I have concerns about Polynesian after my stay. Who do I call?

[Rbusdriver]

I got home from Disney World last night. Besides being very, very crowded and the temperature ranging from the 30s to the 90s in a few days, we had a fairly fun time. My major complaint is the treatment at the Polynesian Hotel. I stayed there years ago and the staff was wonderful and accommodating but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore. We usually stay, every year, at the campground at Fort Wilderness, but decided after a very rough past few months, we would treat ourselves to a luxury vacation. A friend and I are both handicapped and needed to rent scooters, They put us on the second floor despite our requests for a first floor room. That was just one of a number of issues. Things went from bad to worse during check in and I really need to speak with someone there. Oh, and there was a very disturbing encounter with a drugged up young man at the pool at 10:00 one night. He clearly did not belong there. Who do I call?

 

[funntheson]

I got home from Disney World last night. Besides being very, very crowded and the temperature ranging from the 30s to the 90s in a few days, we had a fairly fun time. My major complaint is the treatment at the Polynesian Hotel. I stayed there years ago and the staff was wonderful and accommodating but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore. We usually stay, every year, at the campground at Fort Wilderness, but decided after a very rough past few months, we would treat ourselves to a luxury vacation. A friend and I are both handicapped and needed to rent scooters, They put us on the second floor despite our requests for a first floor room. That was just one of a number of issues. Things went from bad to worse during check in and I really need to speak with someone there. Oh, and there was a very disturbing encounter with a drugged up young man at the pool at 10:00 one night. He clearly did not belong there. Who do I call?

I would suggest calling the hotel direct, and speaking with a manager. But I would also suggest that you give it a couple of days. It is obvious that you are worked up, and need a little time to think and present your case clearly.

 

[Carrie in AZ]

If it was me, I would look up the Poly's direct dial phone number, call it, and ask to speak with the general manager and voice your concerns to him/her.

Honestly, though, you should have spoken with someone while you were at the Poly. If something is not quite right while traveling, speaking with someone who can remedy your situation to your satisfaction on the spot is the way to go. Funky room location? Speak with a manager. Scary person at the pool? Ask the nearest CM to call security immediately.

Once you are home, sure they can listen, but what can they really do for you at this point?

I am sorry your stay at the Poly wasn't all you dreamed of, especially after such a tough time recently. I hope your next trip will be much more magical.

 

[dfarner]

I got home from Disney World last night. Besides being very, very crowded and the temperature ranging from the 30s to the 90s in a few days, we had a fairly fun time. My major complaint is the treatment at the Polynesian Hotel. I stayed there years ago and the staff was wonderful and accommodating but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore. We usually stay, every year, at the campground at Fort Wilderness, but decided after a very rough past few months, we would treat ourselves to a luxury vacation. A friend and I are both handicapped and needed to rent scooters, They put us on the second floor despite our requests for a first floor room. That was just one of a number of issues. Things went from bad to worse during check in and I really need to speak with someone there. Oh, and there was a very disturbing encounter with a drugged up young man at the pool at 10:00 one night. He clearly did not belong there. Who do I call?

I'm not sure who to call, perhaps the manager at the Poly? I'm not sure why you would wait to voice your concerns until you returned from the trip. Is there something that prevented you from talking to somebody while you were there? What would anybody be able to do about a "drugged up young man" after the fact? If you thought he didn't belong there you should have brought it to someone's attention while you were there. If you did, and that someone didn't do anything, you should have brought it to someone else's attention. If you were on a cruise and you weren't happy with the accommodations would you wait until you were home to call someone? If you were in Puerto Rico and you weren't happy with the accommodations would you wait until you got home to voice your concerns? I'm not trying to be rude, I just see so many posts from people about how their Disney dreams were dashed for this reason or that and I don't understand what they expect. I'm sorry you had a rough vacation, but I think you would have had more success at resolving your issues if you addressed them while you were there. JMO.

 

[CoolPool]

I'm sorry you had a disappointing stay. It can feel doubly rough if it was supposed to be a splurge. Maybe writing a letter to Disney to express your feelings and let them know what happened may benefit future guests.

This is why I try to never go to disney during true peak times; it seems that every year on the board its these times around Spring Break/Easter when Disney is full-up that we see the biggest number of complaints. Probably it was worse this year with staff reductions.

 

[Justsyd2]

Sorry about your stay. It's my understanding that room requests are just that, requests, and cannot be guaranteed. I do believe they have special circumstances for medical conditions, but you need to set that up before your stay. Sorry that you didn't understand the procedure.

I know that I read on one of the disabilities threads that if you're on a scooter, and there are elevators at the resort, that they can put you in a room on any floor that has elevator access since you can access the floors with a scooter.

