Pool Chair Savers - Watch Out

[Waterlily777]

Quote by Waterlilly:

"so once someone has had 3-1/2 good hours, it seems only fair play to free up the chairs and let others have a turn. If everyone did this, there probably wouldn't be a problem."

 

I totally disagree with this.......

Telling someone they need to get up because they have used

the chair for too long? Sorry I don't agree with that one. And no,

I am not even one to "lay out" but saying a person is a chair hog

for using the chair?:eek:....doesn't make any sense to me.

 

I didn't say they need to give up the chairs, but if they have had them for three and a half hours, and they want to leave them for 45 minutes (or more) then I think the fair thing to do is to free up those PARTICULAR chairs so that they don't have to be vacant for for 45 to 120 minutes (the time at which the new policy kicks in, if folks don't return as soon as they thought they would (after all, things do come up)). When and if they do return, they can take other chairs.

 

This would reduce by quite a bit the number of chairs lying vacant while other poor souls can't find a spot.

 

It's just a suggestion arising from the concept of fair play.

[Lois R]

I read it differently than you Lois. I think she was talking about the woman who said she had been there for 3.5 hours and left to go get lunch for 45 minutes to an hour and wanted to keep the lounger reserved. I read the point to be if you're leaving after 3.5 hours give someone else a chance and see what's available in an hour when you get back.

 

How are you? I read the question about whether you had ever known anyone that ate every night in the specialty restaurants and chuckled!

Guess who it made me think of? Hope all is well with you and your Dad!

 

Hi Dianne, good to see you:) things here are ok..he is the same:eek:

if not a bit worse:(....its probably the start of "The Long Goodbye"

but he still knows us...thankfully..thanks for asking.

 

Back to the topic at hand...I just want a seat at the bar:D those

are usually available;)

 

And I am thinking of booking SUMMIT for Superbowl Sunday in Feb:D

[Lois R]

I didn't say they need to give up the chairs, but if they have had them for three and a half hours, and they want to leave them for 45 minutes (or more) then I think the fair thing to do is to free up those PARTICULAR chairs so that they don't have to be vacant for for 45 to 120 minutes (the time at which the new policy kicks in, if folks don't return as soon as they thought they would (after all, things do come up)). When and if they do return, they can take other chairs.

 

This would reduce by quite a bit the number of chairs lying vacant while other poor souls can't find a spot.

 

It's just a suggestion arising from the concept of fair play.

 

Didn't mean for you to get upset.....maybe I misunderstood the post:confused:

But I still think if a person is in the chair and gets up for 20 minutes and comes back,

it is theirs....yes, even if it is for the day. I can't sit out that long but some people

do......

[Straughn]

I have to agree with Lois on this. I don't care how long someone occupies a chair as long as they are actually using it. Show up at 7 AM and stay until the sun sets in Hawaii-good for you. It is very discouraging to go to the pool (indoor or out) at 10AM to see 1/3 of the chairs with bodies in them, maybe 10 people in the pool and the other 2/3's of the chairs with a towel, one flip flop (the other flip-flop being on the chair next to it) and maybe a book or a baseball cap. While not always the case, it is generally pretty easy to spot the chairs that belong to those in the pool. The flip flops are under the chair, there may well be a shirt draped over the back of the chair and just a general indication that someone is actually using the chair.

 

On many occasions I have asked the pool attendent to clear off one of these "reserved" chairs. Only once did someone show up, over an hour later, and say my stuff was here. My response was: "How do you know this was your chair? Pool chairs get rearranged all the time. It was empty I so I sat here. I haven't seen your stuff."

[Can'tstopcruising]

I am not a chair hog. I don't enjoy sitting in the sun or even the shady area around the pool. On the occasion that I did wish to sit there in the afternoon' date=' I have found that there were no seats. Of course, that is very annoying.

 

On the Galaxy, I noticed that the seats around the indoor pool were always reserved. Each day, I wanted to get a seat in that area to see why it was so much in demand. Not once did [i']I find a vacant seat.

 

Having said all this, [/i]I can understand the previous poster Waterlilly. If someone loves to spend the day at the pool area, it really is not unreasonable that they save their seat while they go for a quick lunch. This is perfectly acceptable in resorts.

