Festival promoter Cloud 9 Adventures has rebuked a petition from ticketholders for Wilco‘s Sky Blue Sky destination festival asking for refunds. The event at Riviera Maya, Mexico’s Hard Rock Hotel resort is set to run January 17th–21st.
Ticket-holders have expressed fears about testing positive for COVID upon departing from Mexico, and nearly 1,000 have signed a petition asking Cloud 9 for refunds as of this publication.
“In light of the huge uptick in covid cases and the highly transmissible Omicron variant, many festival goers are not comfortable participating in an event that has a high likelihood of spreading infection,” the petition reads. “Many customers have concerns regarding a mandatory quarantine in Mexico if they test positive upon departure.”
Several artists have dropped off of the initial lineup including Waxahatchee, Mountain Man, and Julian Lage. They have been replaced by Soccer Mommy and Ohmme.
Rolling Stone reports that Cloud 9 sent an email to ticket-holders on January 1st stating that “economic realities restrict us from offering full refunds.” The event’s website noted in a recent update that “Your Sky Blue Sky vacation is non-refundable.”
In a statement to Pitchfork, the concert promoter said, “Regarding traveling in and out of Mexico, the CDC put the testing requirement in place back in January 2021, before the event was announced or on sale. This has been a known factor for traveling back into the U.S. from anywhere in the world for a year now.” Instead, Cloud 9 has offered to waive all transfer fees up to the time of check-in for anyone who wants to sell off their tickets. As the statement reads,
Just as event organizers have to make non-refundable commitments to the resort approximately one year in advance, fans who make a reservation to attend the event also acknowledge that their trip is non-refundable. This is made clear at the time of booking.
It’s always a good idea to add travel insurance when booking a trip so far out, particularly in the winter months when travel delays, weather and illness can interrupt plans. Travel insurance has been recommended since the on sale and there are policies that can still be purchased up until the event. Complimentary extended stays are also offered by the resort and their third-party medical provider for any positive cases that may occur in Mexico until cleared for return travel.
Cloud 9 also put out a statement to patrons via its own social media accounts on Sunday in reference to its various upcoming events in Mexico, including SkyBlueSky and several others: “We hear you. We are reading every single email. Our team is small and we may not always have the answers, but we are getting through your questions as efficiently and thoroughly as we can. We understand you’re anxious. We also understand many of you need these shows. These vacations. These experiences. If we’ve been quieter than usual, it’s because we are working tirelessly to prepare for our events while navigating this complex and evolving situation. While we wish there was a solution to make everyone happy, some ideas just aren’t viable. Some of you are asking us to cancel. Many others are begging us not to. As of now, we are moving forward as planned.” Read the full statement here.
Cloud 9 maintaining its no-refund policy puts host act Wilco in an unusual bind. The band noted in a statement to Rolling Stone that it doesn’t have control over whether the event offers refunds.
“With respect to the Sky Blue Sky festival, Wilco has been independently contracted to perform at this event and to have their name used to promote sales of tickets, in the same manner as most other live appearances by the group,” the band said. “The festival promoter, Cloud 9, is solely responsible for and determines all ticketing policies, including pricing and availability of refunds or credits.”
Frontman Jeff Tweedy offered an explanation in more laymen’s terms.
“I 100% understand all the anxiety and anger and confusion that has been surrounding the SkyBlueSky festival,” he said in a livestream on January 6th. “Wilco, we’re in a similar boat to everyone, not the same boat obviously, but a similar boat in that we’re trying to figure it out. We’re a contracted entity for this event… We’re hoping there’s some situation that becomes clear and resolves itself in a way that makes everyone happy. I find that to be an unlikely outcome at this point. I don’t think there’s anybody intentionally trying to [expletive] anybody over. I think there are a lot of rocks and a lot of hard places to be in on this particular topic.”
This all comes in the aftermath of Dead & Company‘s canceled Playing In The Sand destination event, also in Riviera Maya. Prior to CID Presents‘ last-second cancellation of the event on Friday, the promoter relented to a similar petition and opened up a refund window for ticket-holders. All ticket-holders for Playing In The Sand were eventually offered full refunds upon its cancellation.
[H/T Brooklyn Vegan]
The post Cloud 9 Defends No Refunds Policy For Wilco’s Sky Blue Sky Festival, Jeff Tweedy Responds appeared first on L4LM.
