A British woman who suffered ‘excruciating pain’ from a lip infection allegedly caused by a dirty glass on holiday in the Dominican Republic has blasted TUI over her ‘filthy’ hotel.
Sandra Mason, 58, took aim at the Riu Republica hotel in Punta Cana after hearing reports from other guests who described seeing couples have sex and defecate in the pool, uncleared vomit and casual drug dealing on site.
Mrs Mason, a police worker from Liverpool, and her husband Neil, 53, told the Daily Mirror she needed to seek medical help for her infected lips after they flew out on July 13.
Mrs Mason, who was celebrating three years clear 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!’
![Gnarly photos show British woman’s horrific lip infection after being forced to drink from filthy plastic glasses in TUI ‘holiday from hell’ Gnarly photos show British woman’s horrific lip infection after being forced to drink from filthy plastic glasses in TUI ‘holiday from hell’](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/08/04/22/73983379-12374663-image-a-12_1691185094441.jpg)
Sandra Mason, 58, from Liverpool, has told how she was left in ‘excruciating pain’ with a lip infection from a plastic cup while on holiday in the Dominican Republic
![Mrs Mason and her husband Neil blasted their stay at TUI's Riu Republica hotel in the Dominican Republic, saying the holiday company 'should not send anybody there'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/08/04/22/73983377-12374663-image-a-13_1691185102104.jpg)
Mrs Mason and her husband Neil blasted their stay at TUI’s Riu Republica hotel in the Dominican Republic, saying the holiday company ‘should not send anybody there’
The pair spoke out following even more disturbing reports, including one which alleged a dead woman’s body was hidden under a bloody sheet after ‘falling’ from a balcony.
In a separate incident, the bodies of two young men were said to have been found in a hotel room after an apparent drug overdose.
Mr Mason said he spotted a young man drop a pill in a girl’s drink and he walked over, picked the drink up and threw it away.
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.’
The couple’s experiences have been mirrored by other guests who also reported disastrous stays at the venue.
50-year-old NHS worker Alan Stevens said he was offered just £200 in vouchers and counselling after his £3,000 17-day trip to the resort.
He described it as ‘100% the worst holiday’ he had even been on and described seeing a couple openly have sex in the swimming pool.
![Mrs Mason said she need to be hospitalised over her infected lip and said her husband was even offered sex and drugs while she was in the toilet](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2023/08/04/22/73983397-12374663-image-a-15_1691185247674.jpg)
Mrs Mason said she need to be hospitalised over her infected lip and said her husband was even offered sex and drugs while she was in the toilet
Another couple, Kerry and Fowler from Lincolnshire, said they spotted people having sex during their two-week stay at the hotel and that there was ‘semen’ in the swimming pools.
Mrs Fowler, 57, said the trip reminded her of horror film The Purge, in which the government provides a 12-hour amnesty for crime.
The pair said they wanted to go home as soon as they arrived and they were hit by an awful smell in their bedroom.
Pulling back the covers, they said the mattress was ‘completely covered’ with green mould from head to foot.
She likened the atmosphere to ‘Beiruit’ and said there were a lot of discarded glasses and uncleared vomit, with queues of English tourists complaining.
TUI has been approached for comment about Mr and Mrs Mason’s claims.
Regarding the other guests, a spokesman 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.’