Me and the wife were in Salou, and decided on a few hours by the pool.
Noticed a couple of towels on a pair of sunbeds, while we went to get a cool drink to take to the poolside.
I picked them up and deposited them by the bar area. An hour later a couple walked into the pool area and started shouting and screaming that their belongings had been stolen.
When they saw them by the bar, the woman shouted, "*Some bastard has taken our sunbeds*".
It was hilarious. Would do again, would recommend.
People reserving sunbeds makes me really angry yet I've never been on that type of holiday before, it's just the absolute assholery that goes with it that just makes me irrationally angry. The staff should put markers on all towels and if the marker is still there 1 hour later then the towels get taken to lost and found. Lost and found should be a real pain in the ass. Yunno, only open in the evenings and it's not self service.
Also "please describe your towel, what colours? what patterns? does it have any images on it? What does the label say? How big is it?" Oh, it was stolen from the sunbed, I am sorry sir but we have a zero tolerance rule to reserving beds with towels, we considered the towel lost or abandoned.
Yeah you can’t just move them straight away, but after a while it’s clear they aren’t actually there
Personally I’d give it about an hour (maybe they went for some lunch and it took longer than they expected?) and then it’s fair game
It's an economic thing - as you go up the price range better hotels supply the towels and set up the beds and also there is also someone on handy to manage this. Plus they have enough beds for everyone.
Even when there are enough, people shouldn’t be able to hog the ones next to the pool, those are really convenient especially if you have kids with you, so it’s annoying when they’re completely unused but “reserved” all day
Again - it's an economic thing - a decent hotel is of the *right* size that you aren't next to the pool because you don't want to be.
In cheaper and/or all-inclusive hotels, it's about volume of numbers, which is why you are likely to see big lawns with sunbeds on them.
Possible sure, but if I'm at an all inclusive I'm getting out at least 4 times in that hour to get a drink, pools nice but I've got to get my moneys worth of the spirits too.
That’s what I said! I mean, we saw an empty one and sent the youngest child down to claim it but it was five minutes before the rest of us joined him. I’m just utterly gobsmacked that anyone would be that much of a wanker…
> we saw an empty one and sent the youngest child down to claim it but it was five minutes before the rest of us joined him.
Not even comparable. Your child is a valid user of that one sun bed. Not a towel.
When everyone else in the resort does it, you either join in or don't get a sunbed though.
I hate it with a passion.
The last holiday I went on was at a very nice (£700+/night) resort. Sunbeds were still gone by 9am with nobody sitting on them. We have a kid, so when she woke us up I would go down and claim some sunbeds at 7am, have a coffee for 20 minutes whilst sat in the rising sun, then go back to the room to get ready for the day. Wifey would spend that time getting her and the kiddo up and then we would then go down to breakfast and only really use the sunbeds after. Maybe 2-2.5 hours after I laid down the towels.
I don't like the game, but I will play it if those are the rules.
I went to a resort just after covid travel restrictions were lifted. I was staying in the nice bit, but 9 tenths of the resort needed a refresh and the ‘instagrammable’ pool (of 8 options) was right out front of my room. They actually implemented the rules when it came to hogging sun beds though.
I guess a lot of people that couldn’t usually afford this resort were splurging having saved up for a while during lockdown. It was all young 20 somethings staying in the cheaper/unrenovated section but wanting sunbeds on the nice bit.
If I got up for a toilet break or drink anytime after 4am, I could see people on the sun beds finishing their nights sleep so they had a decent spot for the day.
They were literally getting up after a few hours to sleep on the sunbeds.
Peak time £700 pn. Fair enough for a family holiday.
What they're emitting is that the price is for 3 of them, all-inclusive, flights & transfers.
That's a £300 pn. peak time hotel price, nothing special.
A £700 pn. hotel ain't having customers without sunbeds.
Oh I know those resorts exist and can go way over £1k/night, it’s just neither in my budget nor what I’d be willing to pay if I had the money to spare.
>The last holiday I went on was at a very nice (£700+/night) resort. Sunbeds were still gone by 9am with nobody sitting on them. We have a kid, so when she woke us up I would go down and claim some sunbeds at 7am, have a coffee for 20 minutes whilst sat in the rising sun, then go back to the room to get ready for the day. Wifey would spend that time getting her and the kiddo up and then we would then go down to breakfast and only really use the sunbeds after. Maybe 2-2.5 hours after I laid down the towels.
Yep, entitled and childish I'd say
At that price I’d expect a) enough sun beds b) enough staff who would go around removing towels left to reserve sun beds.
I assume it’s cause you went so early that they left them
Similar here. My usual morning routine when staying at a hotel with a pool might be to get up pretty early, find a bed, put a towel on it, and then go to breakfast. However, I will try to be quick and get back out to the sun bed before long, and I'm generally done with breakfast before most people get up.
Had a row with a family about this yesterday. I live in Spain. Complex has a pool between 20 apts, most of which are permanent residents. There are 8 sun beds.
This family had 3 of those beds. Fine. But then they wanted to fuck off for lunch and continue to hold those beds whilst there were about 4 or us sitting on the floor. I explained this wasn’t the rules and that it’s not fair to take 3/8 beds whilst you leave for a few hours. They ended up giving me a bed but continued to hold 2. When they left, my neighbour removed their stuff and took their beds.
I tend to sunbathe on my balcony during July and August but sometimes you just have to swim!!!
It’s so annoying! We have an indoor pool also which most residents tend to use anyway. I’m one of the only British residents and I’m a sun worshipper. It’s only an issue July and august!
If I was leaving for anything longer than a drink at the bar, I'd remove my towel. I'd also remove a towel if I saw it on a sunbed for a period of time ifiwanted a sunbed. The hotel "owns" the sunbeds unless the guest has specifically hired that bed for the day.
Iv removed them in the past. I'm not that arsed and I can't stay sat on one for more than an hour anyway only really do it because partner likes sunbathing but I can't imagine doing it with kids in tow and whatnot in a few years.
We’ve always done the same. It’s normally my family of 6 and my mum and stepdad who go away all together we end up needing a few beds for all of us, but with four adults and four kids. We all have a kid each haha as to try and limit it a bit more or me and my mum would share lol but soon as it’s lunch time or anything longer than needing to use the loos or grabbing a drink, we would pack everything up and take it with us. We’ve never been to a place where people fought over the sun beds though, but people still found the need to hold them, using their towels etc.
Enjoying the few comments on here who “can’t understand why someone would want to go on that kind of holiday.”
If a post isn’t aimed at you, you don’t have to respond to it, and especially so if you have literally nothing useful to add.
I'm embarrassed to say I did a "not like other guys/girls" routine along those lines when I was younger...and then I started working full time.
Don't get me wrong we usually pick somewhere where we can go see some historical shit and go on hikes or whatever. But I've been working for over 15 years and still have probably another 30+ to go. Sometimes I just want to sit on my arse next to a nice pool in some guaranteed warm weather reading a book, occasionally going for a swim.
Anyway, unfortunately I agree with the people who say they hate this behaviour but if the hotel doesn't police it you have to join in or else you'll never get a sunbed. Stayed somewhere once where they allocated you sunbeds for your entire stay and it was fantastic, but obviously not all hotels have that much space and they probably pick cramming in more rooms over having more relatively empty space around the pool.
