Hogging deck chairs..... Regent policy?

If someone is in the pool, fine.

 

Going to breakfast is not a pool activity - any more than bingo or the gym.

Tendency to agree. However, what if the people do go to breakfast or lunch within the 30 minute time frame? If that is the limit and they are back that would be acceptable. I know most do not but we are ones that do. For example I may just have cereal or fruit for breakfast and that does not take too long.

So there are a lot of variables in this and some would be put off if they came back in 30 minutes and the chair was taken.

I have seen so many people who are really outrageous with saving chairs all day and only showing up for a few minutes in the afternoon.

One time on Azamara a woman sat in a chair that nobody was using and a man came over and said that chair was for his son (a small child by the way who wasn't ever sitting there). The woman refused to get up, so the man actually sat on her! They had to call security over.

Another time on Celebrity there was actually a physical fight in the solarium over someone taking another's chair.

I've even seen people have words on Crystal.

So please be careful with this because you never know what kind of people you may encounter, whether it's Regent or any other line.

Tendency to agree. However, what if the people do go to breakfast or lunch within the 30 minute time frame? If that is the limit and they are back that would be acceptable. I know most do not but we are ones that do. For example I may just have cereal or fruit for breakfast and that does not take too long.

 

So there are a lot of variables in this and some would be put off if they came back in 30 minutes and the chair was taken.

,,,

Obviously it confoms to the "letter of the law". I think the idea should be that if you're at the pool, you get a chair, and you can come and go to get drinks etc. as long as you're hanging out at the pool. If you drop stuff off on a chair just so you and save it, and then go on to other activities on the ship, even if it's just a short breakfast, that's not really within the "spirit of the law", is it?

That is, the chairs are meant for people who want to hang out around the pool. When you go do something else, you should take your stuff with you so somebody else can have that pleasure. If everybody did that, there would not be a problem.

+1 - could not agree more.

Not being a sun lover, we don't sit by the pool but frequently walk by it and see most lounges with "stuff" on it and few people actually in the pool. Wish there were an easy fix for those of you that enjoy basking in the sun.

+1 - could not agree more.

 

Not being a sun lover, we don't sit by the pool but frequently walk by it and see most lounges with "stuff" on it and few people actually in the pool. Wish there were an easy fix for those of you that enjoy basking in the sun.

It's not just for the sun-lovers, but for pool and hot tub lovers as well. If you can find a chaise in the shade, it's a great place to read a book or take a nap. I myself am a hot tub lover.

Wendy, I agree with you. The lounges should be for those actively using the immediate area.

I myself need to stay in the shade but we do enjoy going up to the pool area to swim and to read some of the time. On our last cruise there was a couple that had the same 2 lounges in the shade the whole cruise. They were very friendly to the pool attendants and their belongings stayed there all day whether they were there or not. One day we decided to sit up there as we left La Veranda after breakfast as it was so beautiful out. Their stuff was there but they were nowhere in sight. They showed up at lunch time, made a brief stop at the lounges and then left to go to lunch. Others looking for a spot in the shade looked at the lounges but saw the stuff and left. I had to restrain myself to not tell them to just sit there.

We need to keep this in perspective, and not let it spoil our cruise (or expectation of our next Regent cruise)

Often on Mariner and Voyager we have seen plenty of space available on the loungers (see attached). We have no experience of Navigator

The really annoying guests are those that save two or more loungers in the sun plus two or more in the shade and then depart for a half-day excursion; when they get back they have lunch, sit for 10 minutes on the loungers then decide it is too hot to stay outside :rolleyes: :eek:

However, even in these extreme situations it is not for other guests to challenge or move belongings; just find a crew supervisor and politely ask him/her to deal with the issue and/or find you the number of loungers you require

Mariner Pool Deck.pdf

We need to keep this in perspective, and not let it spoil our cruise (or expectation of our next Regent cruise)

 

Often on Mariner and Voyager we have seen plenty of space available on the loungers (see attached). We have no experience of Navigator

 

The really annoying guests are those that save two or more loungers in the sun plus two or more in the shade and then depart for a half-day excursion; when they get back they have lunch, sit for 10 minutes on the loungers then decide it is too hot to stay outside :rolleyes: :eek:

 

However, even in these extreme situations it is not for other guests to challenge or move belongings; just find a crew supervisor and politely ask him/her to deal with the issue and/or find you the number of loungers you require

Agree 100%.

There is usually plenty of loungers available during the cruises I have been on. However, It seems on sea days the hogs come out in force.

It is really the responsibility of the crew to deal with it. Inform them of the issue. If enough people inform them, they will be forced to take action.

I do like the "Table of Shame".

We need to keep this in perspective, and not let it spoil our cruise (or expectation of our next Regent cruise)

 

Often on Mariner and Voyager we have seen plenty of space available on the loungers (see attached). We have no experience of Navigator

 

The really annoying guests are those that save two or more loungers in the sun plus two or more in the shade and then depart for a half-day excursion; when they get back they have lunch, sit for 10 minutes on the loungers then decide it is too hot to stay outside :rolleyes: :eek:

 

However, even in these extreme situations it is not for other guests to challenge or move belongings; just find a crew supervisor and politely ask him/her to deal with the issue and/or find you the number of loungers you require

With one exception, I agree with you. In particular, I don't believe passengers should resort to self-help in dealing with chair hogs.

