A British tourist has praised a hotel for taking action against guests who try and hog empty sunbeds by reserving them with towels. She said she witnessed something that was worth highlighting
The tourist praised the hotel (stock image)(Image: vanbeets via Getty Images)
Many of us relish a holiday abroad, but one issue that never fails to cause a headache is the notorious sunbed wars. One woman recently claimed she witnessed the drama firsthand, reportedly in Greece, and couldn’t speak highly enough of the way the hotel handled it.
The British tourist, known as WelshTaiTai on TikTok, shared footage of what unfolded during her sun-soaked holiday. While most of us cherish the chance to travel, the age-old habit of reserving sunbeds can quickly spiral into chaos, rows and wholly unnecessary stress when you’re supposed to be unwinding.
It’s hardly a new debate either. In previous years, images have surfaced of holidaymakers literally camped out to stake their claim on a sunbed.
In the video, she described some guests as being “naughty”, claiming there’s a sign at her hotel clearly stating that sunbeds must not be reserved. It politely requests that guests refrain from leaving towels on the beds to stop others from using them.
Yet some guests chose to ignore the rule, prompting the hotel to reportedly take matters into its own hands. Staff are said to have gathered up all the offending towels and draped them over a wall, freeing up the sunbeds for other guests to enjoy.
Alongside the clip, she wrote: “POV: You wake up early for the perfect pool day only to find every sunbed ‘reserved’ with a random towel and nobody in sight. Then the hotel staff start removing the abandoned towels and suddenly people appear from nowhere acting shocked.
“If you’re not actually using the sunbed… you don’t own it. Simple.”
The clip has racked up hundreds of views, with many viewers quick to share their thoughts in the comments section, offering a wide range of opinions.
One wrote: “Wish every hotel would do this.” Another added: “Needs to be carried out in every hotel. I look for reviews and if this happens, I won’t book.”
A third chimed in: “Give those staff a raise. Just back from Majorca, where people were out at 5.30am reserving beds. Their towels were in the pool by 6.30am when the cleaners arrived to sort the beds etc. These guys are heroes.”
Meanwhile, a fourth remarked: “I would book a hotel purely on this rule.” Yet another observer noted: “Need more of this. You work 52 weeks and spend three weeks trying to get a sunbed.”
Others described it as “excellent” that the hotel had taken action to put a stop to “sunbed wars”, with many agreeing the policy should be adopted far more widely.
What you need to know
If this is news to you, hotels are well within their rights to prevent guests from reserving sunbeds, and many already have policies in place to tackle the problem.
Various methods are employed by hotels to address the issue. Some instruct staff to remove unattended towels, while others encourage guests to use booking apps to ensure fair access.
Such measures exist to stop guests from “hogging” beds — an all-too-familiar frustration that nobody wants to deal with while on holiday.