A pair of newlyweds have cancelled their dream honeymoon in Bali after the horrific bomb blast.

Chelmsford couple, Mark and Donna Bilton, were married in August and missed the terrorist attack in Kuta, which left hundreds of tourists dead and missing, by less than a fortnight.

They had been anticipating jetting off to Bali for a romantic break of a lifetime since they first made their wedding plans.

But Mark, 39, a motor sales executive, said the disappointment of the holiday cancellation is insignificant now in the wake of all the people who lost their lives.

Speaking this week, he said: "We were supposed to go this week but our tour operator phoned us the day after it had all happened and offered us another destination or to cancel it.

"We couldn't believe it, we cancelled it because we wouldn't have enjoyed it.

"We wanted to go to a paradise with beautiful beaches and we have never been to that side of the world before.

"It is gutting but at least we are not one of those people who were there, the poor people who lost their lives."

The pair now plan to go away next year for a delayed honeymoon and are enjoying a week at home in Chelmsford.

Published Wednesday October 23, 2002

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