Woman's horror lip infection after drinking from dirty cup at TUI 'hotel from hell'

Sandra Mason, 58, from Liverpool, has told how she was left in "excruciating pain" with a lip infection from a plastic cup at a "hotel from hell" while on a TUI holiday

A British woman says she was left in "excruciating pain" after dirty plastic glasses caused a lip infection during a TUI holiday in a “hotel from hell”.

Sandra Mason, 58, hit out after hearing other couples describe their stay at the Riu Republica in the Dominican Republic as a “horror movie”. The tourists told how they saw couples have sex and defecate in the pool, dodged vomit and watched drugs sold openly.

They also complained of green mouldy mattresses at the hotel in Punta Cana. Police worker Sandra from Liverpool and her husband Neil, 53, told The Mirror, the hotel was so filthy she had to seek medical help for infected lips.

They contacted the Mirror after hearing reports Brits had seen a dead woman's body hidden under a blood-soaked sheet after she 'fell' from a balcony. In another incident two young men were allegedly found dead in a hotel room - believed to be linked to drugs.

Sandra and Neil Mason flew out on July 13 and were “horrified” by what they saw. Neil told how he’d had to warn an English girl her drink had been spiked. “I saw this lad drop a pill in this young girl’s drink. I walked over and picked the drink up and tipped it out," he said.

“I went to security and they just walked away, it was horrendous. We complained to TUI but heard nothing back. It was full of Americans aged 18 or 19 getting hammered for three days and then going home. They don’t give a monkeys about anyone else. It was crazy with people going down corridors banging on our door with ghetto blasters at 3am. “

Sandra, who was taken on holiday by Neil to celebrate the end of three years of cancer treatment, said: “It was the worst holiday of my whole life. They called one of the pools ‘Bano’ - which is Spanish for toilet. We were warned not to go in that pool. It was a total and utter nightmare and TUI should not send anybody there, it’s a disgrace. My husband was even offered sex and drugs when I went to the toilet!”

Another Brit, Alan Stevens, 50 an NHS worker said he was offered just £200 in vouchers and counselling to compensate for his £3,000 17-day TUI trip to the “hell” hotel.

He said: "This was 100% the worst holiday we've ever been on. My wife and I have been travelling together for 21 years and we have never known anything like it… On our second day someone was having sex in the pool in the daytime. You could see the movements and the trunks down but they didn’t care.”

While Kerry and Alan Fowler from Lincolnshire, who also at the same hotel for 14 days, said: "There was bodily fluid in the swimming pools including semen. They were all having sex in the pools." Kerry told The Mirror they paid £4,000 for their two-week break at the same time.

She said the whole experience reminded them of ‘The Purge’ horror film - where the Government gives a 12-hour amnesty on all crime - including murder. NHS team leader Kerry, 57, and builder Alan, 57, from Lincoln, Lincolnshire, said it was like a “free-for-all”.

“It was a hell-hole. It was just like The Purge horror movie. I just wanted to get home,” Kerry said. “When we walked into our room Alan said; ‘God, what is that smell? We pulled back the bedsheets and the mattress was completely covered in green mould, head to foot. I was hysterical. It was like Beirut, glass everywhere, sick everywhere. There were queues of English people there complaining. "

TUI, who have also now been approached about the Masons trip, said: “We are sorry to hear of Mr Stevens’s experience during his stay at the Riu Republica Hotel. At TUI, we strive to make travelling with us a smooth experience from start to finish, but unfortunately on this occasion, and largely due to factors outside of our control, we did not meet our usually high standards.

“Our team has been in contact with Mr Stevens and he was offered a gift voucher as a gesture of goodwill, as well as counselling from CCP (Centre for Crisis Psychology), but unfortunately this was declined.”

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