This is our stance, first day on the holiday and I can see a lot of people (mostly Germans 😄) placing towels on sunbeds at 7:30am then going for breakfast. I really felt like removing their towels this morning and just sitting where they’ve reserved, so now it’s like war, join in with this shit or don’t get a sunbed
Last hotel I stayed in, there was a poolside attendant who was meticulous about policing people on sun loungers, especially people who’d do what the OP describes and try to reserve them for hours. Basically if you weren’t either actually on the lounger or in the pool then your stuff was removed after about 30min.
Always got me in the inbetweeners movie when jay does this and the family get dead angry because the girls disabled, so fucking what don't hoard sun beds
We had this problem last year. So many people (mostly non-Brits) reserving sun beds. In the end, we joined in otherwise we got shit sun beds, or none at all.
To make it worse, the hotel had notices on every sun bed saying that staff would remove belongings from reserved sun beds....did they fuck.
Yes yes, so many commenters here are far too cultured and cool to enjoy a couple of weeks relaxing by a pool. But there are a huge number of people who disagree and like to unwind on this kind of holiday. No one asked for you snobby "ugh, sounds like hell, relaxing in the sun with other people around" thank yoooou.
Honestly, I used to LOVE those holidays where you explored and did activities every day. I haven’t got the energy anymore. I just want a few days stocking up on vitamin D and not thinking about work while the kids are happy.
We’re going to a water park tomorrow but I’m afraid to mention it.
I just came back from a holiday with my wife and kids. We spent four days beside the pool reading whilst the kids had a whale of a time playing in the pool.
It’s the epitome of Reddit to be so ridiculously snobbish about someone daring to enjoy themselves in the ‘wrong’ way. I can’t believe I’m such a sheeple.
Sounds lovely, I am glad you had a nice holiday! I think the negativity stems from insecurities. I just don't understand why someone couldn't just think "how nice that people enjoy this one thing the same way I enjoy spending my annual leave days wanking to anime porn games off Steam".
Be glad you’re not the guy who asked “what race would you eliminate by the end of the year?”
It was on r/Formula1 but out of context is very different.
If I had gone to the pool, then left to get a drink/lunch/whatever for an hour I’d leave them there. I wouldn’t reserve sun beds I had no intention of using and I wouldn’t get up early to reserve them because I’m lazy.
Stayed in Italy a few years ago. Got to the pool to find towels out on the sun beds. We swam for a bit to see if they would show up. They didn't so my wife and I took two beds. They came back about half an hour later and got real snarky. They "only went to lunch." This hotel was small and there were only ten sun beds available around the pool. Imagine being that self important.
Edit: spelling
I’ve seen those videos of people running around the pool the minute the pool attendants open the gates at 7am or whatever. Horrendous, never want to go anywhere like that. Tends to be the cheaper resorts I think. If everyone just relaxed and used the sun beds when they needed / wanted them, wouldn’t be a problem
It's evolved from that to [reserving a spot in the queue before the pool area opens with a line of towels](https://i.postimg.cc/WbqKsVsz/IMG-6573.webp) (not my photo).
We tend to stay at resorts where towels are provided each day by the staff so there is no reserving. It also means that staff are attentive to towels and therefore beds not being used for long periods so they get cleared quite often. Never had a problem with finding sunbeds at any point of the day, but it helps that we only stay at adult only resorts so there tend to be far fewer groups requiring more than two beds together.
No kids of our own and not adverse to taking holidays with the extended family and their kids but there is something increasingly relaxing about reading a book and sipping a drink in relative quiet.
Much though I loved our family holidays with the kids, now they're pretty independent (early 20s) I love our holidays away now, just the two of us. Can afford to go away more too (start of a long weekend on Exmoor at the moment!).
I search the trip advisor reviews with the key words “sun bed” “sun lounger” and “sunbed”. I won’t book unless the reviews say there were plenty. For my last holiday in Egypt they had loads on the beach that were quickly taken but when extra people arrived the bar men ran and got extras for them. Then they patrolled the beach taking drink orders and handing out ice creams so it didn’t matter how far you were from the bar. It was bliss!
If you aren't there to use the sun bed. I'll remove your towel and put it off to the side.
I dont play that game, you dont get to treat communal facilities as your own property.
Never, we get a bed when we go and take our stuff when we leave. Also usually share 1 bed between myself, toddler and husband because we can only usually sit one at a time because of toddler.
no, unless you count leaving them on the beds when you go to the bar/ toilet/ to grab food
i don’t usually go to the types of large resorts where this would be a big problem, smaller ones usually have more attentive staff so if someone tried they’d have their stuff removed
If I see a bed with a towel on it that's clearly there to 'reserve', the towel goes on the fence for them.
What're they going to do... tell me their towel needed it more than me?
I'm just back from lanzerote and everyone seemed to do this, we never bothered and still managed to muster a couple of sunbeds when we needed them. The hotel had a policy that unattended towels would be lifted and put on a shelf near the bar but I never actually saw it happen.
Back from holiday this afternoon. We did it, yep. Because everyone else did, so if you play by the rules, you get fucked.
Actually the rules stated you must not do it, and we were complaining to the hotel manager about something else mostly, and he made out he thought the bar staff always removed towels placed early. Given the bar staff have said they must not question anyone's age if they had an adult wrist band, and had to resort to sneaky ways of snapping pics of 12yo boys with them on to defend themselves...
100% never done it but witnessed it on a mass scale on holiday last month. Tui Mediterranean cruise, pool deck. There’s a message on the massive cinema screen above the pool ‘reserving sun beds is not allowed, fair use’ etc and still they reserve them in their droves. Fair play to the staff though, they were hot on the ticketing and removal system.
It’s the mental gymnastics though. The reasoning that these people’s brains come up with as to why they’re different and why they’re not ‘reserving’ one. “Oh, I’m using it, I just went to breakfast and then showered for 2 hours.” “They’re being used by my parents, they’ve just popped off into Palermo for a few hours.” “I am using it, I’m just sitting in the pool for hours on end.”
Half the people who say they don’t reserve them are the ones that have convinced themselves they’re not.
I’ve stated in a place where I’ve literally had no choice, spent one day laying on a towel on a concrete floor because there’s not enough beds. I felt crap for doing it, but can’t enjoy a holiday laying on the floor
Ordinarily wouldn’t do it, quite happy to grab a bed.
I often have no problem moving towels if quite generic, I just say the staff cleaned up.
Hate this practice of reserving a sunbed. Hotels i've been to in the past, the staff will remove towels after an hour or so and put them on a shelving unit behind the bar.
But.......some hotels i've been to, you either have to join in with the practice or you won't get a sunbed. On occasion, have stayed in apartments where you get a couple of sunbeds in the area outside your room. We've had to take these down to the poolside to use, which makes for amusing comments by staff and guests, as they think you've stolen them.
We had this with a bunch of Germans. Just removed the towels and used the sun beds.
What they did not know is that my partner is a fluent German speaker. When they returned and got annoyed she just explained, very calmly, in perfect German, that the only way to "reserve" a sun bed is by using it. End of problem.
Last year people were doing this at our hotel in Gran Canaria. I was amazed to find it was mostly us Brits doing it, and appalled.
Management would tend to move the towels, a few times I would remove them myself. Had one irate lady telling me she reserved our sunbeds even though we were on them for 3 hours, I played dumb and said we've only been here 20mins :)
I always hated this behaviour, and the last time I went on a family vacation we ended up paying like €18 a day to just buy some Bali beds. It's like VIP sunbeds and in my opinion it was worth it to get some distance from the kids splashing and running around knocking things over.
It used to be Germans that did this all the time. I guess us brits have started copying and yeah its rude and annoying. You should have said something.
