Summit = Poorest Poolside Monitoring and Security I've ever Seen

[Cruisegoer]

Just wanted to give fair warning to any soon to be Summit cruisers from Bayonne about the very poor poolside attendance by security/staff. Chair hogs were above and beyond on our 7/29 sailing leaving chairs empty for hours upon hours with no staff in the vicinity to contact and question policy. The clientele didn't help, east coast mentality reigned supreme where grandma would get in a near physical altercation with anyone who requested to actually use a chair that someone in her family of 10 might have reserved at 7AM which was still not being used at 12:20PM. It was sad that there was literally no staff to intervene. These ships need to add locker areas giving passengers absolutely no reason or ability to reserving lounge chairs.

 

 

Also, a kid who was horsing around fell and hurt himself and the family had a difficult time having medical assist. Bar staff were slow to follow up and was telling the family to take him to medical, when they requested a wheelchair the doctor showed up before the wheelchair did to take the kid down for further evaluation. Thankfully I doubt it was serious but I seriously question the response time if there had been a real emergency.

[Orator]

What did you do about the situations you observed?

[Sir William]

Which is why I prefer spending time on my balcony instead of by the pool.

[wwcruisers]

Did an 'Alpha, Alpha, Alpha' page go out, over the PA system? That gets the medical staff there, in a hurry!:confused:

[Duanerice1]

That's why I walk through the pool area or stop by the pool grill very rarely. Not a fan at all. That's just a mass of humanity all hot and sweaty, yuck!

 

This is the main reason I get a balcony. Sea days are spent there. But, living in S Florida and having a pool and beaches close by makes it a bit easier for me.

[MJSailors]

That's why I walk through the pool area or stop by the pool grill very rarely. Not a fan at all. That's just a mass of humanity all hot and sweaty, yuck!

 

This is the main reason I get a balcony. Sea days are spent there. But, living in S Florida and having a pool and beaches close by makes it a bit easier for me.

 

Totally agree !(y)

[Bo1953]

Well, well, well... seeing that I rarely go swimming these days. I can assure anyone within reading distance (or not) of this post, that I will wait one (1) hour before personally removing unattended items, that is IF no attendant is available to do so.

 

I refuse to come back to CC and complain that nothing was done... Do I expect lip? Sure thing and I will give it back and then some, IF necessary. Something tells me it will not be necessary. My camera will time stamp the photo for support.

 

There will be some great pool side time for me, my spouse and friends on The Summit in a few weeks...

 

Nothing like being civil on vacation...

 

bon voyage

Edited August 11, 2018 by Bo1953
Wording and syntax

[chemmo]

The selfishness of some guests never fails to amaze me....Like others we do spend more time on our balcony relaxing than poolside but I do enjoy a swim and drip dry in the sun!

 

We have usually been able to find sunbeds somewhere on our cruises but on our Reflection cruise on sea days and even by mid afternoon port days all sun beds were taken, many occupied by guests but several by books!

 

One day we were relaxing in the Solarium after a swim and saw an elderly lady looking around...not a vacant bed in sight. My adult son offered the lady his bed as ‘we were going soon’ and moved to sit at the end of mine....

 

The gratitude of the lady was clear. She had come back from a port excursion, her husband had gone for a nap. All she wanted to do was to have a swim and relax on a cruise she had saved up two years for, not too much to ask for....

 

Don’t these pool chair hogs realise they are spoiling the cruise experience of others? I honestly could not sleep at night if I knew I had left a bed unoccupied for more than 15/20 minutes knowing other guests could be enjoying it. We chatted with the lady for several minutes before we moved on....many beds continued to be ‘enjoyed by books’.

 

I do think Celebrity need to be more proactive....really clear signs saying no saving of chairs would be a start.

[gold1953]

I think the comment about ' east coast mentality ' is quite rude.

[varoo]

This is seldom a problem at other public venues where people who occupy seats come and go throughout the day, such as public libraries, malls, airports, food courts, parks, or medical waiting rooms.

The seat is yours to occupy while you are sitting in it. When you get up and leave, someone else is welcome to use it.

