Chair hoggers - interesting response

[ed01106]

1 minute ago, sparks1093 said:

I see what you are saying but what would the costs be in administration and manpower to have something like this? I think it would be much more of a PITA then a generator of revenue. If they ever get to the model you outline I would stop cruising.

Wouldn't be very hard.   You book chairs 107-108.  Sticker on your card says 107, sticker on spouse card says 108.  If you want 108 and spouse wants 107 the cruise line won't stop that, but if you show up to the pool and someone else is sitting in 107, they get kicked out.  Cruise line doesn't need to enforce without complaint. And can even have a policy of not enforcing without a complaint allowing people to use other people's chairs on port days or other times of low demand.  

 

And would be keeping with their trend of advertising low prices and then nickel and diming the price higher and higher, by charging for more and more stuff.    

[George C]

Our next cruise is on msc , which has yacht club, if you book those you get access to private area with private pool , restaurants and hot tubs. Celebrity also is adding suite only areas some with pools. I started cruising in 70’s do not recall any problems , now deck space per passenger is just limited. 

[sparks1093]

55 minutes ago, ed01106 said:

Wouldn't be very hard.   You book chairs 107-108.  Sticker on your card says 107, sticker on spouse card says 108.  If you want 108 and spouse wants 107 the cruise line won't stop that, but if you show up to the pool and someone else is sitting in 107, they get kicked out.  Cruise line doesn't need to enforce without complaint. And can even have a policy of not enforcing without a complaint allowing people to use other people's chairs on port days or other times of low demand.  

 

And would be keeping with their trend of advertising low prices and then nickel and diming the price higher and higher, by charging for more and more stuff.    

It is possible and as I said if they start charging a fee for too much we take our vacation dollars elsewhere, and I doubt that we're alone in that thinking (not that charging for a lounger would cause it by itself).

[chipmaster]

Haven't cruised in a while, but on our recent we saw hogs, but overall think it wasn't a big deal.   

 

We had early port departure and whole afternoon at sea, like many we got on board, ate, then headed to the pool/lounge area.   At the time probably a 1/2 of the chairs occupied, a quarter with stuff, and a quarter open.  I guess if there open chairs what's the issue, but we were a group of four, lots of pairs and single but not many places with four open chairs 😫    We did find a few pair open and what was beside, a pair with stuff but no people, we ended up sitting apart.   Of course the stuff was there for more than 90', what is a reasonable time to leave stuff.  We ended up not staying much more than that time, my kids spent the afternoon there.

 

Okay to move their stuff to another pair of chairs?

Tell the attendant to remove after how much time?

Or just find another pair a few rows away?

 

By the time they came almost everything was full, say 90%

[1025cruise]

And this is the reason why the dress code enforcement has gone down. The Maitre D's can't say anything without a complaint.

 

Its a shame people can't follow the rules.

[ducklite]

1 hour ago, sparks1093 said:

I see what you are saying but what would the costs be in administration and manpower to have something like this? I think it would be much more of a PITA then a generator of revenue. If they ever get to the model you outline I would stop cruising.

It would actually be very easy to manage.  Most of it could be done online or at a kiosk--they already have the backend--it's just a CAD driven program, there are a number of them that are already available on the shelf.

 

They'd need a podium where people with reserved seats check in and get a wristband (different colors for different days) and are shown to their seats by the attendant who also gives them a wristband.  People in reserved seats without a wristband are shooed away.  If they charged $10 a day per seat for the best 400 seats, that's $4000 a day in revenue, $28,000 a week.  Across the fleet of amass market line, the infrastructure would be paid for in under a month and the cost of the attendant would be negligible.  They're crazy not to already be doing it.  

 

There would still be plenty of "free" seating, it just wouldn't be in the most coveted locations.  

[ducklite]

1 hour ago, c-boy said:

uh no, that yoyo has a short string.

In your opinion. People said the same thing about charging for specialty restaurants when they first started.  

[ducklite]

46 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

It is possible and as I said if they start charging a fee for too much we take our vacation dollars elsewhere, and I doubt that we're alone in that thinking (not that charging for a lounger would cause it by itself).

There would still be "free" chairs, they just wouldn't be in the most coveted locations.

[ed01106]

Just now, ducklite said:

In your opinion. People said the same thing about charging for specialty restaurants when they first started.  

