Grand Cettia Hotel, Marmaris branded “health hazard” by guest
A holidaymaker posting on Tripadvisor has branded the Grand Cettia hotel in the Turkish resort of Marmaris a “health hazard”, after guests fell ill with bacterial food poisoning.
The reviewer posting on 11 September writes that while staying at the hotel in August his family became ill with symptoms of sickness and diarrhoea. During their stay, more than 60 guests were ill with holiday food poisoning. Around 10 were hospitalised and placed on drips over a three-day period, including his wife and young grandchildren.
“The diagnosis from the hospital is an acute bacterial infection more than likely caused by unsanitary hygiene standards from the hotel swimming pool,” says the Tripadvisor reviewer.
The family-friendly Grand Cettia Hotel offers all-inclusive holidays. A guest reviewing the hotel online at Tripadvisor on 6 September mentions repetitive food, which may have caused the gastric illness their party suffered while at the hotel.
“They have hygiene issues at the hotel, causing me and my son to fall ill. Food is bland and repetitive and limited.”
Other Tripadvisor reviews for August 2013 also point out that the hotel pool is overcrowded and the food quality poor. One reviewer said the food was “more like 2 star” than 4 and the hotel dismissed their illness as dehydration. They went on to say, “as you can see by below comments this was down to food poisoning but hotel loved brushing this under carpet”
Bacterial infections such as Salmonella, Campylobacter and E.coli can easily spread throughout a large hotel if there are lapses in food hygiene or general cleanliness – and food served on buffets can easily become contaminated if reheated and/or re-served the next day.
The Grand Cettia, Marmaris has a history of outbreaks of holiday gastroenteritis, but Thomas Cook still sends guests to the hotel – and several Tripadvisor reviewers feel that tour operator descriptions of the hotel do not match the reality.
Several reviewers also point out that they felt the Thomas Cook representative was “unfriendly” and even “rude”.
The guest posting on 11 September whose family was hospitalised writes:
“…the Thomas Cook representative was totally dismissive of all allegations, even suggesting that the hospital diagnosis was wrong and that a guest had arrived with a minor viral infection that would clear in a couple of days”.
Holiday representatives are the first people guests should complain to about illness on holiday or poor hygiene at holiday hotels. If the rep is not available or does not respond, guests should contact the UK customer services department of their tour operator by email or phone while still in resort.
Any holidaymakers who have stayed at the Grand Cettia in Marmaris and have fallen ill with holiday food poisoning should obtain a GP diagnosis on their return home – and contact Simpson Millar’s holiday claims team for free initial advice on how to make a no win no fee holiday claim.
At the time of writing, no response to the allegations about bacterial illness at the Grand Cettia, Marmaris or Thomas Cook and its staff have been posted on Tripadvisor.