As for the "drugged up man," you should have notified security immediately.

I really don't see that Disney did anything wrong, but if you feel the need to be heard, I would write them a letter.

Walt Disney World Guest Relations
P.O. Box 10000
Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830

This is the universal address. For example, if you want to write to the General Manager of All Star Music, or any other resort, address the envelope to the person and use the P.O. Box 10000 address.

 

[kaytieeldr]

In addition to the address provided above, the e-mail address is wdw.guest.communications@disneyworld.com

You can call - but your call, no matter what destination you request, will actually go to a Call Center (i.e. not to a resort, or a resort manager...)

Speaking of requests - of any type - they are just that, requests, and not guarantees.

 

[kaytieeldr]

But, most important:

ANY problem is best handled while it is occurring. As pointed out above, there is little that can be done to resolve any of your issues, now that your trip is over.

 

[maxiesmom]

Do you care to explain how the Poly staff treated your poorly? Nothing in your post suggests what they did wrong. The only thing you mention is being placed on the second floor, but hopefully you now know that you can request being placed on a particular floor, but there is no guarantee of getting it. I'm not sure what else could have gone so wrong at check in.

If you noticed someone who was "drugged" you have spoken with security immediately. While the pool itself is closed to guests, everyone is welcome to walk around the resort, have a drink, or hang out at the beach area. Maybe that person was just drunk?

 

[RMulieri]

I would write Guest Relations. But at this point there probably is not much to expect from them except maybe an apology. Rule of thumb is the best way to handle complaints is while you are there and they are happening. If they are big enough problems for you or upsetting enough to you ,then getting them addressed ASAP is worth the extra time and hassle it will take to get it resolved right then and there.

 

[goofy4tink]

I will say that the worst CM interaction we have had, in over 20 stays, was at the Polynesian. And that was in '03!!! We had been told that when you check in you get those lei's, well, that didn't happen. When I asked, I was told 'Oh, we're out of 'em.', of course it was 11am! My dd was more than disappointed. We had to lug our bags to the room, rather than wait an hour for Bell Services to do it! Once there, we almost got hit multiple times by those carts that zoom around the walkways. I did mention it to someone at the front desk..they seemed less than concerned, said they would look into it but that was how the CMs got around.
We had huge crowds at the pool...hoppers. I know this because we overheard them talking. And it wasn't just one group, there were several. Mentioned it to the lifeguard. He didn't seem too motivated to do anything...said he would check into it. We were there for another 30 mins and nothing was said to anyone.
We won't go back to the Polynesian based on that one trip. I realize there are people that love it there, and that's terrific. I love staying at POP and lots of others hate it there.
Your issue with the room assignment is dubious. That would be a room request..and unless you said something about it before arrival, then it's all up to luck. If there are elevators, you can be put in any room if you have an ECV. Being on the ground level isn't neccesary.
A 'drugged out person' at the pool at 10:00? Should have been reported at the time. I'm not sure why you say he obviously didn't belong there. How do you know he wasn't staying at the Polynesian??
I would suggest you write a letter, to both WDW and to Polynesian management. That way you have covered your bases. But, as someone else said, it's always best to deal with any issues while you are there, rather than waiting until you get home.

 

[Maukey]

I will say that the worst CM interaction we have had, in over 20 stays, was at the Polynesian. And that was in '03!!! We had been told that when you check in you get those lei's, well, that didn't happen. When I asked, I was told 'Oh, we're out of 'em.', of course it was 11am! My dd was more than disappointed. We had to lug our bags to the room, rather than wait an hour for Bell Services to do it! Once there, we almost got hit multiple times by those carts that zoom around the walkways. I did mention it to someone at the front desk..they seemed less than concerned, said they would look into it but that was how the CMs got around.
We had huge crowds at the pool...hoppers. I know this because we overheard them talking. And it wasn't just one group, there were several. Mentioned it to the lifeguard. He didn't seem too motivated to do anything...said he would check into it. We were there for another 30 mins and nothing was said to anyone.
We won't go back to the Polynesian based on that one trip. I realize there are people that love it there, and that's terrific. I love staying at POP and lots of others hate it there.
Your issue with the room assignment is dubious. That would be a room request..and unless you said something about it before arrival, then it's all up to luck. If there are elevators, you can be put in any room if you have an ECV. Being on the ground level isn't neccesary.
A 'drugged out person' at the pool at 10:00? Should have been reported at the time. I'm not sure why you say he obviously didn't belong there. How do you know he wasn't staying at the Polynesian??
I would suggest you write a letter, to both WDW and to Polynesian management. That way you have covered your bases. But, as someone else said, it's always best to deal with any issues while you are there, rather than waiting until you get home.

