Following a wave of backlash last year, a holiday railway in Ontario continues to be the target of one-star reviews from customers who allege that several advertised events were cancelled at the last minute without refunds issued in a timely manner. 

York-Durham Heritage Railway (YDHR) offers a variety of seasonal and holiday-themed train rides based out of Uxbridge through the Oak Ridges Moraine, including Christmas High Tea, North Police Experience & Train Ride, and Nightcap with St. Nick. 

In December 2022, the railway announced that due to unforeseen mechanical issues, all of its event train rides would be postponed, and all affected guests were promised to be rebooked for a future date. 

During the following months, many customers continued to allege that they had not been issued a credit for a future booking, and criticized the railway for its "lack of customer service." 

Popular holiday trains in Ontario bombed with one-star reviews for not issuing refunds https://t.co/cxaC9VCyHU #Ontario

— blogTO (@blogTO) March 23, 2023

Amid the flurry of backlash, a spokesperson from YDHR told blogTO that the small staff behind the charity was working diligently to serve all 4,000 guests and come up with a new system to rebook all the credits. 

At the time, the railway consistently reminded guests that as a non-profit, registered charity with the government, refunds were not issued as part of its terms and conditions, with credits issued for future use instead. 

However, the president and CEO of YDHR, John Graham Perks, now tells blogTO that the policy has since changed, with customers purchasing tickets receiving a full guarantee that if an event is cancelled, they will receive a full refund. 

Despite this, the railway currently has a 3.3-star rating on Google, with some of the latest reviews still highlighting issues with customer service as well as the program's quality. 

"We had a very disappointing experience when compared to last year. For the significant price we paid for, I was hoping to have at least the same joy we had in 2022. This didn't happen," a one-star review reads. 

"Aboard the train, there was zero entertainment. It was just a 30-minute plain ride, onboard of a decorated train. Santa came along right away, gave each child a key and that's it." 

"Still no refund or communication. Do not buy tickets from them. Booked for a train ride, but they had to cancel my reservation because the event changed to a pumpkin event," another customer wrote.

"They offered a new event time and event. I told them I cannot attend what they offered and requested for the refund at the beginning of October. I am still waiting for that refund and no response on the status of it either." 

Another common complaint among the one-star reviews revolves around the length of the train experience itself, with some folks confusing the window of time to visit versus the time they were asked to board the train. 

"At the time of purchase, guests selected a window of time to visit the experience, and in that window, was a specific train time, and it was in the middle of the experience," Perks told blogTO. 

"However, guests had forgotten the train time, so when they arrived for their experience time (a two-hour window), they immediately wanted to board the train. This is not what was advertised and planned around." 

After this confusion, Perk says the railway changed the format for the events and entertainment schedule, and had guests board the train at the beginning of their experience. 

"This worked well and stopped any confusion. People were happy with this change, and we have done this for all future trains of this season." 

The charity has admittedly faced several challenges during the past few years, including lockdowns, a tornado that devastated the railway's grounds, and unprecedented mechanical issues that saw the cancellation of several highly-anticipated events. 

In response to complaints regarding the event's quality, Perk told blogTO that many customers continue to be happy with the shows and performances. 

"Some were not. While it is our aim to please all of our guests we realize that with 3,600 people in attendance this weekend it's not always going to be possible," he explained. 

"The 20 reviews that I have seen are pretty split between five-star and one-star of this past weekend's event, however, there is always room for improvement on opening weekend and we have adjusted some times and schedules for better optimization." 

Despite the negative reviews, Perks says that the railway has managed to sell over 11,000 tickets, and positive comments continue to trickle in. 

"It's been a very hard few years for us," he told blogTO. "But we are confident that we will have an amazing holiday season and our guests are going to be very happy."