WDWKOOK
NOW WITH LESS TAG!
- Joined
- Mar 10, 2009
- Messages
- 18,106
I have held off reviewing our recent stays for fear of being flamed or labelled a complainer but I decided to post anyway. My reasons are simple. When I am planning to stay at a resort that I am not familiar with the threads are invaluable in deciding if the resort is for me. This is my opinion based on my recent experiences that are heavily biased based on my previous stays for more years than I like to admit to. I can't possible be that old
I agree about consistency. After speaking with someone in management during our last stay I will say that the CL greeters/check in is officially a thing of the past FOR NOW. This is supposed to be company wide. I was told they will be having more "runners" on hand to assist CL guests up to the proper floor/building but you wil have to check in at the main desk. My theories: This was laid out for the GM's of each resort from Resort Operations management that oversees all the GM's. Easy to cut with the new text to room service that they envision cutting out check in labor costs. Do away with welcome gifts and other small touches that are a fixed cost. Upgrade the food as surveys indicate most people book CL for the food.
I believe they are trying to implement upgrading the food. However, I do believe they want to minimize on going labor costs and to that end I could perhaps see turndown on the line at some point and time. We never received turndown on our recent RPC stay. Yes, there were chocolates left but that was it. They used to refresh the room and replace towels etc. Whether this was a singular housekeeping issue and issue with consistency is most likely the answer but I can still see turn down being something that could go away.
Everything at every resort IS inconsistent. My recent experiences at both BC and GF RPC were in 1 BR suites so I will compare both experiences.
BC in May had a check in/greeter, we had solar gel, foot cream and larger toiletries in the suite. GF no CL check in, no solar gel or larger toiletries. Yes we had the foot cream. Food at BC was very good, not pre 2006 good but certainly better than anything in years. Staff , meh. We have never seen any great CL staff members at BC. At least in a suite we don't have to walk by them as often to have them ignore us. Our room was fine, but unbelievably showed wear already. Daybed had several stains and there were other issues as well that would require removing the room from inventory for a deep cleaning to fix. Many of the items were caused by the carelessness of guests at one time or another. The room here FUNCTIONS very well. Adequate drawer space and lighting in the shower/bath area. Things that GF sorely lacks. The room refurb while lovely left the rooms very impractical. Despite being quite a bit smaller the 1br and the standard rooms in BC FEEL larger. The fact that nothing was done to the baths in GF is really apparent, the BC tile and fixtures are much cleaner appearing because they are new.
RPC, No CL check in, room had issues with water flow. Food was WAY below BC. Love the staff; have for years and years. Would not be surprised if some of the staff transfer or retire. Many are older birds that do this now their "real" career is done and don't need the stress this has become. I do think they desire to make the Grand "grand" again but what that represents is perhaps a bit different than what we are used to.
Personally, the food is a small aspect of the CL experience at any resort for us. I think it is short sighted to concentrate on one aspect to the detriment of others. The small things are often the things you remember. Bottom line: Yes, they seem to want to improve the food and other things but only as long as they stay within budget. If you go mostly for the food service or are new to the resort you will most likely love it. If you remember that a runner was someone who would drive you somewhere when you wanted to go you will agree that the service is very different now.
In their defense: I am not a millennial and may not understand what they want and I believe they are beginning to market to that generation. I don't think repeat guests are a blip on their radar and maybe rightly so. Maybe we spend less, I have no way of knowing that answer but it is brought up a lot. My standards are very high but I am not unreasonable. And, my standards are based on actual previous experiences. I would rather them just admit that CL is going in a different direction, which they sort of kind of did
I always appreciate an honest review and if there's nothing negative at all, I actually get a little suspicious.
I think you should have high expectations/standards, especially since Disney's pricing structure is commensurate with what resorts with very high standards charge. And, from past experience at Disney CLs, we know that they are fully capable of achieving those high standards.
Each CL manager has their own budget, which varies resort to resort. Welcome gifts, special occasion gifts, food and beverage, etc... all come out of the budget. I don't know, but it's possible the budget has decreased. I do know that the staffing has changed as well as their hours. Speculation is this is due to Shanghai. Some CLs lost managers to Shanghai and WDW CL CM hours have been cut.
They really like keeping us on our toes!
I like the concept of the text, but in practice, not so much. I usually get a text telling me to come to the front desk. I'm happy to do that anyway because I actually like being welcomed upon arrival. CMs never know why I always seem to get the "come to the front desk" text. I did get the room number text once, as I was sitting checking in with the CL CM upstairs, so that was not very useful.
I do think someone should at least offer to escort you to your room. I think this is courteous and also helpful in cases where MBs are not working for the room door, elevator and/or common access doors. More frequently than not, this seems to be an all too common problem that would be much better resolved by a CM than by the poor guest having to schlep back down to the front desk or CL check-in to resolve.
Happy (almost) birthday, @pld5!
@Mshap001, are you staying on the 12th (Atrium) or 14th (Tower Club) floor? Sounds like you had to check-in at the front desk, but someone did escort you up. Was this just a courtesy or did your MB/KTTW card not work in the elevator?
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