Disaster holiday at resort

[Happywifehappylife18]

Long story shortish,
me, my partner, son and MIL have paid a huge amount to stay in a resort this week. After the first night MIL had what we thought to be mosquito bites all over her arms and chest. They were blistering and weeping. Doctor gave her an injection antihistamine and directed us to stay in room for 72 hours. The very next morning MIL woke up with over 80 bites over her body, face, ears back and hands. Doctor confirmed it appeared to be bed bugs. Resort have moved MIL to another room however has now been told by doctor to avoid sunshine for another 72 hours. Meaning that 5 days of our holiday we have all been couped up in a room, and me and my partner have been taking turns in taking little one to the pool.

now we have found bites on our two year old. We’re not sure what to do. MIL is emotionally distressed and it’s so bad. The bites are so swollen and just everywhere, some have even popped so badly that her skin is raw.
am i being unreasonable to request a full refund from the resort as we have had a really horrifying experience

has anyone ever had this from a high end resort? .

Yes OP ask for a full refund. This was not a holiday for any of you (especially poor MIL!). Also check insurance - if they refuse a full refund then can at least pay any excess!

Did you book direct with the hotel or with booking.com or similar? I had a disastrous holiday once that I booked through them (if memory serves me right - may have been Expedia). They fully refunded. Mine were very different circumstances but it's worth a shot if you did go through a travel agent? Then presumably it's on them to deal with the hotel.

Many years ago we had a bad bedbug infestation in our rented house. The landlord got a professional exterminator company in. If the resort have been aware of this issue for so long they should have done the same! Obviously it's be costly but surely worth it to save their reputation (and guests!!)

So now you’d like intimate pictures of OP’s mother-in-law to be posted on the Internet? And also some personal information regarding their relationship? You’re being purposely weird so I’ll leave it here, it’s giving ‘lay down with dogs, get up with bedbugs.’

Yes, think so she said Bahia principe Costa adeje. I guess unless you search the reviews for bed bugs it’s easy to miss the odd review if they’re spaced out/far down. I can’t say I’ve ever searched hotel reviews for any which mention bed bugs (think I will from now on).

Heavens…. 😦

It seems to be wide spread across Tenerife. If people are switching hotels, it makes sense that everywhere will be infected. I always put, bed bugs, cockroaches and insects into the search bar on trip advisor. You then what to take, wheelie bin bags, essential oils etc.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.mirror.co.uk/travel/huge-bed-bugs-infestation-tenerife-34228302.amp

Honestly I never saw any bad reviews last year, I guess I didn’t do my research properly. And this year I didn’t even look at the reviews because our experience last year was just beautiful. I will be getting ready and going to reception in a minute so I will
poat an update once I have spoke to them regarding a refund.
on another note I did phone yesterday that company from the link sent but they won’t take the case as we booked through the company which is located in Spain. We were advised to either get an English speaking Tenerife based solicitor or attempt to get a refund directly from the company ourselves.

Oh god I'm so sorry. I'm a bedbug veteran.

If you can try and find evidence in the room for bedbugs, they usually hide in the bedframe or in furniture around the bed. They like crevices so less likely to be soft furnishings.

If you hear someone complaining about bedbugs, share details with them. Remember you need a refund but also compensation if you get bedbugs at home.

When you get home, keep baggage outside and hot wash everything, including clothes you travelled in. You need heat over 55 degrees to kill them, so it's a hot wash/tumble dry.. or if we still have hot weather here you could leave baggage in a very hot car for a few hours. Inspect everything that can't be washed carefully. The females can mate once and then lay eggs for life 🙃 so you do need to be thorough with every bloody thing.

If you do get them it's not the end of the world, they are killable, but it is a pain in the arse that's worth avoiding.

Is it not easing up today op that she at least be left for a couple of hours?

just wanted to add that by Spanish law all restaurants and hotels etc have to have a complaints book on site and they absolutely must hand it over to you at your request to fill in

You're not wrong, @JayneSm, but good luck expecting the hotel to produce it given their obvious lack of care throughout this longstanding infestation

They probably won't actually refuse, but say "it's with someone else and they'll get it" - which will then never happen - but they're hardly going to want this flagging up with the local authorities

Unless of course a family member runs the relevant department ...

Oh so like fleas they can just stay dormant for a really long time ? Holds are chilly so I’d just assumed after a week or so they would die off, clearly wishful thinking.
Horrifying thought that they could be in overhead lockers…Ugghhh..

I'd be asking for significantly more than a refund, especially if it's a known issue and they haven't bothered to sort it out. Your poor MIL.

