A heartbroken bride-to-be has spoken of her shock after discovering her dream wedding venue was closing – one day after handing over her deposit.
On Sunday, Debbie Finnegan from Lowestoft paid her £300 deposit to secure Carlton Manor Hotel for her big day – only to find out the next day it was closing down.
The well-known wedding venue, in Carlton Colville, shocked many in the area when it announced it would be closing on Sunday, March 17.
Miss Finnegan said: 'It's an ideal location, good parking and space for the family to stay as well.
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'My daughter got married there five years ago – it was brilliant.
'We had gone to a wedding fair there about a month ago and booked the venue.'
Miss Finnegan had dreams of marrying Christopher Blake at the venue in May 2021 in front of 200 guests.
And while she is aware others have been placed in a far worse predicament due to the sudden closure it has had a ripple effect for every other part of her wedding.
The 49-year-old said: 'Chris didn't believe me when I told him; he thought I was joking.
'It's hard enough as it is to find a venue; I was heartbroken.
'There are some more serious ones who are down for June and July.
'I went there on Monday and saw their wedding organiser, she was quite shocked, she didn't know it was happening.
'I was annoyed that they took my deposit on Sunday if this was in the pipeline – these things aren't decided overnight.'
'It's a lot of inconvenience on my part.'
Miss Finnegan and her fiancé are currently in the process of recovering the deposit and finding a replacement venue before rescheduling the entertainment, wedding cars and decorators booked for Carlton Manor.
She added: 'I feel sorry for all the staff there, they didn't know this was coming.'
The shock closure of the hotel and venue has been blamed on the current economic situation by its owner.
In a statement on the closure Dee Mauree said: 'The decision was an extremely difficult one to make and was reached after much reflection and consideration.
'Due to the current economic climate and its uncertainty, keeping the hotel open in its present format is unfortunately no longer viable at the present time.'
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