Spain holiday warning after Brit left trapped in airport for 32 hours due to easy passport mistake
A WOMAN was left stranded in a Spanish airport for 32 hours after making an easy passport mistake.
Sharon Dempsey, 66, was forced to stay at Alicante Airport after she lost her passport mid-flight.
Despite boarding her Glasgow to Alicante flight without any problems, she was unable to find her passport after she landed in Spain.
She only realised when she was on the shuttle bus to the airport - and was told by staff that it could have even been thrown away by cleaners.
Her daughter, Adele, said she started to panic, and was then kept in overnight, only to be "treated like a criminal" despite the easy mistake, and was only given bread rolls and water.
She told Glasgow Live: "She knows for certain that she had it when she boarded the plane as she had it open in case it needed checked. It wasn't checked on the plane so she put it back in her bag which was then kept under the seat in front of her."
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Adele was forced to speak to the Consulate who told them to book her a flight back to Glasgow with emergency documents.
However, this caused more problems - not only could the documents take two days to arrive, but Sharon wasn't allowed to enter Spain as new rules mean she had to have an official passport to stamp.
Eventually, she was able to board a flight back to London the next day with "police escort" on either side.
However, she arrived back in Gatwick and had to make her own way back to Glasgow.
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Adele added: "She was in a terrible state. She said she hadn't even washed her face and felt so dirty and was left in tears."
"I know that rules are rules but she was being treated like a criminal - not just someone who had accidentally lost her passport."
To avoid this happening, Brits are advised to always keep their passports in their bags when travelling.
It isn't the first time someone has lost their passport during a flight.
In 2019, a family faced being stuck in Switzerland after their daughter left their passports on the plane.
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And in 2018, a couple was forced to fly home after just 30 minutes on holiday because they lost their passports during the flight.
Here is what to do if you lose your passport while on holiday.