Thanks! It certainly was up there in unexpected nightmares… that you couldn’t even verbalise as you didn’t know what was wrong with you, With all this hot weather ( scabies goes from horrendous to INTOLERABLE in the heat), it reminds me of the Kos trip… I just lay in the room, DH would take the DS out for breakfast and swim and I’d toss and turn, scratching, desperate for sleep and one lunchtime I met them and all I did was sit and scratch and scratch my horrendously bloody and raised rashy arms, not knowing the tens of thousands of CFs burrowing undert my skin, feeding oof me, whilst I kept them unknowingly alive, zero sleep, unable to focus, or eat, feeling like I’d finally lost my shit, saying I was going to see Dr again and go back to the room and DH goes, understatement.. “ You know, you really do not look well. And, I really don’t think that’s heat rash”!

If you google it, scabies can cause serious mental health issues and suicidal tendencies, I think perhaps because even if diagnosed early (unlike me), NOBODY wants to complain or discuss having mange!!!! And, the Prem, Strong AF Potion doesn’t always kill them all in that initial treatment week, and so they can linger for months. I would urge ANYONE who knows something is not right- pretty much like how a mother knows when her child is not ok- and is getting batted off by GP’s ( the first two GP’s I have known for years and respect them, so, I should say, “reassured by”), to raise the potential of scabies with them. I would not wish the, as you said, mental distress, on my worst enemy. And I feel so, so bad for anyone who currently has it in this heat…🤞🙏🤞

Just sending OP positive vibes today 🤩🤩🤩. Good Luck at Reception!! I hope you get hold of the “ Accident Record Book” being discussed. When are you due to fly back?

@cheapshoes.. How is your daughter? Were you able to contact her Tour Operator to preempt it, saying you are aware of active break out in the hotel and requesting/ demanding a different hotel? 🤞🙏🤞

Didn’t an elderly British couple die in a hotel room last year because they had sprayed the room next door?

Edit;
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12770673/granddaughter-carbon-monoxide-poisoning-egypt-fumigated-bedbugs-felt-sick.html

That does ring bells but a local girl died early this year when that precise thing happened… it was well publicised. It was in a hostel in Sri Lanka, it had been fumigated and her death. believed to have been caused by noxious substance inhalation. Terrifying. I think a German girl died, too.

OP… PLEASE tell these people to INSIST on moving rooms!!!! This is really serious, now. As @fruitflavouredmilkhas said, and posted link. Even if they do not wish to “ cause a fuss” or something annoyingly British ( assuming they are), it is simply not worth it!

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn57p419lddo

Horrible. And from what I understand not always easy to prove.

It must be a dreadful experience to get bitten by bedbugs and then to have the ensuing problems, i do feel for you. However, this is not a “high end” hotel, as you described, and is a mediocre chain at best, which would explain your treatment, which is not at all acceptable, but smacks of a poor quality outfit sadly.

I would not stay after all the information OP has now. No chance. Even if you don’t die from the spraying who knows what future lung diseases it may cause.

Yep, I’d be with you, I wouldn’t even want to insist on a change of room, or hotel, I’d want first flight out of there. Zero point being away and even if all seemed ok in return, the not knowing of what you’ve inhaled. The whole place needs to be closed, if not by the hotel themselves ( because they clearly don’t give a flying) by the authorities, and fumigated until it’s completely free of the CF.

OP, please make sure you get the contact details of the couple you’ve referred to from this morning. Really important, Are you able to speak to anyone who may know which local Council/ Authorities can be informed?

How awful..but a word of warning....those beg bugs can travel back in your luggage 😱 you definitely don't need that ....

They will close only after a severe accident like death. Polite Brits won’t help the situation.

So update for this morning.
I have spoken to the manager who has given me the attached form to fill out for their complaints book. Thank you so much for this suggestion as they were not openly offering for me to do this. I had to ask for it. They have also given me the corporate customer service contact to send the formal
complaint to and cc in local
authorities. I was really hoping to have this dealt with while we are here but I will
pursue this to the end of the earth. I will be uploading reviews on every social media platform and I will try to get this is newspapers. Most the other vacationers are British and I believe this issue needs to be well publicised so people can make informed decisions and force the hotel
to take proper action to address the clearly longstanding issue of bedbugs.
I am furious, sad and disappointed. We decided that now no one is being bitten it’s not fair to go to another hotel and bring the problem there with us. We plan to bin everything. And yes strip at our doorsteps and straight into the shower. If anyone has any further suggestions or advice I would love to hear. I feel I’m going to need all the help I can get here and you guys have already been so helpful and resourceful so thank you to you all. And thank you for the support and shared sympathy x

Forgot to add that MIL is doing much better and we hopE to get one day out tomorrow if she is up for it.
despite all of this we have had some great laughs and jokes while here. Somehow we have had to make the best of a really crappy experience.
it has not deterred us from travelling as we have started to plan our next holiday. But this time we will know to take more precautions and search the room with a magnifying glass and of course search reviews for bedbugs, cockroach, infestation, bites, scabies…..
a huge lesson has been learnt here. And one I hope all
of you will remember too.
it’s quite funny because on our second day here there were protestors outside with a sign that read “welcome to hell” they wernt wrong.