HAL and chair hogs...

[Love Cruises]

When we were on the msAMSTERDAM this past October, there were notices around the deck and a note in the daily newsletter that things were not to be left on chairs for reserving for over 30 minutes.

 

When we were on the msSTATENDAM in May/2006, one lady would put glasses of water and the linen table napkins over 4 seats each night in the front row seats of the main lounge. That lasted for maybe two nights... people really called her out about it. Tempers flew. The staff had to settle it and say that this could NOT be done.

[missygirl]

We were on a southern carb. cruise in Nov. onboard Zuiderdam and their were no chairs by the aft pool by 11 am. It was only that crowded on the sea days. We had to eat breakfast and go straight outside to get chairs, which we used all day, but you could see a lot of people keep walking around hunting chairs and I would think... huh, I haven't seen anyone in that chair or that chair and I really felt bad for the pax who couldn't find one. One afternoon I did take off some dirty towels so my hubby could have a seat..I had been there for hours and this chair was next to mine and it had been empty the entire time. I know that a lot do not throw their towels in the dirty bin and chairs seem taken or it seemed like that to me.

 

Missygirl

[kryos]

When we were on the msSTATENDAM in May/2006, one lady would put glasses of water and the linen table napkins over 4 seats each night in the front row seats of the main lounge. That lasted for maybe two nights... people really called her out about it. Tempers flew. The staff had to settle it and say that this could NOT be done.

Well, here's an interesting question, though. While I agree you should not be able to reserve seats for your entire party in the show lounge, what happens if say a group of two gentleman walk in, find four seats and promptly put something down on the two extra ones? Maybe they are carrying their wives' pocketbooks and place the pocketbooks there because their wives both made a stop at the restroom. Personally, I think this is acceptable and it would be kind of hard to take someone to task about it.

 

The show lounge is an entirely different situation than pool chair hogs and I honestly don't know where I stand regarding the practice of "reserving" seats there. Surely you can't penalize someone for leaving their seat before the show in order to visit the restroom?

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[serendipity1499]

Rita I agree with you on that..We travel with another couple & our DH's frequently get to the show lounge 5 or 10 minutes before the ladies, as we often make a pit stop or go back to our cabins for a sweater..Saving a seat in the Show Lounge for your Husband or Wife should be acceptable..

 

Those folks who save a whole row of seats for their friends, who may or may not be arriving later are the ones who are in-considerate..

 

Happy cruising all..:) Betty

[kryos]

Those folks who save a whole row of seats for their friends, who may or may not be arriving later are the ones who are in-considerate..

I agree 100%.

 

There's nothing wrong with reserving ONE seat for your spouse or traveling companion. It's when someone tries to reserve a block of them for their entire party that I have a problem.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[hybrn8]

Seems to me that if you apply the "do unto others" test to everything you do in life, it makes for a better world for everyone.

Also, if you have a beef with someone - go to the staff. A supervisor might be a good choice. If it's a real problem, keep going up til you get to the hotel manager.

[Love Cruises]

Well, here's an interesting question, though. While I agree you should not be able to reserve seats for your entire party in the show lounge, what happens if say a group of two gentleman walk in, find four seats and promptly put something down on the two extra ones? Maybe they are carrying their wives' pocketbooks and place the pocketbooks there because their wives both made a stop at the restroom. Personally, I think this is acceptable and it would be kind of hard to take someone to task about it.

 

The show lounge is an entirely different situation than pool chair hogs and I honestly don't know where I stand regarding the practice of "reserving" seats there. Surely you can't penalize someone for leaving their seat before the show in order to visit the restroom?

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

I agree with you totally if a spouse gets to the show lounge 5 or 10 minutes earlier while someone makes a "pit stop"... that is definitely acceptable. We have even done that many times ourselves. But, when you see seats reserved and no one shows up until "right before the show starts", that can be very inconsiderate.

 

Hybrn8 --- I love your message about the Golden Rule. I try to do that in all my undertakings in life. I was a Sunday school teacher for 18 years and I told the children that that was my most important lesson for them to use in life... "treat others the way you want to be treated".

[kakalina]

Well I'll tell you. On the Zaaandam last cruise a friend of mine was in the cast. I tried to get to the show early for a front row seat. One evening a couple had a sweater on the two seater next to them. I sat down and got some dirty looks. After about 15 minutes this man leans over and says he was saving that seat for his friend. I advised him there was no saving of seats in the lounge. He told me I was a cheeky girl. I said I was sorry he felt that way. Two other pax I knew came up and they squeezed into the seat with me. The man then came over and said that his friend was partially blind and deaf and really needed the seat up front. I said he should have shown up on time. The entire evening he glared at me as if I had broken his red wagon. I felt very uncomfortable, but I stuck to my guns. After all, I had made an effort to get there early to get a good seat. I still feel just a tiny bit guilty though.

