Chair hog solution?

[Davechipp74]

You know what works great ?

On my last cruise I just stuck my 2 year old in the lounger and told him to stay until i got back, 4&1/2 hours later he was red like a lobster but my lounger was still reserved.

[Crusin5252]

I think this problem is invented by people that want to sleep past noon and expect to go to Lido deck and find a chair by the pool.

 

Advice to those inventing this "chair hog" phenomenon. Get up at a decent hour and you'll get a chair.

 

The real problem are the "chair bullies" that get up past noon, wander to Lido, and try to bulky people into giving up their poolside loungers. Have you no shame?

 

 

Many times we got to Serenity about 7:30 and a lot of chairs were available. My husband would go get his breakfast and bring it back and then I would do the same. Usually by 8:30 -9:00, all spots on Serenity had towels on them, but there were only 1-4 couples actually using the chairs. Often the chairs were empty for 2-3 hours as people were walking around looking for a lounger.

So it is not just people coming late and expecting a lounger. People are saving loungers for much longer than the 40 minutes allowed. We usually stayed until around 12:30 when we went to eat lunch. The minute I started packing things in our beach bag, someone was there asking "Are you leaving." The only time we did not notice this happening in Serenity was when we left from Baltimore in January and the first couple of very cool, windy days on our way to Hawaii in January.

[Computer Nerd]

If the pool attendants won't enforce the rules WE must all go to GS and remove tips for the days this happens. I understand it hurts others onboard but eventually they will get the message.

 

While I agree with adjusting tips for poor service, the folks working the pool area are not in the tip pool so adjusting tips for this reason is idiotic.

[AdGuyMG]

You know what works great ?

On my last cruise I just stuck my 2 year old in the lounger and told him to stay until i got back, 4&1/2 hours later he was red like a lobster but my lounger was still reserved.

 

That's horrible!

You should find a good sunscreen.

[Luke gs Daddy]

That's horrible!

You should find a good sunscreen.

 

That is funny!

[fireofficer5]

So chair hogs are not like "an army of pigmen".

 

Its just an apple, towel, book, sandal or a banana.

 

All which are useful to the chairs new occupant.

Edited November 24, 2016 by fireofficer5

[katiel53]

We were recently on the Miracle and my "saved" chair was tagged on the Serenity deck.

 

I went out about 6:15AM, put our stuff down on a pod (other early risers were doing the same and some pods were taken even before I got there). I went to work out, came back a little after 7 to see the sticker on our chair marked for 7AM.

 

We didn't know what to do with the tag, but we removed it b/c we were planning on being there all day and were concerned if we left for a minute the staff would came by and we would be hosed.

 

We were indeed there the WHOLE day except for a few short potty and food breaks. (We loved the pod..our favorite part of the ship. Anyone know who sells them?) We tried to have one of us there at all times so people didn't think we were chair saving, but it wasn't always possible.

 

We didn't see or notice the staff come by to check the chairs or tags tho', so I really don't know their system. Or maybe they did during one of those breaks but had seen us there so didn't remove stuff? I would have expected a new tag to be placed then.

 

I can't think of a good way to manage this crazy mess. Maybe they could do something on the Serenity deck (e.g. first come-first serve reservations starting at 7AM for spaces in 4 hr slots?), but the rest of the ship would be a nightmare.

 

You were, according to Carnival standards, a chair hog. You put your stuff on a chair and left the area and didn't return within 40 minutes. It doesn't matter that planned to use the chair all day. Perhaps someone else wanted to use the chair all day and couldn't because you were putting things on it and leaving? Just like others who do the hogging, they feel they are justified because of XYZ.

 

I'm not picking on you per se, but trying to explain that even though you don't think you are one, being gone for over 40 minutes at any time makes you one.

[LuckyZ]

You were, according to Carnival standards, a chair hog. You put your stuff on a chair and left the area and didn't return within 40 minutes. It doesn't matter that planned to use the chair all day. Perhaps someone else wanted to use the chair all day and couldn't because you were putting things on it and leaving? Just like others who do the hogging, they feel they are justified because of XYZ.

 

I'm not picking on you per se, but trying to explain that even though you don't think you are one, being gone for over 40 minutes at any time makes you one.

