HOLIDAY HELL
Baby rushed to hospital and family seriously ill after ‘traumatising’ 5* all-inclusive Turkey holiday
Heartbreaking photos show the kids unwell after their "once-in-a-lifetime" getaway
A MUM-of-three says her family are "traumatised" after falling ill on a five-star all-inclusive holiday.
Holly Parkin flew to Turkey with her partner Matthew Morris and their kids for a "once-in-a-lifetime" getaway in September 2023.
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But their eight-day jaunt, which cost £3,777, turned into a nightmare when they "fell ill with suspected food poisoning" on their second full day.
They allegedly suffered violent diarrhoea and vomiting and their one-year-old daughter Mireya-Grace ended up on an IV drip in hospital.
Following the ordeal at Granada Luxury Belek Hotel in Antalya, they now all "never want to go on holiday again".
The 27-year-old, from Dagenham, East London, said: "It was horrible and heartbreaking.
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"[The children] were crying and, even now, they are sort of traumatised from the experience.
"It was something that we saved up money for and it was like a once-in-a-lifetime holiday."
In May 2023, Holly booked the break for herself, Matthew, 25, their kids Kaidan, four, and Mireya-Grace, one, and her eight-year-old daughter Amelia from another relationship.
She used the website Loveholidays - which she had never used before - but said the process went "well".
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"We were so excited.," she said.
"My eldest daughter had already been on holiday with other family members but Kaidan had never been on a plane so he was really excited.
"Mireya-Grace was only a baby at the time so it was going to be her first experience too.
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"It was our first full family holiday together."
Initially, the hotel seemed "great", Holly said. After arriving late on the first night, the staff reportedly went out of their way to prepare some special food.
"The whole next day was also great and we got to experience the pool and the entertainment in the evening," she added.
But the following morning, Holly said her partner and three children were suddenly “bedbound”.
"It was diarrhoea, it was vomiting, it was a lot," she said.
"I felt a bit queasy but I did not really get ill myself; it mainly affected my partner and my three kids."
She also said her two older children, who have autism, “do not handle being sick very well” and they were getting “worried”.
“It was really upsetting. It was stressful,” Holly said.
“It was all over the beds, I had to keep changing the beds myself,” she said, adding the youngsters were “quite delirious”.
From being so happy and so excited to then just wanting to come home – you shouldn’t feel like that when you go on holiday
Holly Parkin
Amelia assumed they had picked up a travel bug, telling her family they should isolate in their room so as not to pass it on to other guests.
Holly said similar food was served each day in a buffet, and they all ate some of this before falling ill.
“They had some of the cakes, the desserts, chips, mashed potatoes, pastas, things like that,” she said.
“We did not touch any of the salads and we did not eat any of the other meat, it was only chicken.”
After her family became sick, Holly said she refused to eat from the hotel and ordered pizza from a nearby Domino’s.
“[My family] were not eating at all. The only thing I could do was go to the shop and get them drinks and bottled water,” she said.
Holly said she spoke to four other families at the hotel who also reported they were feeling unwell.
WIDESPREAD SICKNESS
“They had the same sort of vomiting and diarrhoea,” she added.
Holly said a “lot” of the guests tried to speak to the front desk but they did not understand how they could help.
“They offered to give us an extra night for free but we were like, ‘We are all leaving’,” she said.
“They gave us an email address for the manager but when I emailed, it just came back saying it was invalid.”
Holly said she was even invited to a WhatsApp group chat called “Granada Sickness” where other affected tourists had been sharing their experiences of becoming unwell.
Comments and posts seen on Facebook show other holidaymakers complaining of experiencing the same symptoms while staying at the same hotel.
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The family’s holiday was due to last for eight days but Holly said they managed to fly back one day earlier at an additional cost of £351.
Returning to the UK, Holly said she booked a GP appointment, where she was given some sample bottles to test her children’s stools.
However, Mireya-Grace started to develop a rash which was not disappearing so she phoned for an ambulance.
She and her siblings were taken to Queen’s Hospital in Romford, where the tot was allegedly put on an IV drip to replenish her fluids.
Do I have food poisoning?
Food poisoning is rarely serious and usually gets better within a week.
It’s hard to miss the symptoms, which include:
- Feeling sick (nausea)
- Diarrhoea
- Being sick (vomiting)
- Stomach cramps
- A high temperature of 38C or above
- Feeling generally unwell – such as feeling tired or having aches and chills
- The symptoms usually start within a few days of eating the food that caused the infection.
- Sometimes they start after a few hours or not for a few weeks
How to treat food poisoning
You can usually treat yourself or your child at home.
The symptoms usually pass within a week.
The most important thing is to have lots of fluids, such as water or squash, to avoid dehydration.
You should also see a doctor if along with other symptoms you have high fever, blood in your stool, or feel dehydrated or unable to keep any food or liquid down.
Make sure you stay off school or work until you have not been sick or had diarrhoea for at least 2 days.
Source: NHS
Holly said her children’s blood and stool tests were “inconclusive” and her doctor put the family’s illness down to food poisoning.
“They said that with everything going around, they were going to put it down as food poisoning because I wanted answers but they couldn’t get anything conclusive as to what it was,” she said.
Matthew started to recover but the children were unwell for another 15 days, Holly added.
She said she contacted Loveholidays “straightaway”, with the company telling her it would need confirmation as to what the illness was before looking further into the matter - which she didn't have.
Holly said she also contacted the hotel directly but has not heard anything from them.
"From being so happy and so excited, counting down the days, to then being there and just wanting to come home – you shouldn’t feel like that when you go on holiday," she added.
Granada Luxury Belek Hotel contested whether symptoms experienced by guests were derived from food poisoning, suggesting instead they could have a number of other causes including changed eating habits, sunstroke, over-consumption, swallowing chlorinated pool water and responses to a change in weather.
A spokesperson added: “Our hotel is one of the first hotels in Turkey to receive a safe tourism certificate.
“All our food and beverage units and pools are systematically inspected by state-accredited organisations.
“The results of these inspection reports are available and are shared transparently with all tour operators upon request.”
A Loveholidays spokesperson said: “We are very sorry to hear of Ms Parkin and her family’s experience at their hotel.
“As we were not made aware of their concerns while they were on holiday, we were unable to investigate or provide them with support during their stay.
“As soon as we were made aware of Ms Parkin’s complaint on her arrival home, we immediately raised an investigation with the hotel and requested documentation from Ms Parkin to support her claim for compensation.
“This was not supplied and, as a result, Ms Parkin’s claim was later closed.
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“We have been back in touch with Ms Parkin to request the required documentation and will remain in touch with her throughout this process.”
Granada Luxury Belek Hotel has been contacted for comment.
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