A German father who took legal action after losing the battle for a holiday sunbed has hit out at selfish towel-grabbing tourists who claimed loungers at dawn - then vanished for hours.
David Eggert, 48, sued his tour operator after claiming his children were left lying on poolside concrete because every one of the 400 sunbeds at his luxury Greek island hotel had been reserved with towels.
The Dusseldorf pilot, who paid more than £6,200 to take his wife and two children on holiday to Kos in 2024, this month won a £770 payout after successfully bringing a case against his travel firm.
Speaking exclusively to the Daily Mail, Mr Eggert said guests at the five-star Grecotel Kos Imperial resort would dump towels on loungers early in the morning before going back to bed or heading into town - despite signs banning the practice.
He said he got up early every morning to try to secure a spot by the pool during his 10-night stay - but never succeeded.
Instead, he claimed his children were forced to lie on floor while empty loungers sat unused for hours.
Mr Eggert said: 'It was a big hotel, very fancy, with about 400 loungers. And all 400 loungers had towels on them.'
The legal case turned the spotlight on Europe's long-running 'towel wars' - the holiday ritual in which guests sneak down to the pool early to secure the best spots before breakfast.
Mr Eggert said he took the matter to court because the hotel and tour operator refused to take action against rule-flaunting holidaymakers and ignored his subsequent complaints.
Judges in the German city of Hanover found in his favour and ordered a £851.75 refund from the tour operator.
Yet, Mr Eggert admitted even he had joined in the controversial practice on previous holidays, saying parents often felt they had no other choice.
'With two children, you really only have two choices: reserve your lounger with a towel or have no lounger at all. Full stop. That’s it,' he said.
'You either join in or you say: "Okay, I’m sensible, this is stupid, I won’t do it." And okay - that is fine, but then of course you do not get your lounger.
'But when you have two children and you need to watch them while they are swimming, you need to be near the water and not somewhere far away. You have to keep an eye on them.
'So I can understand anyone who does this, even if it is something which I know many Brits may find a bit weird - because the reality is: if I do not do it, I do not get a lounger.'
Mr Eggert said the problem was not simply a British-versus-German holiday cliche, but an issue affecting families across Europe.
'I would not really divide it into British people or Germans,' he said.
'It is always a little bit funny when each side blames things on the other - it is a bit like football or the lounger issue. It is tradition. But it is a funny tradition between friends, in my view.'
While towel wars - or Handtuchkriege in German - are a familiar feature of all-inclusive holidays, this is believed to be the first time the poolside practice has ended up in court.
Judges ruled that fed-up holidaymakers should not be expected to wage their own poolside battles by ripping other guests' towels from sun loungers.
The court said it was up to the tour operator to step in and stop the scramble for beds before rows erupt.
It concluded that tour operators must ensure hotels have a fair system in place, with a reasonable balance between the number of sunbeds and guests.
Mr Eggert, a former Air Berlin pilot, warned his victory could open the floodgates to millions of pounds in claims against travel firms unless they clamp down on the so-called 'dawn dash'.
He added: 'This is a problem in every hotel. Mallorca, Italy, France - everywhere.'
'And now that this story is spreading - people have been warned.'
'When the holiday season starts in June and July and people face the same problem, they will say: 'Look, somebody sued a tour operator over this. I'll do the same.'
'So, the £770 I received is not life-changing money. I cannot buy much with it.'
'But if thousands of holidaymakers start suing travel companies, the costs will run into millions. Then it becomes enormous financial damage.'
'That is why I believe this is a very, very important ruling.'
While there is no specific law banning the familiar holiday tactic of claiming a sun lounger with a towel, most resorts make clear that the practice is frowned upon.
Many hotels warn guests that towels left on empty loungers may be removed after 30 to 60 minutes. But the wording is often vague - leaving tourists to clash at the poolside over who has the right to which bed.
The Kos Imperial hotel - described online as 'a luxury all inclusive hotel with sea views, landscaped gardens, and a calm, considered atmosphere' - has 384 rooms and six pools, with loungers provided at each, as well as on the beach.
Tour operator TUI Deutschland had already paid Mr Eggert €350 (£302.50) in compensation before the case reached court.
Court documents state: 'The plaintiff claims that every day during the vacation, all sun loungers at the hotel's pool area were reserved with towels from 6:00 a.m.'
Mr Eggert, a former Air Berlin pilot, warned his victory could open the floodgates to millions of pounds in claims against travel firms unless they clamp down on the so-called 'dawn dash'
'The plaintiff and his family, who did not adopt this reservation practice, were therefore unable to obtain a lounger by the pool for relaxation and sunbathing.'
Dr Patrick Skeries, of Hanover District Court, said the central question in Mr Eggert's case was whether tour operators could simply stand by while guests reserved loungers - or whether they had a duty to step in.
He said: 'The court ruled that the tour operator is obliged to intervene.
'Otherwise, the price of the trip may be reduced because the travel service is defective.'