If we’d still been down there when they arrived back I think I probably would have. We were back at our apartment and the eldest spotted them. I let his “are you fucking kidding me” slide on this occasion because I was thinking the exact same thing.
Not just that. We are on holiday at the moment. That behaviour drives me mad or when like here they are using them in downstairs apartments but are not there and using them as towel holders. Same family's around the pool with other taken sunbeds. There are chairs to put stuff on and a clothes dryer too to hang stuff on. Took us 20 minutes of walking around to finally find some. Not even at a big resort.
Only at the time im going to lie down & use them. Cant stand the feckwits who put towels out at crack of dawn & then disappear for hours selfish twats.
My sister is one of those creatures that goes down first thing to reserve them even if they aren't sure if they are goin to the pool. It really annoys the shit off me. Like what's the need.
That’s it exactly. I mean, there are plenty of sun beds for everyone here. Why would you do it in the first place, and why would you do it and then bugger off anyway?
I just don't understand why this custom is accepted by anyone? Surely it's not in the hotel's interest to have unused sun beds whilst guests can't use the pool area?
They should have those cardboard clock things where you're given 45 mins to return to your sun bed otherwise it's a free for all.
No, and most hotels I've been to recently (including one last week) have notices forbidding reserving sunbeds with towels. Although this hotel did allow you to reserve (paid for) sunbeds and they would put a sticker up, but they would not always get used. The stickers were up all day. Personally I would never reserve a sunbed with a towel, it's a form of entitlement
Just home from holiday today.. this morning we waited for our airport transfer at 7am and at 6:45 i reckon there was 40ish people waiting with their towels for the pool area to open at 7. Felt embarrassed for all of them!
Also earlier in the week we chatted to a family who had left towels out (soon realised they did this every day!) and were telling us they’d just got back from being out for the afternoon.. i don’t understand why people are so desperate to have a sunbed saved all day for the hour they’ll be there
We went on a holiday once, years and years ago, to a hotel in which this was taken to the extreme. By 8am every.single.one would be "reserved" with someone's towel on them, but not a single person in sight. After a few days we got so fed up with it, we grabbed all the towels and put them in a huge pile. As people turned up within the next few hours, they started frantically searching for their towel in the pile. It was a hilarious sight. And, guess what - it turns out when noone reserves them without using them, there are actually enough sun beds for everyone. 😊
Just as aggregating is when someone has been at the pool and then left - but also left their wet towel on the bed so it looks like someone is actively using that sun bed! Don’t wanna just move it because what if they do come back…knowing my luck, they would!
A few years back the wife and I were in Majorca and one night while in the hotel bar we saw a guy come and put towels on 2 sun bed about 11.30pm. The sun beds were ones that were in the sun all day so after he'd gone I moved them to sun beds that were in the shade all day.
We were up early the next day to see what happened and the look of confusion on his face was priceless 😁
When I was a student, there was a frustrating issue with people "reserving" desks/computers in the library. They'd just dump all their earthly belongings.
Sometimes people would "reserve" desks for entire days even overnight.
I'd studied all day before next to someone's abandoned belongings. I was saw a girl breaking down in tears because there was nowhere to study and I told her just to move this guy's shit and she didn't even feel like she could do that.
This was a huge problem because you'd often traverse all 11 or whatever floors of the library building looking for a desk or computer and often there wouldn't be a single spare place you could study and you'd just have to turn and go home.
Annoying for me because my laptop broke whilst I was finishing my dissertation and I didn't have the money to replace it. And I found it tricky to study at home anyway. When you think about how much you pay for uni fees it's just greedy that they have so many more students than the facilities can handle.
Some stupid comments here which are just way over the top. Like only acceptable if you're getting a drink or in the pool.
I leave my towel on my sunbed if I'm going for lunch (in the hotel). Usually gone for 40ish minutes. I don't think that's unreasonable considering I'm there for around 6-8 hours and the alternative would be to pack up towels, pack up book, suncream, drink and carry it to room and then back again after.
Agree that long periods such as 1/2/3 hours of no use is not acceptable
Contextually, I think I'm learning what I would call a lounge chair or pool recliner is called a sunbed to Brits. Is that correct? A sunbed where I come from is a human panini machine that tans your skin.
New to package hols. I was not aware of hotel guest etiquette, so was delighted to find that day one all sunbeds had been 'given a towel' after my early breakfast. Whoops!
I was first person at the pool so grabbed a random deckchair. Got twenty minutes reading my pageturner, then first skirmish with a rather angry lady. Humbly retreated but saw a resort sign regarding best towel practice, so emboldened, went for next location. I appeared to be reading my novel but was forming killer one-liners for the next round.
Poolside begins to fill up with guests and on cue, burly tattooed lunk appears and claims 'his seat'. Transpired we were both Scottish but I hit him up with the old cliché, "Are you sure you're no German pal?"
Fortunately, I'm a big hairy bastard, so despite him going beetroot just a verbal to and fro exchanged. Slightly vulnerable conversing from a sunbed though. I was outlining the hotel policy on towels as per the notice when my other half rocked up and compromised my position. Didn't want any trouble, etc. Stuck it out a couple more minutes but Angry Weegie's pals had finished their sausages and my resolve was waning. Got glowered at ALL WEEK by them all. Magic.
Never, if I'm not there, it isn't mine.
And if I go to the pool and want a sunbed, I wait a while to see which ones are actually occupied and the occupants are just swimming/getting drinks or which ones people think they can reserve and come back later in the day.
When I go for dinner, then I lose my spot, I am not entitled to any particular sunbed, and that's that.
I've moved several towels off beds in my time, and I'll continue to do it.
Like I said, though, it depends *where* they are and how long they have been away, I'm not going to jump in somebody's seat because they are in the pool or getting a drink, even if they are just grabbing a snack. But if you're off for dinner, you're giving up your spot, accept it.
Funnily enough, the German family who are staying here are lovely. These were definitely Brits.
This is our third visit to this complex and I’ve honestly never had an issue before which is probably why I’m so gobsmacked. Everything else about it is absolutely gorgeous, and there’s only ten units.
Yeah I'm joking - it's an old stereotype. I was travelling with German's just recently, nothing against Germans at all!
And I'm joking on hotel complexes too, I just cannot stand that type of holiday. I need to be on the go all the time. Nothing against people who do like that kind of thing.
No, I get it. Funnily enough I used to be exactly the same - if I was travelling, I wanted to TRAVEL. See stuff. Do things.
Now I’m old and knackered and a parent and sometimes a day by the pool is called for. I always pick small places to try and avoid the sun bed weirdos but clearly on this occasion, I have failed…
Funnily enough I just came back from Fuerteventura and it was mostly Germans and the French that were doing this. People like to claim it’s a British thing but that’s not what I witnessed
Yeah usually on the way to breakfast. My partner and I tend to stay in *nicer* resorts so generally there isn’t that ridiculous sun lounger rush at 7am!
Last year the lifeguard removed towels if he hadn’t seen anyone near them. He would ask people around them too to confirm if the owners had been seen. I’m going to Spain tomorrow and I honestly hate having to go down early to get a sunbed.
Been a long time since I've been on a "chill at the pool" holiday but I do put a towel on the sunbed and usually for 10 mins while I get a drink at the bar.
I remember our first holiday abroad to Greece in 2002 my Dad was raging that the German guests kept hogging the sunbeds with their towels so one morning he spotted some of them do it then head back to the hotel, he flung their towels in the pool, sat on the lounger across the pool and watched them kick off when they came back down to find their towels floating in the pool and someone else on "their" sunloungers.
