Thomsons Time Warp Holidays (Thomson Holidays)

Member Name: janharper

Product:	Thomson Holidays
Date:	11/02/05 (4393 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: met some nice people

Disadvantages: regimented, poor value

Butlins in the sun! That’s how I would describe my holiday in a Tompsons Hotel.


I booked a last minute holiday to get away from work and enjoy a little winter sun but ended up freezing cold, in a time warp.

The cold weather wasn’t Tompsons fault, I’ll give them that, but it was too cold to sit around in the hotel most of the time. The lounge was so cold I needed to wear my outdoor jacket. The rest of the experience was entirely down to them though.

Let me start at the beginning.


I found a holiday to Malta on the net and printed off the details. I took the sheet to my local Thomsons shop and asked if they could offer me a better deal .I wasn’t worried about where I went. They came up with a 7-day half-board holiday in Palma Nova, which worked out much cheaper than my original choice. They assured me that the Santa Lucia Hotel was an excellent hotel, which provided entertainment and had a very good reputation for both food and service. I accepted the offer.


When I arrived, I noticed that the place was packed full with senior citizens. Now, don’t get me wrong, I can mix with anyone, any age. The problem was that most of them had been living there since before Christmas on Thomsons extended stay packages. I discovered that these residents, who complained if anyone sat in their seats, dined at their table, or sat in their personal seating area had only paid around eighty pounds per week for a holiday that was costing me three hundred and fifty pounds.

I don’t begrudge them their holiday but the entertainment was geared completely to their age group and we were presented with old time dancing, renditions of ‘We’ll meet again’, ‘The White Cliffs of Dover’ and ‘Roll out the barrel’. The food was very plain, mostly tinned and designed for people with no teeth! In other words, sloppy and boring. There were numerous free trips laid on by Tompsons for this age group and even special deals in bars, on private trips and in taxi fares for them. Yes, that’s great if you a senior citizen.


My complaint is not they this age group had all these concessions but that when I booked my holiday I was not told that the hotel was geared up to seniors who were on extended stay holidays and that the catering arrangements were running on a budget accordingly.


There were 12 reps in the hotel and we were spoken to in a patronizing manner and things were explained in words of one syllable. The only time there was no information was when it was needed most, at check-in in Palma Airport. We arrived 40 minutes before our flight was due to leave and we were literally dumped, told the number of the desk we needed and left to it. After check-in, we were told which gate to go to but given no directions. This entailed a twenty-minute walk. Talk about stress!


We met some lovely people in the hotel and saw a lot of the island under our own steam. The holiday was good because we made it so.


No thanks to Tompsons though! I really felt cheated!

Summary: