04-06-2025
Couple blasted as 'selfish' after they admit to reserving sunbed before going to breakfast
A British tourist has defended putting towels on sunbeds while nipping for breakfast on holiday.
Rachel McGuigan and her husband David were enjoying a plush vacation in Turkey at The Residence Hotel in Fethiye, west of Antalya.
The couple, who work for a water gardening company, were holidaying with their friends Adam and Hayley.
But Rachel divided opinion after they the pair took to Instagram to reveal they'd put their towels on their poolside beds for half an hour while they went for their morning meal.
The tourist attracted angry reactions from some holidaymakers on social media for the controversial move.
Harry Crumb said: 'I just remove them, if full. I don't care and the hotel doesn't care.'
Another added: 'Just throw the towels in the pool. It's not allowed to do this in most hotels and resorts.'
But someone else said: 'I don't understand. I thought it was normal to get up, grab your towels, pop them on your bed then go for breakfast.'
Rachel was left confused by people's reactions.
'I just thought it was crazy that people were so upset about leaving a towel for half an hour to go for breakfast,' Rachel told What's The Jam. 'They accused me of being selfish and all sorts.'
Rachel, from York, then posted about it on her 'Holidays & Hangovers' TikTok page.
She then decided to stoke the fires further by posting a joke video of her leaving towels at 5.30am to go on a series of fake excursions that lasted until bedtime.
The punchline was that they never got to spend a minute on the sunbeds they reserved at dawn.
In the footage, she shared a screenshot of an angry user's message that read: 'Really annoys me that people put towels on sunbeds then go away somewhere?
'Why? Everyone wants to enjoy their holiday.'
Rachel captioned her clip: 'Fine, you've all caught me out, this is how our day really looked…'
However, many furious Brits took the joke literally and flooded her comments section for a second time.
One riled tourist said: 'So you reserved the beds and didn't use them but wouldn't let anyone else use them? Have you ever thought that you may be the problem?'
Another raged: 'You go on holiday for a rest but end up getting up early like you do at home just to put towels out. Hotels are not for me, that's why I Airbnb, not having a go, just saying.'
'The most council estate thing ever!' said a third.
After managing to ruffle a few feathers, Rachel explained: 'After the first time, I thought it would be funny to play up to it.
'It was a joke and I didn't expect anyone to take it seriously, but I ended up opening a can of worms about sunbed reservations!'
She added: 'There wasn't a lack of sunbeds so putting our towels down before going for breakfast wasn't an issue for anyone.
'I was surprised with everyone commenting about it.'
Rachel admitted it can be 'annoying' when some tourists leave their towels on sunbeds 'for hours on end'.
But she doesn't see it as a problem if it's 'only for half an hour and someone stays with them'.