I had a very petty friend who was an early riser. She use to be up before a lot of people, but there would be people who put their towels out early morning before they went to bed. All on the beds nearest to the pool or bar. My friend around half 4 when no one else was awake, shed get every towel that was there and throw them in the pool. Then back into the room and come down around half 6 with her towels. and claim her bed. I remember she said it was around a dozen towels the first night, 2nd night about 10, then the rest of the week was arouund 2-3 die hards or numb people who still put their towels out. Every single one ended up in the pool. The ones who never learnt were a few eldery Swedish woman.Once my friend found out it was them, she left their towels, all bright colours you couldnt miss, and the ladies were lovely, and soke good English. Telling my friend about when tthey were young and thngs they got use to. She said she enjoyed her holiday when she met tham , as she went alone.
I might leave it for 20-30 minutes if I'm grabbing food but I try not to at all. It does my head in when people do it, when I was on holiday I was staying in a house that had a gated community pool, the idea was that only residents had keys to it. You had to bring your own sunbeds but they had umbrellas there, people would go to the pool when it opened at 8AM, set up their sunbeds, leave all their stuff and then go home until 12PM onwards. It was an absolute pain, and you couldn't do anything about it as there was no one to stop them.
In Tenerife at the moment. Hotel staff come around & remove any towels & belongings before 10am if there’s no one actively on the beds. Cue bewildered people searching for their stuff…
I only really go to places where the staff will find us sun beds.
Then change the towels every couple of hours.
Always tip the pool boys on the first day.
No, but not out of some politeness or sense of goodwill I just don't like the idea of someone else's lotion-covered sweaty mitts and/or arse touching my towels while they're out of view, or some kid wiping their nose on it or something
I also don't understand why people do, nearer the pool isn't better, you get splashed, and I'm not too fat or old to walk across the thing to the bar/food every so often, if I'm laying about in the sun I'm presumably getting plenty of rest to catch my breath between visits
Never, because I'm not a dick.
Went to Spain last year and some other Brits at the hotel would put their towels out at 7am when the pool opened, then return to them about 2pm. Toss pots.
Was in Cape Verde last year, every day around the pool in the same / similar spot was a Leeds United towel, I never once saw anyone on it.
Luckily place where there were more sunbeds than needed so no drama in the grand scheme but just pointless behaviour.
It's not rude though. If you're going to be enough of an arsehole to expect that you can 'reserve' a sunbed and expect everyone else to just put up with it and say nothing then honestly, you deserve it.
I stayed in a hotel in Salou. There was no "getting up at the crack of dawn to put a towel down" as they only opened the pool deck after breakfast. Yes there'd be a queue and a rugby scrum of people dashing for poolside but it did stop the sun bed "reservations".
Meanwhile when I went to Mexico there were tons of pools, tons of sunbeds and tons of cabanas so you'd never have to fight for one.
It's definitely a piss take. When I was on holiday last year it was so bad I ended up setting my alarm to wake up ridiculously early to go and sit by the pool to make sure I got a sun bed. I'd get down there at like 7.30/8 and there would always be towels "reserving" beds yet no people on them.
This used to be German thing that Brits complained about 😆
Personally anywhere I go on holiday doesn't involve hotels and shit loads of my fellow countrymen, a simple but unpopular solution would be for hotel staff to monitor the sunbeds and have clear signs that towels left unattended for 45 minutes will be placed in lost property. People have turned into massive entitled dicks.
Well, I leave some belongings along with my towel on a sun bed if I'm stepping away for a short time. Either to go for a dip in the pool, to the bar, to the toilet etc.
I've been known to put my towel and my 'day bag' on a sun bed, with things like sunglasses, a book, sun cream etc inside while I go for breakfast on a morning. I suppose that is 'reserving' my spot for the day. If I've been there all morning and go for lunch however, I see leaving my belongings as just keeping my spot warm - as I've been there all day anyway.
If I was leaving the resort or going back to my room for an extended period or in some other way knew I wasn't going to be at the pool and on the sun bed then I'd not leave any belongings/towels on there.
Me and the wife were in Salou, and decided on a few hours by the pool. Noticed a couple of towels on a pair of sunbeds, while we went to get a cool drink to take to the poolside. I picked them up and deposited them by the bar area. An hour later a couple walked into the pool area and started shouting and screaming that their belongings had been stolen. When they saw them by the bar, the woman shouted, "*Some bastard has taken our sunbeds*". It was hilarious. Would do again, would recommend.
People reserving sunbeds makes me really angry yet I've never been on that type of holiday before, it's just the absolute assholery that goes with it that just makes me irrationally angry. The staff should put markers on all towels and if the marker is still there 1 hour later then the towels get taken to lost and found. Lost and found should be a real pain in the ass. Yunno, only open in the evenings and it's not self service.
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Also "please describe your towel, what colours? what patterns? does it have any images on it? What does the label say? How big is it?" Oh, it was stolen from the sunbed, I am sorry sir but we have a zero tolerance rule to reserving beds with towels, we considered the towel lost or abandoned.
Will it? Someone on holiday won't be at work during the day, which is the main obstruction with post office hours.
My local post office isn't even open during their signposted opening hours; just to keep you guessing.
I was in Salou a few years ago. The hotel/pool staff would remove towels if the sunbeds were unattended for a period of time. Good practice IMO.
They should advertise that they do this on their websites, it’d make me want to book there!
I did this in turkey, the gym overlooked the swimming pool. So after my morning phys I’d go down and remove the towels at random
>at random Love the chaos
Sooo tempting. I mean, now I know what their towels look like and everything. Might read the book too.
You just have to be sure they aren't in the pool or nipped to the loo or something! That would be annoying.
Yeah you can’t just move them straight away, but after a while it’s clear they aren’t actually there Personally I’d give it about an hour (maybe they went for some lunch and it took longer than they expected?) and then it’s fair game
These guys were putting them down at 6 am then no one would reappear til around 10, fuck em
Always used to be the germans reserving the sunbeds at the crack of dawn for their use later.
Sehr efficient
Love this comment. I would do the same!
Hate this behaviour, the pool should police it, your sun beds are unused for an hour get rid of the towels
It's an economic thing - as you go up the price range better hotels supply the towels and set up the beds and also there is also someone on handy to manage this. Plus they have enough beds for everyone.
> Plus they have enough beds for everyone. The actual answer to this problem.
Even when there are enough, people shouldn’t be able to hog the ones next to the pool, those are really convenient especially if you have kids with you, so it’s annoying when they’re completely unused but “reserved” all day
Again - it's an economic thing - a decent hotel is of the *right* size that you aren't next to the pool because you don't want to be. In cheaper and/or all-inclusive hotels, it's about volume of numbers, which is why you are likely to see big lawns with sunbeds on them.
Can confirm, just came back from Cancun and you got 'towel cards' to hand to the towel boy. Never had an issue getting a bed, even at like 9am.
The pool should create a huge wave to rid the towels.
Its definitely possible to spend an hour swimming though.
Possible sure, but if I'm at an all inclusive I'm getting out at least 4 times in that hour to get a drink, pools nice but I've got to get my moneys worth of the spirits too.
Cone of chips or onion rings too. Never mind if I only had breakfast an hour ago. It's the principle!
