Chair reservation/Pool towel update

[sgrap]

We were at Aulani 6/8-6/15. Had a wonderful trip. We are not big lay-by-the-pool (or beach for that matter) type people, so the lounge reservation issue didn't really affect us. I did notice when we walked around looking for a place to put our towels that almost every chair had something on it, and very few with people on them. We always ended up finding something, usually a regular chair by the tables near Rainbow Reef. On the last day, we went down around 9 a.m. to see what we could find (figured I'd test out the 'new policy'), and almost everything was taken already. We found a lounge chair in the back corner by the kiddie splash zone area. We left towels there, came back an hour or so later and they were still there. Came back 2 hours later, still there. Went and had lunch and came back 2-3 hours later, everything still there. Towels were always in the exact same position, so nothing had been touched. There are signs all over about chairs not being reserved, but I saw no evidence that CM's are moving anything.

 

[jasonv1]

My stay began the day yours ended.

They did some monitoring, but not enough. They certainly didn't enforce the "remove everything at 8AM" rule they have posted, which would free up the prime seats everyone comes down at 7AM to claim.

If you don't come to the pool until 10AM a close seat will be hard to find. That being said, I've never not found a seat during my 9 day stay. The area hidden between the beach access handicap ramp S turn is a good spot to check as it has prime ocean views but is a bit hidden.

Just be sure to note it in surveys; I will.

 

[Drusilla99]

I was there June 4-10. We were a party of 10 and never had a problem finding chairs all together right at 8am. Before anyone reprimands me, we had 8 chairs and pretty consistently there were at least 7 people in all the chairs most of the day, they weren't just holding things, they were holding actual bodies. Believe me, you don't get a $300+ a day pool bar tab if you're not in your seat We did see the monitors going around, but because we had a separate block of 8, and we were sitting there, they never came over to us.

 

[mathgeek]

There are signs all over about chairs not being reserved, but I saw no evidence that CM's are moving anything.

My stay overlapped with yours, and I saw the same exact thing. There were a lot of chairs reserved before 8, but I never saw CM's moving anything. One day I had chairs near me that were reserved and sat empty for well over an hour, and nothing happened.

If you don't come to the pool until 10AM a close seat will be hard to find. That being said, I've never not found a seat during my 9 day stay. The area hidden between the beach access handicap ramp S turn is a good spot to check as it has prime ocean views but is a bit hidden.

There was one day I sat by the pool then moved to the beach then came back to the pool around 10:15 and wanted to put my stuff down somewhere so I could go on the lazy river and the slides. I could not find an empty chair, but that was on a Saturday, so that may have been the problem. Maybe if I'd looked harder in the more hidden locations or in front of 'Ama 'Ama I might have found one. Other days there was no issue (plus I learned to not give up my chair until I was completely done at the pool).

It would be nice if they had a little locker area like at BB or TL or little cubbies like they do on Dream and Fantasy for you to put your stuff in when you want to ride the AquaDuck.

 

[KateP85]

How many chairs are in the shade? We'll have a 12-week old baby with us and he needs to be in the shade. I've tried to get a cabana each day but so far they're all booked up. Just wondering what time I need to be there!

 

[Gr8scott]

We just returned yesterday from a 10-day stay, and echo most of the posts already wriiten. If you cant get there by 8:00 AM try the orange umbrellas on the deck in front of Ama Ama. Although the Cabanas come at a cost, the umbrellas behind them are complimentary just like the pool and beach chairs, and seem to be the last shaded spots chosen. Also, there are some great beach chairs/umbrellas in the last row on the beach that offer extra shade from palm trees. We loved those as also.

 

[HD1]

We were just there for 9 days and never had a hard time getting a chair. I went down and sat and reserved 5 chairs every morning from about 630 - 8am. Then at 8 I marked my spot and went up to have breakfast for about 1/2 hour. We then just came down and sat in the chairs for most of the day.

I recommend the chairs directly in front of the shaved ice shack, under the tree. They are right in front of the pool and shade all day. But you will have to get there early.

 

[Sepo]

We saw some monitoring. 1-2 times a day. And that's all. The CM was very cautious about not getting it wrong and the few times she did remove towels she asked those around if they had seen any of these folks recently.

They are in a tough situation.. Not wanting to start a fight.

