A COUPLE who spent thousands of pounds on a dream wedding in Corfu were left heartbroken after the best day of their lives turned into a nightmare.
Emma and Peter Hall, from Darlington, were promised a garden ceremony, views of the Mediterranean sea, and photographs to treasure of them tying the knot on pristine sandy beaches by travel operator TUI.
More than 50 friends and family travelled to Greece for the occasion, and £50,000 was spent on travel, accommodation and the wedding itself.
But the couple were stunned when they learnt their wedding venue was full of three months-worth of uncollected rubbish which looked more like a "junkyard", as well as discarded bikes, tyres and sunbeds.
The couple said the inside of the venue was filthy, dusty and rundown, with broken brickwork and plaster and dirty windows and carpets – something, they said, the wedding coordinator described as "a bit tired" and in need of some "tender loving care".
They said the wedding coordinator suggested blocking the rubbish with parked cars on the day of the wedding but when the couple refused, they were told that they could get married in the Mayor’s office, which, they said, was described as "a haunted house".
To make matters worse, at the end of the holiday, the couple received the marriage certificate to discover that it had the wrong name on it, so Mrs Hall could not yet legally change her name.
She said: "We weren’t planning on going to the Town Hall until the day of the wedding, but the coordinator mentioned she was worried that it wasn’t going to live up to our expectations, but nothing could prepare us for what we were faced with.
“We were just in shock and numb. The first thing we saw was a mound of rubbish. It absolutely stank and that was just the start of it.
"It was heartbreaking for me. I didn’t want the kids to know just how bad it was. I didn’t want to let anyone down. It was sad knowing that our guests had paid a lot of money to be part of it.
"I couldn’t say a vow that meant so much in front of my sons and friends and family in such squalor.”
A small family-run restaurant offered to host the ceremony for the couple.
The couple wrote to TUI and in a reply five months later, the holiday firm found the hotel was performing up to standards and they were unable to offer any compensation.
The couple have now instructed consumer claims legal firm Bott and Co to help them claim compensation.
Mrs Hall added: “We trusted TUI but they caused huge stress at a time which should have been our happiest. The whole experience was completely misleading and has left us heartbroken.”
David Bott, senior partner at Bott and Co, said: “This couple were tremendously let down on one of the most important days of their lives and suffered a great deal of upset – it is a great shame that TUI will not admit responsibility for this ordeal."
A TUI UK spokesperson said: "We are very concerned to hear of the Hall party’s experience in Corfu on what should have been a very special holiday.
"We are currently investigating their concerns and will be in contact with them soon."
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