 

Not sure I agree. My guess is that when they returned to their chairs at 7am, there were probably many chairs still available. And by that time they were using the chairs exclt for a few potty breaks.

[MMastell]

Last month, on Dream, I was up in the aft smoking area at 6:30 a.m. and I saw a woman put a book, two flip flops and a towel on four chairs. At 10:30 a.m. my wife and I came down and were looking for two chairs. I saw the flip flops, book and towel sitting there, unmoved and just went over and took the flip flop off of two chairs, put them on the chair with the towel and we sat down.

 

About a half hour later two couples arrived and the woman said: "You're in our seats." I responded with: "I saw you put the flip flops on the chair at 6:30 this morning and it's now after 11:00. There is no chair saving and we'll move when we feel like it." One couple sat down and the chair saving couple left. The couple who sat down next to us apologized for their friend's rude behavior. Around noon we left and came back for lunch a bit later. I went to the Tandoor and noticed that the chair saver was now sitting in the seats we had occupied.

 

 

Take care,

Mike

[KatieCharlotte]

Not sure I agree. My guess is that when they returned to their chairs at 7am, there were probably many chairs still available. And by that time they were using the chairs exclt for a few potty breaks.

 

But they said: "other early risers were doing the same and some pods were taken even before I got there." That suggests the pods were quickly being claimed at 6:15 a.m. There's no indication from the person posting that any pods were available at 7 a.m. or "a little after 7" when they returned.

 

Meanwhile, there were other early risers who would have enjoyed the pods had they not been "saved" -- including people who would have enjoyed the pod for a short time before leaving it for someone else to enjoy. The poster also mentioned "food breaks" of unknown length, which again would have provided a short period for someone else to use the pod.

 

Not everyone wants to sit all day long. There are other things people do on a cruise -- including supervising their kids. If everyone would simply use a lounger/pod/etc ONLY when they actually want to sit in it, instead of claiming it as "theirs" for the entire day, there would be plenty of seats for everyone to enjoy. I was an early riser on my last cruise, but I chose not to claim loungers for family to use whenever we felt like sitting, because that is not a fair or efficient use of loungers.

 

There are breaks that are really too short to need to give up your seat -- potty breaks, grabbing a plate of food if you want to eat IN YOUR CHAIR, a quick dip in the pool/hot tub (if you're just there to swim but want a dry place for towels, pile everything for your group on one less desirable chair). But otherwise, if you're not in your seat, let someone else use it. They are not less deserving merely because they were not willing and able to sit in the sun all day long and did not claim a seat before they needed it.

[ChrisOz]

We were recently on the Miracle and my "saved" chair was tagged on the Serenity deck.

 

I went out about 6:15AM, put our stuff down on a pod (other early risers were doing the same and some pods were taken even before I got there). I went to work out, came back a little after 7 to see the sticker on our chair marked for 7AM.

 

Pity they didn't see you sooner. The fact others hog doesn't justify myself also hogging. Reserved at 6:15. Not actually used until about an hour later = hogging.

 

We were indeed there the WHOLE day except for a few short potty and food breaks. (We loved the pod..our favorite part of the ship. Anyone know who sells them?) We tried to have one of us there at all times so people didn't think we were chair saving, but it wasn't always possible.

 

We didn't see or notice the staff come by to check the chairs or tags tho', so I really don't know their system.

 

Right so more unused gaps. When not being used you of course should pick up your things and leave. That lunch break would have been almost an hour. More if you indulged, as is our right.

 

Maybe they could do something on the Serenity deck (e.g. first come-first serve reservations starting at 7AM

 

There'd be a queue at the door to Serenity every morning. They'd all go back to bed.

 

What a hide the poster had to do that! I would have removed the scant belongings and handed them to the staff. When confronted by the poster, I would have said "But I was using it and am using it right now. You can have it when I am done here".

[LuckyZ]

But they said: "other early risers were doing the same and some pods were taken even before I got there." That suggests the pods were quickly being claimed at 6:15 a.m.

 

There was no mention about pods. They were claiming that all the poolside chairs were all taken by 7am.

I very seriously doubt that. Been on many cruises and never seen pods getting snapped up that early

Edited November 26, 2016 by LuckyZ

[KatieCharlotte]

There was no mention about pods. They were claiming that all the poolside chairs were all taken by 7am.

