What was meant to be a relaxing, sun-soaked escape to the white-sand beaches of Hurghada quickly turned into a vacation nightmare for 58-year-old teaching assistant Tracey and her family. Instead of enjoying a picturesque getaway, they found themselves battling a relentless swarm of mosquitoes, dealing with sickness, and witnessing bizarre events at their crumbling resort.
From Excitement to Horror: A Vacation Gone Wrong
Tracey, along with her daughter Britt and son-in-law Liam, had high hopes for their two-week trip to Egypt. For Britt, it was her first time traveling abroad in 13 years, and for Liam, his first-ever international vacation. But their excitement quickly faded when they arrived at their hotel, which was anything but the luxury retreat they expected.
Within hours, the family became mosquito buffets. Their ankles, feet, and even faces were covered in painful, inflamed bites. But that was just the beginning.
A Battle Against Swarming Mosquitoes—and No Way to Clean Up
By the next morning, their bites had worsened, turning into yellow, oozing sores that made walking unbearable. When they tried to wash their wounds, they were met with another shock—there was no hot water.
Tracey recalled:
“I went four days without hot water, unable to shower or even clean my feet and ankles.”
Requests to fix the problem were met with delays. After days of waiting, a team of five men finally arrived, only to make things worse—fixing the air conditioning instead of the water. The air conditioning promptly broke again, causing more frustration.
Unbearable Living Conditions
Their hotel room smelled of raw sewage, and the bathroom was coated in grime thick enough to make anyone cringe. Cockroaches scurried across the floor, and the public restrooms were reportedly even worse.
“I just wanted a bath to soothe my swollen legs,” Tracey said, “but the tub was filthy.”
An Unhelpful Resort and a Shady Doctor
As her infected bites worsened, Tracey sought medical help from an on-site doctor. He prescribed antibiotics, ointments, and other medications. However, things took an unsettling turn when he started sending messages demanding payment, despite initially offering free treatment.
“He kept asking, ‘When are you paying?’ and ‘Can you call now?’ It felt so dodgy.”
Adding insult to injury, her illness was so severe that she suffered a humiliating accident at the resort’s terrace bar, requiring Britt to rush around cleaning up.
“I was a bl**dy mess. I couldn’t believe this was happening on my holiday,” she admitted.
A Hotel in Chaos: Fights, a Dead Dog, and More Disasters
As if their situation wasn’t bad enough, the resort itself seemed to be descending into mayhem.
One night, they witnessed a violent brawl where a staff member was beaten by six men. The fight spilled from the terrace bar into the restaurant, carrying on until 3:30 AM.
Then came perhaps the strangest sight of all—a guest leaving a deceased dog at the reception desk.
“She wrapped it in a blanket and put it on a chair,” Tracey recounted. “There was shouting, arguing, and eventually, the staff had to remove the body from the front of the hotel. It was surreal.”
An Escape That Almost Didn’t Happen
After two weeks of misery, Tracey and her family were eager to return home. But even their departure didn’t go smoothly—their airport transfer never arrived.
“We waited for 40 minutes before finally booking an Uber ourselves. We couldn’t even escape properly!”
Once back in the UK, Tracey had to seek further medical attention due to a worsening infection. After filing a complaint, she was eventually refunded £850—the cost of the hotel stay.
A Final Twist: The Resort Shuts Down
Not long after their disastrous stay, the Aqua Beach Resort in Hurghada closed down. The travel agency later confirmed that the hotel was completely renovated and reopened under new management. Recent reviews suggest significant improvements, but for Tracey and her family, the memories of their dream vacation turned horror show will never fade.
Lesson learned? When planning a getaway, always check the latest reviews… and pack extra bug spray.