WARNING SIGNS YOUR FIVE-STAR RESORT COULD POISON YOU - AFTER 4 BRITISH TOURISTS DIED IN CAPE VERDE

After a few days spent tucking into the hotel food, the last thing you want to encounter on your dreamy break is an upset stomach.

Sadly, it's the tale many Brits will relate to - with hundreds estimated to have suffered from food poisoning abroad.

While getting sick on holiday is often a temporary issue that soon passes, there have been some serious incidents that have even seen fatal consequences of improperly cooked food and other problems.

Four British tourists have died in just four months after being hit with severe stomach bugs while holidaying in Cape Verde.

Elena Walsh, 64, from Birmingham, Mark Ashley, 55, of Bedfordshire, 64-year-old Karen Pooley, from Gloucestershire, and a 56-year-old man all died last year after contracting severe gastric illnesses while on the islands off the coast of West Africa.

Meanwhile, just last summer more than 100 holidaymakers found themselves ill with suspected salmonella poisoning at a four-star hotel in the popular resort of La Manga near Murcia.

Several guests found themselves ill after eating lunch at the hotel one day and were suffering with symptoms including nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and in some cases fever. Around 20 were even admitted to hospital.

In another case, back in 2023, nearly an entire family fell ill after what was supposed to be a sunny holiday in Turkey.

Holly Parkin and partner Matthew Morris, from London, took their three young children away to an all-inclusive five-star resort and all but Holly came down with suspected food poisoning.

When the family returned to the UK, their one-year-old daughter ended up hospitalised and on an IV drip.

At the time LoveHolidays, the booking site used for the trip, apologised and told the BBC: 'As we were not made aware of their concerns while they were on holiday, we were unable to investigate or provide them with support during their stay.' The investigation was later reopened.

The hotel told the news outlet how they have a 'safe tourism certificate' and added: 'All our food and beverage units and pools are systematically inspected by state-accredited organisations.

'The results of these inspection reports are available and are shared transparently with all tour operators upon request.'

But a GP and private chef have now revealed the signs for holidaymakers to look out for, so you don't end up in the same situation when you're staying in a five-star resort.

The biggest 'red flag' at the all-inclusive buffet, according to both, is how long the food has been sitting on the pass for.

'Food left cooling at room temperature raises the odds of foodborne illness,' says Dean Harper, a Chef at Harper Fine Dining. 'Bain-maries [buffet carts] and chilled wells that feel barely warm or cool indicate danger zones where bacteria thrive.'

Hot food should not be kept below around 63°C and cold items should never sit above fridge-cold temperatures, according to the chef. 

He continues: 'When food arrives, soup should be visibly steaming, chilled desserts properly cold, and sauces never lukewarm; room service should be covered, hot food hot, and salads crisp, not sweaty.'  

Dr Helen Wall, a Bolton-based Senior GP partner at The Oaks Family Practice and Clinical Director of Population Health for Greater Manchester, agrees the temperature rule can be especially true in big vats of rice.

'They can be dangerous if it's been left sitting at room temperature, especially on buffets and all-you-can-eat inclusives, as bacteria can grow in it. 

'Or, if you get an inkling that the rice it's being warmed up you should be concerned, as that's where the bacteria can grow as well'.   

Other food that could poison you at your hotel, according to Dr Helen, is 'chicken or poultry that's pink, rubbery or bloody, meat or fish that's lukewarm rather than piping hot, runny eggs that are watery, or anything that you get a really strong, ammonia, off-smell'.

Another really high-risk food for getting food poisoning is seafood, and she adds she'll never have it if it's been 'sat out' for a long time.

So maybe it's best to avoid the prawns!

Chef Dean says other warning signs at the buffet include tongs being cross-used between different dishes, as well as raw food being prepared in the same area as cooked. 

He also recommends looking out for chefs who aren't changing their whites regularly or washing their hands thoroughly enough.   

He says: 'Cloudy, odorous glassware, smeared plates, sticky condiment bottles or grubby salt and pepper shakers point to lax basic cleaning, and poorly maintained toilets often mirror what’s behind the pass.'

