What's the worst start to a holiday you have had?

I started feeling unwell on the drive down to a holiday in Italy stopping in France for a night or two and feeling a bit worse as the drive progressed, by the time we arrived at the place we were staying, Marina di Pietrasanta on the Tuscan coast I felt so ill I could hardly eat anything, in fact I existed on huge Italian Peaches, and the occasional Weetabix, I lost so much weight I could see my ribs those were the days they're pretty well covered now Our children were quite young, only 5 and 18 months and my husband had to do all the looking after them so feeble was I. I remember sitting on the balcony at night time, our apartment overlooked an Italian family's garden, I couldn't sleep at all, they stayed up late eating al fresco and talking, I remember feeling quite upset when they turned in for the night, usually well after midnight, thinking, I'm all alone now I also remember we went to Florence for the day and as my 5 year old emerged from the car he narrowly escaped stepping on a discarded hypodermic syringe. In the end, debating whether to see a doctor there, we opted to cut the holiday short and go home. We were supposed to have 2 nights stopping in France on the way back to Calais, but drove back from Lyon to home in one go. When I went to my doctor, it seemed I had a lung infection, it took a while to clear up, I was very wheezy for ages as well as having antibiotics, I was prescribed an asthma pump in spite of never having had that condition before. We always said we'd go back to that place I remember it as being lovely, but haven't yet, my O/H couldn't get over the fact that the beaches were swept and the restaurants where they ate, whilst I sat and watched due to having no appetite, were excellent apparently, it was probably the first and last time I remember turning my nose up at Italian food

When I was about 19 I went to Corfu with 2 friends. I met a nice boy on the boat and sat up on deck in the sun for the whole trip. When we arrived in Corfu I had sunstroke and was very unwell. The owner of the hostel told my friends he would look after me so they went to the beach. Then this 50ish Greek man put me to bed and massaged my head and stomach with leaves and herbs.He was kind and nothing else happened but we were very naieve.

Oh, I forgot all about the time we were driving from Scotland to Cumbria for a family holiday. Stopped in Carlisle for a break and to get some shopping. Husband was reversing the car into a parking space when there was a sudden crash and a large branch came through the rear hatchback window! This was pre mobile phone days, so we had to go and ask someone what to do and luckily found an Autoglass not too far away who could replace the window!

My son hadn’t text so today I text him. The holiday in Scotland they’ve saved for is dismal said the place is dire and the caravan a throw back to the 80’s. Think he’ll be coming home early! Poor lad two years ago he ended up in hospital with angina! Think he ‘ll be giving up on hols.

We had had a new car for about 2 weeks, it was rammed with children and camping gear.

We went on the ferry from Dover to Calais, drove about 20 mins away from the port and the car stopped.

The story by Petra reminded me of a similar mean woman in Yorkshire.

We were camping on her farm with our kids, my SIL and her husband and their kids. My SIL took ill on the beach and the kids were all filthy. We realised she needed to go to A and E. On the site there was a notice that said you were not allowed to take hot water from the toilet block. As it was an emergency and we couldn’t leave the kids alone in a tent we filled a couple of saucepans with hot water to sluice the kids down rather than waiting for kettles to boil.

Mrs B saw us and came haring over saying it was against her rules and she couldn’t afford to give out hot water. We explained it was an emergency and my SIL was very poorly but she kept on and on and was not sympathetic.

Turned out my SIL was having an ectopic pregnancy and she lost the baby and was in hospital for the rest of the week.

We arrived at a very nice hotel in Corfu and it was boiling hot. We dropped our cases in our rooms and walked to the nearby on site restaurant. Huge drops of rain came down then torrential rain. We ran into the restaurant which was filling up with water. Within minutes the floor was several inches deep with rain water. The chairs were floating! A few hours later it was like nothing had happened and we had a great holiday.

We drove home at the end of the week, got indoors, and Dad told Mum he hadn’t passed his test. Drove around all week with no licence and no insurance

😂

Honestly this is a great thread! Awful events but some really made me laugh. I do love ‘slapstick humour’ though so maybe that’s my excuse. 😁

Mine goes back many years. I was going down to Devon with my parents one Good Friday. We had an elderly Austin 10 and my father had spent the previous week going over it. Sorting the brakes, replacing spark plugs, you name it - he'd done it. It was pre motorway days so the drive took for ever. Half way there the car stopped. We called the AA, which meant finding a phone and the man who came out diagnosed a blown head gasket. He was able to tow us to a little garage, but it was Good Friday, everything was closed and there was nowhere to find spares. The man at the garage looked at our elderly car and said "I think I've got one of those somewhere" After about an hour burrowing in his shed Eureka! He came out with a gasket, fitted it and we were on our way! We had really believed we would spend Easter by the side of the road.

Luckygirl3

Why do we go on holiday!!!???

I can truthfully say that in every holiday I’ve had the anticipation was better than the holiday.

The worst start to a holiday was realising that I was going with the meanest woman I have ever known.
Long story short.
6 adults and 2 children met at said womens house in Portsmouth from where we were getting the ferry ( we were all staying there that night.
She asked me if I would like a drink, yes please
With that she opened a cabinet with a key, poured my drink, put bottles back and locked the cabinet. 😱
We were staying at a euro camp, putting money for food and drink into the pot.
Her meanness was so bad that at the end of the holiday I let rip with a few truths.

