Mums' fury at 'pathetic and childish' parents for their morning routine
Brits are being forced to endure daily scrums just to get a sunbed in hotels all across Spain.
Our reporters watched on as holidaymakers had to rush for sun-loungers on the Costa del Sol as the so-called ‘Towel Wars’ rumbled on Friday. Mum Sarah Wood, 46, from Yorkshire, said she was aghast at what she has experienced. She told The Mirror: “It’s pathetic, childish behaviour if I am honest.
"Grown adults elbowing you out of the way just to get a sunbed. It is ridiculous. I have never known anything like this in all my years coming to Spain.” The unbecoming scenes, in which old and young vied for the coveted day beds, played out in the pool area of Hotel Parasol Gardens in Torremolinos.
We watched as guests were forced to patiently wait on the edge of the pool area with towels in hand until staff give them the nod. A melee then ensued as up to 50 holidaymakers, including Brits, scrambled to get their towels down first. But it is just the latest tawdry episode in the on-going ‘Towel Wars’ which have seen Brits forced to compete for sun spots like never before.
The Hawley family (Andy Commins / Daily Mirror)This summer British tourists have fallen foul of overzealous ‘towel police’ and competitive fellow travellers on beaches and resorts in places as far and wide as Turkey and Greece. Frustrated families have been forced to queue and compete over limited sun loungers amidst a dizzying array of policies which vary from one hotel to the next.
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This week The Mirror spent some time on the ground in the Costa del Sol and found towel-hungry travellers getting up at 5am just to bag a prized lounger. In one hotel we observed holidaymakers wake up at the crack of dawn to put their towels down in a determined bid to dominate the pool side.
One couple put towels down on six loungers at 5am, tying them expertly with large pegs, before going back to bed. Brit Natasha Hawley, 44, from Kent, is on holiday with her husband John and her children Aiden, 20, and Kieran, 17, who both have special educational needs.
Witnesses say some holidaymakers elbow others out of the way in the rush (Andy Commins / Daily Mirror)She said: “The scrum for the sunbeds is something else, it is like a free for all, you can’t be polite here you just have to push your way through and get what you want, which is not how I really want to be on holiday. I don’t like that, I am always encouraging the kids to be polite but it’s not a good impression to come here and have to be rude to others just to get a sunbed. It’s so disappointing.”
Health worker Janet Fleming, 66, from Manchester, said she woke at 7.30am on the first full day of her holiday with her husband, David, a retired upholsterer, just get at a sunbed. But she said: “I have never known sunbeds to be locked up on any holiday that I’ve been on before. It is shocking.
“They need to do something about this. It’s just making everybody nervous and everybody is getting involved in this rush because nobody wants to be left out. But I do find it entertaining seeing everybody running around like a comedy sketch.”
Sign informing of band on sunbed reservation (Andy Commins / Daily Mirror)Mr Fleming, 69, added: ‘It is a terrible fight for the sun loungers. It shouldn’t have to be like this and none of us want to behave out of character by pushing and shoving. But now the sun is out and there is music playing it is beginning to feel like a holiday.”
Many bemused Brits have ended up watching the fevered sunbed hoggers from the sidelines. Husband and wife Phil and Janine White, both 45, from Leicestershire, are also staying at the Hotel Parasol Gardens. Phil said: “You get up in the morning and the sun loungers are all chained up and the same happens at night time about 8pm, so it’s not like you could grab one if you tried, they’re so closely policed.
“But what happens is when they’re unchained in the morning you have people queued up all round the pool and along the hedges just to get at the loungers and get their towels down. It’s hilarious. It’s become quite the spectator sport, I just sit there laughing.”
Sunseekers reserve poolside beds at 6am (Andy Commins / Daily Mirror)Wife Janine said: “I was sat in the hotel room and I was watching from the window and I could see them hopping over the hedge trying to get their towels down. There are not many sun loungers so I suppose people are getting competitive but it’s mainly the Spanish and the Germans. It’s comical, they could just go to the beach.”
Last night the manager Gregorio Lara told The Mirror the melees at the Hotel Parasol Gardens would soon become a thing of the past as they plan to introduce their own ‘towel police’. He said: “This situation cannot go on, so we will employ a monitor who can check if people are using the beds when they should not be from now on.”
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However other hotels in Spain that have introduced checks on sunbed hoggers have met with mixed results. David Green, 36, from Nottinghamshire is on holiday with his family celebrating his dad’s 70th birthday. They are staying the Hotel Sol Melia in Torremolinos and David revealed things had got a bit confrontational around the pool when it comes to sun loungers.
Early morning assault on pool area to reserve a sunbed (Andy Commins / Daily Mirror)He said: “The staff try their best but what can you do if people just ignore you? They come round and leave a little leaflet if you don’t come back to your lounger but they confiscate your towel and hold it in reception meaning you have to do a little walk of shame if you want to get it back.
“Some people get up at the crack of dawn which is fair enough but the hotel rules also state you can’t reserve loungers but that’s doesn’t stop them. We’ve heard of people throwing other people’s towels off too this week which has caused a little bit of aggro but nothing serious. I think most of the Brits are just a bit baffled by it, you come on holiday to relax don’t you?”
Elsewhere in Spain local authorities are trying to clamp down on holidaymakers hogging prime beach spots by threatening them with fines of up to £260. The move came after fed-up locals reported they were not being able to find a spot on the beach in the morning with tourists reserving spots by plonking down umbrellas, chairs, and towels before going back to their resorts.
Spanish police said that if they find unattended belongings on the beach, they will wait for one hour and, if no one returns within that time, the items will be seized. If the confiscated items are not claimed within the next ten days they will be destroyed.
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