Evening and Hello,
"Well at least until next week when we can submerse ourselves in newly-wedded bliss again as we head off on honeymoon! Egypt here we come!" - Oh famous last words ...
So firstly I should apologize. This is the first time I have spoken to you all since October and we are now mid-November. Most of which will be unveiled in this blog post but in short a melting pot of stress, anxiety, upset, and being poorly led to me not being able and/or well enough to write which has been hard but I am ready to now tell all. After having to postpone our wedding multiple times from October last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, I married my husband a little under a month ago, and following this, we decided to go back to Hays Travel (after we had used them back in September 2020 for the trip to Marmaris in Turkey which was incredible). Walking into the travel agents in Bedford we were there to book a very special trip indeed - Our Honeymoon. Paying over £1,600.00 for a five-star, all-inclusive hotel with flights, transfers, and airport parking at Gatwick, we were excited.
Websites and the agent described the Continental Plaza Beach Resort as a "5-star resort in Sharm el-Sheikh located in El Pasha Bay, otherwise, known as Garden Reef Bay due to its beautiful beach reefs teeming with marine life. Adjacent to Naama Bay, it was described as having 5 restaurants, an aqua park, an extensive spa, and with the bright rooms we were sure to be relaxing in Luxury. Rooms with large windows opening onto a terrace or balcony overlooking the sea or beautiful gardens and grounds, the facilities including satellite TV, an electric kettle, and marble bathroom would all be bonuses. The agent informed us of all the restaurants at the Continental Plaza Beach Resort, serving world cuisine, ranging from Italian to Indian to barbecue specialties. And for the times when your belly was full and you wanted to laze by one of the 4 pools, there were also swim-up bars serving refreshing cocktails and light snacks. There was also a Gym for all those who couldn't escape a workout but for me the only working out to do was what I was going to do first and how I was going to fit it all in.
Arriving in Sharm El-Sheikh I was unprepared for the overwhelming safety procedures and the crowds of men waiting at the front of the airport to try and offer a lift or services to weary travelers and naive tourists. For this reason, I was grateful for a private shuttle but the chaos and the intense atmosphere at the airport arrivals had left me feeling unsafe and having a panic attack in the back of the cab. Sadly, the stress of the wedding and all that went with it was nothing in comparison to what we experienced whilst in Egypt. And it was only just beginning!
Following our arrival at the hotel, we discovered very quickly that the Continental Plaza Beach Resort Hotel booked was far from the advertised and sold five-star, all-inclusive, and was more like a 2* on the comparison. We were not made to feel special and our first room (Note first room) was basic without the bare essentials you expect including a kettle as promised in the brochures. This was far below the standard we paid for.
The TV barely worked, the mirror in the bathroom was old and worn with paint peeling off and the bathroom itself was dirty and disgusting with toothpaste on the wall and chunks missing from the tiles and walls. The curtains were not clean and had burn marks from cigarettes. I mean I could barely open the wardrobe door without the door handle coming off in my hand.
Calling reception, a serviceman came out to look at the TV and basically shrugged and left with little to no words said. Tired from a whole day of traveling my new Hubby and I tried to make the most of it, hoping the view, food, and facilities would make up for the poor hotel room conditions. This was not the case.
The following morning and the first day of our Honeymoon, I woke up and within moments broke down into tears. Without hesitation and straight away I went to speak to reception and complained explaining that it was our honeymoon (as we had when we checked in just hours before) and that we were not happy. They helped us to move rooms however after being shown the third room by a teenage boy who spoke very little if any English I was told in broken words that there were no "better looking" rooms and all of them were "in the same condition".
Sadly, despite the move, our new room was not much better. There were stains, the TV remote is rusting where the batteries are (which we could clearly see as there is no back). Again, as with our first room, bathroom mirror worn and old, the bathroom itself was dirty and disgusting with drawings and marks on the walls. The curtains were not clean and had burn marks and in addition, we had walls with weird, suspicious splash marks on them. A cardholder/reader was hanging off the wall, floor tiles chipped, and a bathroom phone with wires hanging out the back of it. This was horrendous.