Then if you return later, you just find another vacant seat.

You don't accuse the current occupant of stealing "your" seat.

 

Cruise ship passengers have long suggested that there should be a storage area by the pools, (such as cubicles or lockers or shelves), where people can leave their belongings while they go for a swim, or go to lunch.

Then other people are free to use the seats that have been vacated.

 

 

The pool attendants should routinely clear off unoccupied chairs or loungers, (or sunbeds for our British friends), just as the attendants at the buffet routinely clear off unoccupied tables.

 

No timing device is necessary. If belongings are left on an unoccupied lounger, they are removed, period.

Of course common courtesy should not be forgotten. If someone sitting nearby speaks up to say that a spouse or friend just left for a moment and will be right back, then that would be acceptable to any reasonable person.

That is different from putting out towels to hold seats for 14 of your closest friends who will be arriving here immediately, at any moment within the next 6 hours.

Edited August 11, 2018 by varoo

[Newcastle Star]

The selfishness of some guests never fails to amaze me....Like others we do spend more time on our balcony relaxing than poolside but I do enjoy a swim and drip dry in the sun!

 

We have usually been able to find sunbeds somewhere on our cruises but on our Reflection cruise on sea days and even by mid afternoon port days all sun beds were taken, many occupied by guests but several by books!

 

One day we were relaxing in the Solarium after a swim and saw an elderly lady looking around...not a vacant bed in sight. My adult son offered the lady his bed as ‘we were going soon’ and moved to sit at the end of mine....

 

The gratitude of the lady was clear. She had come back from a port excursion, her husband had gone for a nap. All she wanted to do was to have a swim and relax on a cruise she had saved up two years for, not too much to ask for....

 

Don’t these pool chair hogs realise they are spoiling the cruise experience of others? I honestly could not sleep at night if I knew I had left a bed unoccupied for more than 15/20 minutes knowing other guests could be enjoying it. We chatted with the lady for several minutes before we moved on....many beds continued to be ‘enjoyed by books’.

 

I do think Celebrity need to be more proactive....really clear signs saying no saving of chairs would be a start.

 

 

 

There is an easy solution - gather up the books that have been abandoned and put them in the library!

 

 

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[charlielinda]

My dream ... a few years ago on Celebrity we would walk by the pool every morning between 8-9 and every single chair had a book, hat, towel or flip flops on it and there would not be one person on the entire deck. After the third day of this I decided it would be fun to move them all around randomly. Book here with hat from there, this side of the deck to the other ... my husband wouldn’t let me ... but I can dream.

 

 

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[Orator]

The OP has not come back to answer my question so I'll just indicate what I would have done: Call Security and let them handle any problems. I would not just stand by and then later complain in a public forum.

In terms of the child: Parents are responsible fo watch their child and stop potential dangerous behavior. The Oap really doesn't know why the medical staff was delayed. Perhaps they were not informed when the OP believes they were informed. Perhaps they had another case that required attention. Who knows? I've also seen people refuse medical attention for a variety of reasons.

[Older Sister]

Yeah, I hate chair hogs too. I’m on the Summit right now. First sea day, I was relaxing on deck near the pool and there were seven chairs next to me, each draped with a towel. At the end of the seven chairs was one woman who was keeping an eye on them. Later, a pool attendant walked down the row of chairs; I mentioned to him quietly that no one had been in the chairs next to me for well over an hour. He started pulling the towels off the unoccupied chairs, and the woman at the end of the chairs jumped up all frantic and huffy to tell him that her family was sitting there, and they were all in the pool or at the bathroom. What’s the attendant to do? Call the passenger a liar? I certainly wasn’t going to get in an argument with her, so the attendant left the towels. It was probably another hour before “the family” showed up, and they never used the chair closest to me (yet they still “reserved” it for their use). In my opinion, all the signs in the world won’t deter selfish people from reserving chairs that they aren’t using. I don’t know how you fix this situation . . .

[JMG]

I know there are definitely chair hogs on every cruise. In the morning you can watch them get a stack of towels and reserve lounges for other family members that are probably still asleep and might show up sometime during the day. Yes, they will claim that their family is in the area.

