No guts to fight the chair hogs...

[halos]

Write to Carnival.

 

A nice, well thought out, comprehensible letter about this or any other things about your cruise that bother you, does help.

So many people have issues with chair hogs. This is something that CCL can fix. I would think if enough people wrote and expressed their views on it, Carnival might listen.

 

It can't hurt..and all it costs is a stamp. :)

 

For me personally, if it becomes an issue that I can't deal with any longer, I will start sailing RCCL or Celebrity. The have pool police. :)

[TEXASMUNK]

When you get up early, walk the deck and see 9 chairs with towels on them and no one around...good chance they are chair hogs.

When you get to the pool, observe a set or chairs with a towel or book and no one returns for an hour or so, good guess....chair hog.

WHen you find 4 empty chairs and one "overseer" who admonishes everyone that comes near that they are saved...yup, chair hog.

 

What to do? #1 Complain to the pool attendant. You will probably get a blank stare, then advise you will remove those things and you are concerned about angry folks, ask them to have security patrol the pool area. That tends to get the attendant's attention...

 

And fear not...you are in the right!

[SissasMomE]

Not chair hogs by the pool but about saving seats in the theater. On out first cruise 5 years ago on the Vision we went to theater very early to get front row seats, there were two kids saving the whole row. My wife is legally blind so we need to sit in the first two rows so she see parts of the show.

 

The second night same thing same kids, so we just sat in the first row anyway, the kids said they were saved. I have no problem telling people how it is and all I told the kids so "I really don't care what you say". When the parents came the kids ran up to them and said I took there seats. The parents were about to say something to me, when my wife got up and took out her white cane. I then said to them is there a problem. After a 30 second stair directly at them they backed down and never had a problem with them again!

 

 

Not for nothing, but that was really rude. If the kids got there first to save the seats for their family, what gives you the right to barge in like that? Wow ... really, really rude.

[LHP]

Not for nothing, but that was really rude. If the kids got there first to save the seats for their family, what gives you the right to barge in like that? Wow ... really, really rude.

 

 

Not rude at all...

 

Saving seats in the theater is not allowed.....

 

Rude is not following the guidelines set forth by Carnival that civilized mature adults abide by.

[CorvetteLady]

Not for nothing, but that was really rude. If the kids got there first to save the seats for their family, what gives you the right to barge in like that? Wow ... really, really rude.

 

Are you kidding? :confused: Rude is sending your children to save seats. It is not allowed. If we want a good seat for the show we get there early, I have no problem with someone saving one seat but two kids saving the whole row, that is way over the line.

[shawnie]

I take the "hogs" belongings and place them elsewhere. If they come back and throw a fit I ignore them like they aren't even there and let them ramble and make fools of themselves! I actually get great pleasure out of seeing these people hiss and spit with anger!!:p

[cathyoo]

Generally we go directly to the theater after dinner. We get there early and try to get decent seats. Before the show my SIL and I will go to the ladies room and have my DH watch our seats. On our last cruise someone tried to tell him he you were not allowed to save seats. They needed the entire row for their group. My DH just moved to another row where there was room for three. Lucky for him cause I would have been furious if we lost our seats while we were in the ladies room.

[martinchem]

I found the best thing to do is NOT think about your options at all, just pick up there stuff and put them on another lounge that has crap already on it , and enjoy your vacation, if they say anything (and this has happened) I've said when your ready to sit here, let me know I'll move down to the next one.

[m-coons]

I'll probably get all kinds of negative feedback for posting this, but here's what I did one cruise...and I'll say I'm an avid cruiser and hate chair hogs too. One family on a 7 day cruise would put their stuff on the 5 chairs directly in front of a table in the shade right next to the pool. So after day 3, I got irritated b/c they would NEVER sit in the lounge chairs. So, I picked up the 5 towels, brought them to the "towel hut" and told them where they were from and explained that they have been there every day for 3 days with no one sitting in them. Then, found the security guy on deck, told him the same thing. Then, went over to the family, who proceeded to bless me out and I explained the "rules" that they needed to have read about not saving chairs; it's usually posted in the Capers so I pointed it out. I kept my cool and just sat down and they continued to talk about me while I was sitting there - I didn't care. I enjoyed some DOD's and they didn't hog the chairs any more the rest of the week.

 

That being said, when they went to complain to both the "towel hut" gal and the security guard, they were told they could not do that! I saw the security guard pointing to the back page of the Capers as well.

 

So, I'd say, just get the guts to have a friendly conversation with the towel hogs if you see them; most times you won't see them though.

 

I know I didn't help with your question, but that's my story. :) Bring on the ugly comments of "I can't believe you actually did that...." LOL!

 

You're a lot nicer than I would have been!

[LemurCat]

Not for nothing, but that was really rude. If the kids got there first to save the seats for their family, what gives you the right to barge in like that? Wow ... really, really rude.

