Jamie Foy jetted off to the five-star resort in Cape Verde for a surprise week in the sun with his partner Leanne Lynch, 41, on December 12th.
But after eating exclusively in the main buffet restaurant for the first three days of their getaway, the dad-of-two claims he began to experience sharp stomach cramps and diarrhoea.
As the plasterer’s symptoms persisted, he claims he spent the rest of his holiday rushing to the toilet 30 times a day and began passing blood the day before he was meant to fly home.
One shocking snap shows Jamie curled up on a sunlounger in pain after claiming his illness ‘ruined’ his birthday trip.
Before jetting off, Jamie says he researched the hotel and claims he found other holiday goers reporting they had fallen ill at the resort.
But after raising this with TUI through his local travel provider before they flew, he claims TUI dismissed these complaints as ‘nonsense’.
Now Jamie, who only managed to eat three chips during a luxury private birthday dinner on the beach, is speaking out about his experience and vows never to book with TUI again.
Jamie, from Wishaw in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, said: “I found out I was going to Cape Verde in November as a surprise for my 40th birthday.
“It was a sharp pain like someone was poking my belly with a needle”
“When I found out, I Googled the place and news articles started coming up about people going to Cape Verde and getting ill.
“I asked my local travel provider about this, and they asked TUI and TUI said it was a load of nonsense. Then I ended up ill and it ruined the holiday.
“We arrived late on Thursday night as the flight was delayed. When we got to the hotel, we went straight to the main restaurant and had dinner and went to bed.
“We got up on Friday and had three meals in the main restaurant. On Saturday we went to the main restaurant for breakfast and dinner too. This is when I started to feel ill.
“Up to this point, we had only eaten in the main restaurant of the hotel.
“Then through Saturday night, I was up every hour. On Sunday, it started getting bad and I got stomach cramps and it was killing me. Every time I ate I was in pain.
“It was a sharp pain like someone was poking my belly with a needle, sharp cramps and I felt my belly churning.
“On Sunday night, I got cold sweats and was shivering uncontrollably. On Tuesday night my missus had booked me a private dinner on the beach for my birthday.
“I ate three chips as my stomach wasn’t up for it. It was a three-hour dining experience and I went to the toilet eight times.
“At this point, the holiday was ruined and I was starting to get worried as it wasn’t easing up.
“On Wednesday, I started passing blood. I was going to the toilet 20 or 30 times a day.”
When his illness persisted, Jamie visited the on-site doctor who claims he had contracted gastroenteritis and was prescribed antibiotics, probiotics and electrolytes.
But after speaking to a doctor back in the UK, he now believes he contracted shigella – an infection of the bowel caused by bacteria [germs].
Jamie said: “I definitely didn’t have food poisoning, I think it was bacterial from bad hygiene.
“When I spoke to my nurse and the doctor back home they said it was too late to tell what it was as I began to feel better but they thought it was shigella.
“[In the hotel] I noticed how many people weren’t washing their hands. It could have been caused by poor food hygiene.
“The dinner halls are all buffet styles and I didn’t see one single bottle of sanitizer.
“As soon as people left their table it was given a quick wipe ready for the next person to use.”
After returning from his trip, Jamie says he reached out to TUI both individually and through his local travel provider that his partner had booked the holiday through.
But following many emails back and forth, he now claims TUI won’t take responsibility for his illness due to a lack of ‘pathological evidence’ and not being able to provide stool samples.
Jamie said: “When I started to get ill, I had only eaten at the main hotel restaurant.
“I only ate out of the hotel four days into my illness for a pre-booked birthday dinner where I spent most of the night in the toilet.
Recommended reading:
Travel hack helps commuters avoid a £600 train fare
Passport warning issued to millions as prices increase
‘Inconsiderate’ plane passenger told not to recline seat
“TUI’s response has annoyed me. It’s my first TUI holiday and my last. I have never been this ill on holiday and I’ve never complained before.
“What annoys me more is I raised my concerns about being ill [because of other news articles I had seen] and was told by TUI it was a load of rubbish.”
A hotel spokesman said the health and safety of their guests is their ‘highest priority’ and they follow strict health and safety protocols and regulations at the resort.
They also said they work closely with local health authorities to ensure a safe environment for both their guests and employees is maintained to prevent health issues.
A TUI UK&I spokesman said: “Our priority is to ensure customers have the best possible holiday experience, which is why we were very sorry to hear that Mr Foy was ill during his holiday to Cape Verde.
“As this is now a legal matter, we are unable to comment any further at this time.”
