Monica thought she’d booked the perfect P&O cruise to celebrate her mum’s 70th. But a tiny discovery in her room ruined everything
A holiday in paradise quickly turned into a nightmare for an Australian family after they claimed their room was infested with bed bugs.
Monica Robertson, her husband and their two children were on board P&O’s Pacific Encounter to celebrate her mother’s 70th birthday.
They were looking forward to spending time together as a family, but unfortunately they also spent the three-day holiday with some unwanted visitors.
“I felt things crawling over me in bed,” MSs Robertson recalled.
‘(I) pulled back the sheets and we saw quite a few bugs in our bed.’
Monica Robertson, her husband and their two children were on board P&O’s Pacific Encounter to celebrate her mother’s 70th birthday
The family’s vacation quickly turned sour when they discovered their beds were infested with bedbugs, leaving them with blistering red bites
Ms Robertson claims she first saw one of the creepy crawlies in the bathroom, which quickly left all four travelers covered in sweltering red welts.
“(It was) a very, very intense itching… almost (a) burning sensation,” Ms Robertson said A current issue.
“They told us they weren’t bed bugs. And maybe he was bitten out on the deck while he was up there.”
‘(We) are back in port. We were then able to Google what we were dealing with,” Robertson said.
‘Low, it said: bed bugs.’
The staff on board reportedly found a dead insect in their bed and took it for testing.
The family was told they could go to the onboard doctor to treat their bites at their own expense.
A complaint was made to HR, who insisted there was no evidence of bedbugs when the rooms were searched and cleaned.
“I don’t know where they got that from because we obviously gave them bugs to look at during our stay,” Ms Robertson added.
The family claims they were never given another room despite providing the staff with live evidence – instead receiving a $377 refund or $750 in future cruise credit.
The family claims they were never given another room, despite providing staff with live evidence (photo: some of the creepy crawlies trapped in a glass)
Ms Robertson said they lost thousands of dollars, along with some items that had to be thrown away upon arrival in Brisbane to ensure the bugs did not spread to their home.
“(We) left everything on the lawn,” she remembers.
“I had to sort through and decide what we could keep and what actually needed to be disposed of.”
“I had to throw away most of the things that couldn’t be washed.”
P&O Cruises Australia said it has ‘strict and robust health protocols’ on its ships, with ‘rigorous cleaning processes’ in place
A pest report confirmed no infestation was found in the family’s home.
P&O Cruises Australia said it has “strict and robust health protocols” on its ships.
‘Like hotels, we have rigorous cleaning processes in place to address and resolve any issues that arise.’
Daily Mail Australia has contacted P&O for comment.