What is this aggravating vacation move, and are you guilty of it?
New Poll: 60% of Travelers Can’t Stand This Rude Hotel Habit
Published on Apr. 21, 2025
Confession: I don’t like swimming. (I hate being cold and I hate being wet, and swimming is both!) But I do love a good hotel pool: Sitting poolside, reading a book and watching my kids from my (dry) enclave is my kind of vacay. If I can snag a shady spot to save my skin from the blazing sun? Even better. Plus, the people watching is prime time.
But there’s a particular sun-soaked sin my fellow travelers commit that takes my relaxing getaway from blissful to boiling in no time flat. And I’m not the only one: According to a new etiquette poll from Hotels.com, this major hotel faux pas is right up there with wearing pajamas in the lobby, blasting speakerphones in public spaces and hogging the breakfast buffet (which, frankly, is saying something). And yes, I’m speaking from personal experience: You do not want to mess with my pool time.
So what is this rude poolside behavior that 60% of respondents said was their top pet peeve at hotels? Reader’s Digest broke down the results of the poll, as well as asked etiquette experts Lisa Mirza Grotts and Jamila Musayeva to share their tips on how to avoid this common mistake—and what to do if you encounter it in the wild. Let’s dive into the deep end.
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What is the rude habit that travelers hate the most?
Oh, there are many, but we’re talking about reserving pool chairs without actually using them. You’ve likely seen it yourself. Someone apparently wakes up at 6 a.m., marches to the pool with a stack of towels, stakes out 10 prime chairs and then … goes back to bed? Goes sightseeing? Disappears into the hotel ether? Who knows, but by the time you make it to the pool with two kids, three tote bags and a cooler, there are no chairs left—just a sea of unattended towels and shoes, without a swimmer in sight.
What are people saying about this rude hotel habit?
It turns out that a lot of people get ragey when confronted with this rude behavior—myself included. (Just ask my family about the time I accidentally-on-purpose moved someone’s unattended flip-flops, almost launching an international incident.) The Hotels.com team asked about this rude hotel behavior on Instagram, and the replies were fabulously dramatic.
The haters came out strong against saving pool chairs
- “If the towel doesn’t belong to someone in the pool, then the towel gets placed in the return towel basket. Be present for your lounge chair … reservations not accepted.”
- “I have great fun dropping those towels in the pool, or just piling them all on [one] lounger.”
Not everyone thinks it’s rude, though
- “There is no alternative. It’s a bit aggro, but it’s all we got. Drops unread book on top of towel, heads to breakfast buffet.“
- “Yes it’s fine, because everyone else does [it].”
Others just like to watch the world burn
- “I remember staying at a hotel [where] we could never get a chair, because of all the towels and no people. So late at night we dragged two chairs into our room. You should have seen the looks we got the next morning. But it worked!”
- “My husband has fun switching the towels when it’s breakfast time.”
Honestly? Justice served. (Come on, guys: It’s a pool chair, not a timeshare.)
Why is this such an etiquette misstep?
Because it’s selfish. The chairs are a shared amenity, not your personal sun throne, says Grotts, aka the Golden Rules Gal and author of A Traveler’s Passport to Etiquette. “Good etiquette is about graciousness, and making others feel respected, and [that’s] especially true in communal spaces like hotel pools,” she says, adding that this kind of move isn’t just rude—it’s strategically rude. People who do this are basically saying that their time is more valuable than yours.
“It becomes inconsiderate when saving a chair turns into a territory claim, rather than a temporary step away,” adds Musayeva, a certified etiquette coach and the author of three etiquette books, including Etiquette: The Least You Need to Know. “If someone places a towel on a lounger at 7 a.m. and doesn’t return until midday, that isn’t thoughtful. It’s monopolizing a shared space. The purpose of reserving a chair is to hold your spot while you’re actively nearby, not to secure it for hours while doing other things.”
How are hotels handling this rude behavior?
Some hotels are fighting back, because complaining patrons can lead to bad reviews, Musayeva says. Resorts all over the world are now posting signs with time limits or chair limits. If personal items are left unattended for more than 30 to 60 minutes, for example, or you take up more than two chairs, they’ll remove your stuff. (Cue the tiny violin for your towel.) Other hotels use wristbands to track chair occupancy, or hire attendants who keep tabs on who’s actually using the space.
In other words, it’s not just you. And you don’t have to silently fume while standing there awkwardly balancing your sunscreen, bag and piña colada. “Ask the hotel staff what their policy is before setting up,” Musayeva advises. “Many resorts have signs posted, and following those guidelines shows respect not only for fellow guests but also for the staff who are trying to maintain fairness.”
It’s perfectly fine to ask the hotel to handle lounge-chair violations, but if you decide to confront this rude behavior yourself, Grotts says to be polite and not escalate things to an argument: “I tell people to never engage, or there could be pool rage.”
How can you snag a seat—the right way?
OK, so it is rude to save a seat for hours on end, but you have to be able to save chairs in some situations. One traveler on Hotel.com’s Instagram asked what you really want to know: “This leads to two more existential questions: How long is a reasonable time away from the sun lounger, and what activities are considered acceptable while away from it?”
These are exactly the questions polite people should be asking, according to Grotts. “There are really only three reasons to leave a beach chair: to go in the water, use the restroom or get something to eat,” she says.
Here are some tips from our travel pros for lounging like a legend:
- Grab chairs only when you’re ready to use them, and take only as many chairs as you need. (Your bags do not need their own chair.)
- Limit your time away from your chair. It’s OK to grab a drink or step to a private area to reapply sunscreen, but keep it short. (Think: 15 to 30 minutes, but no more than an hour.)
- Don’t reserve chairs for others who won’t be there within 20 minutes.
- Chat with the pool attendants if you need help finding a chair.
- Share with kindness. If you’re leaving soon, let someone else know. It’s like passing on a little vacation karma.
Bottom line: “Keep it simple, and always be willing to let it go if someone genuinely needs the space and you aren’t using it,” Musayeva says. “A little flexibility makes the pool a more enjoyable place for everyone.”
What other rude behaviors should you avoid on vacay?
Of course, chair hogging isn’t the only travel mistake out there, according to the same Hotels.com survey. Here are a few more moves to skip—plus the percentage of respondents who agree—if you want to stay in your fellow travelers’ good graces:
- Walking around the hotel barefoot (94%)
- Wearing robes in the lobby (92%)
- Engaging in PDA by the pool (86%)
- Wearing pajamas at breakfast (76%)
- Eating food in the hotel bed (60%)
About the experts
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Reader’s Digest has published hundreds of travel stories that help readers explore the world safely, easily and affordably. We regularly cover topics such as the best places to visit (and the best times to visit them), tips and tricks to zoom through airport security, flight-attendant secrets, hotel-room hacks and more. We’re committed to producing high-quality content by writers with expertise and experience in their field in consultation with relevant, qualified experts. We rely on reputable primary sources, including government and professional organizations and academic institutions as well as our writers’ personal experiences where appropriate. We verify all facts and data, back them with credible sourcing and revisit them over time to ensure they remain accurate and up to date. Read more about our team, our contributors and our editorial policies.
Sources:
- Lisa Mirza Grotts, certified etiquette professional; email interview, April 15, 2025
- Jamila Musayeva, certified etiquette coach; email interview, April 15, 2025
- Hotels.com: “New Hotels.com Etiquette Poll Reveals What’s Worse than Pool Chair Hogs and Lobby Pajamas “
- Hotels.com Instagram: “Should You Reserve a Sun Lounger with a Towel?”
