A Romanian couple lived a nightmare instead of their dream vacation on the island of Rhodes, due to the shocking conditions offered by a hotel booked through a well-known agency. Their experience underscores the importance of verifying locations and notifying the appropriate authorities.
A family of Romanians had unimaginable accommodation and food conditions on one of the beautiful Greek islands, where they arrived through a well-known travel agency. Details of the experience were shared by a family member on a Facebook group, along with evidence, with the aim of identifying the right institution to file a complaint and prevent others from going through a similar situation.
The post also includes a series of photos and videos that clearly demonstrate the seriousness of the situation. The images are shocking and not recommended for those with a sensitive stomach: swarms of ants walking unhindered through food, gross filth, rusty and unsanitary appliances, and cobwebs.
In the comments, the author of the post explained why he chose to endure the nightmare vacation, along with many other Romanian tourists staying at the same unit, coming through other travel agencies. The reactions of the netizens were to measure.
Unpleasant experiences of tourists in popular destinations such as Greece or Turkey increasingly draw attention to problems related to services, accommodation conditions and safety.
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The inhuman conditions at an accommodation on the island of Rhodes in Greece Collage
“The pictures speak for themselves”
“Between August 6-13 I was in Rhodes, through a very well-known agency. I will attach the conditions of the hotel where we stayed. We take the blame for not checking the hotel before, (it was the first time we went through the agency) but we didn’t even think for a second to question the quality of the services that the agency would offer us. The pictures speak for themselves. I would like to make a complaint to the hotel, but I don’t know which court in Greece to go to (some kind of ANPC of Greece, maybe). Since we arrived until now, we have asked for support from the agency, but they have left us in the “seen”. At the moment I am not hoping for any money back, but I would like to see the hotel closed and no one else go through this”the author of the post mentioned.
“We had paid for all the services, we had nowhere to go, it was very crowded”
In the comments, the author of the post also explained the reason why they chose to stay at the hotel, instead of refusing accommodation, despite the conditions: “The idea is that we had already paid for certain services on the island: a scooter, a trip to Symi Island, reservations at a few beach bars. We would have messed up our whole itinerary. The only thing we could have fixed was another room and “more” attention to cleanliness. But there was only one cleaning woman in 56 rooms. Unfortunately, they were all like that. During our stay, we met other Romanian tourists, who confirmed that the situation is the same throughout the hotel. They contacted the agencies that sold them holidays and they didn’t solve anything. In addition, during the time we were gone (peak season – ed.), the island was extremely crowded. That’s why I didn’t leave, I didn’t really have anywhere”.
After this experience, tourists also mentioned that they learned their lesson from this blunder and regret not checking the reviews before leaving.
How to solve accommodation problems in Greece – the authorities that can help you
Internet users’ reactions were proportional to the posted images: terms such as “horror”, “slut”, “nightmare”, “vomiting”, “inhuman”, “shocking”, “incredible” and “horrible” they described the state created by the presented situation. Comments ranged from: “It’s inhuman how you were received” up to “Incredible! And you didn’t leave?” or “Horror! Why did you stay for so many days if the conditions were like that?”.
Internet users insisted on the name of the hotel and the agency, which were otherwise mentioned in the comments, recommending filing complaints with the GNTO (Hellenic National Tourism Organization) in Greece, ANPC in Romania and ECC Romania at the European level: “There is some kind of consumer protection at the European level, the EEC. Here you can make a complaint about the conditions in the hotel: https://eccromania.ro. And you can also report to GNTO, the tourism ministry of Greece, which can withdraw their classification or close them down. They oversee the standards of tourist services in Greece. Their official website provides detailed instructions on how to file a complaint. The Hellenic Tourism Organization also has representation in Romania and headquarters in Bucharest”.
3.5 – rating on TripAdvisor
Advice was also provided for online complaints and negative reviews on platforms such as Google Maps and TripAdvisor: “However, the hotel has some terrible marks: on Booking 7.2 – but for the years 2023 and 2024 the reviews are all bad, it seems that it keeps this mark because of old reviews, and on TripAdvisor – 3.5. Plus it’s 600 euros a stay for a room, two people, accommodation and flight – didn’t all this give you something to think about?”.
The hotel in Rhodes Greece where the Romanian tourists stayed Photo Booking
Many pointed out that the travel agency is primarily responsible for “nightmare vacation” and they suggested going against it as well: “Definitely a complaint for the agency as well. She is directly responsible for everything! It is contractually obliged to provide tourist assistance. You can complain online, at ANPC. Attach the proof of payment, print with the “seen” and pictures like the ones above. Such a thing is not normal, not to respond, not to find solutions for such horrible situations”.
“I think hygiene is a standard, regardless of the price. Luxury costs a lot, not cleanliness”
Tourists were also advised to check reviews thoroughly before booking: “Check Google, Facebook, TripAdvisor, pictures, movies, reviews, everything. For future stays check, from the positioning of the hotel in relation to the points of interest, to the conditions offered”.
In addition, it was noted that tourists should expect decent conditions from a certain price level and that the agency should provide locations that meet this standard: “At what price can I expect cleanliness, decent conditions? I think hygiene is a standard, regardless of price. Luxury costs a lot, not cleanliness.”
