Mother’s warning after man ‘crept into resort room by way of balcony doorways’

A British mother has shared her horrifying ordeal after a man crept into her unlocked hotel suite in the middle of the night while on holiday with her family.

Rachel Brown, 42, said she was falling asleep on the last night of a week-long break in Vilamoura, Portugal, with her son, Jaxon, seven, when she saw the curtain twitch.

A man snuck into her second floor room at five-star Epic Sana hotel, forcing her to wrestle him out and onto the balcony, she says.

Rachel, from Halifax, West Yorkshire, said he climbed across two neighbours’ balconies then jumped around 13ft to the ground below and ran off – after stealing her Apple watch in the fight.

The man has not been caught and wasn’t seen on CCTV and Rachel wants to warn holidaymakers to always lock the balcony door.

Rachel, a managing director, said: ‘When I first saw the curtains twitching I thought a bird flew in – then a man appeared out of the curtains.

‘It was terrifying. I had a young child in the room, so my instinct was to get that person out the room.

‘I started pushing him and hitting him until he backed out of the room onto the balcony – then I began shouting for help.

‘After he ran off, I was so scared for the rest of the night that I blocked my door with a sun lounger.’

Rachel said she shut the balcony door but not locked it before the man crept in around 10.20PM on July 22.

She wrongly assumed she would be safe because she was high up and they had a private balcony.

The single mum said: ‘He was in his mid-twenties and about 5ft 8in, and was tanned with curly dark hair.

‘I instantly shouted him to “f**k off” and began hitting and pushing him back out the room.

‘Before he climbed off my balcony he grabbed my arm and pulled off my Apple Watch.’

Rachel said security were sent up to her room but there was no CCTV and hotel staff didn’t call police.

Her Apple Watch was returned to her after it was found in the bushes nearby.

She was unable to report the incident to police herself until she returned to the UK, as her flight home was that morning.

She has since reported the incident to the Guardia Civil via email, and lodged a complaint with the hotel, because she said they failed to call the police on the night.

She has asked for compensation from the hotel as she feels the incident ‘ruined the holiday’ but an email from the hotel manager declined her request.

Rachel says her son is ‘traumatised’ – as his bedroom back at home also has a balcony.

‘Now I’m home my son makes me go into every room and onto the balcony before he can go in,’ she said.

‘I’ve been more cautious at home with making sure all the doors are fully locked and the alarms set.

‘But I’m disappointed with how the hotel has handled it – it could happen again to someone else.’

Rachel now wants to warn other travellers to ensure all doors are locked and to take reasonable precautions to stay safe.

She said: ‘If you have to get someone out the room, be loud, and get people’s attention.

‘If you’re on the balcony, if you’re loud, they will be more focused on trying to escape than re-enter the room, or harm you.’

The General Manager of EPIC SANA Algarve, André Romeiro, said: ‘We confirm that Mrs. Brown was a guest at our Hotel and an incident occurred on July 22, 2024, of an attempted intrusion by a stranger into the client’s room, through the balcony, which was opened at that time. No damage resulted from that attempt.

‘Immediately after becoming aware of the situation, the hotel activated the internal security procedures, namely mobilising the security guard to inspect the property in search of the suspect and checking the video surveillance cameras.

‘The hotel also filed a complaint with the police authorities and handed over the video surveillance images for this purpose.

‘Our immediate concern was to assist Mrs. Brown and guarantee her and her son’s safety. In fact, the following day I personally expressed Mrs. Brown my deep regret at what happened and offered to accompany her to the police station to file the criminal complaint as offended, but she declined, since it was her last day.

‘Nevertheless, when the complaint was filed, the hotel provided the client’s contact details to the police authorities, so that Mrs. Brown could be contacted and provide the necessary assistance for the investigation.

‘We also assured Mrs. Brown’s transfer to the airport, at the hotel’s expense.

‘After her departure, Mrs. Brown contacted the hotel by email, requesting a monetary compensation for the traumatic experience.

‘Since we consider that there is no basis for the payment of any compensation by the hotel and the hotel does not follow that type of practice, we declined its payment.’