Mum 'disgusted' at Sandy Balls despite 'high standard of cleanliness'

Holly Bennett, of Fleet in Hampshire, booked to stay in a luxury wooden lodge with her two children, aged six and 15, at the Sandy Balls holiday park in the New Forest during the New Year’s celebrations. 

After what had been a tough year for the family, Ms Bennett and her children were looking forward to the holiday, but it soon became apparent a number of issues had risen. 

Dirty frying pan (Image: Holly Bennett)

A spokeswoman for the holiday park said they hold the “highest standards of cleanliness” and are “devastated” Ms Bennett were not happy with their stay. 

The 35-year-old mum told the Journal: “It was disgusting. I work hard for my money and the £1,000 to stay for three nights could have gone towards other things. 

“The sofa was broken and hanging off. They had clearly not been cleaned because they were dirty underneath. 

“There was still rubbish left behind, the wardrobe still had clothes left from the previous guest, there was like kids' drawings left and dirt all over the floor.” 

Dirty pillow (Image: Holly Bennett)

Ms Bennett then said there were no lights outside by the hot tub and there was damp, slippery leaves left on the floor, which she said were “dangerous”. 

The next morning, she went to the on-site shop to buy some things for breakfast, but the shelves were empty - “we couldn’t even get ground coffee it was that silly”. 

“When we got back, with what food was left in the lodge, we went to cook and the frying pan had food left in it. 

“We ended up waiting more than two hours to cook food whilst waiting for customer service.” 

Ms Bennett ended up complaining. She said staff came and cleaned up, adding: “That’s fine, but it doesn’t fix a broken holiday. 

“Apart from cleaning up, there was no empathy or understanding from them at all.” 

A spokeswoman for Away Resorts, which operates Sandy Balls, said they refunded Ms Bennett £330 for the night she went home and offered to move her to a different accommodation. 

Alpacas at the park (Image: Away Resorts)

She added: “We are devastated to hear that Mrs Bennett and her family weren’t entirely happy during and following their stay. 

“We have the highest standards of cleanliness and customer care in our parks and strive to ensure that every accommodation unit is perfect on arrival.  

“On the rare occasion that things do go wrong, we have clear customer service guidelines in place and are always available to support guests and help resolve any issues they may be facing. 

“Where Mrs Bennett gave us the opportunity to rectify the issues she reported, all were resolved in a timely manner.  

“We hope that Mrs Bennett and her family will return to an Away Resorts destination in future.”