[Tricia724]

On our last trip, we noticed a real problem with chair hogging.....but it wasn't at the pool or the showroom......it was in the Lido. Window seats were certainly at a high premium.

 

We noticed that there were many people who carried their books with them. Then after they ate breakfast or lunch, they pulled out their books and sat there reading. Meanwhile, there were people walking around with their trays trying to find a place to eat. This happened day after day, and we noticed many of the same people who seemed to spend just about all day sitting at the window tables in the Lido.

 

On the morning I did the "On Deck for the Cure" walk, we got to the Lido shortly after breakfast was closed and we were hungry, so we just got a drink and sat down to wait for lunch. Soon people began filtering in and saving tables by the windows.....some sat there.....some left books or personal belongings. By the time the Lido was ready to serve lunch, many, many seats were taken.....and everyone wasn't eating.

 

I'm sorry, but I think it's rude to sit in the Lido reading a book during serving hours when people are trying to find a place to sit and eat their food. There are many other places on the ship to enjoy the view or read. If no meals are being served, then that's a completely different situation.

[constructiondude]

On our last trip, we noticed a real problem with chair hogging.....but it wasn't at the pool or the showroom......it was in the Lido. Window seats were certainly at a high premium.

 

We noticed that there were many people who carried their books with them. Then after they ate breakfast or lunch, they pulled out their books and sat there reading. Meanwhile, there were people walking around with their trays trying to find a place to eat. This happened day after day, and we noticed many of the same people who seemed to spend just about all day sitting at the window tables in the Lido.

 

On the morning I did the "On Deck for the Cure" walk, we got to the Lido shortly after breakfast was closed and we were hungry, so we just got a drink and sat down to wait for lunch. Soon people began filtering in and saving tables by the windows.....some sat there.....some left books or personal belongings. By the time the Lido was ready to serve lunch, many, many seats were taken.....and everyone wasn't eating.

 

I'm sorry, but I think it's rude to sit in the Lido reading a book during serving hours when people are trying to find a place to sit and eat their food. There are many other places on the ship to enjoy the view or read. If no meals are being served, then that's a completely different situation.

 

I ran into this too Tricia in Alaska where due to the cold outside, indoor window seats really were at a premium. People looked as if they had been there all day with books, knitting, etc. The only time I was able to get a window seat was on a port day or very late in the evening. Maybe these were the people with inside staterooms so I guess I could understand it in a way.

 

What I don't understand is why anyone would spend all their time vegetating in one spot, anywhere on a ship, for the duration of let's face it, a rather expensive holiday? I'm not knocking it, I'm sure I have vacation rituals that people would question as well. But to me the whole purpose of being on a ship is to have the variety. If I wanted to stay in one spot I'd rent a log cabin in the mountains.

[OceanLiner]

We take a slightly different view of the entire lido chair issue: if there are so many people in the area that the availability or reserving of chairs is an issue, then we leave the area.

 

I think that cruise time is to precious to be worried about doing laundry or guarding a chair. There are plenty of areas to relax and sometimes the overcrowding in one area leads to undercrowding in other areas. Let the territorialists stake their claim and guard their deck chairs while the rest of us go enjoy the rest of the ship.

 

Personally, I think the best time to be around the pool is when the ship is in port. That's when the chair hogs have all gone on excursions and are busy claiming the front seats on the bus.

[OceanLiner]

On a couple of occasions when I have been reading by a pool I have noticed people come and place towels, magazines, etc. on chairs to save them and then go off. If, after twenty minutes or so, they do not come back, and I see other people looking for chairs, I simply remove the "hog markers" without comment -- placing them in a neat pile by the rail. If, when the hogs return, they protest, the chair occupants usually honestly say that the chairs were vacant. If enough other people did this, the chair hogs would go the way of the dodo -- unsuccesful evolutionary freaks usually die out.

 

I have never taken it upon myself to simply remove the "hog markers" and put them to the side, but I have been involved in another scheme on a ship that will remain Magically nameless.