 

1. You're not supposed to save seats.

2. Who are those kids to deny adults a seat?

3. If Bob's wife is carrying a white cane, I'm pretty sure she that means she's sight-impaired. All the more reason for her to need seats in the front.

 

If the parents had wanted seats in the front of the theater, they should have planted themselves there.

[jayesouthworth]

I DGI, there's always a place to sit on the ship. There's plenty of empty chairs on the outside area of the pool, and I always see empty lounge chairs beside the pool and the spa. I don't lounge by the pool, nor do I lounge by the hot tub. But I do use the chairs to put my stuff on while I'm sitting in the hot tub. Why waste your time being mad that someone got there before you did?

[Fawn524]

Not for nothing, but that was really rude. If the kids got there first to save the seats for their family, what gives you the right to barge in like that? Wow ... really, really rude.

 

 

Wow...tell me that you aren't for real?? Seriously?? :rolleyes:

[ricks2047]

I think this all goes back to the original posters title line. "No Guts". This is a cruise. Nobody will ever see you again off boat. They don't know you. Here's the time to have fun. You don't have to be "No Guts". You could be a ninja. An astronaut. A rocket scientist. An exotic dancer. A Nobel peace prize winner. Senior Vice President of Carnival Cruise Lines in charge of deck operations on a chair hog fact finding mission. Just think how much better dinner conversation would be if you were on the advance team for President Obama's cruise. Your choice, but just make sure you portray someone with an interesting story and guts, then move that stuff and have a seat. Have fun with it. Or if you choose to be yourself, and sombody confronts you, just speak back to them in some sort of jiberish, made up language. They won't know what to do. You could also act really crazy. Nobody will mess with a looney. Better yet, speak in a made-up jiberish and act crazy. But above all else, have fun with it.

[Oglaladiver]

The issues isnt as big a deal with me as it is with others, but....being a police officer and dealing with conflict on a daily basis for 20 years, confronting a "chair hog" to me isnt a big deal LOL I paid for the cruise just like they did. Not to mention Im a firm believe in whats considered "fair".

[bazarr2]

I'll probably get all kinds of negative feedback for posting this, but here's what I did one cruise...and I'll say I'm an avid cruiser and hate chair hogs too. One family on a 7 day cruise would put their stuff on the 5 chairs directly in front of a table in the shade right next to the pool. So after day 3, I got irritated b/c they would NEVER sit in the lounge chairs. So, I picked up the 5 towels, brought them to the "towel hut" and told them where they were from and explained that they have been there every day for 3 days with no one sitting in them. Then, found the security guy on deck, told him the same thing. Then, went over to the family, who proceeded to bless me out and I explained the "rules" that they needed to have read about not saving chairs; it's usually posted in the Capers so I pointed it out. I kept my cool and just sat down and they continued to talk about me while I was sitting there - I didn't care. I enjoyed some DOD's and they didn't hog the chairs any more the rest of the week.

 

That being said, when they went to complain to both the "towel hut" gal and the security guard, they were told they could not do that! I saw the security guard pointing to the back page of the Capers as well.

 

So, I'd say, just get the guts to have a friendly conversation with the towel hogs if you see them; most times you won't see them though.

 

I know I didn't help with your question, but that's my story. :) Bring on the ugly comments of "I can't believe you actually did that...." LOL!

 

I don't get it, the family was there when you did that.?? But they weren't sitting in the loungers? Why did they save them if they weren't using them?

[ksatte03]

I think this all goes back to the original posters title line. "No Guts". This is a cruise. Nobody will ever see you again off boat. They don't know you. Here's the time to have fun. You don't have to be "No Guts". You could be a ninja. An astronaut. A rocket scientist. An exotic dancer. A Nobel peace prize winner. Senior Vice President of Carnival Cruise Lines in charge of deck operations on a chair hog fact finding mission. Just think how much better dinner conversation would be if you were on the advance team for President Obama's cruise. Your choice, but just make sure you portray someone with an interesting story and guts, then move that stuff and have a seat. Have fun with it. Or if you choose to be yourself, and sombody confronts you, just speak back to them in some sort of jiberish, made up language. They won't know what to do. You could also act really crazy. Nobody will mess with a looney. Better yet, speak in a made-up jiberish and act crazy. But above all else, have fun with it.

 

I love your attitude! :D

[bazarr2]

I'm new to cruising. What constitutes a "Chair Hog"? I know sometimes when we go to a park or a pool we pick a chair and put all our stuff on it (we all share one chair). If we put it on the ground it will surly get wet. When we're done with our swim we take our stuff and leave.

 

I've not been on a cruise before so I don't have a clue what you do with your towel, shoes can go under the chair but I'd like to keep the "family's" shoes together, Shirt or cover up. I just don't want to lay this stuff on the ground so it gets wet.

