Finally a SOLUTION to Chair Hogs

[SRF]

Based on this thread - 

 - I/we have come up with a solution to the chair hogs.

 

A $5 credit to your onboard account for every towel you turn in, over the number you scanned out.

 

If they charge $25 for each one not returned, why not a deposit for those extras returned.

 

I really think this would work. 

[brillohead]

Only problem is, how do you keep people from "stealing" the towels of people who are legitimately using the chair, but just happen to be in the bathroom, at the bar, in the pool, or in the hot tub at that particular moment?

I like the idea of having a 30-minute timer with a flag that pops up (like a parking meter).  If the flag is up and there's no butt in the seat, the chair is free to the next person who wants to use it!

[brillohead]

And if people would stop hogging chairs in the first place, there wouldn't be a problem with needing to hog a chair to find a place to sit!

Same with a family of four taking four chairs, while the two kids are in the pool and a parent is (hopefully) at the pool with them to supervise, so only one parent is actually using one of the four saved chairs.  
 

[plaz70]

It was really annoying to not be able to get a chair near pool for the 30 min the kids would be in the pool when they were young.  One or two chairs were enough for 5 of us.  As teens, they can swim without a parent now so it doesn't matter where we sit.  On a Carnival cruise a couple years ago, my husband and I used the hot tub on the serenity deck late at night several times.  Most times we were the only ones in it and stayed until the attendant had to close it.  It's amazing how many people, mostly men although some may have been sent by wives, came to lay out their towels or other items on chairs between 11pm -midnight.  The thing that baffled me was the serenity deck was packed during the day, hot tubs fill to the max and salad bar with a longer wait in line then the windjammer at lunch.  It was anything, but serene.  

[sparks1093]

56 minutes ago, brillohead said:

Only problem is, how do you keep people from "stealing" the towels of people who are legitimately using the chair, but just happen to be in the bathroom, at the bar, in the pool, or in the hot tub at that particular moment?

I like the idea of having a 30-minute timer with a flag that pops up (like a parking meter).  If the flag is up and there's no butt in the seat, the chair is free to the next person who wants to use it!

That would be the problem. The idea of a 30 minute timer is great, but probably cost prohibitive. 

[Magicat]

1 hour ago, sparks1093 said:

That would be the problem. The idea of a 30 minute timer is great, but probably cost prohibitive. 

Do you think they would give this to you for free?  They would start out at $10.00 for the 30 mins with discounts loaded onto your Sea Pass card.  Then add a fuel surcharge, gratuity, tax, etc...

[sparks1093]

Just now, Magicat said:

Do you think they would give this to you for free?  They would start out at $10.00 for the 30 mins with discounts loaded onto your Sea Pass card.  Then add a fuel surcharge, gratuity, tax, etc...

Exactly. I wouldn't want fares to go up or to see a fee to use a lounge chair just because some people violate the rules. Of course I'm not one that needs a specific lounger and we've always been able to find one when needed (usually away from the noisy pool area, which is a good thing).

[rolloman]

These days I simply ask the pool attendant to find me a chair. Usually within a minute or two I am in a chair. Similar to a stadium aisle attendant...they know the true status  of each chair. 

[Vlgg731]

RCI needs to use the money from non returned towels to hire a person whose only job is to go around and remove towels when the chair is abandoned or save.  Then we wouldn't have to do the pool attendant's job by removing towels to have a chair for ourselves.

[MericaAR15]

Let the battle of the pool towels commence!

 

Can we call it the Blue Towel Boogaloo?

[palmettostatecruiser]

We have moved blue towels before and also 'supported' others who did so on our our Oasis cruise. Our family of 3 found 2 chairs near a blue towel-held group of chairs one morning.  We literally timed 45 minutes from when we sat down and when no one had returned to those chairs, we moved a blue towel (gasp!) from 1 of the chairs and put it on another and my husband moved to the now towel-less chair.  The family started showing up  one by one about 1 1/2 hours later.  When the mom got there, I watched her and she looked over at the chair my H was now occupying and then her husband and said something to him, but they never confronted us.  Later in the cruise, this same family pulled the same crap but we were perpendicular to them, not right beside them.  We watched another family come up and move several towels after asking everyone around how long they had been there empty and were told more than 30 minutes.  The chair hogging family did confront them when they finally decided to grace us with their presence - it didn't get too ugly because everyone around was making comments that they had been gone longer than 30 minutes.  The family that moved the towels asked if she needed to call security/an attendant to resolve the situation and that shut the hoggers up.  The chair hoggers stayed maybe 30 minutes then left.  

 

We have also seen attendants remove towels both on the Oasis and Freedom - it usually takes longer than 30 minutes, but they do it.  

 

 

[Joebucks]

Or you could be a philanthropist and turn in the towels for free

[BillOh]

Go for a run at 7am and forget your towel? There are plenty already on chairs with no people in sight!

[cb at sea]

Ok...a "family" with kids who are IN the pool doesn't need 4 chairs...one for each parent will usually work just fine, as the kids are rarely lying on chairs!

 

[johnjen]

8 hours ago, SRF said:

Based on this thread - 

 - I/we have come up with a solution to the chair hogs.

 

A $5 credit to your onboard account for every towel you turn in, over the number you scanned out.

 

If they charge $25 for each one not returned, why not a deposit for those extras returned.

 

I really think this would work. 

Yep, on another thread I just said I went around last cruise and just snatched up towels from chairs that I KNOW were being hogged and tossed them in the bin, telling the towel guy I just found them laying around. An elderly couple gained two chairs at the solarium while the younger couple sauntered off for lunch. I wish this WAS in place, I would've made at least $20.

Edited November 13, 2019 by johnjen

[HBE4]

Maybe because we sail the bigger ships, but I never have a problem finding chairs at any time of the day. But I'm not picky and it's usually only 2 of us. It can be in sun or shade, near or far from pool or bar. Sometimes, we'll go to the aft end of the and there will be plenty of loungers overlooking the ships wake.

 

A bigger issue are the single empty chairs. You know what I'm talking about - a group of three, then an empty chair, group of four, empty chair, a couple, empty chair, and so on, and so on...... Come on people, squeeze together, make new friends. You can easily free up 20 or more chairs if you did that!

 

Oh, and people that use a lounge chair as a table.  Put your flip-flops & beach bag under your own chair.  I'm not talking about people reserving a chair but those that are using the chair next to them as a "buffer" so they don't have close neighbors.

[BillOh]

2 minutes ago, HBE4 said:

 

Oh, and people that use a lounge chair as a table.  Put your flip-flops & beach bag under your own chair.  I'm not talking about people reserving a chair but those that are using the chair next to them as a "buffer" so they don't have close neighbors.

Unless your using the beach pool on on Oasis class!  Poking fun, but good post.  You make a good post. My wife and I will frequently get two chairrs together near a pool.  I'm good for 2 hours at the most, and will give up my chair to someone else.  My wife who could spend all day at the pool, will make friends with a neighbor so she can use the bathrooms or get a drink and come back to the same chair.