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Call For Drastic Improvements As Holiday Hell Continues At Five Star Cuban Hotel

Published date: 01 Jun 2009

Travel law experts are calling for drastic improvements to be made after revealing that British holidaymakers are continuing to be struck down by serious gastric illness – including a confirmed case of salmonella – at a luxury Caribbean hotel more than a year after problems were first reported.

Irwin Mitchell Solicitors travel law team are pursuing legal action on behalf of 10 UK travellers who have suffered nightmare holidays at Playa Pesquero, Cuba’s biggest 5-star hotel.

More than a year after the first problems at the hotel were reported, the firm has been contacted by more tourists who have been hit by illness while visiting the resort. The guests at the hotel, which boasts nine restaurants, said the dining hell included finding bird droppings in food, dead flies in the meals and leftovers being mixed in with supposedly fresh dishes.

Baljit Singh Gill, 30, wife Rajbinder Kaur Gill, 31, travelled to the resort with

11-month-old daughter Shannon in August last year to celebrate their second wedding anniversary. But they were struck down with stomach cramps, diarrhoea and vomiting within days of arriving.

Mr Gill, from Erith in Kent, who booked their two-week all-inclusive trip through Thomas Cook, said: “The hygiene and safety standards were staggeringly poor. The buffet food halls were infested with flies and four times I was served meals with dead flies on them.

“We often saw cats roaming around the food areas and birds would peck at the meals on display – we even saw bird mess in some of the food. It was disgusting but we never saw any staff do anything to stop it or clean it up.

“We daren’t let Shannon eat anything but fortunately had baby food to give her. We weren’t so lucky as there were no shops nearby and had no choice but to eat at the hotel. We complained to our holiday rep and asked to be moved but he was pretty unsympathetic and just claimed we were in the best hotel in Cuba.”

Kyle McGory and Amie Harvey, both 22, from Leeds, also fell ill soon after arriving at the hotel in September last year for their Thomas Cook holiday. They are both still suffering from gastric illness.

Mr McGory said: “The food seemed old and reheated – their never seemed to be any new supplies.

“The hotel is advertised as a perfect location for couples or families looking for a relaxing luxury holiday in the Caribbean. That is certainly why we went but not the kind of holiday we got.”

Mark Watts from the International Travel Litigation department at Irwin Mitchell said: “It is shocking that for two years in a row there have been reports of illness at this hotel and distressing to see that holiday makers who travelled to Playa Pesquero for a relaxing break had their holidays completely ruined by illness as a result of unsatisfactory food, health and hygiene procedures.

“It is the responsibility of the hotel managers and tour representatives to ensure that basic health and hygiene guidelines are implemented to avoid outbreaks of illness.

“We are currently acting for a number of clients in their claims against Thomas Cook and First Choice following their awful holiday experiences at the Playa Pesquero in 2008.  We are also pursing a claim against Thomas Cook for holidays taken in 2009. We urge anyone effected in this way to come forward.”

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