pool chairs

[shysdcouple]

I don't think doubletrouble (and they are) said they were there last october.... I see you Philly . This policy was not in effect in Oct of '08 when we were there the last time, and I don't ever remember there being an issue with chairs then. I agree with aandk4fun that 1 hour is plenty. Also, If they can enforce a reservation policy, why can't they enforce an empty chair policy? The problem with this whole thing, is that the chance of getting to sit next to the people you want to sit next to went wayyy down. Bring your laptop doubletrouble cause it looks like we'll have to IM with each other across the pool.

T and B

[DoubleTrouble]

Yes, I guess we are DoubleTrouble-shysdcouple-you would know!

And that is correct-we did not say we were there last Oct-we missed that year

We agree with both shysdcouple and aandk4fun. 1 hour is sufficient and courteous. Unfortunately you cant legislate common courtesy and it feels like that is what management is attempting to do. It wont work!

And those that are inconsiderate will find a way around ANY policy- for instance- Can invision a situation where both a beach bed and pool chair are reservered- and the occupants- switch between the two every hour and 59 minutes........to hold both. I mean seriously- that would be absurd and we personally would not do that, but our point is- SOMEONE will!

It is also disturbing to cosider what policy may come next? Renting your pool chairs for $100 a week? Jacuzzi seat reservations? Reservations for the playroom? The direction this could be going in is scary.

We did get a response from Valentina and she again reinterated the policy assuming we did not understand.......oh we understand it just fine, that is not the point- the point is that we disagree with it.

She also said that they have 37 sets of chairs around the pool. Do THAT math! Aren't there 110 rooms at Desire.........?? 74 chairs for 220 people (if the resort is at capacity?!!) Granted not all will be at the pool-but seriously - is that sufficient?

We realize space is limited, and yes, mfay the answer could be a larger pool- and THAT would cause a whole other issue, that guests would potentially have to deal with, so that is not a quick fix, either, we agree.
But obviously the majority of guests are not pleased with this chair policy -therefore- management needs to re-think their position.

Again, simple common courtesy, 1 hour rule, and enforcement of that rule! Seems simple and easy to us, just like a vacation should be.

BTW- if the policy still exists in Oct shysdcouple- we can always sit on our favorite southerners laps in the Premier Section........provided we are allowed in.

[me_gusta]

With trip 3 coming for us in November we are certainly a tad bit concerned by this situation. On prior trips in May 2007(with two large groups in house) and November 2008 there was no apparent reservation system in place either time and we saw no issues with anyone. There always appeared to be a pair of chairs open here or there. We would stop by the pool on our way to breakfast between 8 and 9am, drop our bags where we wanted, had breakfast and then went to the pool. Though only time I saw anyone have trouble getting a chair was if they wanted a particular area and arrived at the pool right before or during the daily activities! So, if this is as folks are describing it, things at Desire have gone waaaaay downhill. Will be curious to see what transpires between now and 11/15 and while we are there. Waiting in line at the butt crack of dawn and/or not being able to have a lounger if there are multiple empties are neither viable options in my mind!

[DandJ4X]

We're pretty much in the exact same position as Me_Gusta. We will be arriving there for our 4th visit over 5 years on 11/16 and we never had an issue at all.
Two of those trips happened to be at the same time that there were very large groups there and still no issues.

What has changed to create this problem

Not sure if they had the Premier Groups during those trips but if not, it sure appears to be the low hanging fruit here

[happycuple]

It sounds as though the staff have various different interpretations of the rule.

If all the staff saw things the way Valentina said in her e-mail then there shouldn't be a problem but what does it mean that Premier members "are guaranteed" a chair at poolside ?

Valentina makes it seem that Premier members have to stake their claim by a certain time (night before ? before 10 am ?) and any chairs not claimed by that time will be given out to the rest of the guests.

The way people are saying that it's working right now . . . it sounds like they are holding unclaimed chairs for Premier members throughout the day so that they are guaranteed a seat no matter what time they decide to come to the pool to claim one.

Sounds like Management needs to decide which interpretation they WANT and then clearly communicate that to the chair concierge people . .

[Wingit48]

We have never experienced the chair problem since we can only get away from work in April and November - hardly Desire's peak of the season. Nevertheless, it would seem a combination of Happycuple's idea of letting Premier members reserve up to 10 am or the night before and maybe investing in some more chairs might solve all of this...

