The top management of the Turkish hotel Rixos Sungate, which became the hero of the recent scandal with the poisoning of British tourists, commented on the topic of the day rather diplomatically. The hotel, for which “customer satisfaction comes first”, is nevertheless ready to defend its quality of service and absence of “salmonellosis” with documents and test results in hand – including at court. Thus, the Turkish Rixos spoke about the details of the mass poisoning of tourists, hinting at fraud.
As quoted by Turizm Guncel, Rixos Hotels’ corporate communications and public relations manager Merich Genyulal confirmed that there is information that some guests staying at the hotel are complaining of stomach discomfort. “All scheduled inspections at the facility were conducted after the tourists declared that they were poisoned, and additional inspections were conducted. No negative results were found in the test results. After that, our quality control team tested 1,200 employees in April, May, and June. No effects were found in the employees either. Food, surface, water, and ice tests were done and nothing was found there either. State bodies also conducted inspections and did not confirm any negative data,” the top manager reported.
He then described the situation as follows. According to him, Rixos Sungate has been open since March 15 and has welcomed 18,000 guests. “Out of 18,000 guests, only 51 people came with complaints, mostly British citizens. Those suffering from nausea or vomiting were referred to the hotel’s medical center at no charge. Also, the hotel administration communicates with all guests who leave comments and complaints,” said Mr. Genyulal. At the same time, he noted that only after the event was covered in the British press, the number of “victims” for some reason began to increase.
He also commented on the latest news about 100 British tourists who were poisoned, and plan to sue the hotel. According to him, checks at the hotel are continuing, they were also carried out by the tour operator TUI, which also risks being on the dock in the event of a trial. But none of the tests showed the presence of the bacteria claimed by the British victims. By the way, the hotel did not hear about the actual court session either.
Mr. Genyulal also added that the hotel does not face cancellation of reservations, including by the British. “Now not only British people are resting in the hotel, but also various guests from many countries. Well-known names and influential persons, invited by us to the facility, also visited us. There are no problems with them either. We have not received any complaints, especially from the restaurant. Not only did no one have an upset stomach, but we also didn’t get any negative feedback about the food,” he added.
The burning question is whether Rixos is collecting evidence, similar to the Spanish hotels that decided to oppose the “business” of the British victims, evidence from video cameras – how a tourist who allegedly lay with poisoning in the hotel tans, splashes in the pool and burns off at a party – the manager responded rather diplomatically, “The administration of our hotel, of course, can provide such evidence if necessary, but there is no question that we show a hostile attitude towards our guests who complain about something. In the event of litigation, our litigation lawyers may take the initiative to do so. But we do not have such an approach to service and treatment of guests,” he said. That is, apparently, the British lawyers who put the cases of “poisoned” tourists “on the stream” are transparently hinted – we will not directly accuse you of fraudulent actions, but it is clear to everyone.