I very seriously doubt that. Been on many cruises and never seen pods getting snapped up that early

 

Chair saving is not the same on every cruise. I didn't think chair hogging was that bad, based on my first five cruises, until my most recent cruise. When every lounger on the entire pool deck is "claimed" when most people are still asleep and a person sitting alone has the nerve to say, "These nine chairs are mine," you start to understand the problem. It only takes a few extreme chair hogs to start a domino effect as other guests hurry to claim their spots. Meanwhile, other people would be happy to use the spot for a short time.

[Computer Nerd]

There was no mention about pods. They were claiming that all the poolside chairs were all taken by 7am.

I very seriously doubt that. Been on many cruises and never seen pods getting snapped up that early

 

That interesting because on my Sunshine cruise it seems some people slept in the pods overnight or at least got up very early as half of them were taken by the time I normally get up at 0500.

[LMaxwell]

I wonder if cruise ships of the future will make Lido deck fore to aft pools and move the restaurant/buffet/cabins to a deck below that. It seems like pool deck space is always at a premium now that ships are holding so many more people but aren't all that much longer/wider. Why be squeezed into certain sections?

[CruiseHealing]

Demand for chairs and pods are highest during Spring Break, Summer peak season and the holidays. I have also found that it is easier on the first sea day to get chairs, than the middle or last sea day. My guess it's due to passengers learning that if you want chairs in a selected location you have to get out of bed earlier than you really wanted.

 

The dirtiest chair hog move I ever saw was on the Sunshine in April 2014. A woman from South Carolina was determined to be next to the Serinity Pool that she came up with this plan. Her friend's chairs was previously stickered so she took the stickers off those chairs and waited for them to expire. Then she waited for a couple in front of the pool to leave for breakfast that had been there since early morning. After they were gone she moved in for the steal. She sent her husband up two decks to get the towel attendant. While she was off placing the expired stickers on the two loungers next to the pool. Then here comes her husband with the attendant in tow, the attendant looked at the stickers and his watch and began packing up the couples stuff to take it upstairs to the towel area. At last the lady from SC and her husband got their pool chairs. Twenty minutes later here comes the elderly couple. They asked the lady why she was in their chairs and she said the attendant moved there stuff because they were gone too long (not even 30 minutes) and it's against the rules to save chairs. The elderly man started his climb upstairs to retrieve their stuff. DW & I weren't happy with our location (because the sun was being blocked by part of the ship and people from SC with this woman were being obnoxious) so I went and told the elderly woman that they could have our loungers because we were going upstairs to be in a sunnier space. While DW was getting are stuff and surrending our chairs to the elderly couple, I went upstairs to tell the man and the attendant what happened. The attendant said there was not much he could but they were both happy that we helped them out.

 

The really sad part of this entire event was that the SC couple had a bunch friends with them and they laughed and cheered this woman for her tactical idea of a way to steal someone's chair.

[jimbo5544]

I wonder if cruise ships of the future will make Lido deck fore to aft pools and move the restaurant/buffet/cabins to a deck below that. It seems like pool deck space is always at a premium now that ships are holding so many more people but aren't all that much longer/wider. Why be squeezed into certain sections?

 

 

While not a terrible idea, I think the trend is to move pools lower. Something to do with ergonomics of a ship while at sea.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[crusinpsychRN]

I was on the Pride and the Lido smoking area had the sofa, love seats and chairs. One group would put their stuff on the sofa early in the morning, go ashore and be mad as heck if anyone was sitting in "their" seats when they returned hours later. They did this all week. Some people got mad about it and started to sit there before the offenders could. It was kind a funny.

[Computer Nerd]

Demand for chairs and pods are highest during Spring Break, Summer peak season and the holidays. I have also found that it is easier on the first sea day to get chairs, than the middle or last sea day. My guess it's due to passengers learning that if you want chairs in a selected location you have to get out of bed earlier than you really wanted.