What are you talking about, POLY is PERFECT. , I'm kidding. Anyway, I'm staying at the POLY in a little less than 3 weeks, and for some odd reason, this topic has actually made me more excited. I'm kinda weird I guess.

Okay, to the point. Piggybacking off what most have said, it would help if you gave more details as to what went wrong on your trip. Based on what you listed in your OP, I can't really say POLY is the issue either. Wow, I just made the POLY sound like a person.

I'm gonna go now, I can see I'm too excited to participate in these kind of threads. I'm really not making fun of your topic, and I'm genuinely sorry about your trip, I'm just to darn EXCITED!!!! YEEEEEEAAAAAHHHH, I CAN'T WAIT!

 

[BreezysMom]

Not to make an excuse, but the Poly GM has just stepped down and now the GF GM is covering both resorts so this may be affecting the staff morale.

When you are staying at any establishment, DW or otherwise you need to voice complaints immediately.

As far as room location, the Poly has always been very accomidating to try and place you in your ideal location in your room category, i.e., GC, LV and so forth.

I love the Poly, but I have had my issues with them as well. I deal with things as they are happening and they have been resolved to my satisfaction!

OP, I hope you get to voice your complaints but try to not let it ruin your vacation memories! I hope despite the few problems, you had a magical time?

 

[CoachBagFanatic]

Sorry you had some bad experiences but complaints are best handled at the time of occurrence. From your post, I truly don't see where the Poly was at fault. If you care to explain a bit more in detail than it might help. As far as the so called "drugged up young man", if you were so concerned you should have called security immediately. To say that this man was drugged up is not right. Maybe he had a medical issue or something else that you were unaware of.

 

[k&a&c'smom]

Whenever someone asks for the address or phone number to report problems with their stay, they are admonished that it should have been taken care of at the time of the incident. While I agree that this is good general advice, it doesn't always help.

I've had occasions where things have gone wrong on vacation, and I've done my utmost to address them at the time, but it did not resolve the issue. I don't know if the OP did this or not, but thought I'd point out that simply telling someone "you should have addressed this at the time" is less than helpful! Not only does it make them feel like THEY have done something wrong, but most people don't want to spend too much of their precious vacation time hashing out problems. If they attempt to talk with the front desk, and get no response, they might not think to ask for a manager, in the heat of the moment. Or, they may speak with a manager, but get no help, not every manager is customer-friendly.

OP, I hope that whatever upset you wasn't enough to ruin your splurge trip. I know how disappointing it is to dream of and plan a long-awaited vacation, only to have things go wrong. Writing to WDW guest communications is probably the best option. Good luck, and I hope your next visit to WDW is all you hope it will be.

 

[bethclayton]

in defense of the OP, there are some reasons why people will wait until they return to discuss issues they have had. i have done this myself (not at disney, but other vacations). one time it was because the kids were oblivious to the problems we were having and i wanted to keep it that way so they could continue to enjoy themselves, so rather than getting into a whole discussion in front of them, i let it go until we returned home. another reason is that people are not always looking for any benefit to themselves, sometimes they just want to give feedback to the resort about the behavior of their staff, so the resort can improve going forward. and finally, sometimes it's not one or two big issues that can be fixed at the time, but it's way too many smaller things that all add up over a trip and by the end you've just had it.


to give an example, we recently stayed at AKL. it was our favorite resort that we have stayed at by far. however, several of the front desk staff were just rude. it was their attitude, they made no eye contact, seemed so bored, when we asked to switch rooms the guy sighed audibly, we never got a single smile from any of the 5 CM's at the front desk that we dealt with the whole first day. that is just basic customer service. there was just no reason for it, we arrived so happy and excited, and honestly, they put a bit of a damper on it for me by acting so grumpy. eye contact and a smile would have been enough, lol! i never asked to speak with a manager while i was there, because my complaints were not huge, i didn't want to deal with it on vacation, and i didn't want to make it look as though i were looking to be compensated in some way. but to this day, it still bugs me a little and i wish i had written a letter when we got home, just to give feedback, in hopes that they would improve their service a bit.

i think (or hope) that a good GM will always appreciate customer feedback, as long as it is specific, so that they can improve.

 

[maxiesmom]

I've had occasions where things have gone wrong on vacation, and I've done my utmost to address them at the time, but it did not resolve the issue. I don't know if the OP did this or not, but thought I'd point out that simply telling someone "you should have addressed this at the time" is less than helpful! Not only does it make them feel like THEY have done something wrong, but most people don't want to spend too much of their precious vacation time hashing out problems. If they attempt to talk with the front desk, and get no response, they might not think to ask for a manager, in the heat of the moment. Or, they may speak with a manager, but get no help, not every manager is customer-friendly.