 

[DisneyFanDad]

Just back from a 10 day stay. We were just causal pool/beach users. We didn't have any issues getting chairs at the beach, although getting one with an umbrella was hit or msis depending on the time of day. In the 10 days there, we could not casually walk up to anywhere in the pool area after 8 AM and find a single chair to put all of the stuff for our family of 4. Several times we just made a pile of stuff in the landscaping near the lazy river or behind chairs that other people were using. Disney REALLY needs to figure out a way for families to be able to store flip flops, coverups, tshirts, etc... while people want to take a dip in the pool. And NO, I don't want to go down to the pool and leave all that stuff up in my room.

I do not like people that are just placing 5 to 6 towels on chairs and then leaving for hours. I saw that a lot. No tshirts, shoes, flipflops, bags, or anything. People also just throw used towels on chairs and go to lunch or dinner, or just leave for the day. We did see CM's cleaning those up after a while. I also saw at least 3 arguments with people taking chairs... and we spent a lot of time off resort.

 

[DLgal]

I have a question. If ALL that people are leaving is a towel, how do they remember which chair is theirs? I assume all the towels look the same...

 

[sweethannah]

We were just there for 9 days and never had a hard time getting a chair. I went down and sat and reserved 5 chairs every morning from about 630 - 8am. Then at 8 I marked my spot and went up to have breakfast for about 1/2 hour. We then just came down and sat in the chairs for most of the day.

I recommend the chairs directly in front of the shaved ice shack, under the tree. They are right in front of the pool and shade all day. But you will have to get there early.

Part of the problem tbh

 

[Drusilla99]

Totally! Some of the problem is definitely lazy people that just outright refuse to pick up their dirty towels when they leave. We saw one family that that multiple chairs in different areas around the pool that would move depending on where the shade was...don't get me started on this, that when they finally gave up one set of chairs one day, looked at the people next to them and said "you can have these chairs," walked away and there were at least six wet, dirty towels left there.

 

[Mokat76]

Totally! Some of the problem is definitely lazy people that just outright refuse to pick up their dirty towels when they leave. We saw one family that that multiple chairs in different areas around the pool that would move depending on where the shade was...don't get me started on this, that when they finally gave up one set of chairs one day, looked at the people next to them and said "you can have these chairs," walked away and there were at least six wet, dirty towels left there.

This is why the CMs need to enforce the rules. But of course, they won't.

Funniest seat-saving thing that happened to me. We were trudging down to the beach around 3:30, at which time there are plenty of chairs. As I prepared to put my stuff down on a front row chair, a tee-shirt whizzes by my head from row two onto the chair and a voice says, "That's reserved." I looked at this woman, looked at the almost completely vacant row of chairs next to that one, looked back at her over the top of my sunglasses, shook my head and just walked away. The guy two seats down, as I passed, said, "Now that's classy." Yep. Flying tee-shirts do add a certain flair to one's rudeness.

 

[kelly3kids]

We were there 6/20-6/27 and this was the only disappointing thing about our trip. The one day we wanted to be by the pool for more than an hour or so we couldn't find a chair at all. I didn't see any attendants walking around. I allowed this to put me in a very bad mood because I couldn't believe, in my opinion, how rude people were to take five or even six chairs and know that their kids would not use the chairs. I allowed this to really get to me that day. We did finally find one chair for our family of five. My husband and I traded off. I finally got over it and moved on but I still cannot believe that people save seats all day for their kids that sit for 5 minutes and just look at people that are looking for chairs. It made especially sad to see parents of babies not be able to find some place to sit in the shade. That's not much of a vacation. Two years ago when we were there the attendants were every where pulling peoples things. At that time I even heard them tell families that if no one was going to sit in the chairs they would need to give them up. The beach was great during our stay and we never had a problem getting chairs so we spent more time there.

 

[sgrap]

This is why the CMs need to enforce the rules. But of course, they won't.

Funniest seat-saving thing that happened to me. We were trudging down to the beach around 3:30, at which time there are plenty of chairs. As I prepared to put my stuff down on a front row chair, a tee-shirt whizzes by my head from row two onto the chair and a voice says, "That's reserved." I looked at this woman, looked at the almost completely vacant row of chairs next to that one, looked back at her over the top of my sunglasses, shook my head and just walked away. The guy two seats down, as I passed, said, "Now that's classy." Yep. Flying tee-shirts do add a certain flair to one's rudeness.

