How to handle crazies?

[2Tiggies]

Then if another family came in and were bringing chairs out of the sun and sitting at the table we hadn't been using, I probably would have said Hi and started talking to the family, telling them we would be glad to share the cabana with them.

I am one of those people that invite others to share a table when it gets crowded and tables are hard to find in the CS places in the park. You meet a lot of nice people from all over the world that way.

I've met some great people at Disney through sharing tables. I guess it depends how you enjoy your vacation/leisure time. I can understand though if you are a family, preferring to have a bit of privacy. On the other hand, I am a single mom with a little girl. Sharing benches and tables is one sure way I get to meet folk and have a lovely chat with them. However I am fully aware that this is not the norm and I would never scoot my things into someone else's space just for some company.

 

[Julylady]

Last May our group of 8 spent the day at Typhoon Lagoon. We arrived early and set up camp under a shady cabana. I think we had 4 loungers and 4 chairs. My Mom and one of my nieces (who doesn't like water!) stayed behind to lounge while the rest of us did slides, lazy river, etc. When we returned later another group had "joined" our party by dragging over more loungers and chairs under "our" cabana. My Mom said that they were looking for shade and asked if we could share the cabana. She said "absolutely" thinking that it all belonged to Disney not us. We spent the rest of the day with both families coming and going from the cabana.

If that is essentially what happened in the OP's case, I don't think they were crazy. But if they removed your stuff from chairs and used them when there were other chairs in plain view, I would agree they were crazy.

 

[MissStitch626]

Does anyone else see this as the same argument as saving tables at counter service restaurants when you don't have your food yet leaving lots of people who already have their food walking around for a long time looking of a table to use?

Why would you prevent someone else from using something when you aren't using it yourself? "Because we might show back up to sit in the chairs in 3 or 4 hours" really doesn't seem like a good reason.

I tend to agree that reserving something for 3-4 hours is definately unreasonable when there are other people who would like to use the table/chair/space or whatever. I think difficulties arise because it can be difficult to judge in these types of situations - I've been in CS places in WDW where people have removed either my or my DH chair when one of us had gone to the restroom as they have assumed we were no longer using the chair. I know other posters have hinted that a chair at the water park is only occupied if someone is sitting in it, but as I said in a previous post I think there needs to be a bit of balance to this. I have no issues with anyone going to the bathroom and expecting their chair to still be there when they get back

 

[DisDayz]

I guess I'm going to side with the crazies in this case as I don't see that they did anything wrong. They found a public area that was not currently being used and opted to use it. And, I would imagine that if you had contacted a CM or manager you would have been told much the same. They would have helped you relocate or offered to relocate the other family if room was available but I am pretty certain they would not have just forced someone to leave the area.

FWIW, we were recently at a resort at the beach and it was posted at the pool: "Items left unattended for more than 20 minutes will be removed and taken to Lost and Found." This was done specifically to keep people from camping out at chairs around the pool / lazy river. And, yes, they did have someone patrolling the area and removing items that were left for extended periods of time so I would dare say at least at that resort it was not an acceptable part of civilized society.

 

[4Robins]

You said there was plenty of other space I would of just grab my stuff and move. I mean they were being rude you weren't going to get anywhere trying to talk to them.

I would NEVER EVER EVER walk away from that. By doing so, you just empower them to continue this behavior. Nope, not me....they would have been given one verbal warning, them i would home thrown them out one by one, and if they got mad and got management involved, GREAT. NEVER back down to people like that, most of them are paper tough guys anyway and if you get in their face, they will whimper and crawl away!!! This new passive "PC" society we are trying to build is NOT working!!!!

 

[shalom]

Why would you prevent someone else from using something when you aren't using it yourself? "Because we might show back up to sit in the chairs in 3 or 4 hours" really doesn't seem like a good reason.

This. I don't really like waterparks, so the few times I've gone to one, I spent the entire time sitting somewhere with my friend's stuff. And I have seen the "hey, we just left that spot!" routine more than once. The people who "just left" always insist they were there ten minutes ago, twenty minutes ago, whatever. I knew coming in I wouldn't be in the water, so I've got my watch with me, and the actual time they've been gone is always way longer than they say. (Yeah, I keep track of that sort of thing. The disparity between actually reality and some people's reality always amuses me.) Most people in those places do not have a watch and really don't have a clue how long they've been gone.

I have never understood why people feel they have the right to a whole slew of chairs and often a table for the hours they're in the water when there are often people who aren't in the water wanting to sit in the sun or the shade or otherwise use the space currently devoted to a collection of inanimate objects. I travel with hubby and five kids, and we commonly bring a slew of stuff to the pool or waterpark - but we also pile it all in one pile, on chair or two, or maybe on a table if I plan to sit there, because there's no reason other people shouldn't have the right to use that space if we're not there.