Open bins and flies in the dining area are other red flags to look out for, as well as crumbs left to linger around service stations - all of which 'suggest weak pest control,' he says.   

As for symptoms, Dr Helen explains how they 'usually appear within a few hours' to a few days, and warns holidaymakers should look out for 'nausea and vomiting, diarrhoea'.

'Sometimes it might even be bloody diarrhoea, usually very watery, stomach cramps, tummy pains, often a fever. You might even start to feel quite achy, like you've got a bit of a flu-like illness, quite tired,' she adds.

In most cases, the body can clear the illness on its own, but there are 'more serious forms of food poisoning that can make you very unwell,' Dr Helen warns. 

She advises if you are 'becoming dehydrated,' struggling to keep fluids down and feel unable to 'get up and about', or 'becoming less alert and confused' to seek medical attention. 

If you're not passing urine, your symptoms aren't settling or you have a high fever, the GP also urges people to get help.

Dr Helen always takes rehydration sachets away with her to have at hand if needed. 

'The people that are particularly at risk are those who are pregnant, elderly, immunocompromised, if you've got weakened immune systems, or if you've got a lot of underlying health problems, like cardiac failure, heart failure, lung disease, then you may be more at risk of becoming seriously unwell,' the GP explains.

She says it is important to notify the hotel if you suspect you have food poisoning so they can investigate and prevent others from becoming ill. 

'People do and have recently died from food poisoning, so it's no joke,' she adds.

Health-related incidents are the most common travel insurance claim, according to Multitrip.com - and last year, one incident of food poisoning in Greece racked up a £1,611 charge alone. 

But carbon monoxide poisoning is another threat that could catch holidaymakers out.

In 2023, American John Heathco, 40, and partner Abby Lutz, 28 sadly passed away due to carbon monoxide poisoning, after staying at a hotel in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. 

The pair initially thought they had food poisoning and went to hospital days before their sudden deaths. 

At the moment, only 14 states in America require hotels to install and maintain carbon monoxide detectors. 

Dr Helen, who is also a speaker for Champions Speakers Agency, notes that although Carbon monoxide poisoning is rare, 'it does happen' and when it occurs, 'it's usually severe, serious and possibly fatal'.

'Your risk increases if you are in accommodation with gas boilers or heaters, poor ventilation, faulty appliances, if you see that they're using portable gas heaters and generators trying to keep the place warm,' she explains. 

Carbon monoxide is mostly unnoticeable and is 'colourless, odourless and tasteless' and because of this, people often don't realise they are being poisoned 'until it's too late'.

Headache, dizziness, feeling light headed, nausea or vomiting, fatigue and weakness are all signs of possible carbon monoxide poisoning, according to the doctor. She emphasises how these can often be mistaken for other holiday-related symptoms like being hungover, feeling tired or food poisoning.

'Once you get to the most serious symptoms, that's when things are really starting to get serious and potentially fatal and that can progress quite quickly, with confusion, difficulty concentrating, chest pain, feeling like your chest is tightening, shortness of breath, and then ultimately, sort of collapse and loss of consciousness.'

She urges holidaymakers to consider carbon monoxide poisoning as a possibility if people you're with begin to feel unwell too

'If you do suspect it, then leave the room or the building that you think you're being poisoned in, immediately get into fresh air, tell hotel staff, make sure they've raised the alarm and they're taking it seriously, and try and get urgent medical assessment,'  Dr Helen says.

It is possible to travel with a portable carbon monoxide alarm if you are concerned, according to the doctor.  

Or, she recommends staying in 'reputable hotels with good reviews that are well maintained'. 

Overall, Dr Helen says, 'you just need to trust your instincts'. 

She adds, 'People are very rarely wrong about these things, we all have that inbuilt radar that something is not quite right and I think sometimes we ignore it because we don't trust ourselves, or we don't want to make a fuss. 

'British are very good at not wanting to make a fuss, not wanting to complain, not wanting to look like they criticise it. 

'But actually, it's important if you're worried that you raise that concern and make sure that it's being taken seriously, even if it does turn out to be nothing.'

Read more

2026-02-04T01:10:53Z