Benidorm holiday 'ruined by too many Spanish people' as upset Brit woman cries
"The entertainment in the hotel was all focused and catered for the Spanish - why can't the Spanish go somewhere else for their holidays?"
A Brit tourist has said she ended up crying at the end of her two-week holiday as her Benidorm hotel had "too many Spaniards in it".
Freda Jackson, from Blackburn in Lancashire, had booked with a pal back in April 2017 to stay at the Poseidon Playa, located on the outskirts of the popular tourist spot.
The pensioner, who is in her eighties, opened up about the allegedly miserable time she had on her trip the following year raging, "why can't the Spaniards go somewhere else for their holidays?"
Retired care assistant Freda said her hotel was full with what she described as "rude" Spanish people - and as reported by the Mirror, she says one almost knocked her "flying" without so much as an apology.
The grandmother-of-six, who lives with mobility issues, said: " The hotel was full of Spanish holidaymakers and they really got on our nerves because they were just so rude.
"One evening a Spanish guy nearly knocked me flying and he just walked off without even apologising."
And when it came to the entertainment on offer, unimpressed Freda was left far from amused. She recalled: "The entertainment in the hotel was all focused and catered for the Spanish - why can't the Spanish go somewhere else for their holidays?"
As explained by Freda, she'd been recommended the Poseidon Playa by travel operator Thomas Cook, and was left dismayed on a number of counts.
Although she'd request flat ground access, Freda says her accommodation was located on a slope. She and her friend, who had paid a total of £1,133 for the holiday, went on to demand either a full refund or a free trip as compensation.
Freda continued: "I have never complained about a holiday before - but this one was a disaster from start to finish. My friend and I paid for it from our pensions and it was a struggle trying to fund it over 12 months and the holiday was totally ruined - I cried after.
"We wanted to go somewhere on flat ground and not in the hills because we have mobility issues. To top it off, once we got to reception they told us we had been put on the 14th floor - thankfully we were moved to the second floor - and that it was 42 steps down to the hotel's swimming pool."
Freda, who has previously enjoyed trips to Greece, Turkey, Portugal and Tenerife, alleged Thomas Cook "mis-sold" and "ruined" what should have been a dream holiday.
She and her then 61-year-old friend journeyed 1,500 miles from Manchester Airport to Alicante on May 10 of that year, having allegedly not been notified their flight dates had changed.
According to Freda, she had to submit a letter of complaint directly to Thomas Cook, as there were no reps on the holiday to whom she could air her various grievances. Thomas Cook bosses initially offered the duo a £75 holiday voucher as compensation for the "disappointing" experience.
Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community!
A Thomas Cook spokesperson issued the following statement at the time: "Due to a system error Ms Jackson was not informed of a change to her flights until six days before departure.
"We are very sorry for the inconvenience this caused and are investigating to make sure it doesn't happen again. We have offered Ms Jackson and her travel companion a gesture of goodwill to try and put things right, which we hope she will accept."
The grandmother later denied she had made any derogatory comments about Spanish people.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mirror
2 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Popular holiday resort issues new tourist rules which could cost Brits £1,000s
Brits will face penalty charges of up to £3,375 for tourists who flout behaviour codes in the Algarve resort of Albufeira after city hall legislators approved the strict new rules The Algarve holiday resort town of Albufeira, Portugal, has gone to war with badly-behaved Brit tourists by approving huge new fines. Penalty charges of up to €4,000 (£3,375) for holidaymakers who flout a strict new good behaviour code were agreed on Friday by local councillors. British tourists were first warned about the new get-tough rules in February when Albufeira 's mayor Jose Carlos Rolo announced the 'Code of Conduct' plans and put proposals out to public consultation. This week the process took a giant leap forward as it emerged holidaymakers can be hit with the fines once they are published in an official state bulletin, expected to happen soon. People who enter bars and other business premises with their tops off will face fines of up to €1,500 (£1,250) under the new rules, with the wearing of beachwear outside of allowed areas also being tackled. Spitting or urinating in the street will be punished with fines of between €150 (£125) and €750 (£630). And badly-behaved tourists who end up naked in public, or get caught having or simulating sex, face fines of between €2,000 (£1,685) and €4,000 (£3,375). Bars and cafes who let customers in without the proper dress code will also be hit with financial penalties under the new rules. Mayor Mr Rolo last night signalled his intent to try to take Albufeira upmarket and win back some of the families said to have been scared off by the reports of alcohol and drug-fuelled behaviour. He told local press "tourists who fall down drunk aren't needed here at all" as he said he was seeking a three-pronged approach of 'dissuasive measures', marketing and meetings with British diplomats. He also called on the central government to draft in more police. The mayor said: 'We want security to be visible. Sending 10 police officers to stay at their station isn't going to solve the problem.' Only one of the 25 Albufeira councillors who voted opposed the new Code of Conduct, with critic Leonardo Paco claiming everything in it was already covered by national legislation. Other dissenters have cast doubt on the idea that police will end up going into bars and cafes to check whether tourists have their tops on. Last summer a group of partying British tourists put on a shocking display of public nudity which led to locals questioning the type of visitor the town attracted. Footage of their drunken antics, showing them naked on their knees in a line on top of a bar counter, went viral as Mr Rolo called the display 'deeply negative' and said he would call for police reinforcements. Eight British holidaymakers were later identified by cops. The GNR police force is understood to have discovered who they were following an investigation. The jaw-dropping scenes happened at Route Caffe 66 on the Oura Strip, Albufeira's equivalent of the infamous Punta Ballena party strip in Magaluf. One of the revellers was seen slapping the bare backside of a pal who was part of the bizarre party train. It is not immediately clear what if any action has been taken against them following an investigation.
