Disappointed with cruise & Disney's "customer service"

[amanda12404]

To the original poster I am so sorry. I have to say I have been planning our first cruise and I only have 3 months left. I would be so disappointed to spend all of this time and money for other parents to not follow rules and not let their kids swim when they aren't potty trained.

 

[dyson0715]

Our first cruise is coming up next month so we're doing LOTS of pre-planning, preparing and researching online. I have not yet come across this "rule" of non-toilet trained children not being able to go in the pools yet (then again, I'm not really looking for it, my kids are 9 & 11) but I would think it would be to the benefit of everyone for Disney to include this info their pre-planning literature & websites since it seems to have an impact on every guest who plans to enjoy the pool. I think if parents of younger children understand this before cruising, maybe they won't be so rude or "wreckless" and remove those swim diapers ?

I've seen it many times.

 

[avalovesminnie]

Alot of the pools near us require all kids under 3 to wear a reusable swim diaper (not the disposable single use kind) and I assume it's because they hold the poop in so logs don't float around. It's still gross to think about. I don't understand people who haven't poop trained a 3 year old, assuming they are developmentally normal. Or are these pool poopers under 3?

 

[TestingH2O]

Alot of the pools near us require all kids under 3 to wear a reusable swim diaper (not the disposable single use kind) and I assume it's because they hold the poop in so logs don't float around. It's still gross to think about. I don't understand people who haven't poop trained a 3 year old, assuming they are developmentally normal. Or are these pool poopers under 3?

Well, the "normal" milestone for potty training is by the end of the 3rd year. So technically, not being fully potty trained at 3 is not an indication of developmental abnormality. I assume this is why 3 year olds are eligible for both the nursery and the club.

Developmental appropriateness aside, parents not following the rules is irresponsible and inconsiderate.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Tip for parents about to take their first cruise: go to the pool when it opens and just before closing. The mornings are probly best. During the day it's kid soup and I seriously would not. Just no. You couldn't force me to get in that mess. Nope nope nope. And I would never have allowed my boys in that when they were little guys.

 

[Hundredacre]

We just got off a cruise and there were ALWAYS kids in the mickey pool in swim diapers. Frankly, it grossed me out. I only let my kids swim once because of it. Every time we walked up to that deck I looked to see if that was the case and... yes, always kids in there with diapers. CMs never said anything. I completely agree that this is not acceptable. Gross. Parents who do this are awful.

 

[jenseib]

The pools weren't closed 100% of the time but darn near it--at least every time we went to check, which was often, it was closed.
I agree to an extent that it isn't Disney's fault, however, due to the high frequency of it occurring on the cruise we were on, there clearly was an issue of kids being in the pool who were not potty trained. They are only supposed to be allowed in the splash area. And kamik is right on my issue. I paid for the cruise and use of the amenities just like everyone else--my child was excited to use the pool & he never got to. I think Disney at least owes me some compensation for the bad experience which leads to my other issue. You can't even contact Disney to resolve it. The team which handles issues post cruise only has an email. They won't give you a phone number or let someone on the regular customer service line handle it & the person I spoke with yesterday was extremely rude.

DCL works via email and if your problem is serious enough they then call you. It's basically a way they filter it down. they do read and take each case seriously, but if you read the cruise contract thoroughly I am betting this is not something that will get you compensation

 

[bksaffle]

My kids have grown up going on DCL, and have experienced many pool closings. In fact one day on our transatlantic cruise, my son cut his foot on the grate at the bottom of the Mickey Pool and started to bleed....so bingo, the pool was shut down and cleaned/disinfected. So I felt bad for everyone else, but as a parent I was very thankful that Disney takes these things serious. Even though my child didn't have any diseases or anything, they have to take the necessary precautions.

I have also been on the other side where I caught my son drinking water from the water spouts at the Mickey Pool, and guess who ended up in the medical facility with IV's and secluded to our stateroom due to non-stop throwing up and bathroom problems....my son and me/husband. So we missed 4 of 7 days of our trip (couldn't even go to the shows/dinners/activities) because we were stuck in our stateroom....and we didn't get any reimbursements/discounts/compensation.

Again, Disney doesn't want a ship full of sick people....so I am thankful for their over-protection. I mean do you think the cast members "LOVE" to have to always drain and clean the pools....I would bet not.

PLEASE, PLEASE do not allow this one trip experience to influence your decision to take future trips. Unfortunately we can't control other people and how they "behave" but we can control how we react and how it effects us....I am sure there were other AH HA moments on your trip, try and focus on those and remember those memories.

 

[Elix72]

Could you imagine the fallout if there were "pooper profiling" in place?

"I will never cruise Disney again! My perfect princess was asked if she were potty trained! The nerve! My princess doesn't fart, let alone poop!"

