING it in.