Celebration?

rebeccaariel

DIS Veteran
Joined
Oct 14, 2012
I mentioned this somewhere else on the forum, but my mom and I are going to WDW in April, and while we're not celebrating a specific occasion, we're celebrating the end to a very tough couple of years.

Briefly, I'll explain: my parents separated. While it wasn't a shock to anyone, and everyone is amicable and on good terms, it was very, very difficult for both of us. My dog, whom we had for 15 years, passed away, which was a huge blow to all of us, my mom in particular. My mom also has had to become a caregiver for my grandparents as her siblings don't live anywhere near us (one is in another country). Recently, they happily moved into an extended care facility (it's super nice - I'd live there :rotfl:) and my mom is finally able to have a life of her own again. For me, I'm celebrating improvements in my mental health. My anxiety has improved tenfold and I haven't had a single bout of depression in almost two years. We definitely need this vacation.

On our ADRs, there's a place to put that you're celebrating something. Should we label what we're celebrating as a "Personal Triumph", or should we put "Other", or is it not appropriate to say we're celebrating something as it isn't a specific event? And does anyone have any experience with what kind of things they do when you put that you're celebrating something? I'm very new to all of this - I've never planned a trip myself before (I'm trying to give my mom a break)
 
Wow, you sure have been through alot and you deserve this vacation.
My husband and I celebrated with a vacation to WDW for the my being in remission from breast cancer for 5 years. there is no button for that one either:goodvibes they gave us one that said personal triumph. Several people asked what we were celebrating but mostly folks just said congrats. or we got a thumbs up and a smile from a few CMs.
 
Many, if not most, guests are celebrating something. I would venture that many not celebrating a specific event such as birthday, anniversary, graduation etc, don't bother mentioning it on their ADRs. But by all means put down 'personal triumph' if this is an important thing for you to do. There is no guarantee that you will 'get' anything by doing this. Sometimes a congratulations from your server. Sometimes a cupcake for dessert. Sometimes nothing. It's random.
 
Very good points, thanks to both of you. I'm thinking there's no point marking it down on the reservations. We'll get ourselves some "I'm Celebrating" buttons and then just enjoy our time. The trip is special in and of itself, I think the dining reservation stuff works better for a specific occasion like a birthday or anniversary.
 


I think that is a good idea. As PP have stated, there really is not guarantee of "getting" anything. Expecting something would just lead to disappointment.
Enjoy your trip.
 
We actually didn't get anything on any of the meals that we mentioned a celebration. There was no acknowledgement whatsoever for birthday, anniversary, and personal triumph -even though it was on reservation slip and buttons were worn.

We did get a couple of birthday acknowledgements and cupcakes at places we didn't even mention it but my son just had on the button. It all comes down to the particular server that day.

My 13 yo daughter wore a Celebrating button all week (She bought the tickets for the trip. Only about 3 people acknowleged it. However, my son got so many Happy Birthdays that he ended up taking the button off LOL.
 
For birthdays, anniversies, and other celebrations,
no restaurant/resort is that much better than another.


1) Acknowledgment is a matter of the CM's personal initiative.
. . . depends upon how much they like you as a guest
. . . depends if they feel like doing anything special today
. . . depends upon the phase of the moon
2) CM's can do a lot, or they can do nothing at all.
. . . they are under no obligation to give goodies or even acknowledge, or
. . . they can go way overboard and give lots of gifts to a guest
3) The CM's have a lot of leeway of things to do or not do for you.
4) Have your anniversary-birthday-celebration noted on the ressie and ADR's.
5) Some of the things a CM can do for free are
. . . decorate table with Mickey confetti
. . . best table location
. . . special personalized menu
. . . character-autographed birthday cards
. . . balloons
. . . wine or champagne or Shirley Temples
. . . appetizers or desserts
. . . cakes
. . . cupcake with candle (almost always available for the asking)
. . . placemats autographed by characters
. . . free appy or free dessert
. . . room full of balloons and/or flowers
. . . fruit basket or wine basket in hotel room
7) If you want something special (cakes, etc) buy them instead of hoping for them.

NOTE: Some CM's do go out of their way to help. In our case, I simply
mentioned that I'd like a cupcake and candle for MrsRustyScupper. The
waiter asked, "birthday?". I said, "No, last Chemo Day." He brought a
MONSTER fancy dessert for the table with a huge candle. The entire wait
staff came over and sang "Happy LastChemoDay to you, Happy last ..."
 



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