‘Absolute shambles’: Sam Fender fans left fuming as Newcastle hotel prices skyrocket for St. James Park show

Sam Fender fans have been left exasperated at the price and availability of hotels on the night when the singer plays a homecoming show at St. James' Park.

The North Shields star will perform a landmark set at the home of Newcastle United on June 9, 2023 and pre-sale tickets for the show went on sale this morning (Wednesday, September 7).

Many Fender fans got lucky in the pre-sale, celebrating scoring tickets online, but have been hit by a nasty surprise if they are travelling to the region.

A one-night hotel stay even at the cheapest of hotels for that day will cost any visitors to Newcastle hundreds of pounds - a simple room at Travelodge costs £200.

Room availability had plummeted even before tickets for Fender's gig hit the market with a number of fans taking the gamble of booking their hotel before tickets were even on sale.

Some of those have been left disappointed this morning. One fan on Twitter said: "Ffs I’ve already booked a hotel and I didn’t get Sam Fender pre-sale tix."

Another disgruntled fan said: "Absolutely shocked to see the greed by the hotels in Newcastle (most of which are already booked) charging £500 a night on just this night! Would love to see you but not sure I can justify it."

Even last week, one fan online wrote: "Nearly every hotel fully booked in Newcastle for the 9th June and the tickets haven’t even been released yet."

Another Fender-lover who was early on booking hotels said: "Booked a hotel in Newcastle about 2 minutes after Sam Fender announces a gig at St James’ park. £36 I got it for. The same hotel is now nearly £200, and back to £28 the day later. Absolute shambles."

June 9 is, of course, the famous date of the Blaydon Races which brings keen runners to the region, which may explain part of the competition for hotels.

Cheaper hotels for a one-night stay on that evening are available in nearby towns of Whitley Bay and South Shields, as well as Fender's own hometown North Shields. St. James' Park can be accessed easily on the Metro from these locations.