Space Hogs - a nasty evolution of Chair Hogs

During my current cruise I’ve noticed a new pattern of behavior. Early the morning after the staff has arranged the deck chairs, people select a location and discard half the chairs to provide a nicer nest for themselves. They take the unwanted chairs and place them in places they don’t belong: in the walkway, in front of stairs or in a dining area. They rearrange the remaining chairs to utilize the new space and mark the remaining chairs with books, flip-flops or towels and leave. In effect they are claiming twice as many chairs as the normal chair hog. I hope we can find a way discourage this type of behavior.

During my current cruise I’ve noticed a new pattern of behavior. Early the morning after the staff has arranged the deck chairs, people select a location and discard half the chairs to provide a nicer nest for themselves. They take the unwanted chairs and place them in places they don’t belong: in the walkway, in front of stairs or in a dining area. They rearrange the remaining chairs to utilize the new space and mark the remaining chairs with books, flip-flops or towels and leave. In effect they are claiming twice as many chairs as the normal chair hog. I hope we can find a way discourage this type of behavior.

Yep, I've seen that same exact behavior by the pool Chair Hogs when I'm walking the track in the early morning. I've got an excellent birds eye view. They do it right after the pool attendant has arranged all the loungers in straight rows.

Ohhhh, I cannot wait to see this. Provides me with great opportunities... to have more fun!

bon voyage

If the OP is currently cruising they can post pictures.

They can also ask the HD to take a look.

Ohhhh, I cannot wait to see this. Provides me with great opportunities... to have more fun!

 

bon voyage

Believe me I’m crushing right and it’s not. FUN. It’s a jungle up there

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During my current cruise I’ve noticed a new pattern of behavior. Early the morning after the staff has arranged the deck chairs, people select a location and discard half the chairs to provide a nicer nest for themselves. They take the unwanted chairs and place them in places they don’t belong: in the walkway, in front of stairs or in a dining area. They rearrange the remaining chairs to utilize the new space and mark the remaining chairs with books, flip-flops or towels and leave. In effect they are claiming twice as many chairs as the normal chair hog. I hope we can find a way discourage this type of behavior.

Wow you have identified a new sub-species. The Double Chair Hog. Moving chairs like termites moving sand away from their nest!

I think part of the problem is in the morning, the chairs are lined up neatly with not enough room to get into the chairs. :confused: There's no room for your legs to slide to a chair. Honestly. I wonder if the pool stewards think we can fly/hover into a chair ?

We have a favorite spot on 14, above the pool deck. In the morning, we indeed do pull the last chair out of the row of 6 and move it to start another row. Then we move the chairs in the row we choose, so they have the 10 inches or so between them.... instead of the one inch. We don't hold the chairs with books. We are in them early and see that most cruisers aren't trying to make trouble, just finding some way to get in a chair and have room to put their shoes and tote next to them. At least in the area we choose.

Not sure what is going on around the pool. From what we see, those chairs are hogged early by folks going back to bed.

There are inconsiderate people every where. Hope this is just a one off from the group of inconsiderates on your cruise and is not becoming a norm.

I think part of the problem is in the morning, the chairs are lined up neatly with not enough room to get into the chairs. :confused: There's no room for your legs to slide to a chair. Honestly. I wonder if the pool stewards think we can fly/hover into a chair ?

 

We have a favorite spot on 14, above the pool deck. In the morning, we indeed do pull the last chair out of the row of 6 and move it to start another row. Then we move the chairs in the row we choose, so they have the 10 inches or so between them.... instead of the one inch. We don't hold the chairs with books. We are in them early and see that most cruisers aren't trying to make trouble, just finding some way to get in a chair and have room to put their shoes and tote next to them. At least in the area we choose.

 

Not sure what is going on around the pool. From what we see, those chairs are hogged early by folks going back to bed.

Don’t know what ship this was on, but I just got off the NCL Dawn and like a previous poster I walk the track on deck 13 above the pool area and pool staff arrange chairs around 6ish. Two chairs together with a space on each side for exit and entry. I’ve also been back hours later and you would have to levitate to get in and out of loungers.

I hope Celebrity take a hard line against people like this..... there should be signage asking people not to move the chairs / loungers and not to leave items on the chairs / loungers unattended for more than 30 minutes

Can’t move the chairs? I move my chair around based on the direction of the sun and time of day. I don’t stay in the same position all day.

I have to say that I don't have a problem with people trying to get a reasonable amount of separation. It may vary with the pool attendants, but sometimes the chairs are set out so close together that you'd think they were canning sardines!

Believe me I’m crushing right and it’s not. FUN. It’s a jungle up there

 

 

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:') Yes it is...

bon voyage

I hope Celebrity take a hard line against people like this..... there should be signage asking people not to move the chairs / loungers and not to leave items on the chairs / loungers unattended for more than 30 minutes

Signs would be useless as Chair Hogs are selectively literate. Toss a few of them over the side, though.....