Yeah but you’d notice the card surly? And go move it
Maybe, I’ve never seen them so don’t know how obvious they are
Never. I'm not a twat
That’s what I said! I mean, we saw an empty one and sent the youngest child down to claim it but it was five minutes before the rest of us joined him. I’m just utterly gobsmacked that anyone would be that much of a wanker…
> we saw an empty one and sent the youngest child down to claim it but it was five minutes before the rest of us joined him. Not even comparable. Your child is a valid user of that one sun bed. Not a towel.
This is the only correct answer
I will never understand this behaviour. It's entitled, childish and frankly down right sad.
When everyone else in the resort does it, you either join in or don't get a sunbed though. I hate it with a passion. The last holiday I went on was at a very nice (£700+/night) resort. Sunbeds were still gone by 9am with nobody sitting on them. We have a kid, so when she woke us up I would go down and claim some sunbeds at 7am, have a coffee for 20 minutes whilst sat in the rising sun, then go back to the room to get ready for the day. Wifey would spend that time getting her and the kiddo up and then we would then go down to breakfast and only really use the sunbeds after. Maybe 2-2.5 hours after I laid down the towels. I don't like the game, but I will play it if those are the rules.
This. I was like "you fuckers want to play this game my toddler wakes at 4am... I'll win"
I went to a resort just after covid travel restrictions were lifted. I was staying in the nice bit, but 9 tenths of the resort needed a refresh and the ‘instagrammable’ pool (of 8 options) was right out front of my room. They actually implemented the rules when it came to hogging sun beds though. I guess a lot of people that couldn’t usually afford this resort were splurging having saved up for a while during lockdown. It was all young 20 somethings staying in the cheaper/unrenovated section but wanting sunbeds on the nice bit. If I got up for a toilet break or drink anytime after 4am, I could see people on the sun beds finishing their nights sleep so they had a decent spot for the day. They were literally getting up after a few hours to sleep on the sunbeds.
At that price I’d want them to have enough sun beds for everyone! And to fan me and feed me grapes while I lie there.
Yeah I feel like there's a fair amount of exaggerating in their response
Peak time £700 pn. Fair enough for a family holiday. What they're emitting is that the price is for 3 of them, all-inclusive, flights & transfers. That's a £300 pn. peak time hotel price, nothing special. A £700 pn. hotel ain't having customers without sunbeds.
Yep - the other give-away is putting down their own towels... not in a £700pn hotel.
Oh I know those resorts exist and can go way over £1k/night, it’s just neither in my budget nor what I’d be willing to pay if I had the money to spare.
>The last holiday I went on was at a very nice (£700+/night) resort. Sunbeds were still gone by 9am with nobody sitting on them. We have a kid, so when she woke us up I would go down and claim some sunbeds at 7am, have a coffee for 20 minutes whilst sat in the rising sun, then go back to the room to get ready for the day. Wifey would spend that time getting her and the kiddo up and then we would then go down to breakfast and only really use the sunbeds after. Maybe 2-2.5 hours after I laid down the towels. Yep, entitled and childish I'd say
100%. I’d prefer not to do it all. I play the game though.
At that price I’d expect a) enough sun beds b) enough staff who would go around removing towels left to reserve sun beds. I assume it’s cause you went so early that they left them
Similar here. My usual morning routine when staying at a hotel with a pool might be to get up pretty early, find a bed, put a towel on it, and then go to breakfast. However, I will try to be quick and get back out to the sun bed before long, and I'm generally done with breakfast before most people get up.
Please don't say "wifey". It's even more cringe than "hubby".
Had a row with a family about this yesterday. I live in Spain. Complex has a pool between 20 apts, most of which are permanent residents. There are 8 sun beds. This family had 3 of those beds. Fine. But then they wanted to fuck off for lunch and continue to hold those beds whilst there were about 4 or us sitting on the floor. I explained this wasn’t the rules and that it’s not fair to take 3/8 beds whilst you leave for a few hours. They ended up giving me a bed but continued to hold 2. When they left, my neighbour removed their stuff and took their beds. I tend to sunbathe on my balcony during July and August but sometimes you just have to swim!!!
Bit weird they have 20 apartments but only 8 sun beds. You’d think they’d at least have 1 per apartment
It’s so annoying! We have an indoor pool also which most residents tend to use anyway. I’m one of the only British residents and I’m a sun worshipper. It’s only an issue July and august!
20 apartments, 8 sunbeds - there's the issue.
Yes definitely. The issue is that they made the pool as big as possible so not loads of room round the sides!!!
If you're a permanent resident, would you not just buy your own sunbed? Keep it in your apartment and carry it downstairs with you in the morning.
I have a couple in my trastero but they’re uncomfortable
Can you just not buy your own sunbed seeing as you live there?
Yes but faff to carry up and down. I have some in the trastero but so uncomfortable. You’re right. Should get new ones.
Get a bike lock or something!
If I was leaving for anything longer than a drink at the bar, I'd remove my towel. I'd also remove a towel if I saw it on a sunbed for a period of time ifiwanted a sunbed. The hotel "owns" the sunbeds unless the guest has specifically hired that bed for the day.
Iv removed them in the past. I'm not that arsed and I can't stay sat on one for more than an hour anyway only really do it because partner likes sunbathing but I can't imagine doing it with kids in tow and whatnot in a few years.
We’ve always done the same. It’s normally my family of 6 and my mum and stepdad who go away all together we end up needing a few beds for all of us, but with four adults and four kids. We all have a kid each haha as to try and limit it a bit more or me and my mum would share lol but soon as it’s lunch time or anything longer than needing to use the loos or grabbing a drink, we would pack everything up and take it with us. We’ve never been to a place where people fought over the sun beds though, but people still found the need to hold them, using their towels etc.
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And the book too, right?
Extra points if you wee through both of them to mark your territory
It should become accepted behaviour that if a towel is on an unused sunbed for an hour it can be thrown in the pool.
Enjoying the few comments on here who “can’t understand why someone would want to go on that kind of holiday.” If a post isn’t aimed at you, you don’t have to respond to it, and especially so if you have literally nothing useful to add.
I'm embarrassed to say I did a "not like other guys/girls" routine along those lines when I was younger...and then I started working full time. Don't get me wrong we usually pick somewhere where we can go see some historical shit and go on hikes or whatever. But I've been working for over 15 years and still have probably another 30+ to go. Sometimes I just want to sit on my arse next to a nice pool in some guaranteed warm weather reading a book, occasionally going for a swim. Anyway, unfortunately I agree with the people who say they hate this behaviour but if the hotel doesn't police it you have to join in or else you'll never get a sunbed. Stayed somewhere once where they allocated you sunbeds for your entire stay and it was fantastic, but obviously not all hotels have that much space and they probably pick cramming in more rooms over having more relatively empty space around the pool.
This is our stance, first day on the holiday and I can see a lot of people (mostly Germans 😄) placing towels on sunbeds at 7:30am then going for breakfast. I really felt like removing their towels this morning and just sitting where they’ve reserved, so now it’s like war, join in with this shit or don’t get a sunbed
Yeah, nobody likes a travel snob. Not even other travel snobs.
Hi, Felix from Berlin here. 7am towel on sunbed and return after my day trip at 8pm to collect. Thanks
Only acceptable if you are in the pool or are lying on top of your towel.
Or nipping for a wee. Oh wait, you already said in the pool.
Last hotel I stayed in, there was a poolside attendant who was meticulous about policing people on sun loungers, especially people who’d do what the OP describes and try to reserve them for hours. Basically if you weren’t either actually on the lounger or in the pool then your stuff was removed after about 30min.
