Online sales are available up to 2 hours before kick off, so 1pm for a 3pm ko.
You can print your own tickets free or if you have a smart phone you scan at the turnstile for free.
Re the online system, you can preload your associates without buying tickets.
Log in and go to "Your Account" to do so.
Apparently it's to ensure that it is verified. The club then e mail your associates, to confirm they know you etc etc. So if this is all done beforehand, you should be good to go, when you wish to buy tickets.
I'll give it a go for my 8 or so.
Ok an update.
I have successfully had a trial run & could have bought 5 tickets for a home friendly & 5 tickets for Bury away.
It appears that you do not have to put in any other persons details in order to buy the "home" tickets.
Just put in the number required, choose your seats & pay.
It appears that you do have to put in the names of your connections/associates for the away games and that is so that the tickets can be registered against their name, in case this is required for priority purchases at a later date.
There are no online charges if you print at home or collect them. Postals are charged at £1 per ticket.
If your friends/family are already registered on the system you need to request that they are connected/associated to yourself, so that you can then buy tickets for them. You can tell if they are already on the system by trying to connect them. If they are on the system & you request a connection an e mail is sent to them & if they accept, you are then connected & able to buy for them.
If they are not on the system you need to add them by inputting their name & e mail address and it then asks you to add their address. Once you've done that, nothing needs verifying, because you already had their details and can buy straight away in their names.
It took a while as I just did 8, but it now works fine.
The only issue is there is no recognition for Valley Gold holders, so if you were booking priority as a Valley Gold holder, it won't work, as in won't recognise they are Valley Gold.
I phoned the club and they say they are looking into this.
A friend of mine bought his 3 season tickets online, then noticed it did not take off the Valley Gold discount, had to phone ticket office, still waiting for his £45 to be credited back to his credit card.
A friend of mine bought his 3 season tickets online, then noticed it did not take off the Valley Gold discount, had to phone ticket office, still waiting for his £45 to be credited back to his credit card.
Like I say the system doesn't recognise Valley Gold.
If I turn up ten minutes before KO and incur the £3 surcharge for buying a ticket in person, it will cost me the same as it did last season. I feel my victimhood has been compromised.
If I turn up ten minutes before KO and incur the £3 surcharge for buying a ticket in person, it will cost me the same as it did last season. I feel my victimhood has been compromised.
You could try telling yourself that it's the same price for even more crapier L1 football, a worse atmosphere, what I suspect will be an even weaker squad and with T&Cs that mean that you can't complain if netting goes up. Does this help?
Very pleased to see the club react to the criticism and set out what the new pricing is.
Better late than never but still well done.
Lesson to be learnt. Manage this process better and put the explanation out first, don't sneak it out and then get surprised when it gets pulled apart. That's why you should have a Comms manager so that telling the story is an integral part of the process not a panic add on after the horse has bolted.
The match day prices are OK although £26 for league 1 in my old seat is still a lot IMHO.
The underlying issues remain
1. Is the ticketing IT system fit for purpose? That they have to set up a portal to help people register says not.
2. What is the purpose of this? Cutting the "massive" queues is the stated reason but another way of doing that would be having more ticket office staff.
And most important the aim should be to increase income and attendances. In what way does this contribute to that aim?
I'm still not sure how this will achieve this and I still doubt that this was the aim.
Online sales are available up to 2 hours before kick off, so 1pm for a 3pm ko.
You can print your own tickets free or if you have a smart phone you scan at the turnstile for free.
Re the online system, you can preload your associates without buying tickets.
Log in and go to "Your Account" to do so.
Apparently it's to ensure that it is verified. The club then e mail your associates, to confirm they know you etc etc. So if this is all done beforehand, you should be good to go, when you wish to buy tickets.
I'll give it a go for my 8 or so.
Ok an update.
I have successfully had a trial run & could have bought 5 tickets for a home friendly & 5 tickets for Bury away.
It appears that you do not have to put in any other persons details in order to buy the "home" tickets.
Just put in the number required, choose your seats & pay.
