Mum hospitalised with ‘severe food poisoning’ while at five-star hotel that had previously been investigated by BBC
A woman claims she ended up being hospitalised with 'severe food poisoning' a few days after staying at a five-star hotel in Turkey.
Jennifer Bowditch and her family bought a five-star all-inclusive package holiday to an unnamed hotel in Antalya, Turkey from 2-9 August this year, which was booked through travel company TUI.
According to the mum-of-two, it took just a few days before health issues started to arise as she claimed that she was hit with 'extreme diarrhoea and extreme sickness' after having the hotel buffet's chilli chicken.
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The 41-year-old claims that she only ate at the hotel during her trip, and was the only family member to eat chicken and therefore the only one to fall sick a few hours later.
Jennifer began to go 'in and out of consciousness' before being taken to a private hospital and put on an IV drip.
She later discovered that TUI was allegedly aware of food poisoning and hygiene complaints at the hotel following an official report published by BBC Watchdog in 2023.
While Jennifer and her family stayed at the hotel, she allegedly filmed hotel staff fishing poo out of the communal swimming pool using a net - the same thing that was documented in the Watchdog report.
When BBC Watchdog reached out to TUI in 2023, they admitted that they were 'aware of a small number of complaints' regarding illness at the hotel.
Jennifer later took to Facebook to vent her anger about the situation as the football coaching company director wrote a post urging others to steer clear of the five star hotel when 'it is not'.
She claimed: "It was a holiday from hell. It makes me feel sick that we spent all that money on a nightmare. It was scary.
"I'm sickened by how it's being ignored. People are screaming out for this to be noticed. The hotel is covering it up. I don't think TUI are dealing with it great.
"I've never been so ill. It's totally unacceptable.
"I believe it was the chicken I ate on the Monday. I was fine beforehand. We didn't go outside of the complex."
Jennifer said that she was 'extremely tired' after eating the chicken dish, and later she 'couldn't leave the toilet' as the sickness had become 'uncontrollable'.
After being taken to a private hospital, she said that she had to pay £2,000 in medical bills for a 24-hour stay while being given antibiotics while on an IV drip.
She said: "I said I had food poisoning. I know it was.
"I've got all my reports. On there it said it was an infectious disease and one said it was a gastric problem. They try and do everything but to word it as food poisoning.
"But they gave me all the drugs you'd be on for food poisoning. They didn't want to release me because I had low blood pressure. Another symptom of food poisoning."
Alleging that the hotel was 'dismissive' and saying they 'claimed they knew nothing about it' after they saw her get taken out in ambulance, she further claimed: "There was no accountability whatsoever. They kept saying 'prove it'."
TUI then allegedly didn't allow them to move hotels because they had 'nowhere to move them' and if they did, then they would have to pay.
Jennifer added: "We were scared of eating there. For the remainder of the two days my kids survived on pizza, chips, croissants, banana - beige food.
"I was on edge. I didn't trust them. I lost all faith in the hotel. The hygiene was horrendous. We survived for two days because we had to. I came back feeling horrendous.
"The hotel director let us eat in the adult-only hotel as a goodwill gesture. He said there were different chefs in there and a different atmosphere."
After requesting a full refund for her £7,500 trip from TUI, she called the five-star rating 'misleading'.
Jennifer said: "I hope TUI are dealing with it and handling it correctly. They knew about this report last year and are still selling it as a five-star hotel.
"There was a Watchdog report on this very hotel last year on the BBC.
"It's still on the TUI website showing it as a five-star hotel. They make it look amazing. It is very misleading.
"I saw a five-star hotel and thought 'you can't go wrong. You know you're safe'."
The hotel said that management kept a 'close communication' with the family throughout - including her time in the hospital - as they 'liaised with medical professionals'.
They also claimed that the holiday agency 'can confirm that there were no reports of poisoning', as they take all 'guest concerns seriously' and have 'adhered to all necessary procedures and responsibilities during this situation'.
LADbible has contacted TUI for comment.
Topics: Travel, Holiday, Health, Food And Drink
Joshua Nair