The WiFi we were assured of throughout the hotel is non-existent apart from the Lobby and that's only when it's quiet which is almost never as everyone in the "resort" is doing the same. I even had to go and buy a local Egyptian SIM card so we can just get by (without it we would have had no way to fill in our passenger location form for re-entry into the UK). I can only thank my lucky stars for knowing this and having the facilities to purchase this (at a cost of £20.00). After meeting with what we thought and were told was our rep Mr. Warehouse and I spent the day exploring the surroundings and just walking around the hotel grounds. We desperately tried to enjoy ourselves however this is far far FAR below what we expected and what we were sold.
There were only 2 pools, no swim-up bar, no aqua park, no heated pool, the sun loungers are as tired and worn as the hotel with yet more stains and marks. Even the patio and walkways are crooked and broken. Building works seem to be taking place everywhere and there was even an abandoned part of the hotel which was unlocked, unsafe, and filled with health and safety hazards, bad enough already not to mention being mere meters from a children's playground and swimming pool and with a wraparound balcony any child (or adult) could have fallen from.
The five "world class" restaraunts? Well ...
The food from the buffet 2 restaurants was not appealing or appetizing at all with food being left out so long it is going brown or had a skin on top (sauces including soups and gravy). However, the food was being constantly swapped and changed between the two, serving the same stuff over and over and over again with no change and rotating it between the two floors. The BBQ restaurant did not exist. The seafood restaurant did not exist unless we specifically asked to go there and even then, there was no information on how to do this? A La Carte restaurants were Italian and Oriental which we will get onto later. There was not even the opportunity to venture out of the hotel and eat somewhere else as we are miles from anything and unlike as we were promised it is nowhere near any other bar or restaurant that we could walk to. The place is honestly far below anything we thought or promised it was when we booked and despite trying to remain positive, my husband and I already wanted to pack our bags and come home. It had not even been a day and rather than being bonking in the sheets, we were balling our eyes out and feeling pretty low.
It was at this point on the Sunday evening, barely a few hours after landing that we emailed Hays Travel and detailed our issues. This was not a positive email gushing about how wonderful it was. Far from it. This was not the honeymoon we wanted or expected. This was not the honeymoon we paid for, putting not only all of our wedding guests' wonderfully generous gifts into but also a fair amount of our savings too. Savings that could have been used better.
The following day I had a reply to sort something out as we were totally unhappy. The response was not great though as the offered two alternative hotels - Dreams Beach Resort and the Aurora Oriental Resort were as bad as where we were if not worse. Both hotels of which were, according to the reviews posted on the likes of trip adviser and Google Reviews (some of which had only been submitted most recently as a few hours or days beforehand) confirmed that both the Dreams Beach Resort and the Aurora Oriental Resort's conditions and appeal was the same if not worse than what we were currently experiencing at Continental Plaza Beach Resort Hotel.
"I don't know if anyone bothered to check these out but I would have expected that if something has gone so wrong and serious as moving hotels due to the condition and appearance then the most recent reviews and a full check on the hotel we would be moved to would be checked out for its suitability, not to mention keeping in alignment with something close to what we actually booked and paid for," was part of my furious reply to Hays Travel. Neither was 5*. Neither had the variety of restaurants or food quality we expected, booked and paid for. Neither had the variety of facilities we expected, booked and paid for.
After refusing these and giving ample opportunity to fix the situation we were sick and tired of just "making do". We wanted to come home. In floods of tears (again), we explained this over email to which Hays Travel point blank refused, stating if we wanted to come home then this would not be something they would fund as there was an offered "alternative accommodation option" and should we wish to come home, we would have to sink another £800+ into flights to come home from a honeymoon which was a constant waking nightmare.
In the meantime, someone had obviously contacted the hotel manager who accosted us walking back from the Lobby that evening and argued with us regarding the complaint we had made on the run-down state and poor condition of his hotel. He was unhelpful, unaccommodating, unapologetic, unsympathetic, unempathetic, and quite rude. He seemed more concerned that someone had made a complaint and gone into an undesignated area and taken photos of unsafe and dangerous rooms than actually sorting the issue. I recall him even saying his own words "we cannot satisfy you so you should leave" ...