 

As to fair play. I don't think any cruiser while sitting in his chaise (or vacating it while swimming,eating etc.) should have to worry about the pax who are looking for chaises. Unfortunately, there is a shortage. That's the real problem. With all the new builds of megaships, are they adding or reducing the number of chaises in relation to the number of pax?

 

Sorry, please substitute Karpella for Waterlilly.

[Waterlily777]

Didn't mean for you to get upset.....maybe I misunderstood the post:confused:

Sorry.

 

Hi Lois:

 

Oh, the difficulties of communicating on the web :p;).

 

I wasn't at all upset...I just highlit and bolded some words that I thought might explain my position better.

 

I'm not at all suggesting that people be told to leave chairs that they are occupying, but I still think if you've had a good portion of the day on the lounges, which we all admit are "a scarce commodity", and you are planning to leave for lunch (I am not talking about a comfort break, or a dip in the pool), that it would be great if you took your things with you and then someone else could use your chair right away. If everyone was doing this, you probably wouldn't have a problem finding a spot when you return.

 

I think a lot of the problem of vacant chairs with personal belongings on them is caused by people who intend to return quickly, but for whatever reason, do not.

 

I still think if everyone got used to taking a fair approach to using the chairs, it would help to reduce all of this consternation and chair-watching and removing of others' belongings and ensuing drama and bad feelings.

 

Still not upset :):):)!

[NH Cruisers]

I always remember our first cruise. We were up early one morning and having a walk on deck. The chairs near to the pool has books and shoes on but not a soul on any beds and no one in the pool, as we returned after walking around the deck, they were all floating in the pool.

 

I've seen things like that real early in the morning. I would have chuckeld had I known a chair hogger was being irritated. I thought some jerk kids were just running around throwing things in the pool.

[DSJ28]

I think this post gives an interesting psychological insight.

 

I'm willing to guess most chair-hoggers don't think of themselves as chairhoggers. However, if someone has had two chairs for three-and-a-half hours already, then the fair thing to do would be to free up those chairs when they leave for lunch, and look for others that are available when and if they return.

 

There aren't pool loungers for anywhere near the number of people who would like to enjoy them, so once someone has had 3-1/2 good hours, it seems only fair play to free up the chairs and let others have a turn. If everyone did this, there probably wouldn't be a problem.

 

I'm sure I don't know why some people think they deserve to nail down "prime real estate" for a whole day. If there were 30 children in a park with 12 ride-on toys, would it be fair for 2 children to "hog" two of those toys for the whole day? Would their parents think that this "me-first" behaviour was justified or acceptable? I doubt it. I brought my children up with the good British concepts of "turn-about is fair play" and "share and share alike", and I doubt very much if they have turned into chair hogs as adults.

 

I agree with you. I would think that after one has enjoyed loungers for 3.5 hours, they shouldn't be too upset at giving up their seats after abandoning them for over 30 minutes.

 

This may not apply to many others, but I would feel uncomfortable if I were seats that are in high demand for hours and hours on end. I simply enjoy premium seats for an hour or so - then relinquish them, so others can have a chance. It's not a new concept...it's just sharing.

 

When my sons play arcade games that are in high demand, they give others a chance to play after having a couple of turns. When I'm having lunch at a crowded resturant, my friends and I don't linger and chat at the table once we have finished our meal if others are waiting for tables. It's all the same if you ask me.I'm no saint, but I don't see what's so difficult about sharing the equipment in the common areas of the ship.

 

That said, I understand most people will feel that if they arrive first, they should be entitled to sit as long as they like. That's fine. It certainly won't ruin my cruise experience. It's just sad to see so many people wandering around the pool area looking for a place to sit when there countless unoccupied seats all around.

[boogs]

... but I would feel uncomfortable if I were seats that are in high demand for hours and hours on end. I simply enjoy premium seats for an hour or so - then relinquish them, so others can have a chance. It's not a new concept...it's just sharing.

 

A question - when you go to a movie theatre and you find a "premium" seat by getting there early, do you relinquish your seat halfway through the movie so the poor souls who got there late and are sitting in the front row can "share" the better seat?

