U.K. ditches deck chairs

LONDON • They have long been an integral element of a British seaside holiday, giving beachgoers a chance to recline, unwind and enjoy the summer sun, or drizzle.

But now the ranks of deck chairs that once lined the country’s beaches are being folded away by municipal councils in an attempt to make coastal resorts appear more “continental.”

Thousands of deck chairs have either been sold off or mothballed because they are considered old-fashioned.

The Marine Conservation Society said seaside councils regard deck chairs as being out of step with the stylish coffee shops, stores and restaurants along promenades.

Blackpool council recently got rid of 6,000 chairs at Pleasure Beach, while Bognor beach and Sidmouth have temporarily suspended their deck chair service after existing vendors folded in the face of waning popularity.

Others, such as Margate beach, in Kent, are now run by private operators, who said many visitors were snubbing traditional deck chairs in favour of “continental sun loungers.”

And in Weymouth, council leaders were last week branded “penny pinchers” after they announced plans to charge pensioners £2 ($3.32) a day for the use of deck chairs that span the promenade — despite them being free to the public for more than 30 years.

The shift follows a survey of 2,000 British families, which found less than a third used deck chairs on their most recent holiday — a 50-per-cent decline since the 1980s. The report, published by Beach Retreats, a vacation homes rental agency, noted other seaside pastimes such as donkey rides, have also suffered.

Richard Harrington, of the Marine Conservation Society, said: “I think deck chairs tend to be viewed as what you might call an old- fashioned seaside approach.”