[bobbyxsandy]

I am one of the people who started this chair issue on the boards and "NO I DID NOT HAVE A SHITTY VACATION" I was there the 2nd week of June 2010 and have been there every year since it opened. As a matter of fact it was a perfect vacation except for the chairs. The new system which is creating the problem is the Special People also know as Priemier Guest and the fact they have special chairs reserved for them , but they do not like them and reserve the lesser class guest chairs the night before and the special chairs stay unoccupied . The other problem is the tipping thing ,if you tip enough you get the chairs you what without getting up at 6 am and still not getting chairs , except for the add on ones they drag out if there are any of those left . So for the guy who has never been there before , running his mouth about "someone having a shitty vacation" ,Know your facts before you run your mouth.

[DandAEastTexas]

Looks like a bunch of us have recently received the same letter from DESIRE management. As mentioned earlier by many...one does not have to be a math wiz to quickly realize that couples outnumber chaise lounges by a w i d e margin.

Personally, as a 7 a.m. pool-goer I get more than just a little upset at arriving at the pool and seeing ZERO PEOPLE (OK maybe a few other early risers)...but a dozen or two chaise lounges all set-up and reserved for the invisible man (and woman). AND, while I'm being personal...the wife and I have been there enough times and have tipped enough pool staff to the point to which "our chairs" are never a problem (an umbrella maybe....usually).

But a DESIRE vacation is not just about the wife and I....it's about the people we know and the people we've yet to meet......and this reserved policy simply sucks!

ALL that it can possibly do is create a "class-system" (which, while typical for many Latin American countries.....hell, we're not all that much different here).....will come back to bite the "privledged few" right in the ass....and not in the good sense of the word.

People at DESIRE need to mix and mingle and chat and whatever the hell they want to do where they want to do it (obviously there are a wide variety of common sense exceptions to this rule)....BUT come on - nothing good can possibly come from this.

I go every year with a large group (50-70 couples). We've been going for years. Most are from Texas. I'm bracing for ALAMO 2 - Battle for the Chairs...... and (personally) I don't want to be Davey Crocket. It's gonna get ugly....and there's no damn reason for it. I know management reads these messages.....PLEASE DUMP THIS POLICY....NOW!

[DoubleTrouble]

WOW!!! Interesting that no one has posted a "Gee, this new system for pool chair reservations is working great"!!! Quite the opposite- we DO hope management is hearing the message loud and clear and decide to abolish this!

[Sharon and David]

This maybe a shot in the dark but what if someone started a poll about this ugly problem on our very lovely vacation place ?? Perhaps management would get the point.

[Headstone]

maybe we can do one in the deisrecancun yahoo group?

[Headstone]

OK done
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DesireCancunCouples/surveys?id=2303049

If you havent get registered for the group while you are there

[happycuple]

Sorry . . . and you're assuming Desire Management actually reads or belongs to that group ?

If you are going to create a poll you should do it here . .

[Powderfinger]

nice idea, but gotta laugh......you've never been there, eh? a poll choice of "needing 20 more chairs"...well, there isn't room to do that.....adding 10 more would pretty much make moving around the pool an athletic endeavour, you should see it when they drag a few chairs up there now......they're pretty much stuck with things as they are until the economy turns and they (hopefully) decide to go ahead with their dormant expansion plans.....

[mfay]

Agree with that Powder. There is no way to add more chairs. Unless............can you see a huge deck about 8' in the air all around the pool............ the people who want sun go up top- for the shade you take the lower level ? Naw- me either.
Can't really see going back to the old system with no concierge signing out chairs either since there were constant complaints then too and no way for anyone to enforce any 1 or 2 hour rule without the concierge.
At least there is some consolation in the fact that there are now upwards of 40 nice 2-person beach beds plus a bunch of beach loungers. Some weeks you still can't get a beach bed- other weeks it's a pool lounger. Just varies with the crowd.
Yes, there does seem to be more of a problem now- apparently because of how many chairs are held for premier members and how/when they are released if empty. You would think there could be some fine tuning to make more of us happy, but there is no obvious easy "solution" or it would have already been done. Still, lots of suggestions couldn't hurt !