[farsight]

A question - when you go to a movie theatre and you find a "premium" seat by getting there early, do you relinquish your seat halfway through the movie so the poor souls who got there late and are sitting in the front row can "share" the better seat?

 

I think that is a distortion of the position. Not an accurate analogy.

[TravelerThom]

I am not a chair hog. I don't enjoy sitting in the sun or even the shady area around the pool. On the occasion that I did wish to sit there in the afternoon' date=' I have found that there were no seats. Of course, that is very annoying.

 

On the Galaxy, I noticed that the seats around the indoor pool were always reserved. Each day, I wanted to get a seat in that area to see why it was so much in demand. Not once did [i']I find a vacant seat.

 

Having said all this, [/i]I can understand the previous poster Waterlilly. If someone loves to spend the day at the pool area, it really is not unreasonable that they save their seat while they go for a quick lunch. This is perfectly acceptable in resorts.

 

As to fair play. I don't think any cruiser while sitting in his chaise (or vacating it while swimming,eating etc.) should have to worry about the pax who are looking for chaises. Unfortunately, there is a shortage. That's the real problem. With all the new builds of megaships, are they adding or reducing the number of chaises in relation to the number of pax?

Sorry, but I think that a cruiser should worry about [or I'd prefer to say "be considerate of"] the passenger looking for a chaise while the person that feels they own that chaise is eating lunch. As you point out there are way less chaises than people who want one [either to actually sit in, or to "own" even while somewhere else]. You can blame that on the cruise company not putting in enough chairs, but that is a price we pay for getting an affordable cruise [i doubt that Tom Perkins on his private $300 Million yacht Maltese Falcon has a problem finding a chaise]. I agree with Straughn that you can have the chaise all day if you are using it or the pool area [including the pools, hot tubs, Pool Grill, or bathroom]. BUT if your butt is sitting in a chair other than your chaise you should give up the chaise. You don't have a right to two chairs in public areas of the ship at the same time [nor ownership of a chaise while napping in the bed in your cabin]. Getting food items from the Cafe and bring them back to your chaise is one thing, but "owning" a chaise AND a cafe chair is another altogether. There are lots of times people have a hard time finding a chaise, but I have NEVER seen all of them actually in use. If everyone would give up their chaise when going elsewhere, there would be plenty of chaises for everyone who is actually there. I never thought about this before, but perhaps each passenger can be issued ONE chair pass, and they are not allowed to sit down anywhere including their cabin [an exception for the bathroom] unless they are in possession of their chair pass;)

 

Thom

[Can'tstopcruising]

Sorry, but I think that a cruiser should worry about [or I'd prefer to say "be considerate of"] the passenger looking for a chaise while the person that feels they own that chaise is eating lunch. As you point out there are way less chaises than people who want one [either to actually sit in, or to "own" even while somewhere else]. You can blame that on the cruise company not putting in enough chairs, but that is a price we pay for getting an affordable cruise [i doubt that Tom Perkins on his private $300 Million yacht Maltese Falcon has a problem finding a chaise]. I agree with Straughn that you can have the chaise all day if you are using it or the pool area [including the pools, hot tubs, Pool Grill, or bathroom]. BUT if your butt is sitting in a chair other than your chaise you should give up the chaise. You don't have a right to two chairs in public areas of the ship at the same time [nor ownership of a chaise while napping in the bed in your cabin]. Getting food items from the Cafe and bring them back to your chaise is one thing, but "owning" a chaise AND a cafe chair is another altogether. There are lots of times people have a hard time finding a chaise, but I have NEVER seen all of them actually in use. If everyone would give up their chaise when going elsewhere, there would be plenty of chaises for everyone who is actually there. I never thought about this before, but perhaps each passenger can be issued ONE chair pass, and they are not allowed to sit down anywhere including their cabin [an exception for the bathroom] unless they are in possession of their chair pass;)

 

Thom

 

 

OK, Thom, you pass the chair pass idea onto Celebrity via their suggestion box!!!!!

 

Seriously, I think there is a difference between sitting in a 2nd chair for a quick lunch and disappearing for hours to do many other things.

 

I find it alien to think like some of the others because a) we used to frequent resorts where our chaise was our chaise, regardless. That was the norm. And b) I don't love the pool area of the ship.