 

Do they have "cubbies" to put your stuff on a cruise? This would be perfectly fine.

What you do is not considered a chair hog. What is considered a chair hog is someone that gets up early morning and puts things like books, flipflops, towels, magazines on empty loungers and leaves for hours on end and expects to be able to use the lounger later with there things still intact.

[djwood24]

Not for nothing, but that was really rude. If the kids got there first to save the seats for their family, what gives you the right to barge in like that? Wow ... really, really rude.

 

I am just guessing these were your kids?:D

 

After reading your post I am just laughing too hard to think you were serious...

[djwood24]

Okay - I was just reading one of the many chair hog threads and realized I just don't have the guts to fight them personally. I'm not usually one for confrontation but darn it - I want to sit!!

 

Short of hunting down an employee, anyone have any creative ways to handle them? I try to tell myself I'll never see these people again, but then they're always the people you see over and over again on the cruise!

 

My advice is to tip the first employee you see and ask them to remove the stuff if you see that it has been unoccupied for a long period of time.

Works every time and I get no stress as I am on Vacation.

When confornted refer back to the employee who you tipped...let them get the stress....but usually Chair Hogs are cowardly anyway.

[3LittleBirds]

I last cruised on the Crown Princess and each day crew actively monitored the chairs. 30,40,50 min would go by with no one in the seats, and the crew members would pick up everything off them and take it all to the towel hut. My wife and I thought it was great. Of course, the hogs thought it was terrible. I wish more cruises would have their crew "implement" their policy instead of just "posting" it and making passengers take care of it.

[meanstreak1]

1. You're not supposed to save seats.

2. Who are those kids to deny adults a seat?

3. If Bob's wife is carrying a white cane, I'm pretty sure she that means she's sight-impaired. All the more reason for her to need seats in the front.

 

If the parents had wanted seats in the front of the theater, they should have planted themselves there.

 

I think common sense has to prevail no matter which side of the fence you're on. No one should be able to reserve a whole row of seats. On the other hand, I don't think Carnival's rule were intended to prevent someone from holding one or two seats while a memeber of your cabin is at the bathroom. I also don't think people should look forward to the oppourtunity to kick someone out of the front row when they can simply sit in the second or third row, which for all intents and purposes is about the same distance as sitting up front. Again, I agree that no one should somone down ahead of time to reserve entire rows for large groups. In fact it has happened to me on prior cruises. In some cases it just isn't worth it to make a big deal. After all, I am on vacation and I am not planning on going to get worked up over the little things.

[meanstreak1]

I last cruised on the Crown Princess and each day crew actively monitored the chairs. 30,40,50 min would go by with no one in the seats, and the crew members would pick up everything off them and take it all to the towel hut. My wife and I thought it was great. Of course, the hogs thought it was terrible. I wish more cruises would have their crew "implement" their policy instead of just "posting" it and making passengers take care of it.

 

The thing is we have to be careful to distinguish between a chair hog and someone who is not in their seat for awhile. 30 to 50 minutes is not a long time to be out of a seat. There are occasions my daughter keeps me in the pool at least that long since she is an only child and I need to keep my things somewhere in the meantime.

In most cases my wife is still in one of the seats so it is not an issue, but I would be pretty upset with anyone who touches my personal belongings without making an effort to look and ask around to see who the stuff belongs to first.

[kyrisong1]

Not for nothing, but that was really rude. If the kids got there first to save the seats for their family, what gives you the right to barge in like that? Wow ... really, really rude.

Maybe the rule of no saving chairs gives him the right ? And by God his wife is legally blind and NEEDS a front row seat to be able to see any of the show, what gives a family the right to send a few kids and save ROWS of seats so others can't enjoy them?

I get really tired of the ME ME ME first people. Perhaps if the rules were enforced on CCL the ME ME ME people wouldn't feel so entitled to walk all over others.

JMO, Carole

[LemurCat]

The thing is we have to be careful to distinguish between a chair hog and someone who is not in their seat for awhile. 30 to 50 minutes is not a long time to be out of a seat. There are occasions my daughter keeps me in the pool at least that long since she is an only child and I need to keep my things somewhere in the meantime.

In most cases my wife is still in one of the seats so it is not an issue, but I would be pretty upset with anyone who touches my personal belongings without making an effort to look and ask around to see who the stuff belongs to first.

 

I'm pretty sure 30 minutes is Carnivan's guideline.

 

And we're not talking about people who are *in* the pool and within sight of said chairs. We're talking about people who are off watching a show, playing bingo, or sleeping off the night before.

[ruskatab]

Not for nothing, but that was really rude. If the kids got there first to save the seats for their family, what gives you the right to barge in like that? Wow ... really, really rude.

 

I guess those were your kids saving those seats..did you miss the part where the lady was legally blind?? Saving seats is NOT allowed period!