 

[Hundredacre]

My kids have grown up going on DCL, and have experienced many pool closings. In fact one day on our transatlantic cruise, my son cut his foot on the grate at the bottom of the Mickey Pool and started to bleed....so bingo, the pool was shut down and cleaned/disinfected. So I felt bad for everyone else, but as a parent I was very thankful that Disney takes these things serious. Even though my child didn't have any diseases or anything, they have to take the necessary precautions.

I have also been on the other side where I caught my son drinking water from the water spouts at the Mickey Pool, and guess who ended up in the medical facility with IV's and secluded to our stateroom due to non-stop throwing up and bathroom problems....my son and me/husband. So we missed 4 of 7 days of our trip (couldn't even go to the shows/dinners/activities) because we were stuck in our stateroom....and we didn't get any reimbursements/discounts/compensation.

Again, Disney doesn't want a ship full of sick people....so I am thankful for their over-protection. I mean do you think the cast members "LOVE" to have to always drain and clean the pools....I would bet not.

PLEASE, PLEASE do not allow this one trip experience to influence your decision to take future trips. Unfortunately we can't control other people and how they "behave" but we can control how we react and how it effects us....I am sure there were other AH HA moments on your trip, try and focus on those and remember those memories.

If Disney is not enforcing their own rule (no swim diapers in the pool), then they are at fault.

 

[Aliceacc]

I can certainly understand your son's disappointment.

But I'm not sure what Disney can do to make it up to him. How will a financial settlement to you help with his disappointment?

 

[Turk February]

I can certainly understand your son's disappointment.

But I'm not sure what Disney can do to make it up to him. How will a financial settlement to you help with his disappointment?

It won't. They just want money because one part of a trip didn't go as planned.

 

[bobbiwoz]

Just off the Wonder last Sunday, and I was surprised at how often the Mickey pool was closed. Honest, I would not plan to use it regularly. I like the idea of going first thing when it opens.

 

[Saamh]

Keep in mind that the pools can be closed for other reasons also. On our December sailing from Miami on the Magic, the pools were closed several times due to wavy conditions. If the ship was rocking, the pools (especially the Mickey pool) would tend to get sloshing quite a bit and would be dangerous for kids to be in. If you're spending thousands of dollars on a vacation to swim in pools, I wouldn't recommend a cruise.

 

[Megan Cocke]

I know we are going to be working diligently with our DD who turns 2 in July for her to be Potty-trained by our cruise in December. If she is not, then we will only be letting her go to the appropriate swim area for non-potty-trained children. I don't get why people must make it so difficult for others to enjoy their vacation by not following the "rules".

 

[Chrisey]

We are avid DCLers and I usually keep a strict no pool policy. They completely gross me out... too small with too many kids in it, plus cruising is a lot of money. If the kids want to swim we can go to an all-inclusive resort in the Carribbean for a fraction of the cost of a Disney cruise... but that is just my opinion on it.

On our March cruise on the Wonder we went with 2 other families whose children used the pool everyday and my boys were begging to swim, so I let them. Next day pink eye and zero voice for one child and diarrhea for the other.

I do agree with one of the comments that maybe the rule is not clear enough. Maybe Disney should start automatically emailing or including it in the reservation email for any staterooms that have children under a certain age.

 

[hnthomps]

We were just on the Fantasy, and it was made Very Clear that our 2 year old (who is mostly potty trained, but not enough that I would send her in a pool without a swim diaper) was not welcome in the pool. I didn't see any kids her size (or just slightly bigger) in there, and anytime she approached the pool a CM would ask if she were potty trained. We didn't go in, Nemo's Reef only for her.

The pool was shut down regularly for cleaning breaks, and thank goodness with all those kids in it!

 

[Geil]

Sadly it only takes one ignorant or selfish family to ruin the pool fun for everyone especially if they can repeatedly do it. I assume CMs have no tools to quickly identify the pooper and ensure the parents are aware of the rule and possibly ban their kid from further use of the pool? Now I am not so sure I should let me DD go to the pool again

 

[Ofinn]

The problem is even potty trained kids can have accidents. I think anyone who has raised a kid knows this. It seems to happen the most with 3-4 years olds.

 

[GrannyDee]

I don't see how Disney can be blamed for the poopers and/or their parents.

Just as an aside, in our corner of the world (Calgary, Canada) all of the pools (hehe, I initially accidentally wrote "poos" instead of "pools") allow toddlers with those special plastic pants over their diapers. To be honest, I never really thought about it (tried not to, perhaps) until I started reading the cruise forums and references to fecal teabags.

Frankly, it's kinda nice to know the pool I'm swimming in is free of fecal teabags. Now I just worry about those swim-up bars where some of the guys and gals never seem to leave the bar ...