 

The dirtiest chair hog move I ever saw was on the Sunshine in April 2014. A woman from South Carolina was determined to be next to the Serinity Pool that she came up with this plan. Her friend's chairs was previously stickered so she took the stickers off those chairs and waited for them to expire. Then she waited for a couple in front of the pool to leave for breakfast that had been there since early morning. After they were gone she moved in for the steal. She sent her husband up two decks to get the towel attendant. While she was off placing the expired stickers on the two loungers next to the pool. Then here comes her husband with the attendant in tow, the attendant looked at the stickers and his watch and began packing up the couples stuff to take it upstairs to the towel area. At last the lady from SC and her husband got their pool chairs. Twenty minutes later here comes the elderly couple. They asked the lady why she was in their chairs and she said the attendant moved there stuff because they were gone too long (not even 30 minutes) and it's against the rules to save chairs. The elderly man started his climb upstairs to retrieve their stuff. DW & I weren't happy with our location (because the sun was being blocked by part of the ship and people from SC with this woman were being obnoxious) so I went and told the elderly woman that they could have our loungers because we were going upstairs to be in a sunnier space. While DW was getting are stuff and surrending our chairs to the elderly couple, I went upstairs to tell the man and the attendant what happened. The attendant said there was not much he could but they were both happy that we helped them out.

 

The really sad part of this entire event was that the SC couple had a bunch friends with them and they laughed and cheered this woman for her tactical idea of a way to steal someone's chair.

 

The best time to speak up would have been when the husband brought the attendant down. Even better would have been to photograph or take a movie of her actions for the attendant.

 

This is also the reason why DW and I don't leave our chairs at the same time.

Edited November 27, 2016 by Computer Nerd

[CruiseHealing]

The best time to speak up would have been when the husband brought the attendant down. Even better would have been to photograph or take a movie of her actions for the attendant.

 

You are making a lot of assumptions: 1. i was not spending my vacation time being chair hogs police. 2. I did not have a great view of her entire actions. I figured out what she was doing after she took over the chais 3. I would have assumed her friends would stop the terrible behavior. 4. I am on vacation and I not trying to get in an argument with her, her husband and rest of their obnoxious SC gang. 5. DW and I found a reasonable solution for the elderly couple and us. I continued my vacation. This was the first day after embarkation. She was on one of our excursion and she continued being an a$$.

[CruiseHealing]

One other thing; we don't bring our phones or camera to lay in the sun. After 25 cruises there is no need to take pictures on the sun deck. Been there done that a lot no need for more photos!

[Computer Nerd]

You are making a lot of assumptions: 1. i was not spending my vacation time being chair hogs police. 2. I did not have a great view of her entire actions. I figured out what she was doing after she took over the chais 3. I would have assumed her friends would stop the terrible behavior. 4. I am on vacation and I not trying to get in an argument with her, her husband and rest of their obnoxious SC gang. 5. DW and I found a reasonable solution for the elderly couple and us. I continued my vacation. This was the first day after embarkation. She was on one of our excursion and she continued being an a$$.

 

Given your rather detailed account of events I feel I made a fair assumption. :rolleyes:

 

Allowing others to do what is wrong in effect condones their actions. whether on vacation or not. it was nice of you to give the couple your chairs but by speaking up, such actions would not have been needed.

Edited November 27, 2016 by Computer Nerd

[CruiseHealing]

Given your rather detailed account of events I feel I made a fair assumption. :rolleyes:

 

Allowing others to do what is wrong in effect condones their actions. whether on vacation or not. it was nice of you to give the couple your chairs but by speaking up, such actions would not have been needed.

 

This did not happen over five minutes, but over 30 minutes. Maybe you are super cop cruiser, but I try my best to ignore everyone, except DW. I hope you are on my next cruise(s) in 2017 (I have five planned) That way I know my stuff and chairs will be well policed.

[Computer Nerd]

This did not happen over five minutes, but over 30 minutes. Maybe you are super cop cruiser, but I try my best to ignore everyone, except DW. I hope you are on my next cruise(s) in 2017 (I have five planned) That way I know my stuff and chairs will be well policed.

 

I have 3 booked with carnival next year so who knows. ;)

[flutepilot]

Here is a solution:

On day 1 at 3pm, Diamonds get first pick and get to hang a name tag on the chair of their choice and then Platinum's choose and then Gold and Red and Blue get chairs without name tags. If you don't want a chair, don't show up.

 

Then us peons never get a chance for a chair? Sounds as if you belong on Cunard where there are still classes.

 

Dan