In my experience, there are usually loungers in the sun available at all times. However, the chair hog problem usually arises in conjunction with the loungers in the shade. Your photo illustrates the problem. (http://boards.cruisecritic.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=388580&d=1466776970). The photo appears to have been taken in the morning on a day when the ship was in port. There are two passengers on loungers in the sun and one passenger on a lounger in the shade. A pool attendant is also pictured. No one else appears to be in the picture. While the unoccupied loungers in the sun are all available, the unoccupied loungers in the shade all appear to have been reserved with items of personal property. My guess is that most, if not all, of the passengers who have reserved a lounger in the shade, are on an excursion off the ship. IMHO, this problem needs to be dealt with by senior management, both on the ship and in Miami.

Dave, you hit the nail on the head. The loungers some of us are talking about are in the shade - not the sun. Also, on port days there is plenty of availability -- the problem is on sea days. Agree that this should be handled by the crew. In the other hand, the "table of shame" was a fun idea.

With one exception, I agree with you. In particular, I don't believe passengers should resort to self-help in dealing with chair hogs.

 

In my experience, there are usually loungers in the sun available at all times. However, the chair hog problem usually arises in conjunction with the loungers in the shade. Your photo illustrates the problem. (http://boards.cruisecritic.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=388580&d=1466776970). The photo appears to have been taken in the morning on a day when the ship was in port. There are two passengers on loungers in the sun and one passenger on a lounger in the shade. A pool attendant is also pictured. No one else appears to be in the picture. While the unoccupied loungers in the sun are all available, the unoccupied loungers in the shade all appear to have been reserved with items of personal property. My guess is that most, if not all, of the passengers who have reserved a lounger in the shade, are on an excursion off the ship. IMHO, this problem needs to be dealt with by senior management, both on the ship and in Miami.

The photo was taken mid to late morning when the ship was at sea. Mariner was approaching Rio so a number of those who had been on the shady loungers, or had reserved (hogged) a shady lounger were probably watching the approach into port; the approach into Rio being extremely picturesque

Making sufficient loungers available in the shade is difficult to achieve. On Mariner & Voyager there are probably a maximum of 50 loungers in the shade (and some of these are too near the smoking area for our liking), so not everyone can be accommodated. 'Hoggers' don't help this conundrum and it is a pity that a small number of Regent customers are so shameless with their selfishness, with no consideration for other guests

PS I don't think the crew member(s) in the picture are pool attendants; they were just walking through

The photo does clearly show "things" on lounges in the shade and only one person there (and no one in the pool). The sun in Rio can be so intense that it is likely that most people would want the shade.

I like to walk by the pool area when it is a bit cold and sunny. This is when people that likely live outside of the U.S. wear coats and lie on a lounger in the sun. This is something I haven't seen anywhere (except on a Regent ship). I suspect that these are people that live in cold climates and crave the sun. For those of us raised in almost continuous sun, it is important to avoid it at all costs due to the harm it causes to your skin. My DH was raised in the UK and became a sun worshiper when he went to Los Angeles. The result is quarterly visits to the dermatologist to get pre-cancerous "things" on his face, arms, legs, neck and back removed. In any case, it would be nice if there were more loungers in the shade or perhaps umbrellas that could attach to the loungers to give some shade.

Thank you to all who contributed to my original post, it seems I'm not the only one who has a problem with the chair hoggers! The end result seems that the TOS is a great idea but not to be monitored by us passengers but rather the crew, and perhaps a reminder in the daily newsletter of the consequences of outstaying your welcome on a pool lounger.....the embarrassment of having your belongings displayed on the TOS. :eek:

I'm not a fanatic about lounging by the pool so I've rarely had issues with 'chair-hogs', but I can see how it would be frustrating.

You'd think that if the problem worsens that Regent could come up with a polite way of managing this, either via a chair-back clip that could be used to reserve a lounger (and provide the crew with a method of cross-checking who's off the ship) or more simply, a wind-up timer of some sort that would pop up a little flag after 30 minutes or how ever long...and once it pops, the lounger is fair game.

There's got to be a relatively easy fix for that problem...

We need to keep this in perspective, and not let it spoil our cruise (or expectation of our next Regent cruise)

 

Often on Mariner and Voyager we have seen plenty of space available on the loungers (see attached). We have no experience of Navigator

 

The really annoying guests are those that save two or more loungers in the sun plus two or more in the shade and then depart for a half-day excursion; when they get back they have lunch, sit for 10 minutes on the loungers then decide it is too hot to stay outside :rolleyes: :eek:

 

However, even in these extreme situations it is not for other guests to challenge or move belongings; just find a crew supervisor and politely ask him/her to deal with the issue and/or find you the number of loungers you require

I would slightly disagree with your last paragraph. Although in my experience the vast majority of cruisers are polite about not leaving their belongings on a chair all day long, there are always the exceptions. I have no problem moving someone's belongings if they've clearly been abandoned. And I'm not talking about throwing them in the pool or clear on the other side of the pool, I'm talking about moving them out of my way so I can use the chair. If the person comes back, I'll simply say there was no place else to sit and the chair wasn't being occupied, and offer to leave. I'm not out to make enemies on my vacation, but neither am I going to sit in my cabin all day because some thoughtless person thinks he/she has an unrestricted right to a chair all day "just in case." Having said that, I agree that taking the matter up with staff is preferable, obviously. Fortunately, in 5 cruises I've never had an altercation-in fact, I've even made a few friends this way. If you're kind to other cruisers, the outcome is more likely to be positive. And of course, the most important thing is to have fun on your vacation, don't let the odd negative experience spoil your holiday. Thank you.

Really you shouldn't have to take it to the staff, they should be doing what is needed to be done. Remove any item that has been on a chair for over 30 mins and ready it for the next person. If it's a policy, the staff isn't doing their job-mangement should step in.