Look out for the Hammock HOGS on Castaway Cay!

[lillygator]

CC was awesome.....beautiful beach, not quite as beautiful as Siesta Key - but I am spoiled! But the HAMMOCK HOGS have got to GO!

We stayed on the family beach all day since our 18 month old DD was with us. We were among the first bunch off the ship. We stopped and had Capt Hook pictures as well as the other ones offered. By the time we got to the beach no front row chairs were left....no biggie...we chose chairs on the second row right behind a hammock, which of course had a towel on it as well as a bunch of junk on the other surrounding chairs. We snagged two loungers and two small chairs. We both sat in the loungers and DD used BOTH chairs for climbing enjoyment while providing a barricade.

My beef is with the big fat hairy guy who sat and guarded the hammock in a lounge chair and all his family's stuff all day while the hammock went unused. He was not even making use of it. We were there from 9:45ish till around 2 and only once did his daughter sit in it for 5 minutes. Two chairs away was another hammock being saved but unused.

My DD took a nap on a lounge chair and she would have loved to sleep in a hammock....DH and I would have both loved to use it as well....we didn't snorkel or do any activity except build a sandcastle and have some beverages right in our area. One of us went and got lunch and brought it back to our chairs. We would have used the hammock all day. I am on vacation and don't feel like policing chairs/hammocks so if you aren't going to use the hammocks for more than 30 minutes....don't save them, let others get a little enjoyment as well!

Ban the HH's!!

 

[lillygator]

I guess no one else has had this problem!!!

Hopefully in December it won't be a sold out ship!!

 

[dclwdwlover]

Oh, yes, we do!
I agree completely.

 

[bridegirl]

At one hotel we go to in hawaii, that has a similar "chair hog" problem - they give you a two hour "courtesy hold" - meaning two hours is enough time to go snorkel, have lunch or whatever. If more than two hours has passed and your touchy has not sat on the chair, they take your stuff off so someone else can use it. maybe CC needs a similar policy.

 

[lillygator]

well - I think like the pool chairs - there is *supposedly* a no saving seats policy....but it is not followed nor enforced.

 

[RobinMarie]

I felt the same way about the hammocks except I'd like it if NO ONE used a hammock for the WHOLE day. I was in the water and faced the beach and saw NOT ONE PERSON in a hammock. I would have appreciated the hammock for a couple of hours or so.

I didn't let it ruin my day. First thing in the morning people were running off the first tram to get a hammock. RUNNING I tell ya.

For what .. to hold your towels?

 

[RIDISNEYLOVERS]

When we went on our last cruise in November 2002 we were one of the first off the ship to get a hammock - I learned about hammock hogs from our first cruise so we made a point to get one on this cruise and we USED ours ALLDAY - DD (2 1/2 at the time) took a two hour nap in it!! DH and I rested and relaxed in it for a while and we loved it!! Someone from our family was always in the hammock - we had about 20 family members and we all used that ONE hammock and a few chairs around it!!

There are not too many times in your life that you could be on a beautiful beach and enjoy a hammock just relaxing with the drink of the day - ahhh paradise!!

 

[ragdoll]

DH is always first off the ship and gets us a hammock on the adult beach. We do use it a lot. We also tell whoever is sitting near us that they are welcome to use it when we are in the water or eating lunch. In four cruises, no one has ever taken us up on our offer. Guess they just must feel awkward about it.

I really feel a that Disney could help this situation by getting more hammocks. If I'm not mistaken there are only four of them on the adult beach. Not nearly enough.

 

[StuartMI]

I sympathize with your problem but feel it was sort of crass to refer to someone as "big, fat, and hairy".

 

[invaderzim]

we have experienced this problem on every one of our cruises. The hammocks only seem to be used for "stuff" (at least the times we were there). I've never seen a human being actually sit or lay in them!

It's ridiculous -- if you want to put your "stuff" somewhere -- USE A BEACH CHAIR!

