A viral TikTok video has managed to perfectly capture the chaos that takes place when tourists on holiday want to reserve a sunbed for the day. Watch below:
There's really no better feeling than relaxing on a sunbed with the hot sun beating down, a drink on the table next to you, some good music playing through your headphones and no responsibilities to plague your mind.
It's definitely a relaxing experience, but the events that take place before this calming moment are anything but.
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As I'm sure anyone who's ever gone on a summer holiday to a hotel with a pool will know, sunbeds are coveted items among guests; a hot commodity which can soon disappear as holidaymakers start to make their way outside.
To make sure they don't miss out on the pleasure of sunbathing, some sneaky tourists try to 'reserve' their beds by putting towels down before heading off to breakfast, preventing anyone else from using them while ensuring they don't lose their place in the sun.
This bizarre ritual was caught on camera by TikTok user Sarah during her holiday to Tenerife, where she was staying at the popular Paradise Park resort.
In the clip, filmed from her balcony, tourists can be seen flooding the poolside as soon as it opens and rapidly throwing towels onto beds. Not just one towel for themselves, either, but numerous towels for the family members and friends who didn't pull the short straw in having to get up early for what Sarah perfectly dubbed 'the sunbed race'.
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The hilarious clip has racked up more than seven million views in just a couple of days, with many viewers no doubt able to relate to the frustration of spotting a seemingly empty bed, only to find it's covered with a towel.
Footage of the 'race' came after Sarah posted another video from the poolside showing multiple beds in this state, alongside which she wrote: "When it's a race in the morning to get a sun bed only for no one to use them."
After her TikTok video went viral, a spokesperson for Paradise Park told MailOnline the hotel was 'amused' to see the behaviour of its guests, especially 'considering that [the] hotel has five swimming pools and areas with space and sunbeds for everyone'.
The spokesperson added: "Although we see quite a bit of talent among our guests for obstacle races."
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Hopefully anyone considering using their towel to reserve a sunbed will think twice after seeing Sarah's video, where tourists have clearly been caught in the act.
Emily Brown