Get you up to speed: German court rules in favour of tourist over sunbed reservation issues
A district court in Hanover ruled in favour of a German man who sued his tour operator following difficulties in securing sunbeds during his holiday in Kos, Greece. The court determined the holiday package was ‘defective’ because it did not provide the level of service expected, leading to a partial refund of £850.
A district court in Hanover ruled in favour of a German father, recognising that his package holiday was ‘defective’ due to inadequate sunbed availability, awarding him a partial refund of £850. The court stated the tour operator still had a duty to ensure a ‘reasonable’ ratio of loungers available, despite not operating the hotel itself.
The district court in Hanover ruled that the German dad is entitled to a partial refund of £850 due to the tour package being ‘defective’. The court noted that the tour operator had a duty to ensure a reasonable ratio of loungers available at the hotel.
German tourist sues tour operator after losing 6am race to reserve sunbed | News World
Tourists often wake up early to stake their claim to a sunbed (Picture: Getty Images)
If there is one topic that can divide Europe like no other it is the annual sunbed wars that grip beach resorts every summer.
Tourists wake up at the crack of dawn and wait for the gates to the hotel pool to open, before making a mad dash to reserve a lounger with a towel.
Now one German dad has successfully sued his tour operator because he kept on losing the battle for a sunbed.
The unnamed man had spent £6,200 on a holiday with his wife and two children to the Greek island of Kos in August 2024.
He thought he would not have to stress about reserving a spot in the sun because the hotel had an explicit rule banning loungers with towels.
However a district court in Hanover heard how the family’s mornings became a rush for pool space, with guests ignoring the ban in practice.
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The German man wanted a relaxing holiday in Kos without stressing about loungers (Picture: Getty Images)
The dad said that even when they got up at 6am, most of the sun beds had already been nabbed by other guests.
He complained to the court that the situation was so dire the family spent up to 20 minutes each day trying to find a spot they could all sit togehter,
The children were sometimes left lying on the floor because of the lack of loungers, he said.
The German man claimed hotel staff refused to step in to help.
The tour operator – which was not named in proceedings – previously offered £300 to the family in compensation.
But the court sided with the holidaymaker and ruled he was entitled to a partial refused of £850.
The court ruled the package holiday had been ‘defective’ because it had not provided the ‘character’ that the customer was contractually entitled to expect.
The ruling acknowledged that the travel company did not operate the hotel itself so could not guarantee sunbed access.
The family said they spent 20 minutes searching for sunbeds they could all sit on together (Picture: Getty Images)
However the judges said the operator still had a duty to ensure there was a structure in place that meant a ‘reasonable’ ratio of loungers available.
Germans actually dislike the annual sunbed wars, despite the stereotype as one of the most dogged participants.
One poll showed that as many as 66 per cent of them opposed it and 14 per cent had even removed offending towels.
However a survey of German tourists last summer revealed that 71 per cent of them thought it was a ‘predominantly German’ custom.
British holidaymakers thought that the biggest culprits were fellow Brits, a different survey showed.
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