11 February 2024 , 13:33
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A family claim their £10,000 all-inclusive TUI holiday was ruined when the hotel turned into the "wicked wild west" – with rowdy guests fighting and even spraying graffiti on the wall.
Melody and Paul Simms jetted off to Lanzarote on Christmas Eve on what should have been a fun and relaxing two weeks with their four kids but were left wishing they could fly home just one week into their stay. The pair booked their all-inclusive getaway to a four-star resort in Playa Blanca, Lanzarote, after it was recommended to them by a TUI rep in the local branch.
However, they claim to have been left disappointed to discover it was demoted to three-star just one month before their stay. After a request to change hotels was declined by TUI, the 45-year-old mum of four was shocked to discover that her kids had "nothing to do" during their stay as she says there were no activities available for kids aged between 12 and 16, despite it being a kid-friendly resort.
The ex-military worker says she was "devastated" after the holiday was ruined by the "disgusting" state of the resort and "shocking" fighting that allegedly saw police being called. There was also "unacceptable" graffiti, including a penis doodled on a wall by the pool. Melody claims she and her husband Paul were forced to spend an extra 500 Euros on meals and activities outside of the resort. Footage filmed by the couple shows the end of a "massive brawl", which Paul says involved 50 guests after tensions rose when the all-inclusive bar stopped at 11pm and guests had to pay for drinks.
Overflowing bins on the holiday (Kennedy News and Media)
Electrics hanging loose in the hotel (Kennedy News and Media)Paul and Melody claim there was also no working wifi, overflowing bins, broken lights and faulty locks across the resort and are now calling on TUI to remove the hotel from their brochure. Melody, from Fife, Scotland, said: "It's shocking. It's embarrassing, really. We're far from posh but our kids are not brought up around fighting. It was wild. It was like living in the wicked Wild West, it ruined the holiday. I feel devastated as a mum because I've ruined their Christmas - they get no presents at Christmas because they understand that we've paid for the holiday. The worst bit was for the kids and the entertainment. There was nowhere to go.
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"The darts was only once every three or four days and it was absolutely heaving because all the kids were bored and wanted something to do. There was a dart board with a penis on it. Why didn't they just paint over that? I even said [to a staff member], 'look at that, that's not acceptable,' and she just laughed because what was she meant to do? They were so understaffed and undermanned that we thought, who do we complain to? They're stressed, we're stressed.
"You feel helpless and stuck because you can't go home and you don't want to be there. You're kind of wishing the time away to get back to your house and your bed. If we could have paid for and afforded flights to come home we would have come home. It would have cost a fortune."
Dirt and crumbs between appliances (Kennedy News and Media)
A filthy darts board (Kennedy News and Media)Ex-force and oil and gas security worker Paul said the family didn't return to the hotel bar to avoid the constant fights between guests. He continued: "They advertised New Year's Eve as this all-singing, all-dancing party. They were doing fireworks at midnight, and everyone was looking forward to this. It was busy. That was probably the busiest night we had seen around the bar. You could feel the tension because it was so busy in that place. You were queueing for 20 minutes trying to get a drink.
"It was only a little bar and they only let you get two drinks at once. Some people in bigger families had to queue again and that p*ssed a lot of people off. At 11pm they stopped serving all-inclusive. If you wanted a drink you had to pay for it. A few scuffles started over near the bar. They started getting drinks from behind the bar. There were only a couple of bar staff and no security, so then it all kicked off.
The mass brawl by the pool at the hotel (Kennedy News and Media)"A little five-year-old got chucked in the pool and then World War Three erupted. [I filmed] the ending of a massive brawl. You could hear it all from the apartment. Children shouldn't have to see that. We didn't go out after that. We didn't go to the bar after 9pm because there were just too many scuffles."
Melody said: "They had a massive bar downstairs with a big stage and seating area which would have been better and accommodated everybody, they probably wouldn't have been fighting. But it was all closed."
Paul and Melody, 45, with their kids Elis, Ewan and Evie on holiday (Kennedy News and Media)Paul said: "We just feel completely robbed. It was shocking. There were bins and plates all down the side from [the night before]. Everything was just overflowing with paper cups and plates of food. Nobody looked like they were going around and cleaning up. The cleanliness, out of every hotel I've ever been in, was disgusting. It was shocking.
"We ended up starting to go out but we shouldn't have to go out of the resort and spend a lot more money. Everyone was getting peed off sat by the pool every day with not even music. We spent at least another 500 Euros. Some days we'd go out just to get out of the resort. I want to highlight the hotel and make sure nobody goes back to it. Don't ruin your holiday. Why TUI are still sending holidays there is beyond me."
Footage filmed by Melody and Paul Simms shows the end of a "massive brawl", which Paul says involved 50 guests (Kennedy News and Media)The hotel said they "cannot prevent customer fights" but claimed they "do everything possible to prevent them from happening." They claimed to carry out daily maintenance of the facilities and if they "see any inappropriate graffiti" they "paint as soon as possible to erase it." They also claimed that towels are changed whenever the guest leaves them on the floor and that they have activities every day except Sundays.
The couple complained to TUI but initally heard nothing. Paul said they later were contacted by TUI and told the firm couldn't be held responsible for the behaviour of other guests, but were investigating the family's complaint and offered compensation equivalent to around 10% of their trip cost.
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The Mirror has contacted TUI repeatedly for comment but received no reply.]
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