It appears that you do have to put in the names of your connections/associates for the away games and that is so that the tickets can be registered against their name, in case this is required for priority purchases at a later date.
There are no online charges if you print at home or collect them. Postals are charged at £1 per ticket.
If your friends/family are already registered on the system you need to request that they are connected/associated to yourself, so that you can then buy tickets for them. You can tell if they are already on the system by trying to connect them. If they are on the system & you request a connection an e mail is sent to them & if they accept, you are then connected & able to buy for them.
If they are not on the system you need to add them by inputting their name & e mail address and it then asks you to add their address.
It took a while as I just did 8, but it now works fine.
The only issue is there is no recognition for Valley Gold holders, so if you were booking priority as a Valley Gold holder, it won't work, as in won't recognise they are Valley Gold.
I phoned the club and they say they are looking into this.
My experience with this notification system for registering connections is that it never works. However, you can buy for one person in multiple price categories, which isn't going to provide the data they want but that's not my problem.
Very pleased to see the club react to the criticism and set out what the new pricing is.
Better late than never but still well done.
Lesson to be learnt. Manage this process better and put the explanation out first, don't sneak it out and then get surprised when it gets pulled apart. That's why you should have a Comms manager so that telling the story is an integral part of the process not a panic add on after the horse has bolted.
The match day prices are OK although £26 for league 1 in my old seat is still a lot IMHO.
The underlying issues remain
1. Is the ticketing IT system fit for purpose? That they have to set up a portal to help people register says not.
2. What is the purpose of this? Cutting the "massive" queues is the stated reason but another way of doing that would be having more ticket office staff.
And most important the aim should be to increase income and attendances. In what way does this contribute to that aim?
I'm still not sure how this will achieve this and I still doubt that this was the aim.
All I can say is that my idea of a massive queue surely cannot match the Club's idea. The 'queue control' barriers they put up outside the ticket office some seasons ago have long been redundant and a sad reminder of when we happily queued for away matches.
Unless they are employing only one person and that person doesn't turn up on match day, the chance of a moderate sized-queue, let alone a massive would, in my opinion, seem highly unlikely.
Online sales are available up to 2 hours before kick off, so 1pm for a 3pm ko.
You can print your own tickets free or if you have a smart phone you scan at the turnstile for free.
Re the online system, you can preload your associates without buying tickets.
Log in and go to "Your Account" to do so.
Apparently it's to ensure that it is verified. The club then e mail your associates, to confirm they know you etc etc. So if this is all done beforehand, you should be good to go, when you wish to buy tickets.
I'll give it a go for my 8 or so.
Ok an update.
I have successfully had a trial run & could have bought 5 tickets for a home friendly & 5 tickets for Bury away.
It appears that you do not have to put in any other persons details in order to buy the "home" tickets.
Just put in the number required, choose your seats & pay.
It appears that you do have to put in the names of your connections/associates for the away games and that is so that the tickets can be registered against their name, in case this is required for priority purchases at a later date.
There are no online charges if you print at home or collect them. Postals are charged at £1 per ticket.
If your friends/family are already registered on the system you need to request that they are connected/associated to yourself, so that you can then buy tickets for them. You can tell if they are already on the system by trying to connect them. If they are on the system & you request a connection an e mail is sent to them & if they accept, you are then connected & able to buy for them.
If they are not on the system you need to add them by inputting their name & e mail address and it then asks you to add their address.
It took a while as I just did 8, but it now works fine.
The only issue is there is no recognition for Valley Gold holders, so if you were booking priority as a Valley Gold holder, it won't work, as in won't recognise they are Valley Gold.
I phoned the club and they say they are looking into this.
Makes filling in a tax return seem a pleasure, rather than a chore!
Ha, ha very good CE, but lets not let anything get in the way of a good old moan at the regime eh!
Maybe its the club's way of getting back at the protesting fans that are not renewing!
And it's really easy to make light of the difficulties this will create for others.