I think at some point they are going to kill the goose that lays golden eggs.

 

I know a ton of people who have taken exactly one cruise and won’t take a second. Expecting an experience similar to an all inclusive land based resort, with only a few truly premium items costing extra.  

[ducklite]

1 minute ago, ed01106 said:

I think at some point they are going to kill the goose that lays golden eggs.

 

I know a ton of people who have taken exactly one cruise and won’t take a second. Expecting an experience similar to an all inclusive land based resort, with only a few truly premium items costing extra.  

That was their (or the travel agents) fault for not understanding what they were buying before they spent their money.  That said, I think many of the cruise lines also do a terrible job of setting expectations as well, but they do a good job of getting people to part with their money in the process.  Caveat Emptor.

[sparks1093]

10 minutes ago, ducklite said:

There would still be "free" chairs, they just wouldn't be in the most coveted locations.

That's where we sit now, the sun shines just as well on the deck above the pool as it does around the pool (actually it's a bit better since there's little to block it).

[davekathy]

12 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

That's where we sit now, the sun shines just as well on the deck above the pool as it does around the pool (actually it's a bit better since there's little to block it).

Shh...😉

[sparks1093]

4 minutes ago, davekathy said:

Shh...😉

🤐🤐🤐

[ed01106]

37 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

That's where we sit now, the sun shines just as well on the deck above the pool as it does around the pool (actually it's a bit better since there's little to block it).

If my kids are in the pool, I need to be near the pool.  

[davekathy]

1 hour ago, 1025cruise said:

And this is the reason why the dress code enforcement has gone down. The Maitre D's can't say anything without a complaint.

 

Its a shame people can't follow the rules.

Agree. It's even a bigger shame the cruise lines will not enforce their own already published

guidelines and rules. Those that don't like it can go play somewhere else. 

Edited August 14, 2019 by davekathy

[chipmaster]

2 hours ago, ed01106 said:

Wouldn't be very hard.   You book chairs 107-108.  Sticker on your card says 107, sticker on spouse card says 108.  If you want 108 and spouse wants 107 the cruise line won't stop that, but if you show up to the pool and someone else is sitting in 107, they get kicked out.  Cruise line doesn't need to enforce without complaint. And can even have a policy of not enforcing without a complaint allowing people to use other people's chairs on port days or other times of low demand.  

 

And would be keeping with their trend of advertising low prices and then nickel and diming the price higher and higher, by charging for more and more stuff.    

 

 

 

While at many warm weather beach resorts I now see this.   Want a lounge chair/umbrella, pay up something like 5-20 bucks for a 1/2 to full day?   

 

This is indeed an interesting proposal, but a logistic and image busting one for a cruise.    I'm sure the lines would love to monitize all the chairs for 40-50/day.   

 

The pool/lounge area is a high demand area, similar to the dining rooms ( everyone on the ship at sometime likely wants access ), but unlike dining area almost always wants it for the same time and there for a long time.   Imagine if everyone wanted to go eat in the main dining area for the same three hour window?    Sadly the way ships are configured there is NO way provide that on a ship with any large number of people, thus the free-for-all we have in the pool area.     BTW the gym almost never has that problem, but imagine if you got a ship full of fitness fanatics 😲

[sparks1093]

34 minutes ago, ed01106 said:

If my kids are in the pool, I need to be near the pool.  

I don't blame you, it would be the same for us (and actually will be on our next cruise since our grand-daughter will be going with us, although she'll probably be in the splash area most of the time).

[sparks1093]

1 hour ago, ducklite said:

It would actually be very easy to manage.  Most of it could be done online or at a kiosk--they already have the backend--it's just a CAD driven program, there are a number of them that are already available on the shelf.

 

They'd need a podium where people with reserved seats check in and get a wristband (different colors for different days) and are shown to their seats by the attendant who also gives them a wristband.  People in reserved seats without a wristband are shooed away.  If they charged $10 a day per seat for the best 400 seats, that's $4000 a day in revenue, $28,000 a week.  Across the fleet of amass market line, the infrastructure would be paid for in under a month and the cost of the attendant would be negligible.  They're crazy not to already be doing it.  

 

There would still be plenty of "free" seating, it just wouldn't be in the most coveted locations.  

I'm sure if it were that easy to generate that much revenue they would do it, so either it's not that easy or they don't see that kind of revenue being generated (or a combination of the two).