 

However, a friend had his belongings on a lounger and he did go into the pool along with his wife. This was on a sea day and the people were searching for chairs. He returned soaking wet to find that a women had removed his things from the lounge chair. She claimed the Captain gave her permission because the lounge was not occupied for 30 minutes. If his lounge chair had been with a group of vacant chairs I could accept her attitude. However, this was 2 chairs side by side, cover ups, lotions, shoes, books, tote bags...on both chairs!

 

Sad that someone actually was in the pool and returned to find their possessions removed. The couple ended up sharing the other lounger.

[George C]

This problem of chair hogs is on all lines, rccl now requires you to sign out towels which I think helps a little.

[gold1953]

on the Eclipse TA in the spring a pair of loungers in the spa area had the same book and 2 flip flops every morning before 7 . No one came any. day until after lunch. We could tell as nothing changed

[Adammara]

And its not much better in the theatre, one person trying to save a whole row of seats!

[MJSailors]

I think the comment about ' east coast mentality ' is quite rude.

 

Rude people exist in all geographical locations.

Thankfully, so do kind and thoughtful people.

Two examples on this thread.

A woman saving seven chairs for her family, telling the pool attendant that family members were in the pool which was not the case as the poster observed. That woman presented an entitled attitude by her actions.

A younger gentleman offering his lounger in the Solarium to an elderly woman searching for an unoccupied lounger. This fellow presented a thoughtful,kind attitude by his actions.

I know which one I appreciate.

No telling where either the woman or man came from. Maybe the east coast, maybe the west coast, or somewhere in between, or a country outside of the US.

Location really doesn’t matter. Actions do.

[davekathy]

Yeah, I hate chair hogs too. I’m on the Summit right now. First sea day, I was relaxing on deck near the pool and there were seven chairs next to me, each draped with a towel. At the end of the seven chairs was one woman who was keeping an eye on them. Later, a pool attendant walked down the row of chairs; I mentioned to him quietly that no one had been in the chairs next to me for well over an hour. He started pulling the towels off the unoccupied chairs, and the woman at the end of the chairs jumped up all frantic and huffy to tell him that her family was sitting there, and they were all in the pool or at the bathroom. What’s the attendant to do? Call the passenger a liar? I certainly wasn’t going to get in an argument with her, so the attendant left the towels. It was probably another hour before “the family” showed up, and they never used the chair closest to me (yet they still “reserved” it for their use). In my opinion, all the signs in the world won’t deter selfish people from reserving chairs that they aren’t using. I don’t know how you fix this situation . . .

You don't! The cruise lines need to enforce their own policy. Yea right! :evilsmile: I always sit on the deck above the pool deck. No issues ever getting a lounger, a drink or two plus it's closer to the poolside grill/mast grill.

[davekathy]

And its not much better in the theatre, one person trying to save a whole row of seats!

Funny preshow entertainment.

[jelayne]

The problem I see mid-day is the people who pack up their belongings

leaving the pool for the day but don’t remove the towels. Short of looking under the lounger to see if there are belongs beneath it, it’s hard to tell if the chair is in use.

 

If I hear someone near me say they are leaving and start to go without taking the towels I jump up and offer to return the towels for them. Sometimes I get a “oh, I’ll do it”. Other times a “thanks” I hate the RCCL

process of having to sign out towels but it seems to get the loungers cleared when folks leave.

[jkgourmet]

. These ships need to add locker areas giving passengers absolutely no reason or ability to reserving lounge chairs.

.

 

They do. It's called Your Cabin.

[hcat]

Originally posted by Cruisegoer ". These ships need to add locker areas giving passengers absolutely no reason or ability to reserving lounge chairs."

 

 

Carrying a beach bag or knapsack is much easier to stow stuff....there are already lockers in the spa area people can use,,

 

More and active presence of pool butlers definitely would help...

[villauk]

I always sit on the deck above the pool deck. No issues ever getting a lounger, a drink or two plus it's closer to the poolside grill/mast grill.

 

You may not be able to do this so easily after the ‘Revolution’ ;).