 

After several days of a very loud and vocal family screaming that a group of eight relatively unused chairs belonged to them it was time for action. While they were not paying attention all the chairs were shifted to the left by one chair. They still had the same number of chairs, just slightly moved to the left. Latter on, another move to the left. Then back to the right, then maybe to the left, but never so much as to be really noticable. Everyone in the area cooperated and no one ever let on as to what was happening.

 

This family was confused. Things just were not right but they really could never figure out why. Sometimes they would just stand there like deer in the headlights and stare at the chairs. They had an all day deja vue type of experience and they never realized what had happened because they were so dogged determined that these chairs belonged to them that all of their other senses were void.

 

I REALLY like all the crazy thing that people do on cruises, and chair hogs have to be close to the top of the list. BTW, Chair Hogs also seem to appear for show seating.

[kryos]

I'm sorry, but I think it's rude to sit in the Lido reading a book during serving hours when people are trying to find a place to sit and eat their food.

They may put a book down at a table ... but they can't put one at all the seats. If I need a place to sit, I just plop down at a table ... even if there is a "marker" on it. If and when the person comes back I just smile sweetly and say "hope you don't mind that I decided to join you?" What are they gonna say? Especially when you consider that it may be just a couple trying to hoard a whole table that seats six.

 

I do the same thing when I see people hoarding the smoking tables out by the Lido pool. There aren't that many of them. "Mind if I share your ashtray?" I ask ... as I am pulling out a chair and plopping down. Few people will have the guts to say anything ... especially if there are really empty spots at that table.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[Randyk47]

Rite - You can sit with us any time you want to. :D We too have seen the "hogging" of the limited smoking tables and have offered to share our table when it gets crowded over in that little corner.

[croozymooner]

Well I'll tell you. On the Zaaandam last cruise a friend of mine was in the cast. I tried to get to the show early for a front row seat. One evening a couple had a sweater on the two seater next to them. I sat down and got some dirty looks. After about 15 minutes this man leans over and says he was saving that seat for his friend. I advised him there was no saving of seats in the lounge. He told me I was a cheeky girl. I said I was sorry he felt that way. Two other pax I knew came up and they squeezed into the seat with me. The man then came over and said that his friend was partially blind and deaf and really needed the seat up front. I said he should have shown up on time. The entire evening he glared at me as if I had broken his red wagon. I felt very uncomfortable, but I stuck to my guns. After all, I had made an effort to get there early to get a good seat. I still feel just a tiny bit guilty though.

 

I'm caling BS on that one. If that man truly had a handicapped friend who required upfront seating, he would have said something immediately when you sat down, not when he thought of a good excuse 15 minutes later.

[mjs125]

They may put a book down at a table ... but they can't put one at all the seats. If I need a place to sit, I just plop down at a table ... even if there is a "marker" on it. If and when the person comes back I just smile sweetly and say "hope you don't mind that I decided to join you?" What are they gonna say? Especially when you consider that it may be just a couple trying to hoard a whole table that seats six.

 

I do the same thing when I see people hoarding the smoking tables out by the Lido pool. There aren't that many of them. "Mind if I share your ashtray?" I ask ... as I am pulling out a chair and plopping down. Few people will have the guts to say anything ... especially if there are really empty spots at that table.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

 

I noticed the issue with the saving of the tables on my cruise on the Oosterdam last week (SIGH....actually, I guess since the last cruisers got off yesterday our cruise was 2 weeks ago :(), but it seemed like there were still enough window tables to go around, even with the book-saved tables. I did not notice an issue with the chairs at the pool though....of course, we spent all of our time in the aft Lido pool area, only wandering to the mid-ship covered pool area for the nachos.

 

The interesting thing I did notice, however, was the smoking area Rita mentioned out by the aft pool. We were only told on one day that one side of the deck was smoking and the other was non, and even that wasn't followed. However, the oddest thing was that when we were (as a rambunctious group of 6) sitting around the tables smoking, if someone came up looking for an ashtray or a light or anything, we would usually be happy to comply (we knew that with 6 of us we took up a lot of space) and would even invite people sit to join us if they wanted....most of the time they would just look at us funny and run away. We did meet a few very cool people that way though!

 

Meg

[ANSalberg]

Personally, I think the best time to be around the pool is when the ship is in port. That's when the chair hogs have all gone on excursions and are busy claiming the front seats on the bus.

 

I love this remark - I believe these people also need the first bags of Popcorn at the movie [ but dump the bag and don't take care of their trash]

 

They also "belong" at the front of ANY line.

 

They DESERVE lobster on an off night and shrimp cocktail DAILY.

