Concierge - Why the variations in quality?

[Jen D]

She said she has even had to go purchase underwear for a gentleman who refused to go purchase them himself.

Now, he is a big baby, of course; but in posh hotels, this is the sort of nonsense a concierge does (they are well-tipped for it, I'm sure.) For my husband's business, we stay every summer at a Ritz Carlton in Pasadena, where there is a concierge desk available to everyone. They emphasize they are there for any extra pampering-- to run errands you don't have to time to run, to get that hard-to-get dinner reservation; to get you detailed maps to your destination. You know, like if you wake up in the middle of the night and want sinus spray, and the hotel shop is closed, the concierge will run to Eckerds. I rarely used them as I can handle that myself and don't feel like tipping someone for something like that. Every few years, here in New York, you read stories about concierges at famous New York hotels and the weird requests they handle (always with a smile.) (Wasn't there even a Michael J Fox movie about a concierge at the Plaza?) This is what many people expect from concierge service (even more than the free coffee and cordials and strawberries and such.)

In any event, I think people who pay concierge have a right to expect that extra level of service, attentiveness, and so forth. As for the free special surprises, well, I don't know about that-- but at the very least, if you called the concierge in advance to tell them about a special birthday of a member of the party, I would expect the concierge to offer some suggestions for special things that can be done and try to help a special event be planned. I do think people who go expecting to get a free cake or anything else free are just setting themselves up for disappointment (these boards set us up too, as we know these freebies do happen), but I think the concierge is obligated to assist you in planning any special events or surprises you want to provide.

 

[Wendi]

OH MY! I got part of your comment confused with ZowmanmeetMouse, he made it seem as if MONEY is not an issue. Most people save for years to be able to afford these trips and if you pay more for concierge why should you be expected to tip each person you might need assistance with $10+. I am so very sorry. I have to agree with you on most of your points. I know this is kind of like beating a dead horse here, but bottom line...........If people are paying extra to have a few perk, then the "Normal" for that should be expected. I just feel that a few castmembers let down someone that was hoping to get "normal" requests. As for the "Extra's" I agree. If I want something special, then I do that something special for them. I have ordered many things from WDW Florist to be in the rooms waiting and it worked out fine.

JenD: Yes, can you believe she ran out and got the man his Underwear. The funny thing is she remembers it so much because the man was RUDE to no end and didn't even tip her.
She said that when she delivered them he actually had the nerve to say, "Finally" and slam the door. He is just one of those that
you wanna slap. She was so funny about it. She said that when they had AeroSmith staying there, they were a breeze compared to that man. She said that with Rock Stars or Stars in general they have a "Do anything" policy (within limits of course). I guess paying more for a room made this man think he was KING.

Sorry again Sammie.........This is kind of a tender subject with me, I always want everyone to enjoy Disney World the way that we do and when someone comes home sad............... I feel sad for them.

On to better things.............

 

[Sammie]

I agree Wendi, on to better things. And I agree I wish everyone's trips to WDW were magical. But while it is a magical place it is also real life, with real people, and real problems.

thanks for the explanation.

 

[disneyholic family]

this past trip (july) we stayed at the GF, YC and BC....all on concierge level...
at the GF we were in the sugarloaf concierge where we had spectacular service......the CMs were universally friendly and helpful....

as for check-in.....
we drove to the GF from the airport in a rental car.....
when we got to the guard booth i simply told him our name and that we were checking in.....i didn't mention concierge as i had no idea anything special was in store...(in other words, the guard already knew that we were in concierge and must have informed the concierge desk that we had arrived....though we were unaware of that at that point).....
when we drove to the front, the bellman took the luggage and the valet the car and we then figured we should go in to the front desk...
but just as we stepped away from the valet desk a nicely dressed CM approached us, calling us by name and putting out her hand to introduce herself, saying that she would be our escort to the concierge room....
on the way to the sugarloaf lodge she pointed out things along the way that we might need to know...
once in sugarloaf she introduced us to the two charming CMs there who checked us in....
then one of the two CMs showed us to our room....when i tried to tip him, he refused saying that the concierge staff was not allowed to receive tips...
a little while later the bellman arrived with our luggage...(of course we did tip him as is customary)...

needless to say we were very pleasantly surprised by the check in process....

all in all our stay at the sugarloaf concierge at the GF was fantastic....we are looking forwards to going back as soon as our schedules allow....

 

[ZowmanmeetsMouse]

Interesting topic and replies. I never said that anyone staying on the concierge floors should be treated with rudeness or not have their wishes taken care of. Simply put, the cast members at Disney are there to make money and support themselves and their families. Cast members will provide service. While I can appreciate the fact that people save for a long time (we do too), to have a magical stay, you still must pay extra for extra to be sure you get the extra.

Now, regarding the concierge staff not taking tips, how naive are you? They will refuse at first blush, However, anyone who is used to tipping won't let that happen. While staying at Disney, I never had service staff refuse beyond the "oh, thats not necessary". But after that, they accept. And yes, they are appreciative and deliver.

 

[Wendi]

ZowmanmeetsMouse,

No, NOT NAIVE. We know how to tip and YES the castmembers have downright REFUSED a tip. Maybe you have not run into this, but we have had them refuse the tip no matter how you tried to leave it. We left an envelope the last day for one young lady that was JUST NICE through our entire stay. 1 week later we received a small letter with the $20 saying Thank You, but I can't accept your tip. I really appreciate it, but I was just doing my job. etc. etc. etc.. We have always treated any castmember with nothing but respect and they all seem appreciate being treated nice. Not that you don't, but the places we have stayed most of the castmembers we have dealt with did NOT accept any tip. On the flip side of that we did have 3 castmembers that did accept the tip. Which we were glad they did. They helped us out. So you are not wrong by tipping if you choose to do so, but it is NOT the only way to get them to do a favor for you. Unless it is a strange, over the top request. hahahaha. Everyone has a different way to get what they want. Personally, I do what I need to do, to get what I want. If I need help, I ask them and if they can help me great. If not, no big deal.

Bottom line, if we all read between the lines here it comes down to a Management Issue at The RPC Concierge. Not sugarloaf or any other. We are all subject to possible pitfalls in our trips, but if we can ignore, work through or somehow nicely make them understand what it is we are looking for; it could all work out fine.
By talking about it people are hopefully aware and know to report any "BAD" service right away.

 

[erikthewise]

-- Good help is hard to find!
-- Good management is even harder to find.
-- If the Head Manager (or whatever) of WDW resorts really wants to know about guest experiences at the resorts, it's not so hard to do.
-- It is explicitly stated somewhere that one does not tip concierge staff at WDW resorts. (Anyone know where?) You have already paid for the service, unlike at traditional hotels where the concierge staff serves all guests. Lessons learned at other hotels need not apply here.
-- Bad experiences are disproportionately represented on open forums like this. It's just human nature that we find them more interesting.
-- There will always be CMs out there who need attitude adjustments or new careers. Complaints that identify such cases do everyone a favor.

 

[Wendi]

Well said.............