[digital_curator]

A question - when you go to a movie theatre and you find a "premium" seat by getting there early, do you relinquish your seat halfway through the movie so the poor souls who got there late and are sitting in the front row can "share" the better seat?

 

One difference I can see is that you are only in a movie for a couple of hours and then someone else gets the seat:D

 

I always find it dissapointing that we can't find a chair when we go to the solarium in the afternoon and find nothing but chairs occupied by books, glasses, etc.

 

Why don't I get a "premium" seat early in the morning? Because I'm not going to use it; we really just want to spend a quiet hour or two in the afternoon. Hopefully, if Celebrity keeps up this new policy, we will get to do just that!

 

Cheers,

[Woobstr112G]

I have to agree with Lois on this. I don't care how long someone occupies a chair as long as they are actually using it. Show up at 7 AM and stay until the sun sets in Hawaii-good for you. It is very discouraging to go to the pool (indoor or out) at 10AM to see 1/3 of the chairs with bodies in them, maybe 10 people in the pool and the other 2/3's of the chairs with a towel, one flip flop (the other flip-flop being on the chair next to it) and maybe a book or a baseball cap. While not always the case, it is generally pretty easy to spot the chairs that belong to those in the pool. The flip flops are under the chair, there may well be a shirt draped over the back of the chair and just a general indication that someone is actually using the chair.

 

On many occasions I have asked the pool attendent to clear off one of these "reserved" chairs. Only once did someone show up, over an hour later, and say my stuff was here. My response was: "How do you know this was your chair? Pool chairs get rearranged all the time. It was empty I so I sat here. I haven't seen your stuff."

 

I agree.....:):):)

 

Bob

[patty1955]

I have the type of skin that burns through SPF50, but that doesn't mean I don't like to swim. Just once, I'd like to find a lounger in the shade so I can dry off before going back inside. Hopefully, Celebrity will enforce the rules and I can spend more than 5 minutes drying off.

[Rick-cruiser]

Those who know me know about my chair-hog story... I've posted it several times under various chair-hog threads so I won't post it again.. :)

 

Bottom line... you do NOT need to tolerate it. And you owe it to society not to tolerate letting these inconsiderate, selfish people reserve deck chairs all day while they're out-and-about doing other activities aboard the ship.

 

Make an appointment, immediately, with the Hotel Director. It takes only a 5-10 minute chat. Inform him/her of exactly what you've witnessed, that it is inconceivable that these people would show such blatant disregard for the ship rules, upsetting many, many passengers, and that you're SURE that you (the Hotel Director) would naturally want to know about this and want to do something immediately to rectify the situation.

 

It works. Trust me.

[TravelerThom]

OK' date=' Thom, you pass the chair pass idea onto Celebrity via their suggestion box!!!!!

 

Seriously, I think there is a difference between sitting in a 2nd chair for a quick lunch and disappearing for hours to do many other things.

 

I find it alien to think like some of the others because a) we used to frequent resorts where our chaise was our chaise, regardless. That was the norm. And b) I don't love the pool area of the ship.[/quote']As I said, I had never thought of this idea before, but the more I think about it the better it sounds. Older Celebrity ships [Horizon and Zenith come to mind] had separate room keys [i think they were called Ving Cards, no room number on them, with multiple holes punched in them] and charge cards. One could maintain possession of their ship charge card, while having to leave their room key / seat pass at the one chair at a time they are claiming. If I thought it had a chance of somehow being implemented I would suggest it, but I think it is an idea ahead of its time:rolleyes:.

 

Now I admit that the rule is you can leave your chair for 30 minutes and it is still yours, but it is unusual [if not impossible] for someone to leave their chaise, wait through the Cafe line, get a drink, find a seat, eat their meal and return to their chaise in 30 minutes. If one can, I suppose I'll have to admit that the chaise should be theirs.

 

I find it difficult to find a rational reason [i don't include "it's my vacation and I'll do what I want" as a rational reason] why one person should get to own two public chairs while others are looking for one [but all the chairs at the location they want are "owned" by someone who is elsewhere]. I have seen a number of reports here on CruiseCritic of people who, upon being told that "my wife/ son/ daughter/ friend is sitting there", reply "Fine, I'll leave the moment they return", and when they leave two hours later the person has never been seen. This is not just a pool problem - I'm sure I'm not the only person who has encountered a whole row in the theatre being reserved by one person [and is it not unusual to see only half that number of people even show up].