 

And if ANYBODY is going to be upgraded to a suite[ from an INSIDE cabin] it is SURE to be them. And if they aren't; its ALL due to "Carnival Cruise lines" Never mind that they stiffed everybody including a VERY angry taxi driver.....

[kakalina]

I'm caling BS on that one. If that man truly had a handicapped friend who required upfront seating, he would have said something immediately when you sat down, not when he thought of a good excuse 15 minutes later.

 

No, this is true. What had me confused is why if his friend was mostly deaf and blind he would be at show anyway. He also could have offered his seat to his friend when he showed up, I noticed that he did not.

[retiredldo]

I think the thread of chair hogs gets way out of whack, what I find interesting is that many of the folks who complain about the chairs come strolling up about 10 or 1030 and cant find a chair so they blame the chair hogs. My goodness, we have been on numerous cruises and yes at times it is tough to get a chair but at the same time we also understand when the busy times are. When you look at the sheer number of folks on the ships now a days and many folks have to have the front row seat by the pool. Many folks have posted here in this thread about finding the less crowded out of the way places.

 

I guess I dont feel the chair hog is that big an issue in the scheme of cruising and enjoying a vacation

 

Regards

 

Pete

[retiredldo]

I think the thread of chair hogs gets way out of whack, what I find interesting is that many of the folks who complain about the chairs come strolling up about 10 or 1030 and cant find a chair so they blame the chair hogs. My goodness, we have been on numerous cruises and yes at times it is tough to get a chair but at the same time we also understand when the busy times are. When you look at the sheer number of folks on the ships now a days and many folks have to have the front row seat by the pool. Many folks have posted here in this thread about finding the less crowded out of the way places.

 

I guess I dont feel the chair hog is that big an issue in the scheme of cruising and enjoying a vacation

 

Regards

 

Pete

[kryos]

I think the thread of chair hogs gets way out of whack, what I find interesting is that many of the folks who complain about the chairs come strolling up about 10 or 1030 and cant find a chair so they blame the chair hogs.

No one is complaining about chairs that have bodies in them. Those folks got there first, they got the chair ... simple as that. It's when chairs remain unoccupied all day, with towels and all manner of other stuff in them ... but no sight of a warm body ... that people take issue.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[retiredldo]

Rita I dont disagree with you or the thread but just was attempting to make a minor point, should one save chairs nope is it going to happen yup so what does one do to preclude this issue that is going to happen, I think alter the schedule and get there when there are plenty of chairs, that was all I was attempting to do., we normally get there very early normally up in the work out center by 6 etc then after we have been in the sun till 11 or so we will watch and seek out a couple (older) not that we are not and the offer them our seats oh well

[Love Cruises]

Well I'll tell you. On the Zaaandam last cruise a friend of mine was in the cast. I tried to get to the show early for a front row seat. One evening a couple had a sweater on the two seater next to them. I sat down and got some dirty looks. After about 15 minutes this man leans over and says he was saving that seat for his friend. I advised him there was no saving of seats in the lounge. He told me I was a cheeky girl. I said I was sorry he felt that way. Two other pax I knew came up and they squeezed into the seat with me. The man then came over and said that his friend was partially blind and deaf and really needed the seat up front. I said he should have shown up on time. The entire evening he glared at me as if I had broken his red wagon. I felt very uncomfortable, but I stuck to my guns. After all, I had made an effort to get there early to get a good seat. I still feel just a tiny bit guilty though.

Good for sticking to your guns.... I give you a lot of credit. They were being the RUDE ones not you!

 

If we want a good seat in the lounge, we get there early as you did and stay in our seats. We bring a book or there are always nice people to find to chat with.

[Barbara Hornblower]

Because skin cancer runs rampant in my family, I don't hang out at the pool (unless I am swathed in a cover up with a wide-brimmed hat atop my head), so instead I roost on the nice shady Promenade deck. Never a problem there; in fact, except for the people who are walking by, it's usually pretty quiet and empty!

[amusea]

One would think that with the newer ships having so many more balconies that more people would rather be on their private balcony than jammed in at a pool. But somehow there is a "lemming" mentality that pervades most societies and if it is crowded it must be the best place to be. For myself, I'll take the private balcony unless it is swathed in bright sunlight, in which case I escape to the hopefully peace and quiet of the Promenade Deck. Now if they just keep the loudspeaker music from invading that area. On one Celebrity ship recently the invasion had taken place:(. I really think each ship should have a public area that is a quiet zone. Otherwise I might as well sit around a pool at a Miami Beach hotel.