A chairhog question?

[Madkitty]

I must admit us Brits are classics for doing it - I dont see the problem in leaving your stuff for half hour whilst you go and get some lunch....dont want to start a war here :eek:

[Nliedel]

I must admit us Brits are classics for doing it - I dont see the problem in leaving your stuff for half hour whilst you go and get some lunch....dont want to start a war here :eek:

 

well a half hour is not the bulk of the problem, hours and hours is.

[Catnip]

The adult pool areas were free of children.

 

Now THAT is good news!!!!!!! If only they will keep enforcing it!!!! :)

[Yooper38]

I too would like to sit near the pool when my children are in there but if I can't I will make due either by sitting near the edge or just simply standing up to check on them every couple of minutes. If I don't have children in the pool though I would gladly move back for someone who does.

 

The one thing I would be peeved about is someone saving chairs for children. How long is a 7 or 10 year old going to sit in the first place? My 8 year old son would lie there about long enough to count to 20 and be gone again. If my kids want to sit my husband and I will gladly share our chair for the few moments they decide to actually sit. I anticipate they will be far too busy to want to sit and hang out with us adults.

 

First cruise with kids...Voyager April 1st, 2006

[Nliedel]

You know where my kids weren't? The pool. I was shocked, but they cannot swim and it was too deep. They were in AO almost the whole cruise. They would NOT go into ports. I tried, I really did but the oldest would burst into tears whenever I suggested he join us. Sigh.. I am thrilled they had so much fun but they saw the Caribbean from a porthole!

[Yooper38]

I suggest that each chair have two of those little clocks that shop keepers put on their doors "be back in 5 Min"

 

 

 

You could set the first one at the time you leave say 2:10 and then the second one on when you will return say 2:20 - ladies take longer in the bathroom (especially with a wet bathing suit). That would clearly show that at least someone was at the chair at 2:10 (to set the clock) and if they don't return in a respectable time say 2:30 or so then go at it. The chair is all yours.

 

 

:D I love this idea. I think I will laminate a little sign that says I WILL RETURN IN.....and then place one of those little egg timers by it with the minutes ticking away. Say 10 minutes for the bathroom, 20 to grab some food, 5 to quickly cool off, etc.

[Desertbelle]

I think a 1 towel per person rule is horrible. I like a nice dry towel every time I swim or use the hot tubs/thalassotherapy pools, which might be 2-3 times a day on a sea day. Also, if I am going to sit and read after a dip in the pool I would prefer a dry towel under me. I would hate having to use the same towel each time, or having to search out my steward to get an extra or a fresh one, plus I hate the idea of having to haul around a big, damp towel after leaving the pool areas. What if I want to stop for a drink or look around the photo gallery on the way back?

 

I have never "reserved" a chair in my life, and I hate that I am being punished, once again, for the few who abuse the system.

 

I have a cruise coming up in a few days on Celebrity, hopefully they haven't started such a silly policy.

[Nliedel]

I think a 1 towel per person rule is horrible..

 

I forgot to mention this (it was the middle of the night afterall, I could not sleep. I am stressing over the family Thanksgiving thing. In-laws.. eww). You can trade it out really easily on the pool deck. Turn one in to get one. You can have a nice clean towel all the time. You can also leave them on the floor in the bathroom for a nice clean towel. This policy works cause the towels are always clean and the change out is quick and easy. Sorry I forgot to mention that.

[FJTinSC]

Being an ex-lifeguard I can't disagree more. Children need constant supervision while they are in a pool. I don't think EVE323 is that out of line. The closer you are to the pool the better your sight will be. When you are a few rows back you can't see the pool very well. I understand that people don't want to give up their seat and they shouldn't have to. I would say that RCCL should provide a lifeguard but I won't. If they did parents would have another place to drop their kids off and ignore them the entire cruise. I don't know. Parents should be able to supervise their children but other cruisers shouldn't be inconvenience. If anyone has a solution to this problem give me some ideas because I'm drawing a blank.

