Holiday pool lounger etiquette - who’s right?

[BlueyTuesdays]

Intrigued what people think on this one.

On holiday abroad somewhere hot and sunny last week. Hotel pool had (not enough) loungers, pool towels were available at the pool and given out as you arrive.

YANBU : if you are vacating your lounger for whatever reason - going for a swim, a walk, the loo, a very long lunch (another issue maybe) then you need to leave something on your lounger as well as the hotel pool towel that says it’s still in use. Your book, your own towel, a pair of sunglasses, your bag, your shoes next to the lounger. Anything.

YABU - leaving the hotel issue towel and nothing else is sufficient to keep your lounger held for your use whilst you’re away from it.

TL:DR I took a lounger (no others obviously available) that had only a hotel towel on it and 2 hours later a cross man turned up and demanded his lounger back - was IBU?

Unless your paid for it for a set amount of time, leaving the pool area IS freeing up your lounger for others.

You bugger off for 2 hours the loungers fair game .
If people don't like it tough sh!t why should others who would actually use it go without because they're a selfish inconsiderate AH

He was unreasonable to expect the lounger to be saved for 2 hrs

No one wants agro on holiday so if someone kicked off when they found out I had taken their sun lounger, I would let them have it back.

It’s generally ok to leave your lounger for an hour or so in the day to grab lunch / recream. But yes, if you don’t leave a book on there (the international symbol of your intent to return), how is anyone to know!? We also make a point of being vocal ‘shall we grab lunch?’ Just so those around us know and can mention if asked.

I am however firmly in the anti camp when it comes to morning reservations. It’s infuriating when people reserve sunbeds from sunrise and then appear early afternoon to briefly use them.

That said, if everyone just took a bed when they needed it, there’d be a constant supply. Hotels don’t help this situation when they oversell relative to pool space. As if anyone is visiting their hotel in the middle of nowhere, height of summer - not to sunbathe.

How do you all know someone's been gone 2 hours?

Do you watch?

Count?

Set a timer?

I think if you're planning on a whole day by the pool then keep the lounger, have a lunch and go straight back
If you're going back to your room for a break / sleep etc then clear off the loungers for other people IMO.
I usually have pool holidays as I'm shattered and use holidays to rest, it annoys me when people put towels out, go out for the whole day and come back at 'last sun' - bloody ridiculous as the Loungers are often clear by then anyway!

It doesn't matter what anyone here says, it's what the rules are set by the hotel.

I've never stayed in a hotel where the lifeguard doesn't enforce the rules.

You can leave whatever you like to reserve the bed.

Our last hotel you couldn't reserve a bed till 845am. Unless no one returned within two hours, then the bed still belongs to the person that reserved it.

Lifeguard removed possessions after two hours. This is the way, with different time limits, wherever we've stayed.

Towel is enough. But if you're out more than 30min (or whatever time hotel determines) others are allowed to move your towel. I don't think you should be allowed to reserve it for duration of lunch/breakfast.

I do think hotels could do better job at monitoring. I've heard some hotels have an alarm every 30min and if there is no human on the lounger then the towel is removed.