 

[lillygator]

Originally posted by StuartMI
I sympathize with your problem but feel it was sort of crass to refer to someone as "big, fat, and hairy".

you are most definitely correct. This was not a nice thing for me to say at all. I didn't need to describe the person just the fact that he was hogging the hammock.

 

[felixdacat]

We got 2 of the hammocks way at the end of the beach near
the far bar. We used them the entire time. when we were done
we got up and left. There are about 4 hammocks in that area
and the other 2 took a while to get used as well.

I agree, dont take them just to store stuff! If you dont use
them, then give them up.

sandy

 

[Beezle2]

At what point would it be O.K. to move someones stuff though? If I saw one not being used for a couple hours I think I'd go ahead and move the stuff to the side. I think thats fair. Would anyone here ever move somebodys stuff from the hammock?

alisa

 

[Dana D]

We must haved stayed at the same hotel in Hawaii where there is a time limit for unused chairs. The cabana boy would change the towel for you and move the belongings for you. Disney definitely needs this policy on the ship as well as off. We pay a lot of money and should not have to pass on lounge chairs that are "saved" with towels or a lonely book or magazine. Rude. Bottom line! Enforce a policy or there is no policy or take if off of the navigators and literature.

 

[invaderzim]

Hi, Dana D -- Rhode Island is my original home (and I miss it)! What part of RI are you in. PM if you want.

I made my comment about the hammocks above, but when we take three chairs (one for each of us), we leave our books and bags and towels on them while we are in the water or at Cookie's or bike riding because we know we will be back. For most of the day, we are sitting in them.

Those are the chairs, though. The hammocks should not be "saved" all day for people who never materialize.

 

[CACruiser]

My rule of thumb,
If my family and I are just planning on hitting the water for a long period of time, I might save one chair for all our stuff.

The kids will want to be in the water most of the time and one parent is always with them.

After a while at the family beach (and lunch), we clear out (tell others around us who do not have a seat) and the kids go to their clubs. We head out to the adult beach and claim a spot. I love having a hammock there, but I do not mind laying out my towel or beach mat. I was really lucky last time and claimed a hammock just as another couple was leaving. Hubby and I spent the last 2 hours of CC having TWO hammocks to ourselves!


LisaCA

 

[DCL Repeaters]

Had a first hand witnessing of a hammock hog on our 5/1 sailing. This was the 12th time at CC and the 1st time we saw an empty hammock right by the entrance to the adult beach. There are 2 hammocks to the left of the entrance. My DH and I took turns napping & reading in the hammock. When we were done we took our stuff and left so the hammock was free for others to enjoy. The other hammock held stuff only. There were people all around it who had stuff on it but no one sat on it. Such hogs!!

 

[Rence]

In December all the hammocks were "Taken" but empty. My sister had been looking forward to laying in a hammock and reading for an hour or two.

She walked up to one family that was "Guarding" a hammock and just asked if she could use it since they weren't. She told them that she'd get out the second they asked. They seemed a bit surprised that someone would ask, but they agreed. It would have been hard to say no when no one was using the hammock and no one had been for quite some time.

She read for about an hour, got up and thanked them. We kept an eye on the hammock and the family never did use it again the rest of the day.

So one suggestion is to simply ask if you can "borrow" the hammock until someone from the group wants to use it again.

 

[lillygator]

I could have asked to use it but it just seems so akward.....


we are fortunate enough to live at the beach here in Florida.....so I am used to having our own chairs, laying on the sand etc....we were definitely looking forward to some hammock time.

In December I am going to try and not worry about it....just enjoy our time there......

 

[PenskeSth1]

In Nov when we were at CC we originally had 2 hammocks for the four of us. I went in the water with DS for about 20 min. Our stuff sat on both hammocks. There was an family sitting behind us on regular chairs. Since I was the only one really using either hammock (I had a headache that could of brought down a horse)!
I was there all day until we went back to the ship.
We offered the other hammock to that family. It was funny because DH asked the woman if she wanted him to hold the hammock while she got in and she politely said no. She flipped out the other side! DH ended up holding the hammock for her.

I really think if you don't plan on using them, let someone who will, have it.