 

Solution is quite simple:

 

If you have a small child that needs close supervision in the pool. No matter where you are sitting, get your a** up and go with them. That is the only way to properly supervise a small child in water. BE WITH THEM!!!

No child should be left alone on a cruise ship...too may things can go wrong! IN MHO!

[Travelgrrl]

The "one towel per customer" thing is definitely not fleetwide, it is sporadically enforced, in fact on my last couple RCI cruises (Sept, June and March of this year, 3 different ships) they didn't have the little card in the room stating the one towel policy.

 

Even when they did, there were still towels in the Solarium and sometimes poolside so you could get more. I think that policy was to eliminate some of the 'losing towels in a port' situations. Too much hassle for RCI to keep track of the pool towels floating around, I'm sure. I doubt anyone ever got charged for a 'missing' towel.

 

And BTW, Robin G, I think the Serenade is a sister ship to the Radiance and Brilliance, and one entire side of the ship is smoking, on open decks. So one entire side of the pool deck, it's OK to smoke. (Cigars poolside, yuk! but it's not confined to "the back of the ship" as you said.) There is an invisible dividing line on the pool deck, and you can bring ash trays and smoke anywhere on that side. (Though I notice at the pool bar sometimes they will allow smoking all along the bar, and not just to the right of the invisible line.) Just an FYI. :)

[KJHorton]

I usually report the hogging to the deck attendant and let them deal with the wrath of a chair hog. One time the people's belongings were actually taken to the lost and found at the desk downstairs, and were they ever ticked off!

 

Before I ever take a chair that appears to be taken by a hog, I always ask the people around them if they have seen anyone using those chairs recently. It's that easy so you don't take the chairs of someone in the rest room or getting a drink.

 

If I am sitting next to chairs that have obviously been hogged, and it has been hours since I have seen anyone, I will offer their chairs to people who are looking but can't find chairs. It is their choice whether to take the chairs or not.

[Desertbelle]

I forgot to mention this (it was the middle of the night afterall, I could not sleep. I am stressing over the family Thanksgiving thing. In-laws.. eww). You can trade it out really easily on the pool deck. Turn one in to get one. You can have a nice clean towel all the time. You can also leave them on the floor in the bathroom for a nice clean towel. This policy works cause the towels are always clean and the change out is quick and easy. Sorry I forgot to mention that.

 

I've been known to write an incomplete thought or two in the middle of the night....and in the middle of the day! :D

 

This is the same policy that was on our Millennium cruise in June. We got the towels and the little note in our cabin. But that was the end of it. We got extra towels at the pools and we never hesitated leaving wet towels at the pool and/or bringing back 2-3 extra towels into the room. At no time did our steward say anything to us about the extra or missing towels.

 

It also didn't seem to stop chair saving. All anyone needed to do was to grab a towel from the pile by the pool and put it on a chair...we did see it happening. The pool attendents did a fair job of taking away items on unattended chairs.

[www]

I too would like to sit near the pool when my children are in there but if I can't I will make due either by sitting near the edge or just simply standing up to check on them every couple of minutes. If I don't have children in the pool though I would gladly move back for someone who does.

 

The one thing I would be peeved about is someone saving chairs for children. How long is a 7 or 10 year old going to sit in the first place? My 8 year old son would lie there about long enough to count to 20 and be gone again. If my kids want to sit my husband and I will gladly share our chair for the few moments they decide to actually sit. I anticipate they will be far too busy to want to sit and hang out with us adults.

 

First cruise with kids...Voyager April 1st, 2006

Finally someone came upon MY pet peeve. I see so many Moms saving 6-7 chairs for kids that are in the pool all day! Or for older kids that are off enjoying the rest of the ship and only check in for 10 minutes every couple of hours to sit on the edge of the chair for two seconds and then leave again!!! Parents do not think. (I am a parent, and would NEVER do this!) So, I hope some other parents read this and think twice about their manners.