I very often these days decide on the morning of the match whether I can go or if someone is coming with me. I don't live far from The Valley so I generally roll down there at about 10:30 and get my tickets. If I'm right that the match that day will be taken offline it means I have to know the day before. What on earth has made the club decide to
For those arguing this is in some way illegal are wrong. The club have the right to do this. They are arseholes but well within consumer law.
Likewise I as a customer have the right to say "up yours" with your policy. They want my business ? Then make it as easy for me as possible to spend my money not as difficult as possible.
These people are raving lunatics.
My understanding is online sales will be available until 1pm on a matchday.
Except the website is shockingly bad and not everyone can or wants to buy online.
I totally agree with you. Last night I tried to buy tickets for Bury online and it wouldn't let me buy them because I was unable to link the other person going with me who was already in the database when asked to fill in their details.
I find it amazing the club make it so difficult for them to take your money.
Looks like something's changed, have just now bought my tickets for Bury and this time it was able to let me buy them without having to link the other person I bought the ticket for.
Also I was only charged £1 for delivery of both tickets rather than the advertised £1 per ticket - the club may want to rephrase this to £1 per booking instead.
A tiresome experience but got there in the end. I just hope buying for future away games won't be so difficult but we'll see.
Yesterday i managed to register online to the ticket office website [at the3rd attempt] & ordered a ticket for the Bury match. as to avoid paying any extra admin costs,i chose the ticket collection option.This morning i went to the Valley to collect my ticket & was told they had posted it to me in error.I have just arrived home to find my ticket on the mat. Whilst waiting in the queue at the ticket office i overheard a couple of things which may be helpful,junior or disabled ticket options do not seem to be available for the Bury game have to be booked over the phone or bought at the Valley will not incur any admin charges. The ticket website is not fit for purpose.
Online sales are available up to 2 hours before kick off, so 1pm for a 3pm ko.
You can print your own tickets free or if you have a smart phone you scan at the turnstile for free.
Re the online system, you can preload your associates without buying tickets.
Log in and go to "Your Account" to do so.
Apparently it's to ensure that it is verified. The club then e mail your associates, to confirm they know you etc etc. So if this is all done beforehand, you should be good to go, when you wish to buy tickets.
I'll give it a go for my 8 or so.
So a surprise present of tickets to a game isn't possible is it. As the Stasi need to 'verify' those attending.
Yes it is. You don't need their details for home purchases & of course you can still buy at the ticket office, if you wish.
I haven't been able to buy a ticket online for ages despite having bought online for years. They don't reply to emails. Bollocks to them.
Nor could I until I took the trouble to work it out today & they were very helpful when I phoned with a query. Once you've sussed it, it seems quite easy.
The trouble is there were never clear instructions issued & publicised, although I do recall something last season telling you how to do it somewhere.
The problematic bit is having to allocate away tickets to your friends/family for away games, but now I understand why. It is so they get priority at a later date for tickets bought, so I now can see why this is needed.
Yesterday i managed to register online to the ticket office website [at the3rd attempt] & ordered a ticket for the Bury match. as to avoid paying any extra admin costs,i chose the ticket collection option.This morning i went to the Valley to collect my ticket & was told they had posted it to me in error.I have just arrived home to find my ticket on the mat. Whilst waiting in the queue at the ticket office i overheard a couple of things which may be helpful,junior or disabled ticket options do not seem to be available for the Bury game have to be booked over the phone or bought at the Valley will not incur any admin charges. The ticket website is not fit for purpose.
Hang on a second, there was a queue?!!!
There was one person in front of me who was buying a variety of tickets including the home friendlies & the game at Bury. By the time he finished another person was waiting behind me.
the main problem with all this malarkey is you only really look through your own eyes. There are hardcore died in the wool people here like Covered End. He will always be a ST holder no matter what, so buying tickets for home games is a non question. He is a regular away traveller who will go out of his way to get tickets. He's also got a lot of spare time to follow things through.
I've been a ST holder for 20+ years but not now. For home games, my approach will be to see how things are at home on the day (what's on, kids behaving etc) and make a late decision. Know it will have a £3 surcharge will be a distraction to me as much as the principle as opposed to increased money.
