What do you do about "Chair Hogs"?

Instead of moving it simply take it to a crew member and say that somebody must have forgotten the stuff and left it on deck. It then goes to Lost and Found.

 

Hank

That way you can say that the crew took it way and not be lying! ;)

Often DW will be enjoying the sun from a lounger and I will come to check on her with DD, and DD will want to sit by her mother, but the adjacent chair has been occupied by personal items for an extended period of time, not by a person. I will move the stuff so DD can sit down and then head on my merry way, and both of them can truthfully say that someone else must have moved the stuff because the chair was empty when DD sat down. :D

It is pretty much routine to see someone in a group to arrive at the pool while others head to breakfast and spread books, suntan oil, shoes, ect. around to get everyone in their party a chair. Then they hop over to join their group and eat. The first one finished heads back to the pool to insure they are not evicted . I am guilty of that and I am sorry to have to admit it. So many others do the same thing. If you want a chair it leaves you no choice . It is self perpetuating, Kind of like driving 80 on the interstate. I am not justifying this practice by any means, C'est la vie.

Cubby holes seem like a good idea -- I'm still planning my first cruise, but from everything I've read, finding a place to leave my things while I go for a swim would come with a risk.

It is pretty much routine to see someone in a group to arrive at the pool while others head to breakfast and spread books, suntan oil, shoes, ect. around to get everyone in their party a chair. Then they hop over to join their group and eat. The first one finished heads back to the pool to insure they are not evicted . I am guilty of that and I am sorry to have to admit it. So many others do the same thing. If you want a chair it leaves you no choice . It is self perpetuating, Kind of like driving 80 on the interstate. I am not justifying this practice by any means, C'est la vie.

And if everyone in the group goes along with this, they're part of the problem. Why not say, let's just go when we're ready for the pool. If everyone follows this golden rule, there wouldn't be a problem with all the deck chairs strewn with books, shoes, sunscreen, would there?

My biggest pet peeve are the large extended families who pull all the tables together in the shade near the pool and stay there the entire day. Usually only a couple of people at the tables at a time but use 4 tables and 12-16 chairs. Very rude!

I am a chair hog that stays put in her chair and sunbathes until lunch.

When my son (18) and I get hungry, we pack up our things and go get something to eat.

After lunch we go up to the upper decks and continue to lounge in the sun away from the pools and crowds. On our cruise this summer we will probably spend most afternoons in the outdoor lounge that is adults only. If that gets too crowded, i will go back to my cabin and sit out on my balcony.

You can be a considerate chair hog. I paid for my cruise and if I want to sunbathe all day, then I will do so. But I am not a inconsiderate person. I don't go out early and leave my towels on a chair and then go back to bed.

Happy Cruising!

Robin

Norwegian Breakaway July 2014

Carnival Miracle 2010

Carnival Legend 2006

The idea of waiting 15, 30 minutes to see if anyone comes to use a chair that contains a neatly folded towel is ridiculous. Other patrons shouldn't have to wait around to see whether people show up.

What can you do about it? I've found only one thing that helps: Point out the problem to a pool staff member . . . While holding a tip in your hand. They may be reluctant to clear away obvious junk when there's no benefit for them (and the possibility of being fussed at by the chair hog), BUT if they get a tip for doing the right thing, they will do it.

I've never had any problem telling the difference between a hogged chair and a being-used-but-person-is away-for-a-minute chair. A hogged chair contains only a towel and perhaps something trivial such as a paperback book (probably from the ship's library). In contrast, a chair-in-use sports a spread-out towel that's obviously been used -- it's scrunched, perhaps wet. And you'll see a couple other items around: Might be a pair of shoes under the chair, sunscreen, a cover-up, a book, or a tote bag. But a chair-in-use has a "nest" look. I would not touch a chair-in-use, but I don't hesitate to take a hogged chair.

Meatball, you're NOT a chair hog because you use the chair for hours at a time -- that's your right! If you get to the pool first, no one has any reason to complain that you were faster. You would be a chair hog if you were preventing someone else from using it . . . But you yourself weren't using it either.

I am a chair hog that stays put in her chair and sunbathes until lunch.

 

When my son (18) and I get hungry, we pack up our things and go get something to eat.

 

After lunch we go up to the upper decks and continue to lounge in the sun away from the pools and crowds. On our cruise this summer we will probably spend most afternoons in the outdoor lounge that is adults only. If that gets too crowded, i will go back to my cabin and sit out on my balcony.

 

You can be a considerate chair hog. I paid for my cruise and if I want to sunbathe all day, then I will do so. But I am not a inconsiderate person. I don't go out early and leave my towels on a chair and then go back to bed.

 

Happy Cruising!

 

 

 

 

Robin

Norwegian Breakaway July 2014

Carnival Miracle 2010

Carnival Legend 2006

If only everyone were as considerate as you, Robin. There's nothing wrong with occupying a lounge chair all day long and you have no obligation to give up your chair simply because you've been in it and someone else wants it. The fact that you let it go when you want to go eat or do something else and then look for a new chair when you've finished says volumes about the type of person you are! Kudos to you.:D

We being early risers, do the same. We head down to the pool, and do not leave. It can be entertaining to watch the "chair wars". One time on a Princess ship seating near the pool was scant. My dh was in the pool and as I looked up from reading,a crew member was attempting to take his chair. Someone must have been offering a tip for him to do that. Needless to say, he did not get it. ;) Had I been in the pool with him, I am sure it would have been gone.

I am a chair hog that stays put in her chair and sunbathes until lunch.

 

When my son (18) and I get hungry, we pack up our things and go get something to eat.

