IT was meant to be their dream break – but instead it turned into the holiday from hell for a mum-to-be and her husband.

Now Pickering couple David and Amy Arnold are taking legal action against the firm which organised their fortnight in Egypt after Amy became seriously ill with dysentery.

They claim 27-year-old Amy – who found out only days before the £1,300 holiday, booked to celebrate their second wedding anniversary, that she was pregnant with their first child – was told by a doctor at the Three Corners El Wekala Golf Resort, in Taba Heights, that she had picked up gastroenteritis from too much time in the sun.

The illness left her unable to leave her room for ten days and she was terrified about whether it would affect their unborn child.

The couple have now instructed Leeds-based solicitors Irwin Mitchell to start legal action against the firm they booked their holiday with, Panorama – part of the Thomas Cook Group – because of their unhappiness with their treatment.

“We found out I was expecting five days before we were due to fly out at the end of June, so we were hoping to have a double celebration,” said Amy.

“The reality was very different and the trip was a total nightmare. After I fell ill five days into the holiday, the doctor just said it had been caused by too much sun.

“I then spent the rest of the trip continuing to be extremely ill. I lost about ten pounds in weight and felt permanently faint and very weak.”

Amy was only diagnosed with shigella dysentery and put on antibiotics when she and David, 34, returned home.

“I was shocked and pretty scared – as far as we can tell, it has had no impact on the baby, but we can’t be 100 per cent sure yet,” she said.

David said: “For Amy to fall ill was bad enough, but things were made worse by the response we received both in Egypt and dealing with Panorama when we got home.

“I couldn’t believe a tour rep told us we shouldn’t have gone away with Amy pregnant – it was just insensitive. Panorama’s customer service has been appalling. It’s taken so much time and effort just to get them to even acknowledge we exist.”

Jaspal Singh Dhallu, the Arnolds’ solicitor, said: “For Mrs Arnold’s symptoms to be dismissed like this is truly shocking and reflects very poorly on the level of care Panorama showed our clients.”

A spokesperson for Panorama said: “We take all reports of illness very seriously and were very concerned to hear that Mrs Arnold became unwell while on holiday. We hope that she has made a full recovery and that the rest of her pregnancy is healthy. “We have been in correspondence with Mr and Mrs Arnold and are awaiting further information from them in order for us to progress further. We will now liaise with the couple’s solicitors in order for this to be resolved.”