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"path": "/2026/06/09/4-000-four-star-hotel-booked-turned-a-care-home-28705902/",
"publishedAt": "2026-06-09T11:42:06.000Z",
"site": "https://metro.co.uk",
"tags": [
"Lifestyle",
"Travel",
"Hotels",
"Real Life",
"Travel News",
"Tunisia",
"had dementia",
"Metro Deals",
"Get deal now",
"Manchester",
"supports HTML5\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tvideo",
"Jet2 boss Steve Heapy",
"opting for cheaper Tunisia instead",
"776 miles",
"Djerba",
"Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google\nAdd as preferred source"
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"textContent": "Tracy Haslam’s holiday took an unexpected turn (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)\n\nWhen Tracy Haslam arrived at her £4,000 Tunisia all-inclusive with her two daughters and six grandchildren, she quickly realised they were bringing down the average age.\n\nThe 52-year-old noticed a large number of older people by the pool, most of whom were accompanied by carers.\n\nShe claims it was only when she mentioned this observation in passing to a member of staff that the manager revealed the hotel was part of a residential care home.\n\nClaiming she felt misled, Tracy says she’d ‘never have booked’ the four-star hotel with Loveholidays if she had known.\n\nThe dog daycare owner believes several of the elderly residents on her April holiday had dementia, with people being wheeled past her sunbed ‘every five minutes’.\n\n‘I’m not discriminating against old people, but a couple of them were verbal so they were going past us verbally moaning,’ the mum-of-three says. ‘It’s not appropriate for kids.’\n\n## Best of Metro Deals\n\nGet exclusive discounts with Metro Deals – save on getaways and spa days. Powered by Wowcher\n\n**Bannatyne Spa** : Spa day for two with treatments, lunch & prosecco — save up to 57% off.\n\n Get deal now\n\n**Mystery Escape** : Hotel stay with return flights from as low as £92pp — save on worldwide holiday packages.\n\nGet deal now\n\n**Beach Retreat (Lanzarote)** : 4* Lanzarote beach holiday with flights — save up to 58%.\n\nGet deal now\n\nTracy captured footage for her complaint (Picture: Kennedy News and Media)\n\nTracy filed a complaint with Loveholidays for not disclosing the hotel was also used as a care home on the original listing. Loveholidays said since Tracy’s feedback they ‘became aware’ that the hotel accommodates residential care guests in a designated portion of the resort.\n\nThey have temporarily removed the unnamed hotel from sale while they ‘investigate further’ with their accommodation partner.\n\nTracy, from Bolton, Greater Manchester, said: ‘We went to reception to speak about [my] case and they were quite rude so that already got my back up.\n\n‘The manager was walking past and there were these wheelchairs and I said ‘excuse me, is this residential?’.\n\n‘He said ‘yeah there are just three’ [elderly residents] and I went ‘you’re having a laugh, there’s about ten just gone past me’. So part of it has a residential care home attached to it.;\n\nIn response to her initial complaint, Tracy says a Loveholidays rep told her hotels ‘operate under their own policies and discretion regarding who they accommodate and this is outside of our control’.\n\nThe rep also stated that after ‘carefully reviewing’ the evidence provided it ‘is not sufficient to support a claim for compensation’.\n\nSince journalists contacted Loveholidays they have issued an apology and a full refund.\n\nTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tvideo\n\nUp Next\n\nPrevious Page\n\nNext Page\n\nTracy said: ‘There were nine of us that went and it’s a holiday we’re not going to get back.\n\n‘It’s just been very blasé that the hotel doesn’t need to state what clientele they have and I just think that’s disgusting.\n\n‘A care home with at least 10 residents being wheeled past you every five, ten minutes, I find it bizarre.\n\n‘It’s just a weird experience to go on holiday and have wheelchairs coming past you all day.\n\n‘I just feel I was misled. Some people might not be bothered but it bothered me, I just would never have booked it.\n\n‘I am a bit of a holiday princess, I go away quite a lot and I do like a nice hotel. For a four star it was shocking.’\n\nA Loveholidays spokesperson said: ‘We’re very sorry that Ms Haslam and her family’s experience at their hotel in Tunisia fell short of our usual high standards.\n\n‘We are investigating the issues raised with the accommodation provider as a priority, and have removed the hotel from sale whilst this investigation is underway.\n\n‘We have been in touch with Ms Haslam to offer our apologies and a full refund of the cost of her accommodation.’\n\nThe hotel has been contacted for comment.\n\n## Why visit Tunisia?\n\nBeautiful Tunisia (Picture: Getty Images)\n\nSpain has long been a go-to for Brits in search of sunshine, but according to Jet2 boss Steve Heapy, an increasing number of holidaymakers are opting for cheaper Tunisia instead.\n\nJust like Spain, the North African country is absolutely peppered with beautiful beaches — 776 miles worth, to be specific.\n\nIt’s not just sunbathing Tunisia is known for though; the country has a rich history, which can be seen with a visit to the Great Mosque of Kairouan and the Roman amphitheatre of El Jem (famously featured in Gladiator).\n\nThere are also the islands, of which the most well-known is Djerba, which due to its stunning white-sand beaches and azure waters, is often called the ‘island of a thousand palm trees’.\n\nThe capital, Houmt Souk – which translates to ‘market district’ – has plenty more for visitors to explore too; its cobblestone streets are home to bustling markets, shops galore, and the imposing Aghlabid Fortress, which dates back to the 9th century.\n\nComment now Comments \nAdd Metro as a Preferred Source on Google\nAdd as preferred source\n",
"title": "The £4,000 four-star hotel we booked turned out to be a care home"
}