Disappointing BCV room report

[manning]

However I have friends that work in management at the BCV and statistically more rooms are damaged by members than nonmembers which I found horrible.

If at all feasable I think those who do the damage should be made to pay for it. I wonder how much of our dues go for replacement and repairs.

 

[Dean]

Originally posted by Sammie
However I have friends that work in management at the BCV and statistically more rooms are damaged by members than nonmembers which I found horrible.

I hope Desperado is reading this!!!

 

[Paul in CT]

I don't think the studios have corkscrews or bottle openers. I know that we have always had to bring them with us or ask housekeeping when we stay at a DVC studio. That's one reason why we like the 1BR's better.

 

[Sammie]

Yes I was talking about major damage and as far as I know Disney does not at this time make the former guest pay for the damage. I am sure it is situation of where the guest could always say I found it that way.

Until inventory checkins and checkouts are required there is no way to prove without doubt who did the damage.

The stories I have heard about damage to the rooms is very upsetting. Broken legs on tables, ink pen scribblings on tables, fabric and walls. Initials carved into the wooden tables. Lamps broken. Then the usual missing TV remotes, linens, towels, kitchen utensils.

One of friends said, You simply would not believe what they find in some of the units as to damage. Once a maid walked into a unit to find someone's child riding the ceiling fan round and round by hanging on it. The parents were asleep and the maid had brought extra towels for the room.

 

[DebbieB]

I checked into the GF about 5 years ago and we went out on the balcony to find a glass of coke with a cig butt floating in it! The maid came in to change the bedspread right after we checked in (I think she didn't realize the room had been released for occupancy), I handed it to her!

I think some of the problems with DVC rooms is they are not cleaned as often as regular rooms. They may only be cleaned about once a week. I don't think they have time to check everything, especially in the larger rooms. More than once I have found food left in the upper closets in the kitchen. I always look in all the closets in the kitchen after we check-in. More than once I have found something above the microwave or fridge (the high ones). Last time it was a loaf of hard bread, other times it was a box of biscuit mix and a box of pasta.

 

[ducklite]

We were just in BCV room 174, a 1BR. The day we arrived I called housekeeping to request a tea kettle and laundry basket (none in the room, nor were there pot holders)

We went out and when we returned at about 11:00 that evening, they hadn't been delivered. I called housekeeping twice that morning, and DH also called for a LAN cable (the high speed Internet was installed in our room ).

That evening when it still hadn't been delivered, we called the front desk. I was annoyed by then. Over 24 hours to get things that were SUPPOSED to be in the room to begin with!!

They did deliver them fairly quickly after that, but that is beyond the point. I bought in and paid dues with a certain expectation, and frankly my expectations haven't been met at the BCV.

The second morning I found three Advil tablets on the floor under the breakfast bar. There was also a sock which appeared with our laundry, must have been in the washer or dryer, and there were a few other issues (the dining table looked like the finish had been marred by a chemical). There were lipstick like smears on the bathroom wall.

Housekeeping at the BCV has always left me cold, we've come into a unit with a filthy counter covered in sugar and crumbs, as well as a dishwasher full of dirty dishes.

If the housekeepers are that overworked, then they need to put more on. If they are simply lazy, they need to e replaced. But something needs to be done. In four stays at the BCV, none of the units has been what I would call "spotless", and that's a shame.

Anne

 

[Shoreshar]

HI Anne;
It sounds like you have valid complaints. We just closed on our points at BCV and will be staying there for the first time in June.
I sure hope things get better before then. The only way to change things is to complain to the folks at DVC. We should all make these complaints known. Disney is famous for it's impeccable maintenance so we should accept nothing less.

 

[pmcpmc]

given the rush to get rooms ready before 4:00pm it is no wonder at times things are not absolutely perfect.
My experience is if you go out into the hall and speak to the room cleaners you can get anything you need without raising a voice .
Repairs and the reporting of is the owner's reponsibility as well.

Originally posted by RCM
I think you have to just calm down and look at the whole picture. I'm sorry but things like that can happen at home. You sometimes can't worry about would of could of .....that will make anyone crazy. In a perfect world nobody would make mistakes and we all would be happy all the time. I sure they did their best and thats about all we can hope for from people.

 

[MiaSRN62]

I think some of the problems with DVC rooms is they are not cleaned as often as regular rooms. They may only be cleaned about once a week. I don't think they have time to check everything, especially in the larger rooms.

