worst

Stephen and Viv have been to 60 countries but say this was their worst experience

A couple who have travelled to 60 countries after appearing on Race Across the World have blasted a “shocking” airport lounge as the worst they’ve ever experienced. Stephen and Viv Redding, from Uppingham, Rutland were left stunned after paying nearly £50 to access what they thought would be a relaxing business class lounge.

Stephen, 64, and Viv, 68, visited the Avianca lounge while waiting for their flight to Bogotá before returning to London Heathrow, following a six-week trip around South America. They claim to have been met with “tasteless” food and shabby surroundings.

“We bought business class tickets because it was a long-haul flight and that way we can have flat beds and get a bit of sleep,” Stephen said. “We’d been led to believe that we would have lounge access [at the airport] but when we went up to the lounge, we were told that our tickets did not qualify.

“So we decided that we would pay for the upgrade because we knew we had over two hours to spare.”

Once inside, the couple, who appeared on the BBC travel show in 2024, say they were shocked by the poor quality on offer at the San Jose lounge. Stephen said: “There was only one meal available, tasteless and watery spaghetti bolognese.

“The pasta was cold, the sauce was not very nice. There was a little side bread thing that was dried and tasteless. We were given drinks tokens for a glass of wine, which meant we were only allowed one drink each – one glass of wine each!

“The place was not good. The seats weren’t comfy, the tables were shabby, it was not what we’d experienced from any other airport lounge that we’ve been to. And to be fair, there have been quite a few since Race Across the World two years ago.

“We’ve been to about 60 countries now and probably up to a dozen lounges across the globe and this is the worst lounge that we’ve ever been to.”

The pair raised their concerns with staff at the time but claim they were met with little interest. After returning home, they contacted Avianca to request a refund, but say their complaint was rejected. Stephen added: “We asked for money back because of the poor lounge quality but they have refused and rejected that claim and basically said that’s just the way it is.

“I must also say though that the flight with Avianca was absolutely spot on, I have no complaints at all.

“[That being said], we were disappointed and actually after being away for six weeks touring through the north of South America we were tired and just wanted to relax in a bit of comfort, but this did not fulfil our needs by any means.”

F1’s bosses are caught in the middle of this debate, recognising the superficial appeal of the back-and-forth racing, but concerned about what the new cars are doing to the sport they grew up loving because they were attracted by its essence as the ultimate test of driver and machine.

Andrea Stella, team principal of world champions McLaren, said: “In qualifying, there’s some aspects of driving that could be counterintuitive.

“Like, occasionally there are comments from our drivers that once they make a mistake, actually save some energy, you go faster overall in a sector, because the energy you saved with the delay on the throttle because you had a problem is going to reward you at the end of the straight.”

Mercedes F1 team principal Toto Wolff said: “From an entertainment perspective, I believe that what we’ve seen today between Ferrari and McLaren was good racing. Many overtakes.

“We were all part of Formula 1 where there was no overtake, literally. Sometimes we’re too nostalgic about the good old years.

“But I think the product is good in itself. We saw quite some racing in the midfield also. And that is, I think, the positive.

“Now, from a driver’s standpoint, when it comes to the qualifying lap, that is different. Clearly, lift and coast in the qualifying, I’m sure for someone like Max, who is a full-attack guy, it’s difficult to cope and digest.

“Qualifying flat-out would be nice. But when you look at the fans and the excitement that is there, live, the cheering when there’s overtakes and also on social media, the younger fans, the vast majority, through all the demographics, like the sport at the moment.

“So, yes, we can always look at how we’re improving it. But at the moment, all the indicators and all the data say people love it. And I spoke with Stefano (Domenicali, the F1 president). He says that, too.”

The cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia Grands Prix gives the sport a little more breathing space to consider all this.

There is a meeting of team bosses with F1 and governing body the FIA this week, and another race in Japan in two weeks’ time before a five-week break before the next Grand Prix in Miami at the beginning of May.

A number of ideas to reduce the degree to which the purity of the driving experience has been polluted are already in the mix, such as removing a lower limit for energy recovery currently in force in a certain phase of the straights. And others may yet emerge.

Stella says: “Do we want to be faithful to the DNA of racing in a traditional sense? Do we accept that this counterintuitive situation belongs to the business or not? This is a high-level philosophical question.”

YouTuber Danny from the Honest Places channel visited different boozers in Rhyl in North Wales — a former tourist hotspot now dubbed one of Britain’s worst seaside resorts

A YouTuber who travelled to one of the so-called worst seaside resorts in Britain claimed he felt completely at ease there, where traditional boozers brimming with character were packed with locals enjoying affordable pints.

Danny, who operates the Honest Places channel, was visiting Llandudno and Rhyl in North Wales, with the latter having earned the nickname “Costa Del Dole”.

The resort is littered with abandoned buildings and establishments which have closed down permanently. Despite once being a magnet for holidaymakers, the pier, funfair and shopping centre have long since faded into memory.

The Telegraph listed it amongst the worst seaside resorts in Britain three years ago and described it as “Blackpool after a neutron bomb”. Danny, however, labelled it “Britain’s saddest seaside town” in his YouTube headline before speaking about it affectionately upon arrival.

He commented: “We have come to Rhyl because I felt a bit too out of place (in Llandudno). I feel actually at home in Rhyl.