I agree with you that we don't know if the OP did talk to someone while they were at the Poly. From the sound of the post I would say they didn't, but we don't know that for sure.

I also think it is a cop-out to say that people don't want to spend vacation time fixing problems. Of course they don't, no one does. But if the problem is severe enough that you feel the need to write to Disney once you get home, then it was severe enough that you should take some time and get it fixed while you are on vacation. That way the rest of your trip would be enjoyable, and you are not feeling like you are putting up with a vacation that is less than what you had hoped for.

If a problem didn't bother you enough to address it while you are on vacation and Disney could actualy fix the problem, then it isn't that big of a problem, imho. To do so is kind of like putting up with bad sevice at a restarurant, tipping the waitress, and then going home and calling to complain. It just doesn't make much sense.

 

[nemofans]

I would like to give some support to the OP too. WE had a bad stay at Poly & I DID talk to front desk & then manager when things were bad. (We had a pipe burst & a flooded room w/our stuff ruined.) The manager didn't do much either. We weren't expecting anything, but a smooth room change & clothes laundered since we now had nothing to wear. This was back in 2006. So it's nice to say "you should have handled it there", but even that gets you nowhere. it's a good idea to back it up again w/a call or letter once you get home.
I don't expect exceptional service at WDW. I expect the same service anywhere I stay, but we faced so many problems at Poly that we will never stay there again.
To the other poster, we dealt w/the CMs in carts as well. They drive so fast & don't look carefully who is around. We were almost hit a couple of times & I wouldn't let my toddler walk on his own on the sidewalk b/c of it.

 

[goofy4tink]

Whenever someone asks for the address or phone number to report problems with their stay, they are admonished that it should have been taken care of at the time of the incident. While I agree that this is good general advice, it doesn't always help.

I've had occasions where things have gone wrong on vacation, and I've done my utmost to address them at the time, but it did not resolve the issue. I don't know if the OP did this or not, but thought I'd point out that simply telling someone "you should have addressed this at the time" is less than helpful! Not only does it make them feel like THEY have done something wrong, but most people don't want to spend too much of their precious vacation time hashing out problems. If they attempt to talk with the front desk, and get no response, they might not think to ask for a manager, in the heat of the moment. Or, they may speak with a manager, but get no help, not every manager is customer-friendly.

OP, I hope that whatever upset you wasn't enough to ruin your splurge trip. I know how disappointing it is to dream of and plan a long-awaited vacation, only to have things go wrong. Writing to WDW guest communications is probably the best option. Good luck, and I hope your next visit to WDW is all you hope it will be.

The big reason for addressing the issue at the time, or at least before you leave the resort, is that you give them a chance to rectify their mistakes. You can speak to a manager, if needed. Then, if things are not rectified, you can write that letter, giving names, dates, and times. It is so much more meaningful if you can say that you tried to address your issues with 'so and so' but nothing was done.

While I undestand that we all arrive at WDW, ready for a terrific vacation, I have to take issue with the comments about 'rude front desk CMs'. I have had less than terrific checkin CMs...one time I actually looked at the girl and said...'Are we having a bad day? Here in the happiest place on earth??' Man, that waked her up...her demeanor changed right away. She apologized profusely..now that may have been to ensure that I didn't mention her 'grumpiness' to the powers that be. Or the CM I had at POR..man, he was a dud and a half. My dd's room key got demagnetized..she needed a new one. We were very polite and apologetic when we asked for a new one. He just rolled his eyes so far back in his head I didn't think he would ever see front again, and said..'Well, we can only replace the card one time, so please try to be more careful with it!' Man...I was more than a little peeved. Did it ruin my trip? Did it put a damper on my day? No, not in the least.
I know many will disagree with this viewpoint but there it is...CMs try to be pleasant but you are going to find the one or two that truly seem to hate being where they are, doing what they do. Sad to say.

 

[BfloChick]

in defense of the OP, there are some reasons why people will wait until they return to discuss issues they have had. i have done this myself (not at disney, but other vacations). one time it was because the kids were oblivious to the problems we were having and i wanted to keep it that way so they could continue to enjoy themselves, so rather than getting into a whole discussion in front of them, i let it go until we returned home. another reason is that people are not always looking for any benefit to themselves, sometimes they just want to give feedback to the resort about the behavior of their staff, so the resort can improve going forward. and finally, sometimes it's not one or two big issues that can be fixed at the time, but it's way too many smaller things that all add up over a trip and by the end you've just had it.

...

i think (or hope) that a good GM will always appreciate customer feedback, as long as it is specific, so that they can improve.

Right on! Please, do not discourage someone from providing Disney with information that could improve customer service for all of us. That feedback could make a real difference for someone in the future.