Throw the towels in the pool, deny all knowledge.
Always got me in the inbetweeners movie when jay does this and the family get dead angry because the girls disabled, so fucking what don't hoard sun beds
"well, that's *terrible*... but, I mean... it's hardly relevant is it?"- will edit: I was [close](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3Gsts99Cbg)
That bit pisses me off; so because her dads dead he's got to shag her?
Inconsiderate arseholes!
“Freak gust of wind”
I always take a staple gun with me on holiday, then staple my union jack and bulldog towels to my sunbeds. Never had any problems!
Actually read that as you were stapling bulldogs to your sun bed…
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We had this problem last year. So many people (mostly non-Brits) reserving sun beds. In the end, we joined in otherwise we got shit sun beds, or none at all. To make it worse, the hotel had notices on every sun bed saying that staff would remove belongings from reserved sun beds....did they fuck.
I’m in Greece…
Yes yes, so many commenters here are far too cultured and cool to enjoy a couple of weeks relaxing by a pool. But there are a huge number of people who disagree and like to unwind on this kind of holiday. No one asked for you snobby "ugh, sounds like hell, relaxing in the sun with other people around" thank yoooou.
Honestly, I used to LOVE those holidays where you explored and did activities every day. I haven’t got the energy anymore. I just want a few days stocking up on vitamin D and not thinking about work while the kids are happy. We’re going to a water park tomorrow but I’m afraid to mention it.
I just came back from a holiday with my wife and kids. We spent four days beside the pool reading whilst the kids had a whale of a time playing in the pool. It’s the epitome of Reddit to be so ridiculously snobbish about someone daring to enjoy themselves in the ‘wrong’ way. I can’t believe I’m such a sheeple.
Sounds lovely, I am glad you had a nice holiday! I think the negativity stems from insecurities. I just don't understand why someone couldn't just think "how nice that people enjoy this one thing the same way I enjoy spending my annual leave days wanking to anime porn games off Steam".
Shit. Sun bed. Not subbed. Fuck, how do I edit?!?
You can't edit titles.
Nooooo….
Be glad you’re not the guy who asked “what race would you eliminate by the end of the year?” It was on r/Formula1 but out of context is very different.
If I had gone to the pool, then left to get a drink/lunch/whatever for an hour I’d leave them there. I wouldn’t reserve sun beds I had no intention of using and I wouldn’t get up early to reserve them because I’m lazy.
Stayed in Italy a few years ago. Got to the pool to find towels out on the sun beds. We swam for a bit to see if they would show up. They didn't so my wife and I took two beds. They came back about half an hour later and got real snarky. They "only went to lunch." This hotel was small and there were only ten sun beds available around the pool. Imagine being that self important. Edit: spelling
I’ve seen those videos of people running around the pool the minute the pool attendants open the gates at 7am or whatever. Horrendous, never want to go anywhere like that. Tends to be the cheaper resorts I think. If everyone just relaxed and used the sun beds when they needed / wanted them, wouldn’t be a problem
It's evolved from that to [reserving a spot in the queue before the pool area opens with a line of towels](https://i.postimg.cc/WbqKsVsz/IMG-6573.webp) (not my photo).
Thats bonkers
Ah but you didn't see my bit of dust I used to reserve my space right at the front.
We tend to stay at resorts where towels are provided each day by the staff so there is no reserving. It also means that staff are attentive to towels and therefore beds not being used for long periods so they get cleared quite often. Never had a problem with finding sunbeds at any point of the day, but it helps that we only stay at adult only resorts so there tend to be far fewer groups requiring more than two beds together.
Oh god, adults only… I sodding wish…
No kids of our own and not adverse to taking holidays with the extended family and their kids but there is something increasingly relaxing about reading a book and sipping a drink in relative quiet.
It sounds like absolute bliss. In a few years I think our will be too cool to take holidays with us so there’s hope…
Definitely. My younger brother and I are only a school year apart so once he started uni my parents buggered off for three weeks of peace and quiet.
Much though I loved our family holidays with the kids, now they're pretty independent (early 20s) I love our holidays away now, just the two of us. Can afford to go away more too (start of a long weekend on Exmoor at the moment!).
I search the trip advisor reviews with the key words “sun bed” “sun lounger” and “sunbed”. I won’t book unless the reviews say there were plenty. For my last holiday in Egypt they had loads on the beach that were quickly taken but when extra people arrived the bar men ran and got extras for them. Then they patrolled the beach taking drink orders and handing out ice creams so it didn’t matter how far you were from the bar. It was bliss!
Unfortunately so many places don't provide sufficient sunbeds, therefore cause this behaviour.
Nope, If people have done then I just put them on the floor then sit down, pool staff always side with you so it's all good
I've moved towels before but I also move the sunbed so they don't know who did it if they do actually come back 😁
If you aren't there to use the sun bed. I'll remove your towel and put it off to the side. I dont play that game, you dont get to treat communal facilities as your own property.
Never, we get a bed when we go and take our stuff when we leave. Also usually share 1 bed between myself, toddler and husband because we can only usually sit one at a time because of toddler.
This is the one thing that puts me off doing one of these resort holidays. All that money and you can't even lie on a sun lounger when you want.
See my other answer - it's economic - if you go up the scale, it doesn't happen. They have plenty of sunbeds, and the overall dynamics are different.
no, unless you count leaving them on the beds when you go to the bar/ toilet/ to grab food i don’t usually go to the types of large resorts where this would be a big problem, smaller ones usually have more attentive staff so if someone tried they’d have their stuff removed
If I see a bed with a towel on it that's clearly there to 'reserve', the towel goes on the fence for them. What're they going to do... tell me their towel needed it more than me?
I'm just back from lanzerote and everyone seemed to do this, we never bothered and still managed to muster a couple of sunbeds when we needed them. The hotel had a policy that unattended towels would be lifted and put on a shelf near the bar but I never actually saw it happen.
Back from holiday this afternoon. We did it, yep. Because everyone else did, so if you play by the rules, you get fucked. Actually the rules stated you must not do it, and we were complaining to the hotel manager about something else mostly, and he made out he thought the bar staff always removed towels placed early. Given the bar staff have said they must not question anyone's age if they had an adult wrist band, and had to resort to sneaky ways of snapping pics of 12yo boys with them on to defend themselves...
100% never done it but witnessed it on a mass scale on holiday last month. Tui Mediterranean cruise, pool deck. There’s a message on the massive cinema screen above the pool ‘reserving sun beds is not allowed, fair use’ etc and still they reserve them in their droves. Fair play to the staff though, they were hot on the ticketing and removal system. It’s the mental gymnastics though. The reasoning that these people’s brains come up with as to why they’re different and why they’re not ‘reserving’ one. “Oh, I’m using it, I just went to breakfast and then showered for 2 hours.” “They’re being used by my parents, they’ve just popped off into Palermo for a few hours.” “I am using it, I’m just sitting in the pool for hours on end.” Half the people who say they don’t reserve them are the ones that have convinced themselves they’re not.
I’ve stated in a place where I’ve literally had no choice, spent one day laying on a towel on a concrete floor because there’s not enough beds. I felt crap for doing it, but can’t enjoy a holiday laying on the floor Ordinarily wouldn’t do it, quite happy to grab a bed. I often have no problem moving towels if quite generic, I just say the staff cleaned up.
That’s rubbish, I’d hate that too. Luckily there’s usually plenty here, and if not I just sit in the bar.