Good gravy, that is just nuts.

 

[nkereina]

This problem isn't unique to Aulani, unfortunately. I've seen it on every cruise ship I've been on and at every all inclusive resort I have been to. I've yet to see a good resolution. Most resorts/cruise ships don't even attempt to police it like Aulani does.

We'll be at Aulani in September and it's my understanding the commute from the beach isn't too bad. I'ts also my understanding that the beach usually has chairs available all day. Our tentative plan is to use chairs on the beach and just walk back to the pool whenever we want to go in. I'd be nervous to leave our shoes and clothes in a bush or off to the side of a walkway somewhere.

 

[sgrap]

We were there 6/20-6/27 and this was the only disappointing thing about our trip. The one day we wanted to be by the pool for more than an hour or so we couldn't find a chair at all. I didn't see any attendants walking around. I allowed this to put me in a very bad mood because I couldn't believe, in my opinion, how rude people were to take five or even six chairs and know that their kids would not use the chairs. I allowed this to really get to me that day. We did finally find one chair for our family of five. My husband and I traded off. I finally got over it and moved on but I still cannot believe that people save seats all day for their kids that sit for 5 minutes and just look at people that are looking for chairs. It made especially sad to see parents of babies not be able to find some place to sit in the shade. That's not much of a vacation. Two years ago when we were there the attendants were every where pulling peoples things. At that time I even heard them tell families that if no one was going to sit in the chairs they would need to give them up. The beach was great during our stay and we never had a problem getting chairs so we spent more time there.

I agree, it is just selfish and the fact that Aulani just lets this continue is ridiculous. Why even put up the new signs and make it sound like something will be done about it if they are not going to enforce it? I do think it would help if there was somewhere to put your things besides chairs. We didn't really need or want a chair, we just wanted somewhere to sit our pool towels and a few little things. Would have been happy with a shelf or cubby. I don't understand the mind set of saving a gazillion chairs all day for your family who is only going to use 2 chairs for a short time.

 

[KateP85]

We just left Aulani on Sunday and the pool chair thing is ridiculous. We just wanted 1 chair in the shade where we could dump our stuff and the baby would be in the shade. An hour after the pool opened and there was nothing.

There was one day we sat next to 5 chairs being used by a family of 4, including 2 kids who basically never came out the water. One of the chairs had a towel and a newspaper on it, no one even sat on it! DH finally asked if we could take it since we were all crammed onto 1 chair and the family looked at us like we'd asked if we could have one of their kids. It irritates me no end.

 

[twodogs]

We were there over Memorial weekend and the following week. It was our first trip, so I have no basis for comparison. I was always able to find at least one chair in the beach area, usually in some shade but not always. As for the pools, rarely did I see an open chair until after 5pm or so, though maybe there were some way far away from the pools that I missed. The adult pool always had chairs, but we had kids so that was out. We did find a table up by the Rainbow Reef with an umbrella, but that area is reserved for folks who are eating or drinking at one of the CS places. My husband was all too happy to "have" to order a beer (or two!) to keep it official that we were at that table!! We did a cabana 3 days just to try to avoid this craziness! I will say we saw people reserving chairs for hours where no one sat in them. Only once in 9 days did I see CMs fold a towel on a chair, but I never saw them actually come back to check if the towel moved or not. It was in the row of chairs right in front of our cabana, so I watched it just sit there, folded.

I will say that it is a daunting task to try to monitor all of those chairs all day, I'm sure. I would not want that job. I think like many resorts, they have limited real estate to work with. They aren't making more money by having more space for pool chairs; they are making more money by building more rooms on that land. So I think they under-stock the place with chairs, build more rooms (like Aulani did, in phases) and hope for the best. I have been looking at other Hawaiian resorts (for our next trip, but shhh don't tell my husband I'm even thinking of it...), and some of them charge by the day for a chair, an umbrella etc. At least they don't charge like that at Aulani. But if they did, you would not see people paying for a chair to hold their wet towels for hours at a time!

 

[littleblackegg]

Chairs are not reserved. Covering a chair with a towel doesn't reserve it. If a chair is covered with bags and hats and sunscreen, I consider it being used. Just a towel means an invisible person is contemplating using it, but can't because I am in it. I have never been approached or confronted because I removed a towel.