Yahoo News Family's Turkey holiday nightmare as £3,700 trip ends with baby in hospital
A mum has told how her family 'never wants to go on holiday again' following a traumatic experience which saw her baby daughter s rushed to hospital.
Holly Parkin, 27, splashed out £3,700 for a dream sunshine getaway to Turkey. But the trip turned into a nightmare when they all fell ill with suspected food poisoning, leaving them bedridden and resulting in her baby being put on an IV drip.
Holly, her partner Matthew Morris, 25, their children Kaidan, four, Mireya-Grace, one, and Holly's child from a previous relationship, eight-year-old Amelia, had embarked on an all-inclusive five-star holiday.
However, by the second day of the £3,777.21 vacation, Holly reported that the entire family, except for herself, were confined to their beds due to diarrhoea and vomiting for approximately five days. Upon returning to the UK a day earlier than scheduled, Holly stated that while her partner began to recover, her children remained unwell for another 15 days and required hospitalisation via ambulance, where her youngest was administered an IV drip.
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Holly mentioned that she had spoken with several other families who were staying at the hotel and who also reported feeling unwell. She added that she was invited to join a WhatsApp group where other guests have been discussing their experiences of falling ill at the resort.
Facebook comments and posts spotted by PA Real Life revealed that other travellers had lodged complaints about experiencing similar symptoms at the same hotel. The holiday was coordinated through Loveholidays. Now the company has expressed deep regret to the family for their distressing experience and has engaged with Holly, asking for medical paperwork to substantiate her claim for compensation.
Although physicians have attributed the source of their ailment likely to food poisoning, the blood and stool samples gathered from the children were non-definitive, meaning official documentation proving this affliction could not be provided.
The mother-of-three described the traumatic experience: "It was horrible and heartbreaking, they were crying and, even now, they are sort of traumatised from the experience in the sense they never want to go on holiday again."
She lamented over how the family's savings had been spent on what should've been a once-in-a-lifetime holiday event.
Holly added that the actual booking process for the trip was without complications, stating, "Mireya-Grace was only a baby at the time so it was going to be her first experience. It was our first full family holiday together."
Despite the unsettling incident, Holly, f initially reported positive impressions of the hotel which appeared "great" at first glance, with staff arranging some meals for the family upon their arrival after official dining hours were coming to an end. Recollecting the next day, she said: "The whole next day was great [too] and we got to experience the pool, the entertainment in the evening."
However, on their second day at the hotel, Holly revealed that her partner and three children were suddenly "bedbound". She explained: "It was diarrhoea, it was vomiting, it was a lot.
"I felt a bit queasy but I did not really get ill myself, it mainly affected my partner and my three kids. It was all over the beds, I had to keep changing the beds myself."
Following her family's illness, Holly decided to avoid the hotel food and ordered pizza instead. She said: "[They] were not eating at all, the only thing I could do was go to the shop and get them drinks and bottled water as they didn't want to drink from the hotel."
Holly also spoke with other families staying at the hotel who reported similar symptoms. She said many guests tried to speak with the concierge, but the hotel staff seemed unsure of how to assist.
The mother added: "They offered to give us an extra night for free but we were like, 'we are all leaving'. They gave us an email address for the manager... when I emailed, it just came back saying the email was invalid."
Originally planned to last eight days, Holly said they managed to fly back one day earlier at an additional cost of £351, driven by a strong desire to return home.
Upon returning to the UK, Holly immediately booked a GP appointment and was provided with sample bottles to test her children's stool. Despite this, when her baby Mireya-Grace began developing a persistent rash, Holly urgently called for an ambulance, leading to her children being admitted to Queen's Hospital in Romford. There, her youngest was placed on an IV drip to restore fluids.
She recounted: "I was trying to find solid evidence of what was causing it. At the end of it, all we got was that it was food poisoning."
The tests conducted on her children's blood and stool samples yielded "inconclusive" results, and their doctor attributed the family's sickness to food poisoning, although the exact cause remained unidentified. Holly reported the incident to Loveholidays immediately after their holiday, but was informed that confirmation of the illness was required before any further action could be taken.
Holly also reached out to the hotel directly but has yet to receive a response. Reflecting on the experience, she expressed her disappointment: "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".
In response to the situation, a Loveholidays spokesperson commented: "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. We have been back in touch with Ms Parkin to request the required documentation and will remain in touch with her throughout this process."
