A BRIDE-TO-BE has expressed her frustration at the announcement that the venue she and her fiancé picked for their big day was reopening - just weeks after it initially announced its shock closure. 

Heidi Watts and her fiancé Alex McGregor, from Caerphilly, were due to tie the knot at the Cardiff Coal Exchange on Saturday, August 17, and were shocked when the hotel announced it was closing immediately having fallen into liquidation in October 2023. 

The couple, who had already paid more than £4,000 to the hotel, were left devastated at the news and with an alleged 'lack of communication', leaving them with no idea how, or when they would get their money back. 

They have spent the last few months searching for a new venue that would fit their date and party size, and thankfully managed to secure Court Colman Manor in Bridgend on January 27. 

Then, a few weeks after the closure, the Coal Exchange announced on Facebook it was reopening, which it did on March 8 under new management, and would honour all bookings from then.

But returning to the Coal Exchange just isn't an option for the couple, with money tight and having to make sure they could get married on the date planned due to Mr McGregor's role in the Armed Forces. 

Ms Watts said: "When we heard the news, I thought it was completely ridiculous. I noted that if we had waited just one more week, we might've been able to stay at the hotel and go ahead as planned. 

"But with Alex's job, we didn't have the opportunity to wait around as this is only date we can get married, and we know August is a popular month for weddings and other events, so we wanted to get on with it and find somewhere so we could be sure we'd be able to go ahead."

After reading the full details of the reopening on social media, Ms Watts also realised that while the hotel was set to honour any bookings, they were expecting customers to pay again and sign new contracts, as it was now under new management. 

South Wales Argus: Heidi Watts and Alex McGregor are now due to get married in Bridgend instead of their first choice of CardiffHeidi Watts and Alex McGregor are now due to get married in Bridgend instead of their first choice of Cardiff (Image: Supplied)

She said: "We can't afford to pay again, so we decided it wasn't worth going back after having to deal with the stress of moving everything to the new venue."

Ms Watts has blamed the lack of communication from the hotel as the primary reason for their decision, as she said that if they had been given some indication of what was happening at the time, they might've done things differently. 

She said: "This was our first choice of venue, so naturally we're very disappointed not to be getting married there, especially as we were going to be giving them a lot of business with around 100 guests set to stay over the whole weekend."

The couple are in the process of obtaining a refund from their credit card companies, as these were used to pay for the original wedding, after the Coal Exchange said the new management would not be returning the money from the original bookings. 

Ms Watts said they were told they would not be able to get a refund directly from the hotel as their event was after 8 March, and had not been cancelled by the hotel. 

Eden Grove Developments Ltd, the building's freeholder, which has taken over management of the hotel from Coal Exchange Operations LLP, said staff members will be getting in touch with customers soon to discuss details and provide any necessary updates. 

They added only customers with bookings prior to March 8 would be able to get a refund on their website. 

They said: "We understand the disappointment this may cause and urge affected guests to visit our website blog, where comprehensive information on obtaining a refund can be found.

"We deeply appreciate the understanding and flexibility of our valued guests during this transition period."