Here now at Boardwalk

[bloomjes]

We are wrapping up a stay at Boardwalk. The resort was fine only little complaints on the room loud refridge, broken corkscrew, housekeeping was hit or miss and missed us a few days. Nothing that would make or break a vacation. However, we noticed several things that just illustrate the lower level of service. We noted a room service tray (not ours but down the hall) outside a door for 3 solid days untouched. Finally we picked it up and put it on a housekeeping cart. An hour later the same tray was across the hall on the floor. We gave up on it.

The AK bus didn't show for us, was over 30 minute wait and the expected time kept ticking up, and we finally took our car. Upon return, we were told we could not park in the lot we had been in due to a wedding. Were able to find 1 spot way in the back. I suspect this was due to people parking at Boardwalk and walking to food and wine but really there should be enough reasonable spaces for resort guests. Overall it's been fine but we feel this year and last like this is similar to any other resort stay anywhere. It's lacking the specialness we expected at Disney. I get now what people have been saying its a little sad but I think we are ready for a break while Disney figures out their direction. And I know for many people the more people that feel like we do, the better for them. That's fine too. I'm just sharing our experience. I think if we come back it will be to an off site resort ir Universal with a 1-2 day Disney visit

 

[lbv7]

Parking enforcement at the Boardwalk is non existent, to the detriment of guests who are actually staying at the resort. Take a look at the parking lot an hour after Epcot closes, and it will be half empty. I fail to understand
how they can enforce the rules at the Beach / Yacht Club but they can't at the Boardwalk.

 

[bloomjes]

Yes! You are exactly correct. And really that would be fine if the busses were close to where they were supposed to be. We missed a couple rope drops just saw the time on the sign go from 7:29 to 7:50 to 7:59 to 8:10 etc

 

[DisneyWishes14]

We stayed at BWV in December and again in August. In December we had the same issue with the AK bus. The wait time kept changing - it was quite annoying as we would have simply taken a cab or uber if they had put the real wait time up and we knew it would take 40 minutes for the bus to arrive. That room service tray story is disgusting. I'm surprised the people who ordered room service didn't call room service back to pick up the tray. Just an FYI, if that ever happens again, you can call room service directly from your room phone and ask them to come get it. You shouldn't HAVE to, but at least that option is there.

 

[Disneytam]

The tray's in the hallway are a pet peeve of mine and I have seen them in every Disney hotel we have stayed in. One year at the GF we walked by a room that had a tray sitting outside with a white chocolate Mickey Mouse sitting beside a chocolate box on a tray. The next morning it was still there but that night when we returned the chocolate was gone but the tray was still there. We joked that Mickey had gotten pixie dust and flew away!

 

[stephmarty]

housekeeping was hit or miss and missed us a few days.

That's a pretty big deal. You weren't staying in a DVC villa, by any chance, were you? I'm just trying to think of a reason you wouldn't receive daily housekeeping. The most basic 1-star motel wouldn't miss multiple days during a single visit.

 

[wilkeliza]

The tray's in the hallway are a pet peeve of mine and I have seen them in every Disney hotel we have stayed in. One year at the GF we walked by a room that had a tray sitting outside with a white chocolate Mickey Mouse sitting beside a chocolate box on a tray. The next morning it was still there but that night when we returned the chocolate was gone but the tray was still there. We joked that Mickey had gotten pixie dust and flew away!

In defense of people doing it when we ordered room service they told us to call or put it in the hall. When we tried to call several times and got no answer we put it in the hall since we were told that the was an option. We wouldn't normally put it in the hall but also you would expect them to answer the phone.

 

[bloomjes]

For us it wasn't a huge deal, we are in a villa but not here on points so should have daily service. We just needed trash bags and towels which we called down for and they dropped off but nothing was said like I'm sorry we didn't get to you etc so maybe it's confusing with the villas? Again nothing that made the vacation bad just nothing that made it amazing or a Disney experience either. I guess I'm spoiled expecting Disney to do it a step above everyone else.

 

[bloomjes]

In defense of people doing it when we ordered room service they told us to call or put it in the hall. When we tried to call several times and got no answer we put it in the hall since we were told that the was an option. We wouldn't normally put it in the hall but also you would expect them to answer the phone.