 

After lunch we go up to the upper decks and continue to lounge in the sun away from the pools and crowds. On our cruise this summer we will probably spend most afternoons in the outdoor lounge that is adults only. If that gets too crowded, i will go back to my cabin and sit out on my balcony.

 

You can be a considerate chair hog. I paid for my cruise and if I want to sunbathe all day, then I will do so. But I am not a inconsiderate person. I don't go out early and leave my towels on a chair and then go back to bed.

 

Happy Cruising!

 

 

 

 

Robin

Norwegian Breakaway July 2014

Carnival Miracle 2010

Carnival Legend 2006

I agree with the others that you're not the problem as you're actually using the chair, and you take your stuff with when leaving the area.

Chair hogs make me furious! I am an early riser and I see the charades and shenanigans at o'dark 30 when there are chairs with the telltale "useless"/disposable magazine, empty sunscreen etc with nary a soul in sight. The challenge is that the cruiselines RARELY ever enforce their own rules. I've witnessed many a confrontation, (some of them including me), when someone returns after 3 hours and starts claiming they've been gone for "minutes." On the flipside, my chair was once commandeered when I was clearly settled in and ran to the restroom for less than 5 minutes.

So here is a dilemma that I see on every cruise I have been on...people who go out to the deck and place their towels (and a random book or bottle of suntan lotion) on a chair and then walk away for hours. Yes, some cruise lines post signs warning against the practice, but that does not deter the people from grabbing chairs, especially on days at sea.

 

Any way to combat this?

No.

But let me ask, why put this on the first time cruiser forum?

Find the offending CHOG and throw them overboard.....:D

No.

 

But let me ask, why put this on the first time cruiser forum?

Perhaps it is in thr first timer forum so first timers will figure out not to do this.

What is the capitol of Philadelphia? P

Pull the old South African Sign Language Interpreter thing and act as though you are deaf!!!

Just make up hand signs and ignore them.:D

We have never really had any problems finding a chair. Like another poster said, just sit farther away. We will put our stuff down and go in the pool then come back. If the pools too crowded, we go do something else.

In fact, Ive been on several cruises where extra chairs are stacked up on higher decks. I can always drag one down if I really wanted it. :p

I am a chair hog that stays put in her chair and sunbathes until lunch.

 

When my son (18) and I get hungry, we pack up our things and go get something to eat.

 

After lunch we go up to the upper decks and continue to lounge in the sun away from the pools and crowds. On our cruise this summer we will probably spend most afternoons in the outdoor lounge that is adults only. If that gets too crowded, i will go back to my cabin and sit out on my balcony.

 

You can be a considerate chair hog. I paid for my cruise and if I want to sunbathe all day, then I will do so. But I am not a inconsiderate person. I don't go out early and leave my towels on a chair and then go back to bed.

 

Happy Cruising!

 

 

 

 

Robin

Norwegian Breakaway July 2014

Carnival Miracle 2010

Carnival Legend 2006

I wouldn't consider this chair hogging in any way!

I plan on sitting in a chair or lounger whenever no one is in it. I will move their "stuff" to under the back of the chair. If someone comes back in less than 30 minutes, I will gladly get up. If they don't, then I will simply say that there was nothing on the chair when I sat down.

As far as large families using 10-14 chairs and only 4-6 being there. I will take a chair that is not being used. I will tell them where I am sitting. If they run out of chairs (their whole family is back at the same time), then they can come and find me (within 30 minutes) and I will gladly give the chair back.

Everyone is on vacation and I am simply not sweating about other people being inconsiderate. If they have any issues with what I have done they can take it up with the crew. And, if they get rowdy or in my face, I will not hesitate to call the crew and or authorities.

BTW this is not unique to cruise ships. This will be our first cruise, but I experience this at almost every single resort we travel to when the pool area is busy.

We have witnessed this on every cruise we've been on, apart from the first one....it was in February and not the best time of year to be wearing next to nothing....

The worst altercation we've witnessed was a full on argument between an older couple and young lady on our most recent cruise on Serenade of the Seas. The older couple had been hogging chairs most of the week...they'd actually been laid next to me on more than one occasion and I noticed how they fidgeted constantly, so they stuck in my mind as people to avoid...but having laid on our loungers for a good couple of hours each time, they'd been gone for large chunks of that time (and always over 30 minutes), so we were safe to assume they were "hoggers"...anyhow, back to the young lady...she had noticed that they weren't using the chairs and they hadn't been for a good couple of hours to be honest...she wanted to get into the pool so she moved their stuff onto one of the two loungers...put her towel down and got in the pool...then they came back from lunch...

Now, I don't speak fluent Spanish but it was obvious that they both spoke the same language, and it was clear from all the arm gestures during the argument that they were saying they'd been using the chairs... it took 2 pool attendants and 1 senior staff member to sort them out. It wasn't pleasant to watch and the threatening way they were shaking fingers, fists and arms about, well, I thought that there was going to an all-out brawl...needless to say, the older couple were moved away from the pool area and offered other loungers to use...

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There must be a hundred threads already discussing this same subject.

I would thing a user named mmmmbacon would love running into chair hogs.

LMAO!!! mmmbacon / reference to Chair HOG!!!! So glad you pointed this out. Too funny!!!:D

It doesn't always mean that the person is away for a long time because you see their stuff. Last cruise I was on I put my stuff on a chair and went to the pool for a very short cool down and when I came back, you got it! I was some what mad! :(

How about making a sign with funny graphics that says something like "if you looking for me I'm in the pool cooling off. I'm easy to spot - I'm 6'7, weight 265 lbs. and have muscles the size of Texas." It doesn't matter if you are male or a female who is 5'3 and weighs 105 lbs., all they need to do is read the sign.