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Holidays

Use our Travel forum for recommendations on everything from day trips to the best family-friendly holiday destinations.

What's the worst injury/illness you have ever had on holiday?

87 replies

OneUmberJoker · 29/12/2025 16:43

A stomach bug in Rome

OP posts:
828Pax · 29/12/2025 19:43

Cut my finger down to the bone in the Caribbean after a fall

pottymouth40 · 29/12/2025 19:45

Food poisoning in Marbella. Ate out on the last night and was on the loo all night. Went to the airport the next day but couldn’t physically get on the plane as I was running to the loo literally every ten minutes. We ended up having to stay in a hotel an extra two days. I was pregnant too so it was very worrying at the time.

MerryGuide · 29/12/2025 19:46

Was totally smashed up skiing, recovery took over a year. Thank god for helmets and insurance.

JDM625 · 29/12/2025 19:47

Nothing bad compared to some of these stories!

In Thailand, I was bitten by sealice while swimming. I was left with a red dot rash exactly where my costume was and the itch and marks stayed for weeks- despite antihistamines and creams.

Same holiday, DH caught a bug and couldn't leave the hotel due to diarrhoea and vomiting

SharkPants · 29/12/2025 19:48

I developed pneumonia on day 4 of a holiday in Cape Verde. I suddenly developed a back pain, the sudden cough before cold sweats. The flight home was absolutely awful, I was almost unconscious. It took me 2 months to recover.

boulevardofbrokendreamss · 29/12/2025 19:49

Standing on a sea urchin
breaking my big toe
breaking my thumb

not all on the same holiday!

greglet · 29/12/2025 19:50

I caught Dengue fever in Central America (I think I was bitten in Nicaragua, but the symptoms came on in Costa Rica). That was pretty rough, although all credit to the excellent Costa Rican healthcare system.

eggandonion · 29/12/2025 19:52

Op...I had the Rome stomach experience too. I will never ever return to Rome!

itsmeits · 29/12/2025 20:29

Regular big family holidays with my dads side.

My Uncle - had one lung collapse, and a ruptured diaphragm, spent 9 weeks in hospital.
We had gone on a big family holiday to Portugal, my cousins (his DD) were to young to understand how ill he was at the time. When the holiday came to an end the insurance wouldn't pay for my Anutie and both girls to stay. My Auntie stayed in Cyprus with my Uncle, the girls flew home on a photo copy of her passport.
Them poor two girls were passed around the family for near 7 weeks.

One of those cousins had a wasp syringed out of her ear, after a trip to a water park one year.

My dad, broke his arm - also the reason we are no longer allowed qaud biking, when on holiday in a foreign country - UK fine.

Older cousins GF joined us one year, had to be rescued from floating out to sea when she fell asleep on a lilo. She broke her ankle later that holiday, tripping over the lilo!

I didnt make it on my school trip to Romania due to being hospitalised with tonsillitis, 6 hours before I was due to leave for the coach.

user1471453601 · 29/12/2025 20:32

I fell - well, that's an understatement. It felt as though I was picked up and spin around. This happened about 10pm. I came too sometime later on my own in a villa on a very small Greek island.

For 10 hours of so I drifted in and out of consciousness. about 1:00 pm I managed to kick the front door open and called for help.

the local doctor turned up, but me on a backboard and took me to her surgery. She insisted I go to the hospital on the next, bigger, island to have a scan, as I'd hit my head and been sick a couple of times. Other islanders packed a small bag for me.

The local ferry was dragooned into action, a n ambulance came from the other island and I was taken to the nearest hospital.

in A@E I was seen straight away, fitted with a catheter and drip (I wasn't allowed to move eat or drink) and had a CT scan within the hour.

I was admitted for the night.

next day, CT was fine and I was discharged.

Taxi back to the port, ferry back to the small island.

I got an email from British Consulate asking me to apply for a temporary emergency medical card in order that my expenses be covered (it was after we'd left the EU). The email told me who to send it to, what info I needed to supply, and who i needed to forward it to.

I did all this. It cost me nothing at all.

I was impressed by the Greek health service and the British Consulate.

the two black eyes I sported were also impressive, as the local folk told me. But they got me a couple of free meals too.

SnowDaysAndBadLays · 29/12/2025 20:33

I got Malaria in Indonesia
Not the most fun I've ever had

Hmmmmwineandchocs · 29/12/2025 20:37

Broken and dislocated little toe, kicked a wooden planter while walking in flip flops, toe was sticking out to one side.
Day before flying home so that wasn’t a fun flight!

stolenpromises · 29/12/2025 20:38

Gallstone attack in Zante, Greece. Their hospital was frightening.

Hmmmmwineandchocs · 29/12/2025 20:38

Oh and food poisoning on that same holiday

whereshalligo · 29/12/2025 20:42

Fell and broke my hip had total hip replacement in Gran Canaria

Nugg · 29/12/2025 20:43

Food poisoning in Cape Verde 8 weeks ago. Just about recovered. Horrific as was holidaying alone.

prior to this I would have said Campylobacter in Portugal- also GRIM!

ClawsandEffect · 29/12/2025 20:51

Loads and loads!

Some mystery vomiting bug when I was 7 in Tunisia. Had to have a doctor come to the hotel and have injections, and then my mum went all twittery over him because he looked like Omar Sharif (never mind her sick kid 😂)

Broke a toe in Spain at the age of 8 or 9. Couldn't walk for the rest of the holiday which pretty much ruined it.

Chicken pox at the age of 11 in Spain. Went to a chemist for stuff for my skin because Mum didn't know what it was. They were horrified I was out and infectious! Stuck in a hotel, on my own, for a week in a foreign country was awful.

Got the worst sunburn in only 10 minutes exposure at White Sands National Park in New Mexico at 18. Massive yellow pus filled blisters on my back.

Also got the worst travel sickness ever flying into New Mexico and was ill for almost a week. The vomiting and dehydration felt like it would never stop.

MrJumpyLegs · 29/12/2025 21:16

Scratched my cornea taking out a contact lens. Couldn’t open that eye for a few days so basically slept and slept

letshavetea · 29/12/2025 21:17

@Nugg - interesting. I had campylobacter from a holiday in Portugal way back in 1983…

PodMom · 29/12/2025 21:19

I got knocked out while standing at a bus stop In Courchevel. A massive block of compacted snow slid off a hotel roof a few floors up and landed on my head. Missed 3yo Dd by inches. Dh says I’m the only person he knows who’s been avalanched while shopping! 😆

travailtotravel · 29/12/2025 21:25

Malaria and Amoebic Dysentery at the same time ....

Nugg · 29/12/2025 21:30

letshavetea · 29/12/2025 21:17

@Nugg - interesting. I had campylobacter from a holiday in Portugal way back in 1983…

Once I knew that’s what I had I knew exactly where I’d got it from! Undercooked chicken. But after 20+ visits to the Algarve it was a one off

NutButterOnToast · 29/12/2025 21:38

Heatstroke in Malaysia.

Spent two days in a dark hotel room feeling sorry for myself.

I have really got off very lucky tbh

SheSpendsAFortune · 29/12/2025 21:39

I broke my wrist in Croatia.

LupinLou · 29/12/2025 21:41

Ruptured ovarian cyst.

On the plus side the morphine was wonderful

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