Brighton tourists diagnosed with illness after wedding at 5-star hotel

More than 20 people say they experienced vomiting, diarrhoea and fevers after staying at the TUI Blue Sensatori Atlantica Aphrodite Hills Hotel in Kouklia, Cyrpus.

This includes Charlotte Warner, 29 and her partner Paul Richard, 40, from Brighton, who flew to the hotel on October 11 last year for the family wedding.

Charlotte was fine until the last day of her two-week stay, when she was suddenly struck down with vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pains, fever and headaches.

She collapsed while going through the airport and when she returned to the UK, her GP diagnosed her with gastroenteritis.

Charlotte said: "I’ve never been so ill, but we knew we had to make it to the airport somehow.

"We didn’t know what we’d have done otherwise, particularly with our young son to care for.

"I was still ill days later and my GP said there wasn’t much to be done but keep hydrated.

"I literally couldn’t do anything for myself, I was completely floored."

Charlotte Warner and Paul Richard are some of a group of holidaymakers who were diagnosed with a gastric illness (Image: Irwin Mitchell / SWNS)

Charlotte said she saw food being left uncovered at the buffet and the same dishes being served on more than one occasion.

She also claims new food was added to old dishes and some items on the buffet appeared visibly undercooked or mouldy.

Charlotte said there were flies and birds in the restaurant area and that wild cats would go on the tables.

The mum-of-one said: “The whole family had been looking forward to going away for the wedding and thankfully the big day itself passed off without a hitch.

"We’d all expressed concerns about the standard of food and hygiene at the hotel especially for a five-star hotel.

"We’d heard of others being ill, but we’d all seemed okay until the day we were due to come home."

Charlotte Warner and Paul Richard with their family (Image: Irwin Mitchell / SWNS)

Jatinder Paul, a specialist international serious injury lawyer at Irwin Mitchell, which has an office in Brighton’s Trafalgar Place, has urged anyone who was staying at the hotel at the same time to come forward.

He said: "Our clients were all looking forward to a family wedding at a luxury hotel that was ruined when some of them were struck down with gastroenteritis at the end of their stay.

"The impact of these illnesses should never be downplayed, as there can be serious longer-term health implications.

"Understandably our clients have many questions on how they fell so ill.

"We’re now investigating their cases to secure the answers they deserve.

"If any issues are identified during our investigations, it’s important that lessons are learned to prevent other holidaymakers having similar experiences in the future.

"We understand that several other people at the hotel fell ill at the same time they did.

"As part of our investigations, we’d be keen to hear from anyone else who was staying at this hotel at the same time."

TUI declined to comment.