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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Sarah Turnnidge & Bradley Jolly

Pontins holidaymaker says he 'wouldn't let his worst enemy's dog' stay at filthy site

A furious dad on his first getaway in eight years said he experienced the " holiday from hell" at a Pontins .

Lloyd Burrows, 43, claims he "wouldn't let his worst enemy's dog" stay at the Brean Sands resort in Somerset.

He travelled more than 200 miles on Friday with his wife, 15-year-old daughter, her best friend, and their 11-year-old son.

But they say they were disgusted to find grease dripping down the walls of their chalet, rusty hobs, dirty floors and surfaces, cobwebs strung along the ceilings, and mouldy curtains.

"It was horrendous," Lloyd told Bristol Live .

"I wouldn't even let my worst enemy's dog stay there, it was awful. I know you hear it all the time, but I really do think it was the holiday from hell.

Lloyd Burrows, pictured with his daughter, said he experienced the 'holiday from hell' (Lloyd Burrows WS)

"We opened the door and just couldn't believe what we were seeing, it was absolutely disgusting. My wife was in tears, my daughter was in tears, the place looked like it hadn't been cleaned in weeks.

"It's not like I booked the room expecting the Ritz - we knew it was going to be a little bit rough around the edges, but at the very least you expect some basic level of cleanliness.

"We were told that cleaners go into the chalet at the end of every stay, but there were cobwebs up there that must have been there for weeks."

Shocking photos taken in the chalet show cobwebs on lighting, grease marks on walls and mould on curtains.

The family was eventually given a different room, also said to be filthy, and so eventually a third one was allocated.

Grease marks are pictured on the walls by the cooker (Lloyd Burrows WS)
Cobwebs were on lighting fixtures in the first chalet (Lloyd Burrows WS)

"A cleaning crew came out to do a sweep of the chalet and make sure it was clean," Lloyd, of Lincolnshire, said.

"My wife and I were sitting outside when another couple walked over and said 'oh look, they're cleaning our chalet'. I immediately said that it was ours - it turns out they had also been given a set of keys for the same chalet by reception, who must have double-booked it.

"That immediately made me conscious about security - my son had brought his Nintendo Switch and we had a couple of iPads and a tablet with us, so right from the first evening it just didn't feel secure."

Lloyd believes he was right to be concerned about security - he said that over the course of the six-night stay a total of three couples were handed identical keys which could have accessed the chalet.

Mould is seen on a curtain in the accommodation (Lloyd Burrows WS)
Llloyd believed the first chalet was dirty and unsafe (Lloyd Burrows WS)

"I didn't want to risk it, so I spent a lot of the time near the chalet just making sure everything was secure," said Lloyd, who is disabled and was supposed to be enjoying his first relaxing break in eight years with his family after a long spell of health issues and the recent loss of a close friend.

"In the end I only managed to actually enjoy one day with my family, which was when we went to Weston-super-Mare to sit out on the beach. This was supposed to be quality time spent together, but as a result of the place being so dirty and insecure, it meant I was constantly on edge."

On the sixth morning of the stay, Lloyd said his wife woke up with a huge bite on her foot that became so swollen the family had to make a trip to the hospital due to their fears of a serious infection. The family eventually ended up leaving the holiday park one night early.

Over the course of their visit Lloyd filled out six "customer solutions forms" - the first step of Pontins' complaints procedure - but claims he was not contacted at all until he got in touch with head office directly.

The family traveled from Lincolnshire to the Brean Sands site (PA Wire/PA Images)

He says he has now been offered £100 in compensation and 30% off his next stay at a Pontins resort but believes he should be entitled to a full refund on the £435 he paid.

"In all, with petrol and spending money, I believe we wasted around £900 on this holiday, which meant we made a much bigger loss than the families who perhaps also had a negative experience at just a fraction of the cost," he said.

"The entertainment was fantastic, the bluecoats are brilliant at what they do and the kids loved the evenings, but even there the tables were absolutely filthy. I went to the bar to ask the staff to clear our table, which was just covered in mess, and we were told 'we're not cleaners, go and find one of the cleaners'.

"I don't know how they can keep on letting customers down like this."

Pontins have not yet responded to Bristol Live's request for comment regarding Lloyd's experience.

Mirror Online has contacted the firm.

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