Sickness bug at the Sensimar Seaside Suites and Spa (formerly El Dorado Seaside Suites)

We have years of experience of helping holidaymakers to claim compensation from their tour operator, and in that time we have become aware of hotels that repeat a pattern of holiday illness. One way a hotel can try to get around the bad reputation that can come from repeated instances of holidaymakers becoming ill, is to change the name on the door. The Sensimar Seaside Suites and Spa might seem like a relatively new hotel, but it might surprise you to know that it used to go by a different name.

The road from El Dorado to Sensimar

We have previously received a number of enquiries from British tourists about what was formerly known as the El Dorado Seaside Suites by Karisma, including group illness claims. Since coming under the Sensimar brand, the Sensimar Seaside Suites and Spa have continued to be offered by TUI owned TUI and Frist Choice who advertise the hotel as an adult’s only all-inclusive resort. They tout that the hotel, which is located in the Riviera Maya region of Mexico, features a “peaceful swathe of beach” in addition to pools, Jacuzzis and gourmet dining. While these facilities give the Sensimar Seaside Suites the appearance of being a five star resort, from online reviews it appears that this isn’t the case.

Guests report problems and illness

While there are several TripAdvisor reviewers who have praised the Sensimar Seaside Suites, many other guests have complained about the standard of the rooms, with several saying that they were damp and dark; a far cry from what they were expecting.

Stevenage holidaymaker ‘Newmarket1970’ says that aside from feeling that the there was no distinction between the premium and standard facilities, and that there were several young couples taking advantage of the all-inclusive drinks; the Sensimar Seaside Suites had a number of positives. Unfortunately these positives didn’t prevent ‘Newmarket1970’ from picking up a “stomach bug” that they “picked up after a week“, resulting in being “signed off work.”

‘Richard V’ travelled to the Riviera Maya hotel to celebrate his tenth wedding anniversary and amongst several issues that included a broken toilet seat and a faulty air-conditioning remote that caused his room to become so damp that his wife received an electric shock from a drenched and poorly fitted electrical socket, he too suffered an illness. In his review he says that on the fifth or sixth day they also experienced a “stomach bug” which resulted in a “swollen liver and stomach cramps“, and from talking to “several other couples in the premium block” they found that they weren’t alone.

How can air-conditioning be hazardous to your health?

From the reviews on TripAdvisor it appears that some of the rooms at the Sensimar Seaside Suites have a damp problem, possibly due to their age, although from many of the reviews it appears that this could be caused by faulty air-conditioning units. A poorly maintained air-conditioning unit can result in harmful bacteria breeding within droplets of water, and this can lead to that bacteria being spread when the air-conditioner is in use. For instance; Legionnaires Disease is a bacterial infection that is known to be caused by faulty air-conditioners, and it can result in a range of holiday ruining symptoms such as a fever that can be accompanied by chills, as well as headaches, muscle pains and lethargy.

Reports of poor conditions are concerning

With guests reporting that conditions at the Sensimar Seaside Suites are in such a poor state, with guests reporting on TripAdvisor that they’ve been asked to leave their air-conditioning on to prevent mould from growing on the walls, there could be further problems that aren’t being addressed. If these problems aren’t limited to what has already been mentioned in these reviews, it’s likely that once the summer holiday season begins we’ll begin to see further reports of illness, as more unsuspecting guests travel to the Mexican hotel.

What can I do if I experience a loss of earnings?

If like ‘Newmarket1970’ you return from home with a holiday illness that leaves you unable to work, resulting in a loss of earnings, you may be able to claim for compensation. If you booked a package holiday then under The Package Travel Regulations 1992 your tour operator is responsible for your health and wellbeing while at an all-inclusive hotel. This means that if you became unwell due to the negligence of a hotel such as the Sensimar Seaside Suites and Spa, you can still claim compensation from your tour operator, which can include compensation for any loss of income you may have experienced.

How can I find out if I’m entitled to compensation?

While you can contact your tour operator to find out if you can claim compensation for an illness, but this is not something that we would recommend. Tour operators have been known to massively under settle illness claims at a fraction of their true value, so before making a formal complaint speak to our holiday claims team and we’ll give you a free no-obligation consultation, during which we can advise you of the true value of your claim.