Unable to come to an agreement let alone a resolution Mr. Warehouse and I walked away as the conversation was getting more and more frustrated and rude (from the manager's direction). As we went to walk off, we were approached by another hotel guest who had their own string of complaints and problems with the hotel and who had been met with the same hostile approach.
That evening the Hubby and I went to the "Italian" A La Carte restaurant, hoping that with everything else failing miserably that this would be the jewel in the alloy crown. You guessed it. It was not.
After 5-minutes of waiting around for someone to show us to a table, we were seated. Neither I nor Mr Warehouse were asked what we would like to drink - at - all.
Our starter arrived - which we had not ordered. This was a "salad" which was closer to a Mexican salsa than any salad I have ever eaten as it only consisted of finely chopped tomato, onion, and cucumber with some coriander thrown in for good measure. When I queried what it was and why this had been brought out as opposed to a menu for us to choose from, we were told that there was no choice. The meal was a "salad", Pizza and chocolate cake (which was no different from the one served at the buffet restaurants). The menu we were told was also the same regardless of whether you booked for the "Italian" or "Oriental" A La Carte restaurants. Yet again different restaurants serving the same food. At last check, Pizza is not Oriental and neither is a salad or chocolate cake.
By this point, our third, nearly fourth day into our Honeymoon and I had barely eaten anything as so unappetizing and gross. I was starving and so was Mr. Warehouse. As the waiter turned, leaving our table, I was so heartbreakingly disappointed and on the verge of tears again. My new husband however was fuming. At no point had we been offered a choice of what we were getting as the phrase A La Carte means - having choices. This was no better than a goose being force-fed for Foie gras.
Soon enough the main course of Pizza arrived and still, we had not been asked what we would like to drink (not that it mattered since you couldn't get a glass of wine in the entire hotel without having to ask no less than 5 times which I know due to first-hand experience). At no point had we been asked about allergies or intolerances (thank the fucking lord) and we had no clue about what was in any of the food we were presented.
Luckily neither I nor my husband have any allergies or intolerances, however, we have close friends and family who are and that being even within close proximity can cause a huge anaphylactic reaction which could be, in some circumstances critically life-threatening. We refused the pizza, again explaining not only to the waiter but also to the manager of the restaurant that this was not A La Carte. We were told that it was a set menu. Again this is not the case as even with a set menu you would be offered a choice of what we were getting. Neither were the case.
With this, we left and proceeded up to the Lobby where we waited for our actual rep to arrive. He was over 30-minutes late with no apology or explanation. On relaying all of the above and writing this all down (more than thirty items of failure) we made it clear we wanted results. This. Was. Not. Acceptable.
We were then soon offered the choice to transfer to the Jaz Fanara Resorts Hotel or one of the other less than satisfactory accommodation suggestions or to pay a further £800.00+ we didnt have to come home. We accepted the Jaz Fanara Resorts Hotel and arrived to a warm welcome and continued our Honeymoon then with a pleasant stay, however with no thanks to Hays Travel as we had the further stress of having to try and locate a taxi and explain to them where we needed to go and how much it was going to cost (£20.00).
As I am sure you can already tell, we are still not happy and, regardless of the improvement in hotel standards at the end we have made a complaint. Although this was delayed slightly as whilst out in Egypt still and as a result of the poor hygiene and unsanitary conditions, both I and Hubby contracted Food Poisening which meant that even the remainder of our Honeymoon was virtually unsalvageable as we were both very poorly with vomiting and diarrhea. Our holiday which was let's be fair TOTALLY ruined and now forever etched and scarred on our memory as to how our Honeymoon was and not how it should have been.
As yet we have no reply and are no closer to a resolution. Hopefully, we can get something by next week and I can update you with more regarding our Honeymoon from Hell!
'Til next time, Love A.Lou x
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