A British couple were kicked out of their hotel in Corfu and denied boarding on their flight back after they made a complaint about the food.
Paul Bell, 64, and wife Ellie, 65, who live in a coastal town near Newcastle, booked a week-long half-board getaway at the Terezas Hotel in Sidari after previously enjoying a stay there.
However, their Greek island vacation was cut short when TUI removed them from the accommodation and said they wouldn’t be able to get on their return plane journey – despite the couple booking a package deal.
The pair were left hundreds of pounds out of pocket, having to arrange an alternative route back with Jet2, splash out for taxi to the airport instead of a transfer, and book into another place to stay for the remainder of their vacation.
Paul says that he cannot understand why they were booted out – but added that his wife had previously been critical about the food they were served.
Earlier in the holiday, Ellie had complained to the manager about the quality of the meals, which Paul described as ‘tepid’ and ‘not very nice’.
‘Some of the things you would get were rice with sprouts, or another time you’d have rice with a slice of beetroot in it,’ he told Chronicle Live.
‘My wife spoke to the manager twice, she complained about the food being inedible and he didn’t seem interested.
Paul Bell claims that TUI never asked him or Ellie for their version of events before they were kicked out
‘She asked him to join us for breakfast the next day so we could show him what we meant, but he never turned up.’
The Terezas Hotel did not respond to request for comment.
The couple went out for the day and said they ‘had a word’ with the holiday rep when they returned.
The next day, while waiting for a day excursion to Corfu town, Paul and Ellie claimed they were handed a letter informing them they were unable to stay at the hotel for the remainder of their trip.
TUI claimed that the decision was based on repeated incidents during their stay which were considered unacceptable and disruptive.
However, Paul disputed this and alleges that TUI never asked him or Ellie for their version of events.
The letter, dated May 20, read: ‘You caused a serious disturbance by shouting inside the hotel restaurant in front of other guests, resulting in significant distress and disruption to the peaceful environment of the hotel’.
It added: ‘You directed aggressive and disrespectful language towards both hotel staff, the hotel owners, and TUI representatives on site.’
Paul claimed that this is not the case and says the decision was made without anyone from TUI approaching them for an explanation.
Earlier in the holiday, Ellie had complained to the manager about the quality of the food, which Paul described as ‘tepid’ and ‘not very nice’
Paul says that he cannot understand why they were booted out of the four-star Terezas Hotel (pictured in a stock image)
‘I don’t remember anybody shouting,’ he remarked. ‘We only spoke to the rep on the day she was at the hotel and there was nothing disrespectful shown to her.
‘They’ve never come and spoken to us to find out what happened, they’ve decided off what the manager has told them. But surely there are always two sides to a story? I was furious, because it spoiled the day we had planned.’
Paul and Ellie said they were told to contact the UK consulate if they required any further assistance.
Then, on May 21 at around 10.30pm, the couple said they had received another letter saying that Ellie was barred from flying home on the TOM1531 flight on May 23.
Just more than 12 hours later, another email said that both Paul and Ellie would be blocked from boarding the flight.
The travel company said that this decision had been made in accordance with their terms and conditions and that the decision was ‘due to your conduct and behaviour’.
Paul booked flights home from Corfu with Jet2 a day earlier than intended on May 22, which cost them €328 (£279).
But after arriving back in North Shields, the couple received another email from TUI saying that ‘the refusal of carriage for Paul Bell and Eleanor Bell has now been revoked, and you will now be allowed travel on your inbound flight’.
Paul and Ellie’s holiday was cut short when TUI removed them from their hotel and prevented them from flying home – despite the couple having booked a package deal
‘That doesn’t help us now, because we were told we have to make our own travel arrangements and we came home,’ Paul added. ‘We had to pay €60 (£51) for a taxi to the airport as well, because we weren’t allowed on the transfers.
‘When we go on holiday, we try to go somewhere nice and quiet, sit and chill, try the local stuff, go to the towns and see the scenery and to have food like we did (in the hotel) was really disappointing. We got no back-up whatsoever from TUI.
‘They took whatever the manager said as gospel and came to a decision just like that. Had we been drunk and disorderly, fine, but we weren’t – we’ve never had any bother on any holidays before, until this time with TUI.’
MailOnline understands that TUI plans to refund the couple’s flights home with Jet2.com and their travel to the airport. TUI declined to comment further but said they had a ‘zero tolerance policy’ towards staff abuse.
MailOnline has contacted Terezas Hotel in Sidari for comment.
