By Alexander Tagvoryan

YEREVAN, July 28–The Armenian tourists are always promised to rest on a beautiful seashore, relax in a five-star hotel and an unforgettable stay in Turkey. Some of them really have “unforgettable” holidays, but not in the good sense.

The Sarajian family went to Alanya this summer and stopped at the five-star hotel “Aventura Park,” paying $4,000 for the whole family. The mother of the family, Lianna Mamaian, says she’ll remember that ”vacation” all her life. And she will never return to Turkey. Never.

“We were told that it’s a five-star hotel and their website said the same. But when we got there we understood that if it was accessed objectively, it wouldn’t get even three stars. The seashore was dirty, and then we learned that the sewage flowed directly into the water where the tourists swam. (…) The linen in the rooms were also dirty,” she told a reporter from News.am.

The Sarajian family was “having rest” in that hotel till July 16, when the most shocking things happened. First of all, the male workers of the hotel “Aventura Park” tried to “get acquainted” with almost every woman in the hotel and especially with Russian women. “Especially with Russian women they went past the limit and they didn’t care if the woman was there with her boyfriend or husband,” Mrs. Mamaian remembers.

There were two girls from Russia at that hotel, and one of them was Armenian. The employees of the hotel tried to get acquainted with them, too, but were rejected. In the evening of July 16, the employees were very rude with the two girls and insulted the four guys (two Armenians and two Russians) that stood up for the girls. A fight began, and the security of the hotel did nothing to stop it. All the male employees of the hotel were beating those four guys.

The 15-year-old son of Lianna Mamaian who entered the hotel’s common area just after the fight, was also beaten by 20 employees of the hotel.

“Then another tourist from the hotel, a Tatar by nationality, tried to help my son to get up — they beat him, too, and broke his ribs. When I saw my son after that fight I could hardly recognize him… his face was swollen, he couldn’t open his eyes…” said Liana.

Then Liana’s husband, Arthur, and his friend tried to find our what had happened, but the employees of the hotel beat them too, threatening them with a knife.

“Whom are you going to complain to? On the territory of Alanya, I have no problems, so complain if you want,” said the host of the hotel when he was told that the tourists were going to complain.

The police came, after all, in the evening and arrested… no, not the employees of the hotel that attacked the tourists, but those four Russian guys, Liana’s husband and his friend. They wanted to arrest Liana’s 15-year-old son, too.

After all, the employee of the travel agency that brought the Sarajian family to Alanya managed to free Liana’s husband and his friend, and it took lots of time and nerves to set the Russian guys free, too.

“I have never felt so helpless, lonely and hurt before. We spent the night with open eyes, and in the morning when the sun lit up the sea and the shore, it didn’t seem as beautiful as before. It was even disgusting, like the slippery Turkish sweets, which may seem to be very tasty under artificial light, but disappoint you when you eat them.” Liana said.

Yerevan Report