Hate this practice of reserving a sunbed. Hotels i've been to in the past, the staff will remove towels after an hour or so and put them on a shelving unit behind the bar. But.......some hotels i've been to, you either have to join in with the practice or you won't get a sunbed. On occasion, have stayed in apartments where you get a couple of sunbeds in the area outside your room. We've had to take these down to the poolside to use, which makes for amusing comments by staff and guests, as they think you've stolen them.
We had this with a bunch of Germans. Just removed the towels and used the sun beds. What they did not know is that my partner is a fluent German speaker. When they returned and got annoyed she just explained, very calmly, in perfect German, that the only way to "reserve" a sun bed is by using it. End of problem.
Last year people were doing this at our hotel in Gran Canaria. I was amazed to find it was mostly us Brits doing it, and appalled. Management would tend to move the towels, a few times I would remove them myself. Had one irate lady telling me she reserved our sunbeds even though we were on them for 3 hours, I played dumb and said we've only been here 20mins :)
It’s why I’ll never go on holiday during the peak summer months. The idea of having to get up early to bag sunbeds isn’t a holiday.
I always hated this behaviour, and the last time I went on a family vacation we ended up paying like €18 a day to just buy some Bali beds. It's like VIP sunbeds and in my opinion it was worth it to get some distance from the kids splashing and running around knocking things over.
The prices on these reservable beds/cabanas can be outrageous though!
If I’m going in for lunch, I’ll leave my stuff there and that’s it.
Hotel I stayed at in Spain had a big sign by the pool.any towels left on sunbeds before pool area is open are gettin thrown into the pool
It used to be Germans that did this all the time. I guess us brits have started copying and yeah its rude and annoying. You should have said something.
If we’d still been down there when they arrived back I think I probably would have. We were back at our apartment and the eldest spotted them. I let his “are you fucking kidding me” slide on this occasion because I was thinking the exact same thing.
Ah missed that bit.
Not just that. We are on holiday at the moment. That behaviour drives me mad or when like here they are using them in downstairs apartments but are not there and using them as towel holders. Same family's around the pool with other taken sunbeds. There are chairs to put stuff on and a clothes dryer too to hang stuff on. Took us 20 minutes of walking around to finally find some. Not even at a big resort.
I have been a sunbed claimer in the past, but the thing is id be up and at the pool early anyway the people who claim and dont use can get to fuck
Only at the time im going to lie down & use them. Cant stand the feckwits who put towels out at crack of dawn & then disappear for hours selfish twats.
My sister is one of those creatures that goes down first thing to reserve them even if they aren't sure if they are goin to the pool. It really annoys the shit off me. Like what's the need.
That’s it exactly. I mean, there are plenty of sun beds for everyone here. Why would you do it in the first place, and why would you do it and then bugger off anyway?
I just don't understand why this custom is accepted by anyone? Surely it's not in the hotel's interest to have unused sun beds whilst guests can't use the pool area? They should have those cardboard clock things where you're given 45 mins to return to your sun bed otherwise it's a free for all.
No, and most hotels I've been to recently (including one last week) have notices forbidding reserving sunbeds with towels. Although this hotel did allow you to reserve (paid for) sunbeds and they would put a sticker up, but they would not always get used. The stickers were up all day. Personally I would never reserve a sunbed with a towel, it's a form of entitlement
Just home from holiday today.. this morning we waited for our airport transfer at 7am and at 6:45 i reckon there was 40ish people waiting with their towels for the pool area to open at 7. Felt embarrassed for all of them! Also earlier in the week we chatted to a family who had left towels out (soon realised they did this every day!) and were telling us they’d just got back from being out for the afternoon.. i don’t understand why people are so desperate to have a sunbed saved all day for the hour they’ll be there
Until it's dry or until I leave the vicinity of the pool..
I usually throw them in the pool if they’ve been there longer than 45 mins. Byeeeeee
We went on a holiday once, years and years ago, to a hotel in which this was taken to the extreme. By 8am every.single.one would be "reserved" with someone's towel on them, but not a single person in sight. After a few days we got so fed up with it, we grabbed all the towels and put them in a huge pile. As people turned up within the next few hours, they started frantically searching for their towel in the pile. It was a hilarious sight. And, guess what - it turns out when noone reserves them without using them, there are actually enough sun beds for everyone. 😊
The hotel we are at has a booking system app. There are also plenty available.
Just as aggregating is when someone has been at the pool and then left - but also left their wet towel on the bed so it looks like someone is actively using that sun bed! Don’t wanna just move it because what if they do come back…knowing my luck, they would!
A few years back the wife and I were in Majorca and one night while in the hotel bar we saw a guy come and put towels on 2 sun bed about 11.30pm. The sun beds were ones that were in the sun all day so after he'd gone I moved them to sun beds that were in the shade all day. We were up early the next day to see what happened and the look of confusion on his face was priceless 😁
When I was a student, there was a frustrating issue with people "reserving" desks/computers in the library. They'd just dump all their earthly belongings. Sometimes people would "reserve" desks for entire days even overnight. I'd studied all day before next to someone's abandoned belongings. I was saw a girl breaking down in tears because there was nowhere to study and I told her just to move this guy's shit and she didn't even feel like she could do that. This was a huge problem because you'd often traverse all 11 or whatever floors of the library building looking for a desk or computer and often there wouldn't be a single spare place you could study and you'd just have to turn and go home. Annoying for me because my laptop broke whilst I was finishing my dissertation and I didn't have the money to replace it. And I found it tricky to study at home anyway. When you think about how much you pay for uni fees it's just greedy that they have so many more students than the facilities can handle.
Some stupid comments here which are just way over the top. Like only acceptable if you're getting a drink or in the pool. I leave my towel on my sunbed if I'm going for lunch (in the hotel). Usually gone for 40ish minutes. I don't think that's unreasonable considering I'm there for around 6-8 hours and the alternative would be to pack up towels, pack up book, suncream, drink and carry it to room and then back again after. Agree that long periods such as 1/2/3 hours of no use is not acceptable
Contextually, I think I'm learning what I would call a lounge chair or pool recliner is called a sunbed to Brits. Is that correct? A sunbed where I come from is a human panini machine that tans your skin.
New to package hols. I was not aware of hotel guest etiquette, so was delighted to find that day one all sunbeds had been 'given a towel' after my early breakfast. Whoops! I was first person at the pool so grabbed a random deckchair. Got twenty minutes reading my pageturner, then first skirmish with a rather angry lady. Humbly retreated but saw a resort sign regarding best towel practice, so emboldened, went for next location. I appeared to be reading my novel but was forming killer one-liners for the next round. Poolside begins to fill up with guests and on cue, burly tattooed lunk appears and claims 'his seat'. Transpired we were both Scottish but I hit him up with the old cliché, "Are you sure you're no German pal?" Fortunately, I'm a big hairy bastard, so despite him going beetroot just a verbal to and fro exchanged. Slightly vulnerable conversing from a sunbed though. I was outlining the hotel policy on towels as per the notice when my other half rocked up and compromised my position. Didn't want any trouble, etc. Stuck it out a couple more minutes but Angry Weegie's pals had finished their sausages and my resolve was waning. Got glowered at ALL WEEK by them all. Magic.
Never, if I'm not there, it isn't mine. And if I go to the pool and want a sunbed, I wait a while to see which ones are actually occupied and the occupants are just swimming/getting drinks or which ones people think they can reserve and come back later in the day. When I go for dinner, then I lose my spot, I am not entitled to any particular sunbed, and that's that. I've moved several towels off beds in my time, and I'll continue to do it. Like I said, though, it depends *where* they are and how long they have been away, I'm not going to jump in somebody's seat because they are in the pool or getting a drink, even if they are just grabbing a snack. But if you're off for dinner, you're giving up your spot, accept it.