[ed01106]

5 minutes ago, sparks1093 said:

I'm sure if it were that easy to generate that much revenue they would do it, so either it's not that easy or they don't see that kind of revenue being generated (or a combination of the two).

I don’t think technology is the issue.  Potential backlash from customers who see this as the final straw of nickel and diming is the only thing preventing this.

[ldubs]

3 hours ago, davekathy said:

No, just not making a WAG as in your case. I will agree RC (the only cruise line mentioned by the OP in this thread) has added more pay for venues on their ships. It may be a possibility (Magic 8 Ball says, "cannot predict now") in the future that RC possibly could add more reserved pool seating for the pinnacle, diamond plus and diamond levels. That's already being done in studio B and the main theater for suites, those using the key program (at a cost) and diamond plus.

 

I would look at pool side chairs as a revenue generator now because of the beverage service.   Allocating lounge chairs based on status could possibly cut into that.   On the other had an unoccupied chair with a towel or flip flops on it isn't buying drinks from the bar.   I guess my point is the decision might not be as clear cut as we might think.   

[sparks1093]

12 minutes ago, ed01106 said:

I don’t think technology is the issue.  Potential backlash from customers who see this as the final straw of nickel and diming is the only thing preventing this.

It could be, but if it were that easy to generate as much as the previous poster said I'm pretty sure one of the cruise line's would have bitten the bullet and implemented it regardless of back lash. 

[davekathy]

32 minutes ago, ldubs said:

 

I would look at pool side chairs as a revenue generator now because of the beverage service.   Allocating lounge chairs based on status could possibly cut into that.   On the other had an unoccupied chair with a towel or flip flops on it isn't buying drinks from the bar.   I guess my point is the decision might not be as clear cut as we might think.   

IMO pool side loungers should not be assigned based on tier level, cabin category or purchased or reserved. Even though RC does have a section reserved for those staying in suites and key program members. But those aren't pool side. Those wanting the pool side loungers that the chair hogs have taken and dumped their crap on need to notify the pool deck staff and let the pool deck staff do their job. Timing and removing crap. But I don't have a dog in this fight since I don't use the pools or hot tubs. The views are much nicer one deck above. I have always been able to get a lounger in a prime location no matter the time of day on sea days. I walk the track early every morning and the chair hogs are really good entertainment. I've got a birds eye view watching them scurry around and placing their crap on the loungers. 

Edited August 14, 2019 by davekathy

[ed01106]

The upper tiers have less of a need for a deck chair. If you have a balcony a deck chair is less important than if you don’t.

[ldubs]

1 minute ago, davekathy said:

IMO pool side loungers should not be assigned based on tier level, cabin category or purchased.  Even though RC does have a section reserved for those staying in suites and key program members. Those wanting the pool side loungers that the chair hogs have taken and dumped their crap on need to notify the pool deck staff and let the pool deck staff do their job. Timing and removing crap. But I don't have a dog in this fight since I don't use the pools or hot tubs. The views are much nicer one deck above. I have always been able to get a lounger in a prime location no matter the time of day on sea days. I walk the track early every morning and the chair hogs are really good entertainment. I've got a birds eye view watching them scurry around and placing their crap on the loungers. 

 

Me too, meaning I'm not heavily invested in the argument because I don't want to sit in the sun either at the pool or anywhere else.  But, if setting up a new system drives chair hogs to other areas of the ship, then I'm against it!  😀

 

I keep thinking on my next cruise I should sit with a cuppa joe and watch the morning Chogs at work.  I keep forgetting to do that.   Also, kind of makes sense that this is going to be more of an issue with the "sun & fun"  itineraries.  Since beaches and sun isn't my thing, I may not be exposed to the problem as much as others.  

[chipmaster]

41 minutes ago, ed01106 said:

I don’t think technology is the issue.  Potential backlash from customers who see this as the final straw of nickel and diming is the only thing preventing this.

 

The ratio of lounge chairs with good sun, on a cruise, simply isn't close to supply enough for the demand even for those willing  to pay.  I am more likely to pony up 10 bucks a day for a couple hours for any lounge chair near the pool with good sun then for a bad drink, and there are no shortage of people popping for expensive drinks/drink package, the demand to availability for lounger would either escalate to crazy price, cause a black market, and generate terrible more bad will than the current chair hog situation.