Why do we go on holiday!!!???

My husband hurt his back playing cricket the day before we were due to fly to NI for my brother’s wedding. I had no sympathy at all I’m afraid, as I was therefore solely responsible for getting two suitcases, an eight year old, a baby in a pushchair and a hobbling husband moaning about his back to the airport, on the plane, to the car hire company and then to the house we were renting. I needed several large glasses of wine when we arrived, I’ve never been so frazzled in my life.

We arrived at our holidy rental on Alderney during a huge thunderstorm; torrential rain.. The kids immediately stripped off and went to swim in the pool. DH and I put the bags upstairs then made a cup of tea. Youngest arrives dripping at the door to inform us
"A river of water is running into the swimming pool". Dashes off.
A minutes later he's back to say
" Now there's a river of water coming out of the swimming pool towards the house. Oh look, here it is. "
We looked outside and sure enough there's a flash flood pouring down the garden to the house and rising fast at the doorstep.
Well, I was raised in a flood area so went into flood mode. . I sent the kids upstairs, rolled up the rugs and put them on the table, and put the chairs on top of the table; by now water is running in from the front door. The owner had left a welcome pack of bread, milk and jam; we take it and our mugs of tea upstairs and announce we're going to have a bed picnic. I phoned the owner and left a message "Your house is flooding" By now the thunder is continuous, the daytime sky is black, huge flashes of lightning.

Suddenly; there's an almighty bang, huge blue sparks shoot out of all the light fittings. All power gone. DH says "That was a lightning strike on the house". Its now pitch dark in the house. So we finish the picnic, all get into bed and tell stories until the kids fall asleep.
That night there's a torch and shouting outside; I open the window and it's the owner below, in a canoe. We say hello and we've been struck by lightning, power off, but we're all fine. No, we do not need to be evacuated tonight, thankyou, safer to stay put till morning. He says in the morning he will move us to new accommodation. Would we like fish and chips? An hour later hes back with fish and chips and a flask of tea, very thoughtful. So we eat another bed picnic.

In the morning the storm and flood had all gone leaving a tidemark a foot high downstairs. Owner arrived in a landrover, very pleased to find his rugs and chairs dry, and took us and our baggage to a different property where we spent the rest of a very enjoyable holiday.

Arrived at the Mawenzi hotel in Dar es Salam (paid for by the airline as the plane we were supposed to be taking to Arusha had crashed the day before) to find the room had only itchy grey blankets on the bed, no hot water, no air conditioning, and a telephone which rang on and off throughout the night but no one was on the other end when we answered it. Tanzania is very hot in the summer. The hotel had no lift or fire escape. Breakfast consisted of a mound of white rice topped with tomato ketchup. After clambering back to our room up several flights of stairs and intense heat, I promptly fainted.

First holidays on my own after OH died:
- first was in a property where I could not get up the stairs and I had to find another - double the cost and a LOT of hassle!
- second I had bad chest pain and fast AF alone in a caravan
- third, finished up in A&E with a heart attack

I have not ventured on hols since!!

But the worst holidays for me were every single summer as a child when my parents would take us all away camping in Europe for 3 weeks .... sounds good? Definitely not - parents were practically divorcing by the end of our road, and that would set the pattern for the rest of the holiday.! Those holidays were nightmares!! We children hated it all!! BUt they never learned - they would drag us off next year just the same!

Story re the end of our holiday. The day we were driving to Clacton for a week’s stay, 1960, my Dad took his driving test that morning. He got back, we piled luggage and family into car and we went. Nice hols in self- catering lodge.
We drove home at the end of the week, got indoors, and Dad told Mum he hadn’t passed his test. Drove around all week with no licence and no insurance.

I passed out in the checkin queue for a family holiday to Turkey. We ended up not going at all. Turned out it was 48°C all week there so I was quite glad we didn't go. The kids were not impressed though.

I think our honeymoon in Torquay was the worst the hotel was awful we had a room above the disco, it was foggy for days then very wet and we both had dreadful colds. We came home early but been married for 48 years and never been back to Torquay😂

Broke my leg in two places the evening before a Caribbean holiday when I fell during a last-minute shopping trip to buy a swimsuit. I spent 10 days in hospital instead.

My Dad had a massive stroke the day before we went. We were all going together. …Actually the holiday didn’t start as we didn’t go.
We had booked a house and quite honestly the owners were marvellous. Refunded all our money and sent Mum a big bunch of flowers.

Actually not playing ‘top trumps’ here (too upsetting) we went on holiday to Málaga on 5th May and two days later we needed an emergency flight home as Himself needed an urgent procedure at the Christie hospital.

On a lighter note years ago we booked a caravan holiday in Anglesey. The car broke down in Beaumaris. Nearly all day to fix it. Drove on in trepidation. Car was okay but it lashed it down with rain all week. Never been back since …

Arriving at a holiday let desperate for the loo - 2 loos and no paper in either!! I had to send dh on an errand of mercy immediately.

Yikes! Awful tales! Laugh (maybe) afterwards? But at the time … 😮