A holiday company was forced to a apologise to a family after they were given a mouldy caravan with a hole in it. James Duffy and his family were left fuming with their stay
A man said he had the “holiday from hell” with his family after he was given a caravan with a hole in it. James Duffy went to Eyemouth Holiday Park in the Scottish Borders for a four-night stay with his family at the start of June, but said the experience soon turned sour.
James, 42, went with his partner Rachelle, their five-year-old daughter, his mum and her partner to the seaside spot. He said his daughter and his mum, who has a lung condition, fell ill after the first night.
James then said he found a hole in the caravan that appeared to have been taped over. The family was given an alternative caravan after complaining to staff at the Parkdean Resort.
James also said he was forced to pay for use of the nearby pool which is advertised as being included in the price online. After approaching Parkdean Resorts for comment, they claimed this was due to an error as James failed to show his pass and has since been refunded.
A spokesperson for Eyemouth Holiday Park has since apologised for the family’s experience and offered £100 as a gesture of goodwill. James said he accepted the sum, bit still is not happy.
James told EdinburghLive: “I’ll not go to any of their resorts after this. There was meant to be nightly entertainment and we only got to do two of the activities we booked.
“We got there in the afternoon but it wasn’t until around 10pm I noticed the state of the caravan. I just saw a big hole in the back and thought ‘this is ridiculous’.
“There was tape over the hole and it was peeling off the caravan. From the inside you can see the light coming in from the inside.
“My mum was sitting there wheezing as she has COPD and had to sleep in that caravan then felt awful the next day. I obviously can’t prove the state of the caravan had anything to do with it but it’s quite a coincidence.
“Nobody slept in that room with the hole. My partner and I just pulled out the couch. It was mega uncomfortable but I didn’t want anyone to sleep in that room. We were looking forward to this for a while as we don’t have the money to go abroad so it was just a little break for me and the family. The least we expected was to enjoy it.”
James paid for an activity day pass for £21 and claims he was told the park don’t offer certain activities as his daughter was left with just two to take part in across the four days.
“There was supposed to be a free bingo session during the day for folk who couldn’t make it at night and they couldn’t even manage that,” James added.
“My daughter really wanted a swim so my partner took her and we were told if we showed our passes we’d get free access. We were to go within a certain time and they said we had to pay £15.50 for 45 minutes.
“I don’t know how they can get away with it and [offer] a family of five a mouldy caravan like that.”
A spokesperson for Eyemouth Holiday Park said: “We have high standards for hygiene and cleanliness at our parks. As soon as we were made aware of this isolated issue, we moved the family to alternative accommodation. We have apologised to Mr Duffy for his experience and offered a gesture of goodwill, which was accepted.
“Park guests receive complimentary access to the local swimming pool. As Mr Duffy was charged in error, we have issued a full refund for the funds he spent on pool access.”