British Tourist Sparks Debate by Clearing Reserved Pool Loungers in Tenerife

A viral video from Tenerife has reignited the long-running holiday grievance known as “towel wars,” after British tourist Rachel Rogers systematically removed towels from lounge chairs claimed early in the morning at a four-star hotel. The clip, published on June 23, 2026, shows Rogers walking from bed to bed, folding the towels aside and even bowing to the camera after finishing the sweep.

Rogers said she was acting against so-called “chair hogs,” guests who reserve the best poolside spots with towels and then disappear for hours. In her caption, she wrote, “I left the towel hiders a little surprise when they came down to the pool.” She later doubled down in a response video, saying, “I don’t care what they think. I enjoyed every minute, and if I had more time, I would have thrown some of the towels straight into the pool.”

Reaction online was sharply divided. Thousands praised her as a hero and called for the hotel to reward her with a free holiday, while others accused her of unnecessary provocation and interfering with property that was not hers. Rogers said she spent about an hour on the task and left before the guests noticed their towels were gone.

The article says the issue is not just bad manners but a structural problem in hotel planning. Industry experts say many hotels deliberately design pool areas for fewer people than the property can host, saving space and maintenance costs while creating artificial scarcity. That drives guests to stake out spots early and ignore others’ rights. Hotels are now responding with stricter enforcement, including staff who label unattended towels and remove them after 45 minutes, app-based reservations for pool chairs, and, in some cases, extra fees for the most desirable loungers.