Dozens of people due to get married or hold their wedding reception at Needham House Hotel in Little Wymondley have been left devastated after the venue cancelled customers' bookings due to "government business".
Last week, the Comet reported how the hotel had suddenly closed to the public indefinitely, leaving customers - including couples who had booked the venue for their wedding - without a place to go.
Customers received an email saying: "Due to government business in the hotel, we have had to close with immediate effect. This does unfortunately mean we will not be able to accommodate your stay with us."
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Jade Kolonics and her fiancé Danny Neal were due to get married at Needham House on August 25.
Jade said: "Our invites have been sent and RSVP'd to, guests have booked hotel rooms - we have family coming down from all over - and now, only 15 weeks away from the big day, we have no venue, no food and no hotel rooms.
"I am beyond stressed and it has had a massive impact on my mental health."
Jade said Needham House has proactively been helping Jade and Danny find an alternative wedding venue.
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Meanwhile, customer Lewis Male said: "My partner and I are due to get married in July and had over 25 rooms booked at this venue for our wedding for family and friends travelling up from Somerset. We are devastated and not sure what to do at all."
Customers who have the venue booked for their wedding in 2024 have been left in limbo.
Nicola Harmel said: "We have our wedding booked next August and no refunds can be made because they have the [government] contract for one year.
"[Needham House] said the wedding will go ahead. However, the Novotel [in Stevenage] had a one-year government contract and it's now 1.5 years and they still haven’t opened the doors to the public.
"I cannot risk having three months to go for them to say they are extending the contract. We need the money from the deposit to put on another location."
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Rob Close also has his wedding booked at Needham House in 2024.
"We are devastated as it the perfect venue for us, but we are yet to have even heard from them," he said.
Having had no answer on the phone, Rob drove to the venue last week.
He said: "I found the hotel starting to be stripped down, furniture moved out the way and being organised into different areas.
"We had a meeting at the venue on May 4 to discuss upgrades to our package, booking further rooms, and layouts, with no inclination of anything like this happening.
"I have heard deposits paid for 2024 will not be refunded as this contract is only for a year and [Needham House] 'could' still honour these bookings, despite no way of telling what condition the facilities and rooms will be in."
The Comet has repeatedly tried to contact Needham House for comment, but has yet to receive a response.
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