This may play some part in the cleanliness issue but I'm not so sure. I also own an offsite timeshare and we've never had this sort of problem with dirty villas. I'd say 80% of the villas on site at the Vistana are 2 bedrooms---and the rest are 2 bedroom lock-offs that are rented as studios and 1 bedrooms. Stays are, for the most part, 7 nights. I'm sure renters stay more or less this amount of time, but owners normally stay in 7 night increments. Also, there is just midweek cleaning for owners and it's only a touch-up. They do vacuum the rugs, replenish soap/towels etc. I will admit I've had some maintenance problems at Vistana (burned out lights, chipped kitchen floor tile, drippy faucet), but never a cleanliness problem.
So I feel, even though the DVC units may not be cleaned as often as the regular rooms, this shouldn't be an excuse for poor housekeeping. Anne is right....they either need to get more staff or new staff.

 

[Deemarch]

I hope you are calmer now. As you said, you had a very good time overall.

Things get overlooked in every hotel in the world, I'm sure. (The mega rich have issues, too). And as you said you had a problem with your MIL's pills and an 11 month old...At home? At mom's?

Like I said...it happens everywhere.

As for destruction being blamed on renters...

ARE YOU KIDDING? Sorry to yell but do you really think that all people are honest, neat and respectable just because they go to DW? I won't take a grape in the grocery store before I buy them but I stand with others who knosh their way through the store.

We just may have to get the group who are in charge of rooms to be more proud of the work that they do.

 

[Deb & Bill]

We just returned from 11 nights at VWL. When we checked in, there was no coffee, salt, pepper, sugar, creamer, etc. Was it a big deal? Nope, just used what we had. When we got cleaned, 4 days later, they left what we didn't have the first time.

I did have a problem with the telephone one day, so I had to report that to the front desk in person. When we returned from the parks, the telephone was working correctly again.

The whirlpool at the quiet pool didn't work for about 10 of our 12 days. We just used the one at the themed pool and the jacuzzi in the room. With the holiday, I figured they needed parts or something else to get it working correctly.

Little inconveniences, but nothing big enough to ruin my vacation. Just called the front desk and notified them of the problems and they were taken care of.

The cigarette butts shouldn't have been much of a problem, either, at the BCV. If the room was a non-smoking room, I'd be grateful that the previous occupant didn't smoke in the room. And if it was a non-smoking room, why would housekeeping even think the cigarette butts even existed? Actually the groundskeepers probably should have cleaned them up and not housekeeping.

The day we left VWL, we took most of the things from the room by Bell Services. I carried a few of the loose things. However, I couldn't carry the bottle of soda or bread, so I headed for the car and then back to the room to get those last two things. When I got back to the room, the housekeepers had already loaded the dishwasher and started it, removed the heating elements from the stove top to clean the stove top, and moved my bread and soda. I took my last two items and left. But the room was already being thoroughly cleaned by housekeeping.

 

[pwoodham]

Well, I told my husband the general consensus was that I should have been more upset about the cigarette butts (which didn't really have much of an impact on me) than the Advil and he replied, "I think so too!" Thanks for letting me know, dh.
Sorry if I left the impression that any of this "ruined my vacation." It certainly did not. I'll stay at BCV again in a minute - tomorrow would be good, in fact.
I still plan to email DVC (gotta find that guy's email address here somewhere) and tell them about our experience.
Up to this point, I've been in the "don't complain, at least you're at WDW" camp. You can recognize us because we hate to read anything negative about DVC and frankly believe that anyone complaining about DVC just "doesn't get it." We gladly ignore any minor inconveniences, ask housekeeping to take care of the rest, and feel any such experiences are completely inconsequential. Certainly nothing to mention on this board!!
I've changed my mind just a little bit.
I do think it is reasonable to hold WDW housekeeping to a high standard. WDW markets to small children. They want our kids there. That's why I love it!!! But if they want my children to stay in their rooms, they should take extra care to make sure the room is safe for them. More care than my neighbor should take, for instance. And honestly, more care than a "regular" hotel chain might take that caters to business people.
Please don't start with the "parents should be responsible" line, because I absolutely agree. I just think it's okay to expect a bit extra from WDW and DVC.

 

[Deb & Bill]

If you go to the official DVC site and use the e-mail to MS at the top of the page, your message will go to the appropriate person. I sent one there a few days ago and got a response from Scott Lish a day or two later.

I will always let someone know about a problem in the room, call Maintenance or Housekeeping, but I also let them know about the good stuff as well.

 

[pnelson]

Please also know there is a BIG difference between a "pill" and a bunch of "pills". My foster son accidentally ate a pill intended for my older son. When I called poison control, they told me he would be okay, that very rarely does one pill of anything, let alone an Advil, pose a serious health threat. I guess I hold Disney to a lesser standard than my house, considering the amount of people who go through there, I think it's maintained pretty well.