Jessica Reed, 10, was sick after helping herself to "boozey cocktails" she mistook for juice by the hotel pool. Photo / Caters
Jessica Reed, 10, was sick after helping herself to "boozey cocktails" she mistook for juice by the hotel pool. Photo / Caters
A furious dad claims his 10-year-old daughter was left vomiting after a Thomas Cook all-inclusive hotel allowed her to glug down self-serve boozy cocktails.
James Reed says that little Jessica had been helping herself to drinks by the pool at Roc las Rocas Hotel, Majorca, only to discover they were alcoholic on her third drink.
The dad-of-two describes the blunder as just one of a multitude of horrors that befell his friends and family during their £5,000 two-week holiday.
The 35-year-old claims the trip was "completely ruined" for the party of eight, after part of the ceiling fell down, wires hung from the walls, meals contained raw meat and his family room's balcony that was "hanging off".
The family were disgusted by the hotel fare. Photo / Caters
James claims they were initially offered £480 compensation from Thomas Cook and has deemed the £1,000 they have since been offered as "unacceptable."
James, from Newcastle, said: "On the first day we went down to the pool, and the kids were helping themselves to drinks from the drinks machines.
"My daughter Jessica came up to me and said her drink tasted funny. So I tasted it and it was alcoholic. And she'd already had a couple of glasses of it.
"We were so angry. She was vomiting from it and was really poorly for the rest of the day.
"The drinks machines weren't marked, so kids just had access to alcohol, and because they were cocktails it just looked like juice. I went to speak to the rep about it and complain."
James says he had already spoken to the hotel's Thomas Cook rep within hours of their arrival regarding the state of their room, that he alleges was "dangerous" and "a mess".
One of their major concerns was the room's balcony, which James claims was hanging off.
And over the course of their stay from April 8 to April 22, he and partner Jennifer Brown-Reed, 30, took a number of pictures to document the hotel's alleged grime and damage.
James said: "When we first got there we had been travelling since one o'clock so we were all tired and went straight to bed.
"It wasn't until the next day that we realised things weren't how they should have been.
"The balcony was hanging off. You couldn't put any weight on it. I've got a boisterous four-year-old [called Bobby], he could have gone right over.
"There were loads of things not right with the room. And around the hotel there were wires hanging out of the walls. One day there was a pint glass in the pool.
"We asked to be moved rooms, but were told we couldn't be moved straight away.
"While we were there the ceiling fell twice in the bar. It was over an area where kids would get their faces painted.
"And they decided to cover it with a bed sheet, it was unbelievable."
Bed sheets were used to cover a damaged ceiling. Photo / Caters
The angry customer alleges he spoke to the hotel rep on a daily basis relaying problems and requesting solutions - but to no avail.
James said: "We probably spent about one and a half hours every day speaking to the rep, but they didn't do anything. We asked to move hotels, but they wanted another £1,000 to do that.
"There were so many problems. Mini golf advertised but it wasn't available, which was disappointing for the children. They didn't really understand. One day there was a pint glass in the pool."
And when the family were finally given a second room half way through their stay, James says they were greeted by an unwelcome pest, topping off the whole holiday experience.
An unwelcome addition found in the hotel room. Photo / Caters
James said: "In the second room we were given one of the first things we found was a cockroach on the floor. By that point, you half come to expect it.
"We were trying to make the most of it. But the hotel completely ruined the experience."
And now, having booked their April break seven months ago, James claims they were appalled to eventually be offered just £1,000 in compensation after they complained to Thomas Cook.
James said: "The hotel just wasn't what we had booked, the place just wasn't finished and if you took a look at the pictures in the brochure it's absolutely nothing like it.
"They originally offered us £480 compensation for a £5,000 ($9338) holiday, but we weren't happy with that. They've since offered £1,000.
"I must have spend more than £1,000 on us eating out because the food was awful, we were served raw meat at the hotel.
"If you've got a big company like that then it's unacceptable. They've done nothing, it's just unacceptable."
Exposed wires were found throughout the hotel. Photo / Caters
A Thomas Cook spokesman said: "We always want our customers to have the best possible time on holiday so we're sorry that Mr Brown and Mrs Brown-Reed were disappointed.
"We're working closely with this hotel to make sure it always meets the high quality standards we expect."
"We have investigated the claims about alcohol being available at self-service machines and we can confirm that this is not the case. All alcoholic drinks are only available via bar staff, and never through self-service machines."
