Margate's £17 million showpiece gallery has been branded the Turn Away Contemporary by angry and disappointed visitors.

People turning up yesterday were greeted by closed doors and a notice saying the gallery was shut, and staff were stationed outside to pass on the message in person.

The main complaint is that the "closed on Monday" message was not made obvious enough - on the gallery's website, in literature handed out or in press, radio and TV broadcasts. Disappointed visitors say the words "gallery now open. Free admission" were displayed at the top of the homepage on the Turner Contemporary website on Monday.

The general perception in all the advanced publicity is that Turner Contemporary was open from April 16-25 as part of a massive 10-day welcoming celebration.

Primary school teacher Julie Simpson from Canterbury planned to take her children - Rosie, 15; Poppy,13; and Charlie 11 - plus her mother who was on holiday visiting from Liverpool.

She said: "All the hype said that Turner Contemporary is opening with a massive 10-day celebration. We were urged to come along and be part of Margate's great new attraction and support the town.

"We did it and wished we hadn't bothered. It was shut. There were people on the steps turning folk away. One of the staff even had the nerve to tell me I should know that all art galleries shut on a Monday."

What a difference a few days makes: Turner Contemporary on its opening day

A Broadstairs artist, who did not want to be named, added: "I want to support Turner Contemporary. I went along to the opening on Saturday and the sing along on Sunday. At no time were any public announcements made to us that it would be shut on Monday.

"It is the first weekend, the start of a new cultural dawn for the town, it is the platform on which so many hopes rest, and it is touted as a cornerstone for regeneration. And two days after a brilliant opening, it all ground to a miserable halt.

"Can nobody see the sense in maintaining the momentum to encourage people to return again and again?"

Several disgruntled visitors also sent messages to the Turner Contemporary Facebook page, expressing their disappointment.

Turner Contemporary's press and events officer Chloe Barker said: "Turner Contemporary has always stated that it would be closed on Mondays, except Bank Holidays.

"We had a number of people arrive in Margate on Monday April 18 disappointed not to find the gallery open.

"We are sorry for those people who made the effort and hope that they have the chance to come back in future to enjoy the building and exhibition.

"We are open from 10am to 7pm all other days of the week, except Fridays when we remain open until 10pm.

"Our opening hours are included in all our marketing materials and on our website.

"Over the weekend of 16/17 April we displayed posters at the gallery and sent messages via social media informing visitors that we would be closed on Monday 18 April. On 18 April we posted staff on the door of the gallery to meet visitors and explain why we were closed.

"On Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 April we had more than 15,000 visitors to the gallery - this represents 10 per cent of our total forecast visits for the entire year. It was therefore essential to close on Monday in order to clean the building, maintain the artwork and restock the cafe and shop.

"We now remain open over the whole of the forthcoming Bank Holiday weekends and look forward to welcoming thousands more visitors over this busy period."

• See our special review of the gallery's opening