British holidaymakers have taken sunbed wars to new levels by sleeping on sun loungers overnight to guarantee the best spot at the poolside of a Spanish island hotel.
In Tenerife, one tourist was stunned when he woke up and noticed the loungers around the resort's pool were already taken - three hours before the area even opened.
Ben Smith, from Sheffield, said it was a "vicious cycle," taking photos of the scene at the four-star Gf Fanabe Hotel in Costa Adeje where rooms cost £259 a night per person.
Despite it still being dark outside, several towels could be seen draped across sun beds at the hotel, with some guests curled up on them, appearing to be going to sleep.
The footage was shot on Monday, August 25, at the start of Mr Smith's two-week summer holiday.
"They reserve the beds, but the hotel has a policy that if your bed is left unattended, they will remove the towels - so they just lie in them, the 30-year-old holidaymaker explained.
"Some even look to be asleep. It’s a bit silly. I do get why people do it, but it’s a vicious cycle, so to speak.
"They’re the ones creating the problem that they are aiming to avoid."
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Guests could be seen in the video wrapped up in towels lying on sunbeds
|JAM PRESS
Mr Smith added that if people didn’t reserve beds they didn’t actually need to use, there wouldn’t be an issue at all.
In his time at the resort so far, he said the beds haven’t been anywhere near full with guests – but are covered in towels.
He added: "We got one bed between three of us the other day, and a lady kindly said we could have one of hers – it wasn’t being used and she told us to take her towel off.
"I mean, in a sense, it’s nice of her, but in another, why is her towel on it when she’s not using it? It’s mostly selfishness."
Holidaymakers at the Gf Fanabe Hotel were spotted lying under towels on sunbeds
|So-called sunbed wars are becoming a feature at hotels and resorts in holiday hot-spots across the world.
In Barcelona and Costa Blanca, tourists caught reserving sunbeds can now be fined €250 (around £216), according to travel insurer Tiger.
The insurer said the order was introduced following "numerous" complaints about sunbeds being reserved for hours with no one in sight.