We were on Reflection in December. We like to spend time around the pool and look for chairs mostly in the shade near the windows. We only use chairs when we're sitting in them (except for dips in the pool or bathroom breaks). That being said, it was impossible for a human being to actually be able to sit in the chair without crawling up from the foot of the chair (causing a tipping hazard) or leaping on top of the chair without moving the chair for access. The loungers were placed so tightly together that there was barely 1" between some of them. The last I checked most folks (even the most slender) cannot get in to sit down with that little space. Many of the loungers were placed so that they touched the one next to it with no space at all in between. It was the same way on Eclipse as well. While I certainly don't condone the actions referred to by the OP, I certainly can understand the necessity of moving a lounger a bit to allow you to sit down.

I don't find this to be claiming additional chairs. They're not. The chairs are still available to others. In reality, no one would be comfortable being crammed in like sardines with the way the pool attendants arrange the chairs. If anyone has ever been up on deck 14 at around noon or later in the day, they would see the chairs are all facing every which way which means people moved them in a way they found comfortable And most of them will be occupied, meaning most people found a way to use the remaining space. If you choose to come up on the deck in the afternoon, it's going to be harder to find a good place to sit than if you come up in the morning. I don't agree with people who "stake their claim" and then leave for longer than 30 minutes at a time. I'm an early riser and usually on deck around 7:30ish, but then I'm there for the day, leaving for no more than 20 minutes at a time. And I certainly don't agree with more than one chair per person -- ie: one in the shade, one in the sun because this actually does limit the amount of chairs available to other cruisers. Excessive moving of chairs shouldn't be allowed, but I think moving a chair or two within reason is fine.

I have to say that I don't have a problem with people trying to get a reasonable amount of separation. It may vary with the pool attendants, but sometimes the chairs are set out so close together that you'd think they were canning sardines!

Agree! Sometimes they’re lined up like docked river boats! What do they expect people to do to get into and out of the chairs? Crawl over everyone?

I've seen pool attendants carrying chairs to different areas for grateful sunners. I don't see it as a problem in most cases. Like sunflowers, as the sun moves, the chairs of many turn to follow it. :cool:

Even worse than this and probably more difficult to stop is what I call an "encampment" where a large group of people, often a family, will take over half a dozen or more deck chairs and rearrange them to form a stockade which is usually guarded by one or two people while the others go off and do their thing. They decamp at dinner time but are back first thing in the morning. You get a few of these going and the result is like a shanty town.

All these people will probably end up with skin cancer so I tend to pity rather than loathe them.

Passengers complain about shortage of deck chairs. X adds chairs. Space is finite so chairs are closer together. Now passengers complain about tight space. X removes chairs to create space. Now there's a shortage of chairs ......................................

Passengers complain about shortage of deck chairs. X adds chairs. Space is finite so chairs are closer together. Now passengers complain about tight space. X removes chairs to create space. Now there's a shortage of chairs ......................................

Round and round we go......

I get that the chairs are too close together making it hard to sit down. What would bother me if, as the OP said, the extra chairs were put in front of the stairs, in the limited dining area or in the walkway creating an obstacle for passengers walking through the pool area.

I think part of the problem is in the morning, the chairs are lined up neatly with not enough room to get into the chairs. :confused: There's no room for your legs to slide to a chair. Honestly. I wonder if the pool stewards think we can fly/hover into a chair ?

 

We have a favorite spot on 14, above the pool deck. In the morning, we indeed do pull the last chair out of the row of 6 and move it to start another row. Then we move the chairs in the row we choose, so they have the 10 inches or so between them.... instead of the one inch. We don't hold the chairs with books. We are in them early and see that most cruisers aren't trying to make trouble, just finding some way to get in a chair and have room to put their shoes and tote next to them. At least in the area we choose.

 

Not sure what is going on around the pool. From what we see, those chairs are hogged early by folks going back to bed.

Not often I support described 'chair hogs' but what you say is absolutely true. Yes, 6 chairs fit, but yes, you can't get into a lounger unless you walk over them to get into them. 5 chairs should be the max and you wouldn't see people (like me) move a chair out to the deck rail side where there's more room to get in and out. Guess I'll get flamed now.

I get that the chairs are too close together making it hard to sit down. What would bother me if, as the OP said, the extra chairs were put in front of the stairs, in the limited dining area or in the walkway creating an obstacle for passengers walking through the pool area.

Agree. And as posted by the OP..."They rearrange the remaining chairs to utilize the new space and mark the remaining chairs with books, flip-flops or towels and leave". Veteran chair hogs.

I think part of the problem is in the morning, the chairs are lined up neatly with not enough room to get into the chairs. :confused: There's no room for your legs to slide to a chair. Honestly. I wonder if the pool stewards think we can fly/hover into a chair ?

 

We have a favorite spot on 14, above the pool deck. In the morning, we indeed do pull the last chair out of the row of 6 and move it to start another row. Then we move the chairs in the row we choose, so they have the 10 inches or so between them.... instead of the one inch. We don't hold the chairs with books. We are in them early and see that most cruisers aren't trying to make trouble, just finding some way to get in a chair and have room to put their shoes and tote next to them. At least in the area we choose.

 

Not sure what is going on around the pool. From what we see, those chairs are hogged early by folks going back to bed.

I agree...you HAVE to move the chairs around the pool if you wish to get IN them!!