Family's TUI 'holiday from hell' with 'raw food' and 'bug infestation' at hotel

31 August 2023 , 23:02

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Kimberley Tooth, her husband Stephen and daughter Sarah

A Brit family are furious after TUI allegedly refused them any compensation after a "holiday from hell" in Greece.

Kimberley Tooth, her husband Stephen and daughter Sarah paid just under £4,000 to stay at the Lydia Mari's hotel in Rhodes at the start of July. But the trip turned sour when on two occasions the family claim their food was served raw and an infestation of flying ants and bugs meant they had to change rooms.

They say this led to sleepless nights and a huge bill for eating out but on their return home to Hatton, Derbyshire, the holiday company allegedly refused to pay out on the grounds they had rejected an offer for compensation while at the resort.

The family say they were served undercooked food on multiple occasions

Kimberley told DerbyshireLive: "Our holiday was ruined. It was horrific. I've stopped in two-star hotels before that were better than this. I'm disgusted with TUI. It's not even the money that we're bothered about, it's the fact that we've not even had an apology and they've not looked into it."

The eleven-night trip, which started on July 1, was going swimmingly until the first morning when Kimberley described the continental breakfast as "stone cold" and inedible. She says she gave it the "benefit of the doubt" as a minor blip. But that night, on returning for dinner, Mrs Tooth's husband Stephen, 38, cut into some roast chicken which she described as "bleeding, pink and still raw". The family complained to the chef, but claim they were turned away and told that the chicken was "meant to be like that".

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That evening, they claim they went back to their room to find flying ants everywhere. In the middle of the night, Kimberley says a centipede crawled across her daughter's face. The family complained to the receptionist but say they were told that there were no spare rooms left so they couldn't be moved elsewhere. Instead, they say, they were told someone would be sent to fumigate the apartment.

Kimberley says a centipede crawled across her daughter's face

The following evening, however, the apartment remained infested, says Kimberley, 35, with "dead insects absolutely everywhere". Her 16-year-old daughter, frightened, didn't sleep at night and would instead sleep on the sun loungers during the day, restricting the family to spending much of their holiday at the resort.

On the third day, having eaten out for the previous two nights after the incident with the chicken, the family opted to return to the hotel for an evening meal. But they say they suffered the same misfortune as on the first night - claiming the minced beef was pink in the middle. They claim they were again told by a chef that there was nothing wrong with the food.

Kimberley says she herself suffered with an upset stomach on one of the nights. For the rest of the holiday, they purchased food elsewhere - setting them back another €500. They then complained to a holiday rep and were moved from the infested room to a room Kimberley described as "really dated". She says the rep told her he'd have to contact the head office to resolve the complaint after the holiday.

With the Rhodes wildfires erupting just a week or so after their return to the UK, Kimberley said that while the family hadn't heard anything regarding their trip, they understood that the fires would have been top priority for the company. But then she received an email, almost a month later, which said: "I can see that you were offered compensation in resort that you have chosen not to accept. On this occasion, we will not be able to offer any compensation but we greatly appreciate your feedback."

Kimberley emailed back to allege that they had not been offered the refund in question. But a response from TUI then said: "Thank you for your email. From reviewing the complaint and speaking to the necessary members of staff we will not be able to offer any compensation. If you are not happy with the outcome of the complaint then you can see further advice from ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents)".

TUI has been approached by the Mirror for comment.

Joseph Connolly