 

Many years ago First Class passengers on ships did "own" their chaise [well, at least for the duration of that cruise] and they even put your name on it. If one wants to spend the money to go somewhere where there are more than enough chairs for all, then I have no problem with those people spending their money and owning the chair [and I'd readily agree that chairs on private balconies are owned by the occupants of that room]. I have no problem with people at resorts or elsewhere "owning" a chaise for the day if there are enough for anyone who wants one, but this is certainly not the case on most ships, and is certainly not the case on Celebrity.

 

Thom

[boogs]

One difference I can see is that you are only in a movie for a couple of hours and then someone else gets the seat:D.

 

Yes, it is only a couple of hours, but for the late arrival, it is the ENTIRE movie that they must sit in that front row. I makes no difference to them that in a couple of hours the premium seats will be available again - they will have already seen the movie.

 

I always find it dissapointing that we can't find a chair when we go to the solarium in the afternoon and find nothing but chairs occupied by books, glasses, etc.

 

Why don't I get a "premium" seat early in the morning? Because I'm not going to use it; we really just want to spend a quiet hour or two in the afternoon. Hopefully, if Celebrity keeps up this new policy, we will get to do just that!

 

Cheers,

 

It's not my fault that I sat down earlier than you and am now using that chair when you finally arrive!

 

If your read the comment being made about giving up a chair to "share" it, and my reply to it, you will see that we were both talking about giving up a chair to a late arrival to give them a chance to use it. Neither of us were commenting about leaving a chair for extended time peroids but still claiming ownership while not using it. Whenever I find a chair, whether in the early morning, or later in the day, I will use it as long as I want - as long as I am using it. I see no valid reason to give up a chair that I am using in order to give someone else a chance to use it. Another analogy - I book a cruise one week prior to sail date and the only cabin left is in the most undersireable location of the ship. Should a person who booked months in advance in order to secure their favorite cabin location give it up after a certain amount of days just so I can enjoy this "premium" cabin too?

[Cruizer Bill]

I have the type of skin that burns through SPF50, but that doesn't mean I don't like to swim. Just once, I'd like to find a lounger in the shade so I can dry off before going back inside. Hopefully, Celebrity will enforce the rules and I can spend more than 5 minutes drying off.

 

DW and I are in the same situation, we need shade. Many ships have few loungers in the shade. That is not good, they are encouraging skin cancer. I say stick with the 30 minute rule. You can leave for any reason for 30 minutes but for no reason beyond that. Swimming? Come back within 30 minutes for a while but be sure to actually sit down. I have seen people mark chairs at 7 AM and then send someone back every 20 minutes and just re-arrange their belongings. That is not using a chair, just moving belongings. Let' all play fair!

[Luna]

I agree with Jobeth completely. Figuring out the reasoning why of a person who feels entitled to own a piece of public space on a cruise ship seems to fly in the face of reason. To answer the point about why they think they have a point, listen to this. We have a story about a chair hog confrontation on our most recent cruise on the Star Princess. I swear I am not making up what I am about to tell you!

On a rough sea day, we decided to find a comfortable place to hang out mid ship. Imagine our delight when we found two unoccupied loungers in the Solarium. Naturally, they were next to a lounger with no occupant in it other than sunglasses and a book.

Over the next two hours, we enjoyed our books, the peace and quiet, a few beers, some snacks from the pool grill; you know, the perfect day at sea.

Late in the afternoon, an older woman comes back to "her" lounger, looks at it for a moment, and then, turns to us and in a loud voice demands to know why we have moved her chair out of the shade and in to the sun. DH looks up at her and said, very politely, we have not touched your chair. She now launches in to a loud, shouting tirade about how dare we move her chair, we stole her shade, no one treats a Texas girl this way (I told you I'm not making this up) and how outrageous it was that we thought we would get away with this.....you get the picture.