Edinburgh Live
3 hours ago
- Edinburgh Live
British holidaymakers vow to 'never return' to Spain after 'bullying' by protesters
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Millions of UK holidaymakers could be rethinking their Spanish getaways amid growing concerns over overtourism. Despite a 10% year-on-year surge in foreign tourist arrivals in April, reaching 8.6 million visitors, and a 7% increase so far this year, with a total of 26 million, the protests have led some Brits to reconsider their summer jaunts, as reported by Birmingham Live. Brits remain a significant chunk of Spain's tourism, clocking in at over 4.7 million visits, marking a 6.7% uptick. Yet, the unrest has prompted some to alter their plans, with one holidaymaker saying: "I see their point, but I don't rent a property, I use hotels. But I'm not going to stay in a hotel in Spain after this year, I'm taking my accommodation with me so they can't whinge about that." Another traveller showed empathy towards the local sentiment: "I agree with them to a certain extent. It's the people who buy up residential houses like they do here and in Cornwall and Wales so locals have nowhere to live. Holiday makers who stay in hotels are providing a living for locals and they know that." READ MORE - World's richest royals have higher net worth than Bill Gates and Elon Musk combined READ MORE - Noughties playboy who dated Katie Price and married Jodie Marsh unrecognisable now A different tourist pointed out that the real change needs to come from higher up: "Their own governments and councils like those here need to stop the buying up of residential properties by greedy developers and stop the stag and hen parties." Outcry over the treatment of holidaymakers has led to sharp remarks, with one disgruntled visitor declaring, "There is no need to target all tourists, that's just bullying and aggression encouraged by the TikTok mob.", reports Yorkshire Live. Furthermore, a vexed tourist stated: "Spent a fortune in Tenerife over the years. Not anymore." These comments come as activist groups across Spain and southern Europe ready themselves for what's being dubbed as "an unprecedented mobilisation" scheduled for June 15. The upcoming protests are expected to disrupt holiday hotspots such as the Canary Islands, including Lanzarote and Tenerife, along with Barcelona and Majorca in the Balearic Islands. Representing the Madrid tenants' union, Valeria Racu has urged for rent strikes echoing recent actions in some coastal towns in Catalonia. Racu delivered an impassioned stance, asserting: "This is the beginning of the end of the housing business," before elaborating, "The beginning of a better society, without landlordism and this parasitical system that devours our salaries and our resources." Figures released by the union reveal that there are currently 1.4 million Spanish households spending over 30% of their earnings on housing costs, a significant jump of 200,000 families from ten years ago.
Daily Record
6 hours ago
- Daily Record
Benidorm holiday 'ruined by too many Spanish people' as upset Brit woman cries
"The entertainment in the hotel was all focused and catered for the Spanish - why can't the Spanish go somewhere else for their holidays?" A Brit tourist has said she ended up crying at the end of her two-week holiday as her Benidorm hotel had "too many Spaniards in it". Freda Jackson, from Blackburn in Lancashire, had booked with a pal back in April 2017 to stay at the Poseidon Playa, located on the outskirts of the popular tourist spot. The pensioner, who is in her eighties, opened up about the allegedly miserable time she had on her trip the following year raging, "why can't the Spaniards go somewhere else for their holidays?" Retired care assistant Freda said her hotel was full with what she described as "rude" Spanish people - and as reported by the Mirror, she says one almost knocked her "flying" without so much as an apology. The grandmother-of-six, who lives with mobility issues, said: " The hotel was full of Spanish holidaymakers and they really got on our nerves because they were just so rude. "One evening a Spanish guy nearly knocked me flying and he just walked off without even apologising." And when it came to the entertainment on offer, unimpressed Freda was left far from amused. She recalled: "The entertainment in the hotel was all focused and catered for the Spanish - why can't the Spanish go somewhere else for their holidays?" As explained by Freda, she'd been recommended the Poseidon Playa by travel operator Thomas Cook, and was left dismayed on a number of counts. Although she'd request flat ground access, Freda says her accommodation was located on a slope. She and her friend, who had paid a total of £1,133 for the holiday, went on to demand either a full refund or a free trip as compensation. Freda continued: "I have never complained about a holiday before - but this one was a disaster from start to finish. My friend and I paid for it from our pensions and it was a struggle trying to fund it over 12 months and the holiday was totally ruined - I cried after. "We wanted to go somewhere on flat ground and not in the hills because we have mobility issues. To top it off, once we got to reception they told us we had been put on the 14th floor - thankfully we were moved to the second floor - and that it was 42 steps down to the hotel's swimming pool." Freda, who has previously enjoyed trips to Greece, Turkey, Portugal and Tenerife, alleged Thomas Cook "mis-sold" and "ruined" what should have been a dream holiday. She and her then 61-year-old friend journeyed 1,500 miles from Manchester Airport to Alicante on May 10 of that year, having allegedly not been notified their flight dates had changed. According to Freda, she had to submit a letter of complaint directly to Thomas Cook, as there were no reps on the holiday to whom she could air her various grievances. Thomas Cook bosses initially offered the duo a £75 holiday voucher as compensation for the "disappointing" experience. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! A Thomas Cook spokesperson issued the following statement at the time: "Due to a system error Ms Jackson was not informed of a change to her flights until six days before departure. "We are very sorry for the inconvenience this caused and are investigating to make sure it doesn't happen again. We have offered Ms Jackson and her travel companion a gesture of goodwill to try and put things right, which we hope she will accept." The grandmother later denied she had made any derogatory comments about Spanish people.