[TrinaLC]

While we are on the chair hog topic-what do you think about people with no obvious small children who save/or even sit in the front row. My pet peeve on a cruise is when I see adults who have no children in the front row.

I say this because I have 3, 16, 12 & 7. The 7 year old still needs to be supervised, so I hate it when I am like 3 rows back trying to watch her while someone is sleeping. I can't wait until I could relax by the pool and not watch my child so diligently, you can be sure I would not mind sitting a few rows back, after all, if you are reading or sleeping, does it matter how close to the pool you are?

Let me know(as I'm sure you will) if I am overreacting.

 

Yes, you are way over reacting. If you need a front row seat, then get there early and park it. Adults may want a front row seat for a variety of reasons. Your being a "parent" does not put you in a superior place.

 

I'm a parent as well, my kids are very young teens, but been there, done that fairly recently and I really think you are way off on this.

[TrinaLC]

Being an ex-lifeguard I can't disagree more. Children need constant supervision while they are in a pool. I don't think EVE323 is that out of line. The closer you are to the pool the better your sight will be. When you are a few rows back you can't see the pool very well. I understand that people don't want to give up their seat and they shouldn't have to. I would say that RCCL should provide a lifeguard but I won't. If they did parents would have another place to drop their kids off and ignore them the entire cruise. I don't know. Parents should be able to supervise their children but other cruisers shouldn't be inconvenience. If anyone has a solution to this problem give me some ideas because I'm drawing a blank.

 

 

The solution is for the parents to be in the pool with their kids, or to sit on the side of the pool and watch them. Easy.

[kathy_bc]

we were recently on the Vision. For the first time, we have actually moved someone's belongings. We looked all around the solarium, and couldn't find 2 chairs, so I was going to grab one and move another one near it. A gentleman pointed to two chairs beside him and said that they have been there 4 hours and not once did anyone come back to these two chairs. So my husband removed the two very dry towels and 1 book to the lone chair. We were there for an hour before the owners came back. They just stared at us and then went and got their towels. Why do people feel like they can reserve chairs for them only? doesn't make any sense! We lie in them for an hour, maybe two (at the longest), and pick up our stuff and go for lunch, etc. Then try to find chairs when we get back. We NEVER ever save a chair.

 

I must say that RCL new policy of one towel is great!!!! There are less chair saving than in the past, and it is super easy to change the wet towel for a dry one. I even asked the attendant for another one when I was in the solarium and she handed me one.

 

In the last cruise (dec 04) there were more chair hogs there. This time we noticed more people actually sitting in the chairs.

 

 

Our biggest peeve was the night-time shows. We went to SEEL (Some Enchanted Evening Lounge) to see John Blairs hypnotis show. Couldn't find a seat anywhere. And the ship was rocking a bit too much to stand, so we left.

 

The next night, we arrived early to catch the finale of Karaoke Idol. These couple of people saved 6 tables and about 15 chairs for their friends. They were really snobby about it too. We went to sit in them, because it wasn't obvious that she was saving them, and she's "these are ALL saved". So we found 2 chairs way in the back. Then constantly saw her telling a constant stream of people "these chairs are all saved". Some people were getting darn right upset about it, and she didn't care. Karaoke Idol was about 1 hour. In those 15 chairs, there were 6 people sitting in them. For the next hour, it was a "Late Night Adult Comedy" with this hilarious comedian. SEEL was completely packed. And yet these people still held up these chairs. A few more of their group showed up (about 1 hour a half after we got there), and then they had about 4 empty chairs. They still saved them. Half way into the comedians' routine, the lady still wanted to save them, but then this guy just sat in them.

 

I just don't understand how people can live with themselves being like this.

 

What happened to sharing??

[gerif]

What happened to sharing??

 

How about "sorry, chair saving is not permitted" and just park your butt in one of "her" chairs? Definitely would have been MY response!