“This is the front — it is such a contrast to Llandudno. I know people say British seaside towns have gone to s***. But they have been s*** for ages. This is a real British seaside town. Most of them are s*** and that is a real seaside town.

“So Whitby is a seaside town but it’s not a real British seaside town because the real ones are the ones that are like this, like Blackpool.

“But the main reason I came here, I didn’t want to go to another pub in Llandudno because it is just a bit tepid really.”

He continued: “There are some proper tasty pubs I went into last time where the barman and bar staff were just shouting at the customers and stuff like that.”

The first establishment he and a friend visited was Victory Club on Queen Street which has been welcoming drinkers for more than 70 years.

He wasn’t particularly taken with his pint of Caffrey’s Stout but remarked: “The gaff is alright though isn’t it?” His companion responded: “Yeah, tidy and reasonably cheap.”

Yet, if they considered paying £4 a pint reasonable value, they were in for a pleasant shock at their next destination.

They were drawn to The Bodfor and after hearing the booming music from within, Danny chuckled: “It does look good in there, doesn’t it? It reminds me a bit like Benidorm!”

He continued: “People will watch this back and say you should have went in but I’ve got a better boozer for you.”

Danny then headed towards the Imperial Hotel pub and described it as being like stepping into somebody’s front room.

Whilst at the bar, he announced that he had never sampled a pint of Fosters in his life, before deciding to try one.

And staring at his drink, he commented: “That head is beautiful! I don’t think I’ve had better head.”

After taking a gulp, he then remarked it was “fitting” to have a Fosters in Rhyl, before his friend responded: “Absolutely, for what it is, it’s a good pint. You want a fizzy, cold, tasteless pint. That’s what you get.”

Danny then admitted he was enjoying it more than anticipated before he enquired how cheap it was. After discovering the pint was just £2.70, he enthused: “Granted, it’s Fosters. But at that price, you can’t kick off. That’s got to be a 10/10.”

His friend then suggested that one could have a smashing night out in Rhyl with just a tenner and some loose change.

Stepping outside post-pints, Danny remarked: “We got some nice little tasty pubs, we saw Rhyl, it hasn’t changed. I don’t think it will change.”

Last year, reports suggested that Rhyl, which boasts four beaches, would undergo transformation thanks to £200million invested over the past decade, as per Denbighshire County Council.

The town also benefited from a £20million injection from the government’s Levelling Up fund three years ago.

A passenger survey has found the short-haul airline that was ranked as the lowest for its overall customer satisfaction, including for the boarding process and value for money

The airline with the worst customer satisfaction in the UK has been revealed, and it’s not Jet2, Wizz Air or easyJet.

In a lot of circumstances, the airline we fly with can depend on the most affordable ticket available at the time of booking, with competition rife among major budget airlines like Jet2, Wizz Air, Ryanair, and easyJet for short-haul flights. But depending on the airline we choose for our journey, it can severely impact our overall travel experience, from the booking and boarding processes to the customer service onboard.

Now, an annual customer satisfaction survey of more than 5,500 travellers by Which? found that Ryanair was the worst-performing short-haul airline.

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A Ryanair spokesperson told the Mirror: “Neither we nor our 208m passengers pay any attention to these made-up manufactured surveys or their fake results. Every passenger booking a flight has a choice and last year 208m consumers chose Ryanair, while nobody reads or pays any attention to Which? fake surveys.”

In the Which? ratings, Ryanair secured a mere one star for seat comfort, while it scored two out of five stars for its booking process, boarding, customer service and cabin environment.

When it comes to value for money on short-hauls, the airline earned a three-star rating, the same as easyJet and Wizz Air, but fell behind carriers, Jet2, Lufthansa, TUI and Aer Lingus. Overall, Ryanair received a customer satisfaction score of 55 per cent in the short-haul survey and ranked bottom on a list of 24 airlines. Just in front of Ryanair on the customer survey, with a total score of 59 per cent, was Wizz Air.

The budget carrier, which had 259 passengers included in the Which? survey, received two stars for its booking process, boarding, customer service, and cabin environment. However, it was awarded three stars for its value for money.

A Wizz Air spokesperson also shared: “Once again, Which’s survey relies on a tiny sample size. It surveyed 259 people, which is only 0.002% of the 12 million passengers carried on our UK flights in 2025. No credible organisation can claim that such a sample is representative.

“Our strong passenger numbers – which rise every year – clearly show that travellers value WIZZ’s low prices and industry-leading operational performance. We’re continuing to deliver against the commitments outlined in our £12 billion Customer First Compass initiative. From October 2024 to December 2025, customer satisfaction rose by eight percentage points. At the same time, our flight completion rate in the UK was 99.7% – consistently among the best in the industry – while our on-time performance increased by 14% year-on-year.

“This year, we look forward to welcoming even more passengers on board Europe’s youngest and most modern fleet, taking advantage of our low prices on our biggest ever summer leisure network to many new destinations in Spain, Greece, and France.”

In stark contrast, Jet2 topped the list with 76 per cent, receiving a four-star rating for its booking process, customer service and value for money. One customer said: “Compared with other budget airlines, they give you a generous luggage allowance, which makes such a difference.”

Have you had a complaint-worthy flight? Email webtravel@reachplc.com

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