Sunbed wars!!

Who are these people that put towels on sunbeds at ungodly hours! I'd be humilated at the idea of sneaking down in the early hours to put a towel on a sunbed only to not turn up and use it until the late afternoon! Hotels are also to blame - they should have enough to go round for their max capacity. Doesn't sound like a holiday to me.

First of all they should bolt all the beds down. Or at least attach them to the floor with a special tool if they want to move them for pool parties etc.

Then have them so when they fold in half you can put a padlock on them to prevent them unfolding.

Then just allocate them, and give who is allocated to them the keys (key deposit of course because people always lose the keys).

It would cost very little, stop people moving them around to block walkways and ensure that everyone had their own bed and so prevent rows.

Move chair. When she comes back say excuse me it’s blocking my access to the pool.

Why would they do that ?

Surely someone will just have to go in and fish them out because otherwise the pool would be unusable with a load of towels floating in it.

I think a lot of hotels are pushing back on this, with staff specifically monitoring this nonsense.

There's an online video of two staff members gathering up all the laid out towels at stupid o'clock in the morning, and dumping them in a pile.

Our hotel had plenty of sunbeds, but had a a lot of warning signs that sunbeds could not be reserved and unattended ones would have belongings removed and securely stored.

These 07:00 a.m. sunbed claimers are the same selfish idiots that bought all the toilet rolls in that mad time, I can guarantee you that.

The hotel we're going to this week we've got reserved sunbeds, 100% the way forward!

I would hate this.

I specifically pay extra so I don't have to fight over sunbeds. With young kids I need to be able to keep an eye on them.

Some people are just selfish.

If we have issues may just need to get a villa instead- but would have to be catered cos I'm not cooking on holiday.

The chain we like clear anything left on beds before 9am, if it’s busy they also clear anything left for over an hour (with a bit of lunchtime leeway) belongings can then be collected from towel attendant.

never any bed availability issues there - however, it is £££ for the privilege.

anywhere else I ask staff to help us find a bed or move stuff myself after a while- it’s so selfish. Hope you get some help from staff/management OP

I just couldn’t be dealing with this at all. I think my main requirements from any holiday are minimising the level of interaction required with other people! I’d rather be camping in rhe rain personally!

I hear you OP. The hotel we are on does not have enough sunbeds for guest numbers. Went out for breakfast this morning, UK time of 6:30am which is more than early enough when you're on holiday, and all sun loungers had towels on. There were four people laid out and the rest were all having breakfast.

I can't do the beach, I'm too pale and end up burnt to a crisp. We're currently sat on our balcony and I'm huddled in a corner that is the only shaded bit for now.

We normally book private apartments or villas for this reason but it was a very last minute booking this year and we got what we could. Unfortunately, despite being marketed as a four star, it's leaving a lot to be desired.

How do you use the pool if you lose your bed after 20 mins?

DH & I did a 'fly and flop' holiday at an adults only hotel in May. It is not our usual sort of holiday but we do it occasionally - usually when we're fed up of the British weather!
We had a room overlooking the pool and it was greatly amusing to see people out at 7.00am reserving their sunbeds and even sitting on them waiting for the restaurant to open for breakfast at 7.30. It was cloudy and windy at 7.00 so not even warm!
DH and I often went out for the morning and came back around lunchtime to the 2nd pool area overlooking the seafront and had no problem getting a lounger at all. It was just as near to the pool bar and toilets (if not nearer) and had a lovely breeze which made the sun bearable. Only the front row ever got reserved by the same few people every day!
I really don't get the selfishness of people, nor why they have to have a particular group of sun loungers in the same spot every single day of their holiday.

I just move towels off if they're left there for a long period of time and we want the beds, fold them neatly and put them to one side. Then if questioned just say oh they were empty when we started using them an hour ago etc maybe staff cleared them, most hotels have a policy on this even if they don't act on it.

The hotel’s response is really poor. I thought most hotels no had signs saying beds could not be reserved and towels would be removed after 20 minutes.

I stayed at a hotel earlier this year where they sent a guy round every morning at about 9am chucking towels in the shallow pools 😅

This would drive me to distraction!

the only way to manage it is to speak to the hotel. Every day if necessary. As a pp stated let then know that you’ll be writing an extensive review.

on a holiday a few years ago I had gone to the pool at 10am and seen a cabana that had been “reserved” with a child’s tshirt. I sat there all day until 4pm when a woman came and remonstrated that I had taken her space. The pool staff were straight over and dealt with it very well. but it blew my mind that people could behave like that

So would I!

and if anyone was sat in it I’d say “excuse me please I need through”

I don't see how the gap would be too narrow to walk through 🤔

No, I don't actually and I would move towels from an unused sunbed, but I don't get her anger at a chair blocking a gap that is too narrow to politely walk through, and I don't get the relevance of age.

Move towels yourself, tell the lifeguards or staff and ask for more beds or for them to move towels and most importantly make a complaint to reception. These things aren’t changes unless people make it known they’re not happy.

Well, their age isn't relevant, but yup they are tossers as are all the sunbed reservers, whatever their age.

Just clamber over all the sunbeds and chairs when you need to get to the pool 🤣! It’s so selfish.

Have you mentioned it to the pool staff on duty? If so, what did they say? If not, why?

I would move your lounger to in front of theirs on the path bit, it looks large enough and put it long ways and if they say you are blocking the path tell them you can't get through because they are blocking the path and you have a child in the pool you need to be able to get to if she gets in trouble. I would be tempted to get up before 4am and bag 'her' seat and see if she moves your towels. Nothing more infuriating.

We went to Portugal a few years back now and we did not get a sun lounger once, spent the entire week sat on chairs in the outside bar area. All the loungers had towels and stuff on and half of them weren't used. There was us and 5 children. Only way we could get a lounger was go down to the beach and pay!