A family experienced a nightmare end to their holiday after their TUI flight was delayed for 50 hours.
Alex Gillett and her two daughters Caoimhe, 9, and Orla, 6, had flown out to Cancun for a week's TUI holiday on May 8. Alex, 28, told the ECHO the family had enjoyed their week in Mexico but their holiday quickly turned sour after their flight was delayed twice.
The family, from Walton, endured dozens of hours of waiting at the airport and being ferried to-and-from "disgusting" hotels. And to make matters worse, the significant delays meant Alex's oldest daughter Caoimhe, who has moderate learning disorder, missed an important assessment that she had waited three years for.
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Alex and her children arrived at Cancun airport on Monday, May 15 ahead of their 6.10pm flight home. But after hours of waiting in the airport, with very little information about what was happening, the family were told there was a fault with the plane and they wouldn't be flying.
Alex told the ECHO: "TUI sent emails to us but not everyone could connect to the WIFI so people were reading out what happened to the group. It was awful - everyone was in the same boat. We were told we were going to be put in a hotel but when we got there it was disgusting.
"There were used condoms, bed bugs and blood on the sheets. By the time we got to the hotel it was 1am and the kids hadn't eaten for hours. We also didn't have any pesos left because we expected to go home without any trouble."
Nearly 350 passengers were ferried back to the airport the following day. But Alex branded it a "shambles" as they found themselves in the same situation again. Alex said there was a lack of information at the airport due to TUI bringing in third-party staff to deal with the travellers.
Alex said after hours more of waiting they were taken back to a different hotel to stay another night. And despite originally being told their night would be all inclusive, the family were given just 20 dollars and had to choose between food and toiletries.
Alex was told by TUI over email that their plane was first grounded due to a "technical issue" and parts were being flown out to fix it. But after their plane was grounded for a second day, Alex was told the part had been damaged further while being repaired.
They waited for hours on a third consecutive day at the airport not knowing if they would be boarding their flight home or not. And Alex claims they eventually boarded a different plane, originally bound for Bristol, which instead flew back to Manchester.
Alex told the ECHO: "It was a nightmare - I was on my own with no support. We were left there with little communication and without food and medication.
"My daughter missed an assessment we have been waiting years for because we arrived home three days late. Luckily we have managed to rearrange it for June.
"TUI gave us a £200 voucher which feels like a bit of a kick in the teeth - I don't know if we'll want to go on holiday with them again. The delays ruined this holiday - the time waiting at the airport is the only memory the girls will have."
A spokesperson for Tui told the ECHO: "We completely understand the frustration of customers on flight TOM193, and we apologise for the inconvenience. The aircraft developed a fault which delayed the departure from Cancun, while this was being repaired further damage was caused. Therefore, engineers and a new part were sent to complete the repair.
"On both occasions, customers were transported to hotels for an overnight stay. Our reps in the airport and hotels were on hand to assist throughout. We’d like to apologise again for any inconvenience caused and we will be offering all those affected Flight Delay compensation and a gesture of goodwill.
"The safety and security of our customers and crew remains to be our highest priority. We’d also like to apologise for the service level at the hotel which was not up to the standard we expect, which is why we provided Ms Gillett with additional compensation in light of her experience."
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