We have read on several threads that people reserve pool chairs in the morning as early as 6am and then keep them for the day. Do people simply place their towel on a chair around the pool and claim the chair that way? Also, does the resort charge a fee if you lose your towel?
You'll see people reserving chairs before they go to bed. Our last trip we had no trouble finding chairs as late as 10:00 AM after breakfast...so there really isn't a reason to stress about it or beat the crowd. There is a fee for lost towels, but it's happened to me where someone probably just grabbed my towel by mistake...they know this happens and after a short conversation they hand over a new towel. It's been a week or two without a towel debate, so it's good to start 2015 off right. Jamie and I stay up late...and I tend to wake up with the sun, so we actually use the chairs so Jamie can nap between dips in the pool. We just bring a couple oversized t-shirts and stretch them over the chair backs. If you're going to spend most of your time in the pool, maybe just keep your things under a friend's chair.
Oh you have touched on a topic that has been raised a few times and caused a fair bit of "debate". Some people do reserve sunbeds that early (some of us are in no fit state at that time of day!). I don't have a problem with it they provided they actually use them. Not good to see a batch of sunbeds reserved and then unused for half a day. People tend to use something more personal to themselves such as a t-shirt or their own towels rather than the hotel towels to be sure that there is no dispute as to whose is whose. The more enterprising even have special t-shirts made up to stake their claim. If there is a crowd together people often share a fewer number of sunbeds as the chances are that some of the number will be in the pool, eating or elsewhere any any point in time. Good option in my view. As I recall, the hotel charge for a lost towel is $50 but could be wrong on that one.
We would get up around 8.30 - 9am for breakfast and put out tshirts on sun beds then and there were quite a few already taken however other days we just dumped our bag near the poolside as we spent 90% of the day in the sexy pool anyways so not getting a chair wouldnt of been a big deal anyways. As previously stated though there has been alot of debate over this topic. I think if you are going to actually sunbathe and use the loungers then fair enough but if you plan on spending the day in the pool as most do, then don't fret over having a sunbed. Also, the resort state thet you will be charged $25 if you loose your towel, however due to heavy rain back in June last year, alot of people (including us) didnt return our towels and we didnt get charged. Hope this helps!
Related to towels...has anyone actually ever gotten charged for not turning in their towel before 7 PM (or whatever the time is at night)? I think you sign something indicating you will be charged so we always try and turn ours in but there's been a couple of times where we just exchange them the next morning... Also on the chairs - during the slower season when we've been there (May, September) we normally didn't have too much of an issue getting chairs reserved later in the morning at like 10 AM. But I just normally grab a couple when I wake up to get our morning coffee. We like sitting in a certain section of the pool normally (although we end up switching that up once we meet new friends!)
When we were there in September, the first two mornings we went to the pool about 10:30 am and not a single chair available. So next few mornings I would get there about 8:30 and reserve a chair or two if we were going to lay out for a while. We also regularly would let people use the chairs for a while if they wanted or were part of a group near our chairs. One morning there was an inflatable raft that had been laid across 3 chairs. No one used the chairs. Finally at about 2 pm I took raft off and we laid on 2 of the chairs. No one had actually reserved them but it shows how everyone respects and assumes the "reserving". It is amazing how you see chairs "reserved" all day with towels or T Shirts and no one is in them all day long. This happens most with large groups. They each reserve a chair and then spend all day in the pool.
We usually leave tshirts as the towels get mixed up. We put a couple tshirts over some chairs at 5am on oct 6th as we plan to return in 2015 at some point. Hopefully they are still there. We like to lounge in the sun.
Generally speaking, chairs can only be reserved by groups of single guys, unless you hold one by placing a camera with a large telephoto lens on a chair. There are some exceptions, such as the rare times when everyone loves the music that is being played. At those times, chairs will be made available to everyone. On those days, there will also be a running buffet on the Boobs Cruise.