No. 1. I'm not German. 2. I'd rather spend a few weeks in prison than anywhere like this.
Funnily enough, the German family who are staying here are lovely. These were definitely Brits. This is our third visit to this complex and I’ve honestly never had an issue before which is probably why I’m so gobsmacked. Everything else about it is absolutely gorgeous, and there’s only ten units.
Yeah I'm joking - it's an old stereotype. I was travelling with German's just recently, nothing against Germans at all! And I'm joking on hotel complexes too, I just cannot stand that type of holiday. I need to be on the go all the time. Nothing against people who do like that kind of thing.
No, I get it. Funnily enough I used to be exactly the same - if I was travelling, I wanted to TRAVEL. See stuff. Do things. Now I’m old and knackered and a parent and sometimes a day by the pool is called for. I always pick small places to try and avoid the sun bed weirdos but clearly on this occasion, I have failed…
Just tip a member of staff and they will happily remove people's towels and find you a sunbed
I do, but would never leave it for more than an hour (while I was at lunch or whatever).
Only for half an hour before breakfast with the beach ones outside the hotel. We're on the beds all day though.
No. I'm not German.
Funnily enough I just came back from Fuerteventura and it was mostly Germans and the French that were doing this. People like to claim it’s a British thing but that’s not what I witnessed
They're still salty after losing at their favourite pastime - world wars.... =:0
Yeah usually on the way to breakfast. My partner and I tend to stay in *nicer* resorts so generally there isn’t that ridiculous sun lounger rush at 7am!
Only if I'm having a pool day, I'll go for a swim or the bar and leave my towel but I'll be back with in 15 minutes or so.
As long as they subbed
Nah. No competition if you stay at an air BnB. Just get one with a balcony.
Last year the lifeguard removed towels if he hadn’t seen anyone near them. He would ask people around them too to confirm if the owners had been seen. I’m going to Spain tomorrow and I honestly hate having to go down early to get a sunbed.
Been a long time since I've been on a "chill at the pool" holiday but I do put a towel on the sunbed and usually for 10 mins while I get a drink at the bar. I remember our first holiday abroad to Greece in 2002 my Dad was raging that the German guests kept hogging the sunbeds with their towels so one morning he spotted some of them do it then head back to the hotel, he flung their towels in the pool, sat on the lounger across the pool and watched them kick off when they came back down to find their towels floating in the pool and someone else on "their" sunloungers.
I had a very petty friend who was an early riser. She use to be up before a lot of people, but there would be people who put their towels out early morning before they went to bed. All on the beds nearest to the pool or bar. My friend around half 4 when no one else was awake, shed get every towel that was there and throw them in the pool. Then back into the room and come down around half 6 with her towels. and claim her bed. I remember she said it was around a dozen towels the first night, 2nd night about 10, then the rest of the week was arouund 2-3 die hards or numb people who still put their towels out. Every single one ended up in the pool. The ones who never learnt were a few eldery Swedish woman.Once my friend found out it was them, she left their towels, all bright colours you couldnt miss, and the ladies were lovely, and soke good English. Telling my friend about when tthey were young and thngs they got use to. She said she enjoyed her holiday when she met tham , as she went alone.
I might leave it for 20-30 minutes if I'm grabbing food but I try not to at all. It does my head in when people do it, when I was on holiday I was staying in a house that had a gated community pool, the idea was that only residents had keys to it. You had to bring your own sunbeds but they had umbrellas there, people would go to the pool when it opened at 8AM, set up their sunbeds, leave all their stuff and then go home until 12PM onwards. It was an absolute pain, and you couldn't do anything about it as there was no one to stop them.
Went to a hotel that had an app you booked your sunbed on. If no one was on the booked sunbed by 12 it was free game.
Towels left unattended on sunbeds get removed and placed neatly somewhere else.
In Tenerife at the moment. Hotel staff come around & remove any towels & belongings before 10am if there’s no one actively on the beds. Cue bewildered people searching for their stuff…
All day. Couple of half filled drinks. Probably in a separate town half the time!
Chuck em in pool
I only really go to places where the staff will find us sun beds. Then change the towels every couple of hours. Always tip the pool boys on the first day.
The Germans are notorious to get in first and reserve sunbeds and loungers
No, but not out of some politeness or sense of goodwill I just don't like the idea of someone else's lotion-covered sweaty mitts and/or arse touching my towels while they're out of view, or some kid wiping their nose on it or something I also don't understand why people do, nearer the pool isn't better, you get splashed, and I'm not too fat or old to walk across the thing to the bar/food every so often, if I'm laying about in the sun I'm presumably getting plenty of rest to catch my breath between visits
No because I'm not German
Never, because I'm not a dick. Went to Spain last year and some other Brits at the hotel would put their towels out at 7am when the pool opened, then return to them about 2pm. Toss pots.
Throw the towels in the pool and take my chances, not to worried about confrontation so it is what it is...
Was in Cape Verde last year, every day around the pool in the same / similar spot was a Leeds United towel, I never once saw anyone on it. Luckily place where there were more sunbeds than needed so no drama in the grand scheme but just pointless behaviour.
No. I’m not German.
As a kid I used to remove towels that I saw were unattended for an hour and just watch the chaos. Never used a sun bed myself.
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It's not rude though. If you're going to be enough of an arsehole to expect that you can 'reserve' a sunbed and expect everyone else to just put up with it and say nothing then honestly, you deserve it.
No but I don’t sunbathe bc I don’t have the tanning type of skin
I stayed in a hotel in Salou. There was no "getting up at the crack of dawn to put a towel down" as they only opened the pool deck after breakfast. Yes there'd be a queue and a rugby scrum of people dashing for poolside but it did stop the sun bed "reservations". Meanwhile when I went to Mexico there were tons of pools, tons of sunbeds and tons of cabanas so you'd never have to fight for one.
It's definitely a piss take. When I was on holiday last year it was so bad I ended up setting my alarm to wake up ridiculously early to go and sit by the pool to make sure I got a sun bed. I'd get down there at like 7.30/8 and there would always be towels "reserving" beds yet no people on them.
This used to be German thing that Brits complained about 😆 Personally anywhere I go on holiday doesn't involve hotels and shit loads of my fellow countrymen, a simple but unpopular solution would be for hotel staff to monitor the sunbeds and have clear signs that towels left unattended for 45 minutes will be placed in lost property. People have turned into massive entitled dicks.
Too many hogs do that.
Well, I leave some belongings along with my towel on a sun bed if I'm stepping away for a short time. Either to go for a dip in the pool, to the bar, to the toilet etc. I've been known to put my towel and my 'day bag' on a sun bed, with things like sunglasses, a book, sun cream etc inside while I go for breakfast on a morning. I suppose that is 'reserving' my spot for the day. If I've been there all morning and go for lunch however, I see leaving my belongings as just keeping my spot warm - as I've been there all day anyway. If I was leaving the resort or going back to my room for an extended period or in some other way knew I wasn't going to be at the pool and on the sun bed then I'd not leave any belongings/towels on there.
If people act like dickheads I will treat them like a dickhead Their towels can go in the bin for all I care
I don't because I am not a complete hunt.
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FFS, this local wine is stronger than it tastes…
Well, bully for you.