If we come back and people are sitting in "our" space, them's the hazards. We pick up our stuff and move, or we share the space. No one's ever abused our property, although it's quite possible people have moved it over a bit and I don't remember it because I wouldn't care unless something got wet or whatnot. And I've certainly offered to move the kid's stuff when I'm there by myself and I see someone looking for a place to sit. I just don't get why people enjoying the pools are supposed to have the right to hold the best seats on the grounds as well.

 

[Deb & Bill]

I...FWIW, we were recently at a resort at the beach and it was posted at the pool: "Items left unattended for more than 20 minutes will be removed and taken to Lost and Found." This was done specifically to keep people from camping out at chairs around the pool / lazy river. And, yes, they did have someone patrolling the area and removing items that were left for extended periods of time so I would dare say at least at that resort it was not an acceptable part of civilized society.

Nope, they did allow you to leave your chair for 20 minutes and return to it. So it was acceptable to leave your stuff unattended for up to 20 minutes before it was considered abandoned. You can easily play in the wave pool, get something to eat, go to the bathroom, go around the lazy river one time and return to your spot within 20 minutes at BB and TL. I know that's what we do all the time.

If Disney didn't intend you to stake out a spot, they would not have built the covered pavillions, set up umbrellas and other covered areas with chairs already under them. They would have set up shelves like you have at McDonald's outside the play area with little cubbies where you would put your stuff while you played.

 

[dudelydude]

Zactly.

you have to out-crazy them, and find THEIR trigger. Sitting in their lap, or very close to them, or being noisy, or messy, or stinky - these may work. Usually a family like this is led by one bold bully and the rest are pretty normal - evenually the uncomfortable normal ones will side with you against the bad seed leader.

I'd focus on personal space. If they took the chairs, sit right next to the chairs and in a way that intermingles their people with yours. Continually fold towels and bring more things into the space (towels, food, etc). Start a song like 99 bottles of beer on the wall, or a game like "I'm going on a picnic". And at any point they give up some space, quickly fill in the gap and expand your domain.

By no means am I a pushover, but I have to disagree with this advice. I'd rather enjoy my vacation for which I spent thousands of dollars. You have a very short time to make that quick decision as to whether you are going to let this bother you for the rest of your day or spend way less energy by insisting to see a manager or simply moving on. But there is no way I am hanging out by these people and stooping to their level.

 

[WDSearcher]

If Disney didn't intend you to stake out a spot, they would not have built the covered pavillions, set up umbrellas and other covered areas with chairs already under them. They would have set up shelves like you have at McDonald's outside the play area with little cubbies where you would put your stuff while you played.

OK ... this doesn't make sense to me at all. Disney built covered pavilions and set up umbrellas and other covered areas with chairs so that you can SIT IN THEM, not so that you can dump all your stuff while you go spend an hour in the wave pool. Disney designed all these areas to be used as shaded relaxation areas for people to sit in, not shaded storage spaces for stuff to sit in. Shaded storage spaces for stuff are called lockers.

 

[Deb & Bill]

OK ... this doesn't make sense to me at all. Disney built covered pavilions and set up umbrellas and other covered areas with chairs so that you can SIT IN THEM, not so that you can dump all your stuff while you go spend an hour in the wave pool. Disney designed all these areas to be used as shaded relaxation areas for people to sit in, not shaded storage spaces for stuff to sit in. Shaded storage spaces for stuff are called lockers.

And that is what people do. They sit in the chairs. They don't use them like an auditorium to watch the activities, though. They come and go at will. I spend a lot of time sitting, reading, taking a nap in my chair at TL. While I am in my spot, I see lots of other people going back and forth to their chairs as well. For the most part, people don't leave them unoccupied for 3-4 hours at a time. People come and go, meet up with their party, have a place where the kids can come and go from, dry off, reapply sunscreen, enjoy ice cream or a soda, etc. People don't just leave their stuff on the chairs and not return for hours.

Now for the blanket on the sidewalk at the MK for a few hours, that's unacceptable because it is a sidewalk. It's not an auditorium. You can't block the egress on the sidewalk or on the street. Putting a blanket down for an hour to two and not being there is blocking egress. Disney doesn't allow chairs on the parade route, but if they did have parade seating along the route, you probably could reserve seats, but you would have to stay with them or else you would lose them.

 

[MidgeD79]

So is it ok for people to stake out "a spot" at the beach? Why or why not?

 

[Tomh]

this is the best!!!

Thank you!


As for reserving a table at CS . . . . Well, I never really thought about that, or whether some might consider it rude. When we go to CS, we typically have DD15, and DS6 get a table, and chairs, while DW and I get food. Now it's not like they are holding the table for an hour or two waiting for us, it's perhaps 10 minutes, maybe 15 if it's a long line, and the kids are sitting there at the table, we're not just dropping our stuff on it, but I suppose some might view that as rude, since there are certainly other people who have their food, and could be sitting there eating. Just goes to show that what seems perfectly acceptable to one might be rude, or offensive to others.