Now, I'm not a Texas girl, but I am a natural redhead as well as a retired middle school science teacher, so, when she piped down for a moment, my response to her was to first, ask her to lower her voice, and then try and explain that in the hours since she was last there, that not only the sun had moved across the sky, but the ship was also moving which explains why her chair was no longer in the shade, and that certainly in the state of Texas the laws of physics remain the same as at sea, and that she was mistaken about us having any hand in the matter, and if this was not a satisfactory enough explanation for her problem, perhaps she might like to return to her cabin and look in to making an adjustment to whatever medication she was on.

Now, none of you would be surprised to hear that this tactic did not restore peace and quiet, but it sure made me feel a little better (only at the time...didn't I mention that we had enjoyed a couple of beers) So, Party, you are right. It's better to be a peacemaker, because what happened next actually got rather ugly.

Shouting and berating us, she grabs the foot of her lounger, picks it up, (wheels are under backrest) and starts to drag it up and over our legs to a place near the back where there is now some shade. The poor little pool attendant tried to intervene and help, but this lady was on a mission. Special Forces, I wish you were there! As it was, I told the pool attendant that she should go get security up there to help defuse the situation. That seemed to calm this lady down so she wasn't shouting any more, and soon after, she left.

We've all heard about people with road rage, but I never expected to hear about pool lounger rage. I mean, it's funny now, but at the time it was a real buzz kill. Just when you think you have seen/heard it all.

 

OMG! I love your original response. As one who was almost a redhead (auburn=brown+red), I can identify. My initial reaction was, as a former science teacher, you missed your chance to use a scientific term on her - parallax view - then tell her, "if you don't understand, dear, I'd be happy to explain it is small words you will understand." :D Then I read the rest of your post. OMGOMGOMG!!! That definitely wouldn't have helped the situation! Having had recent knee replacement surgery, I cringed at the thought of someone dragging a lounge chair over my legs and would have been tempted to ask the pool attendant to get security so I could file an assault charge! Those who behave belligerently need to know their actions will not be tolerated and should be reported. I'm glad the threat of security made her quiet down.

 

As to the rest of this thread, I wish other cruise lines would take a page out of Celebrity's book. I haven't sailed this line, yet, but have a booking on the Silhouette's transatlantic crossing next year. While I rarely sit by the pool (I usually drop my stuff someplace dry, but not on a lounger, get my laps in if the pool is not too crowded, then pick up my stuff and go back to sit on my balcony), but it's nice to know that, if the pool's too crowded to swim in, I just might be able to get a chair where I can lounge and read until there's room in the pool for actual swimming:p

[ORV]

Amazing the amount of money people want the cruise lines to spend on monitoring equipment, employees to police the chairs, etc. just because of selfish people that refuse to follow the rules.

[farsight]

Those who know me know about my chair-hog story... I've posted it several times under various chair-hog threads so I won't post it again.. :)

 

Bottom line... you do NOT need to tolerate it. And you owe it to society not to tolerate letting these inconsiderate, selfish people reserve deck chairs all day while they're out-and-about doing other activities aboard the ship.

 

Make an appointment, immediately, with the Hotel Director. It takes only a 5-10 minute chat. Inform him/her of exactly what you've witnessed, that it is inconceivable that these people would show such blatant disregard for the ship rules, upsetting many, many passengers, and that you're SURE that you (the Hotel Director) would naturally want to know about this and want to do something immediately to rectify the situation.

 

It works. Trust me.

 

Is this the story you're talking about?

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=23505045&highlight=#post23505045

 

I know it is a pain to keep re-posting things. However, I thought that if it was good, and it was; if it pertained, and it did; that it should be posted, and I did! :D

[Rick-cruiser]

Is this the story you're talking about?

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=23505045&highlight=#post23505045

 

I know it is a pain to keep re-posting things. However, I thought that if it was good, and it was; if it pertained, and it did; that it should be posted, and I did! :D

 

Yes, that's the one :).. Thank you for posting the link (I didn't think of that).

 

- Rick

[farsight]

Yes, that's the one :).. Thank you for posting the link (I didn't think of that).

 

- Rick

 

Rick,

 

You're welcome. In my case, it's a geek thing. :D

[Woobstr112G]

Yes, that's the one :).. Thank you for posting the link (I didn't think of that).

 

- Rick

 

Rick;

 

Just read your original post. Good for you. You definetely did the right thing.....:):):)

 

Bob