Disabled grandmother says sunbed vigilantes who filmed themselves hiding her family's pool-side towels ruined their holiday

Daily Mail​

05-06-2025

A disabled grandmother has accused sunbed vigilantes of ruining her holiday after they hid her and her family's poolside towels.
Wheelchair user Elaine Simpson, 77, from Manchester, was staying with her relatives at the Aquasol Aparthotel near Magaluf when the shocking incident took place.
Ms Simpson had been looking forward to spending a day by the poolside and was given permission to reserve sun loungers due to her disability.
But, her plans were ruined after a group of friends filmed themselves nicking the towels they had used to save their spots.
Ms Simpson explained how her hotel room was on the fifth floor and far away from the pool.
And, because she has chronic arthritis and is in a wheelchair, this made it a challenge for her to claim a hotel sunbed before they were all taken.
The grandmother raised her concerns with reception and was granted permission to reserve the loungers.
But when they arrived in the morning, the towels were gone and they were left without a space again.
Ms Simpson told The Sun: 'The only thing that was available apart from that was white plastic chairs, she added.
At first the family thought it might have been a life guard who removed the towels in error.
But it later transpired they were taken due to an awkward misunderstanding.
A group of friends had assumed the towels were put down by tourists attempting to get ahead of the morning rush and were unaware an exception was made for the family.
They shared a video on TikTok showing the teenagers laying out the towels in what was perceived as a rebellion against queue jumpers.
The innocent family came under fire in the comments section - with viewers criticizing them for the apparent breach of hotel rules.
Ms Simpson said: 'It was vile. My grandsons are 13 and 15, they had no right to post any pictures of them.
They shared a video on TikTok showing the teenagers laying out the towels in what was perceived as a rebellion against queue jumpers. Pictured: Ms Simpson's grandson's putting down the towels
'They were just trying to look out for me. 'They've not right to do that without checking the facts.
'What somebody saw, and the truth, are completely different.'
Ms Simpson said her daughter has contacted the TikToker who posted the original video and that she apologised profusely for the confusion and took the clip down.
It comes after British holidaymakers were seen queuing for over an hour in a bid to secure the best poolside spots at a Canary Islands resort.
Sunseekers armed with towels, suncream, and flipflops were captured in bizarre footage on May 28 lining up for the pool at the Barceló Lanzarote Active Resort, Las Palmas, Spain.
It appears the sunbed wars are now in full swing with hotel guests setting alarms extra early just to form queues to the pool area until staff give them the all clear.
The queue of people has become a regular morning routine for holidaymakers at the Spanish hotel according to guests.
Isabelle Hanssen, whose balcony overlooks the pool watched on at the pool goers eagerly waited in line.
According to the halfpipe skier, the queue is usually made up of Brits with a few Germans also standing in line.
Isabelle, from the Netherlands, also revealed that the queues start from as early as 8am despite the pool not opening until 9:30am.