For the record, I would NOT resort to passing gas to clear a table at a restaurant, that would just be wrong lol

 

[Dopey420]

My daughter was chosen Ski Captain or whatever they call it at Blizzard Beach and we got pictures and mugs and a special hut that said Ski Captain. When we came back, anbother family had moved their stuff into the Ski Captain hut. They didn't know, and Im not sure they spoke much English. We just welcomed them in and made a big party of it.

 

[judowoman]

While I understand those that say pick up your stuff and move that is, in my opinion, the wrong answer. These people were bullies and they need to be stood up to. Whether you get firm with them or whether you get a park employee. The reason they and people like them do this is because people have the "I'll just move to avoid the conflict" attitude. As long as people let them get away with it, it will continue. I am not advocating a physical confrontation or to do anything you are uncomfortable with. I have had a similar thing happen to my wife and I and I politely gathered their things up for them and placed them into a pile on the sidewalk, while they watched in shock. Again I do not encourage this, but the rude family left without saying another word to me or anyone.

I agree with this post..

 

[2Tiggies]

I may be flamed for this, but I am just wondering if the heat at the moment is having an impact not only on people's perceptions of others' actions and attitudes but on their own. I am not there at the moment so I cannot speak from the perspective of someone there right now, but I do find it interesting that in the last day or so, several threads have popped up debating etiquette in the parks in respect of cutting in front of people waiting for parades, not reading signs in CS lines indicated a second queue for a cashier and nicking each someone else's cabana at a waterpark. Just saying ....

Furthermore, as we can see from this thread, we all have our own ideas of what is acceptable and what is not. If it is possible to get into such a heated discussion typing posts in a thread on the internet, then how do we expect others to react when suddenly faced with the situation where you have not had the benefit of taking your time to read posts, consider others' approaches, etc, etc. Again, just saying ....

 

[ginnymack]

Zactly.

The interlopers know that:
- Most people will slink away
- A manager won't take the stand that chairs are 'owned' so what's left is an aribitration. Which they'll stand up to, ending in a waste of time and the prior people slinking away anyway.

So as someone else mentioned with the "sit in their lap" comment, if you don't want to slink away, you have to out-crazy them, and find THEIR trigger. Sitting in their lap, or very close to them, or being noisy, or messy, or stinky - these may work. Usually a family like this is led by one bold bully and the rest are pretty normal - evenually the uncomfortable normal ones will side with you against the bad seed leader.

So I would actually NOT focus on or come close to the apparent alpha dog, rather the rest. Be as passive agressive as possible, which is to say that you don't recognize their existence, yet make it very clear that every action (and a continuous, unrelenting wave of actions) is directed at them, with no end in sight.

I'd focus on personal space. If they took the chairs, sit right next to the chairs and in a way that intermingles their people with yours. Continually fold towels and bring more things into the space (towels, food, etc). Start a song like 99 bottles of beer on the wall, or a game like "I'm going on a picnic". And at any point they give up some space, quickly fill in the gap and expand your domain.

And have some fun with it. They took your space for their benefit, take it back in a way that is for yours.

And I thought my husband had passive aggressive down to an art form!

 

[DisDayz]

So, I'm sitting here reading this thread and I have come to the conclusion that if I were to say the sky is blue about 40% of the posters would agree, another 40% would disagree and 20% would try to tell me I have no clue what blue actually is, let alone how it pertains to the sky.

 

[papaoma]

easy thing to do is walk away and be frustrated. Right thing to do is stand up to the bullies,while one of your parties seeks out a manager the rest of you sit on whatever chairs are available and make yourself "overly" comfortable!

 

[smidgy]

If there's only one or two of you, don't bring a lot of stuff that you can't keep on your body. Sheesh.

Leave it in a locker if you are concerned about it. Frankly, it's just rude to leave your stuff unattended and expect it to still be there when you saunter back.

I can keep my book on my body, but I think it might get wet on the slides. and I've never "sauntered" in my life.

hubby and I go, just us 2. so one of us has to stay at the chairs while the other, goes on a slide, or in the wave pool? "ok, you're turn, I'll stay here" how silly. or, sometimes, we do go off indif. directions (washroom, get a drink. or I'll slide alone.. or one of us will go for a smoke) how do we meet back up if our spot keeps moving?
we DO use our chairs. we bring our books, read, sun bathe, and also use the slides, lazy river,, etc.
I work nights and hate getting up early. but we arrive at park opening to get 2 loungers near a DSA. there is nothing rude about this.

It is not the same at all as saving a spot for a parade or illuminations. in these cases, of course someone needs to stay.
lying on chairs is part of the nature of a water park or pool. just as, at a resort pool, there is a dif. between putting belongings on a chair in the morning and going off to the park... and getting off your chair to swim, use the bathroom, go to the DSA, or refill your mug.

yes, the chair is "disney property" but you are using it. and everyone else understands this.

 

[afwdwfan]

What about shuffle your feet lose your seat?

What about respect for the "seat check?"