I'm not registered on the online system, so if I'm not, I suspect most aren't. The general feedback of the system is lets be honest, disastrous. I also don't have a printer at home.
So many unecessary barriers seem to be put in place that are just more likely to deter people from going than encourage.
They should be desperate to get as many people through the doors as possible yet all this is driven at trying to squeeze down the costs of junior office staff, and rip a few extra quid out of tourists who are in London and want to take a game in (which is more than you realise).
Comments
I have successfully had a trial run & could have bought 5 tickets for a home friendly & 5 tickets for Bury away.
It appears that you do not have to put in any other persons details in order to buy the "home" tickets.
Just put in the number required, choose your seats & pay.
It appears that you do have to put in the names of your connections/associates for the away games and that is so that the tickets can be registered against their name, in case this is required for priority purchases at a later date.
There are no online charges if you print at home or collect them. Postals are charged at £1 per ticket.
If your friends/family are already registered on the system you need to request that they are connected/associated to yourself, so that you can then buy tickets for them. You can tell if they are already on the system by trying to connect them. If they are on the system & you request a connection an e mail is sent to them & if they accept, you are then connected & able to buy for them.
If they are not on the system you need to add them by inputting their name & e mail address and it then asks you to add their address. Once you've done that, nothing needs verifying, because you already had their details and can buy straight away in their names.
It took a while as I just did 8, but it now works fine.
The only issue is there is no recognition for Valley Gold holders, so if you were booking priority as a Valley Gold holder, it won't work, as in won't recognise they are Valley Gold.
I phoned the club and they say they are looking into this.
I feel my victimhood has been compromised.
Very pleased to see the club react to the criticism and set out what the new pricing is.
Better late than never but still well done.
Lesson to be learnt. Manage this process better and put the explanation out first, don't sneak it out and then get surprised when it gets pulled apart. That's why you should have a Comms manager so that telling the story is an integral part of the process not a panic add on after the horse has bolted.
The match day prices are OK although £26 for league 1 in my old seat is still a lot IMHO.
The underlying issues remain
1. Is the ticketing IT system fit for purpose? That they have to set up a portal to help people register says not.
2. What is the purpose of this? Cutting the "massive" queues is the stated reason but another way of doing that would be having more ticket office staff.
And most important the aim should be to increase income and attendances. In what way does this contribute to that aim?
I'm still not sure how this will achieve this and I still doubt that this was the aim.
Unless they are employing only one person and that person doesn't turn up on match day, the chance of a moderate sized-queue, let alone a massive would, in my opinion, seem highly unlikely.
Also I was only charged £1 for delivery of both tickets rather than the advertised £1 per ticket - the club may want to rephrase this to £1 per booking instead.
A tiresome experience but got there in the end. I just hope buying for future away games won't be so difficult but we'll see.
Valley Away coach seats can be booked in person at The Valley or by calling 03330 14 44 44. Further information is also available from the Valley Ticket Office.
Read more at http://www.cafc.co.uk/tickets/valley_away/index.aspx#0i53PVFqphtmoo80.99
The trouble is there were never clear instructions issued & publicised, although I do recall something last season telling you how to do it somewhere.
The problematic bit is having to allocate away tickets to your friends/family for away games, but now I understand why. It is so they get priority at a later date for tickets bought, so I now can see why this is needed.
If only we had a Communications Manager.
By the time he finished another person was waiting behind me.
I've been a ST holder for 20+ years but not now. For home games, my approach will be to see how things are at home on the day (what's on, kids behaving etc) and make a late decision. Know it will have a £3 surcharge will be a distraction to me as much as the principle as opposed to increased money.
I'm not registered on the online system, so if I'm not, I suspect most aren't. The general feedback of the system is lets be honest, disastrous. I also don't have a printer at home.
So many unecessary barriers seem to be put in place that are just more likely to deter people from going than encourage.
They should be desperate to get as many people through the doors as possible yet all this is driven at trying to squeeze down the costs of junior office staff, and rip a few extra quid out of tourists who are in London and want to take a game in (which is more than you realise).