Sunbed wars are heating up at hotels everywhere – as holidaymakers race to reserve loungers with nothing but a towel. But is it a clever strategy – or just plain rude?
It’s the classic holiday debate: whether or not to reserve a sun lounger with a towel. We’ve all seen it – or maybe even done it ourselves. It’s early morning, the sun’s barely up, and there’s already a row of chairs by the pool completely ‘claimed’ with a towel or anything else a forward-thinking holidaymaker can think of.
But the people are nowhere to be seen. And we want to know if you think it’s ok to claim your spot in such a way. Scroll down to take our poll.
Some say it’s just part of holiday life – the ‘you snooze you lose’ mentality. While others argue it’s deeply inconsiderate. After all, if you’re not actually using the lounger, should you really be blocking someone else from enjoying it?
Hotels and resorts are starting to take notice, too. Some have gone so far as to implement “towel patrols” that remove items from unused beds after a certain time. But still, the great sunbed stand-off continues. Do you use a towel to reserve a sun lounger? Take our poll below. If you can’t see it, click here
The age-old issue has reared its head again after a holidaying couple defended putting towels on their sunbeds while nipping for breakfast – sparking a furious reaction online.
Rachel McGuigan and her husband David stayed at The Residence Hotel in the resort of Fethiye, west of Antalya in Turkey. But the holidaymakers divided opinion after she placed towels on their poolside beds for half an hour while they visited the resort’s restaurant. One angry holidaymaker, Harry Crumb, said: “I just remove them, if full. I don’t care and the hotel doesn’t care.”
Another added: “Just throw the towels in the pool. It’s not allowed to do this in most hotels and resorts.” But another person leapt to their defence, saying: “I don’t understand. I thought it was normal to get up, grab your towels, pop them on your bed then go for breakfast.”
“I just thought it was crazy that people were so upset about leaving a towel for half an hour to go for breakfast,” Rachel told What’s The Jam. “They accused me of being selfish and all sorts.”
Rachel then posted about it on her ‘Holidays & Hangovers’ TikTok page. She then decided to stoke the fires further by posting a joke about leaving one of her towels on a lounger at 5.30am to go on a series of fake excursions that lasted until bedtime.
The punchline was that they never got to spend a minute on the sunbeds they reserved at dawn.
In the footage, she shared a screenshot of an angry user’s message that read: “Really annoys me that people put towels on sunbeds then go away somewhere? Why? Everyone wants to enjoy their holiday.”
Rachel captioned her clip: “Fine, you’ve all caught me out, this is how our day really looked…”
However, many furious Brits took the joke literally and flooded her comments section for a second time. One riled tourist said: “So you reserved the beds and didn’t use them but wouldn’t let anyone else use them? Have you ever thought that you may be the problem?”
Another raged: “You go on holiday for a rest but end up getting up early like you do at home just to put towels out. Hotels are not for me, that’s why I Airbnb, not having a go, just saying.”
“The most council estate thing ever!” said a third, while Craig remarked: “Some people ain’t getting the joke, love it!”
After ruffling a few feathers, Rachel explained: “After the first time, I thought it would be funny to play up to it.
“It was a joke and I didn’t expect anyone to take it seriously, but I ended up opening a can of worms about sunbed reservations!”
She added: “There wasn’t a lack of sunbeds so putting our towels down before going for breakfast wasn’t an issue for anyone. I was surprised with everyone commenting about it.”
Rachel admitted it can be “annoying” when some tourists leave their towels on sunbeds “for hours on end”. But she doesn’t see it as a problem if it’s “only for half an hour and someone stays with them”.