Frankee and Jonny James said there were a lot of problems and they came home early
A family claim their Spanish holiday was “ruined” by rude staff who prioritised locals at the hotel bar, leaving Brits to queue. Frankee and Jonny James, both 33, claim this was just one of many issues they encountered during their £1,800 holiday with their eight-year-old son, Rowan.
They describe it as a “holiday from hell”, citing unpleasant odours, substandard hygiene, and “mistreatment” of English guests at the Hotel Sorra Daurada Splash in Malgrat de Mar. They allege that they were overlooked for 10 to 15 minutes by hotel staff who went “over and above for the Spanish guests”.
The family ended up returning home two days early, claiming they suffered food poisoning and felt “unsafe”. They now intend to stick to UK holidays instead of travelling abroad.
Jonny, a prison officer from Bedford, said: “When my wife and I were ignored for 10 to 15 minutes at the bar, I witnessed the staff go over and above for the Spanish guests. They’d serve the Spaniards first while the Brits waited in the queue.
“I expected it to some extent because I’m aware how the Spanish in Spain can be, but it was annoying at the same time. We had all paid the same amount, but they were getting a better service than anyone else. It was annoying and frustrating.”
The family of three set off on Saturday, October 25, hoping to soak up the sun and enjoy a well-deserved break from work and school. They claim the four-star resort had advertised a water park and family-friendly atmosphere.
“In my head, I can get food and drinks whenever I want and there’ll be things to do for my son”, Frankee, an optical adviser, said. “I purposefully booked somewhere I assumed I wouldn’t need to leave the resort. It turned out to be the holiday from hell.”
Frankee revealed they were forced to fork out five euros for a reusable drinking cup upon arrival, whilst the vegetarian described the food as “bland” and poorly labelled. She claimed the water park remained shut and alleged there was a foul stench of sewage wafting from their room’s loo.
She continued: “We had to keep the toilet seat down and the bathroom door closed. If someone went to the toilet in the middle of the night, they’d wake us all up with the smell.”
Frankee alleged the hotel buffet was filled with raw eggs, mouldy butter and tomatoes. She revealed she consumed only chips, pasta, salad and pizza, but by the following morning, she was “vomiting”.
She explained: “I thought it could be because there was water on the salad. The same pizza cutter was being used for every pizza, like ham and fish, etc., so it could have been that also.”
They allege Jonny also became unwell following the meal and a doctor later confirmed that both parents had acute gastritis.
Frankee went on: “The manager only spoke Spanish and said he didn’t understand English. When I did find him, he went to walk off while shouting in Spanish.”
She revealed that the situation with the manager escalated to such an extent that she felt “unsafe”. This led the family of three to cut their holiday short by two days, returning home on Thursday, October 30, instead of their scheduled return date of Saturday, November 1.
Frankee expressed her disappointment, saying it was “horrible” that their first family holiday abroad since before the pandemic had been “ruined”. The family, who usually holiday in Devon, have decided to stick to UK-based breaks in the future. They were refunded £214 out of the £1,800 they had to fork out, but also had to shell out an additional £370 to alter their flight.
Hotel Sorra Daurada Splash did not respond to a request for comment.