And I don't think the customer is at fault for the tray there. But if we walked by and saw it over and over so did Cast Members. Maybe it's not their job to take it down but they could call or move it to the trash room out of the hall. To me it was lack of caring

 

[wilkeliza]

And I don't think the customer is at fault for the tray there. But if we walked by and saw it over and over so did Cast Members. Maybe it's not their job to take it down but they could call or move it to the trash room out of the hall. To me it was lack of caring

We were kind of miffed ours was there for awhile. We were leaving the resort so assumed they would take it when they did the final clean of the room but had we been staying that night and come back to find it we definitely would have called until it was taken care of.

I just clarified that sometimes they are in the hallway because people are told to put them out there. There are a bunch of posts on the cruise line section blaming passengers for being unclean by putting their trays out even though room service is the ones telling people to do it so just wanted to clarify where it comes from. I agree though that when it sits out there for hours clearly a CM is dropping the ball.

 

[disneyseniors]

We are wrapping up a stay at Boardwalk. The resort was fine only little complaints on the room loud refridge, broken corkscrew, housekeeping was hit or miss and missed us a few days. Nothing that would make or break a vacation. However, we noticed several things that just illustrate the lower level of service. We noted a room service tray (not ours but down the hall) outside a door for 3 solid days untouched. Finally we picked it up and put it on a housekeeping cart. An hour later the same tray was across the hall on the floor. We gave up on it.

The AK bus didn't show for us, was over 30 minute wait and the expected time kept ticking up, and we finally took our car. Upon return, we were told we could not park in the lot we had been in due to a wedding. Were able to find 1 spot way in the back. I suspect this was due to people parking at Boardwalk and walking to food and wine but really there should be enough reasonable spaces for resort guests. Overall it's been fine but we feel this year and last like this is similar to any other resort stay anywhere. It's lacking the specialness we expected at Disney. I get now what people have been saying its a little sad but I think we are ready for a break while Disney figures out their direction. And I know for many people the more people that feel like we do, the better for them. That's fine too. I'm just sharing our experience. I think if we come back it will be to an off site resort ir Universal with a 1-2 day Disney visit

I agree. It is sad that "only a loud fridge, broken corkscrew, and hit and miss housekeeping" are the expected level of service now! Our expectations about Disney have been lowered, and we say "it's fine", when we know it's not. We will probably go to Universal for 2 days too on our next visit. We are waiting to see if the decline continues or the Disney co. wakes up, and gives the service they have always been known for!

 

[disneyseniors]

The tray's in the hallway are a pet peeve of mine and I have seen them in every Disney hotel we have stayed in. One year at the GF we walked by a room that had a tray sitting outside with a white chocolate Mickey Mouse sitting beside a chocolate box on a tray. The next morning it was still there but that night when we returned the chocolate was gone but the tray was still there. We joked that Mickey had gotten pixie dust and flew away!

At the Poly 2 years ago, the hallway was lined with old trays! No kidding, at last 5. They were never picked up for the entire week. No, we didn't call, as we were curious just how long they would stay in the halls. Wonder if they are still there???

 

[PSUGuy]

Any refurb issues?

Bill From PA

 

[Micca]

For us it wasn't a huge deal, we are in a villa but not here on points so should have daily service. We just needed trash bags and towels which we called down for and they dropped off but nothing was said like I'm sorry we didn't get to you etc so maybe it's confusing with the villas? Again nothing that made the vacation bad just nothing that made it amazing or a Disney experience either. I guess I'm spoiled expecting Disney to do it a step above everyone else.

Your positive attitude is admirable, but Disney should be doing it a step above everyone else. If you were paying cash for a BW villa, it wasn't cheap, and the lack of cleaning the room and the food tray in the hall is not only unacceptable, but for Disney it's embarrassing.

 

[NH-to-FL]

The resort was fine only little complaints on the room loud refridge, broken corkscrew, housekeeping was hit or miss and missed us a few days.

I would have paid a visit to the front desk over the missed housekeeping. I would hope that a gentle request for service would have fixed the problem.

We noted a room service tray (not ours but down the hall) outside a door for 3 solid days untouched.

This would have been another stop at the front desk. For what they are charging these days that is unacceptable service. We never experienced such conditions but then it has been a few years since our last stay at the BWI.

The AK bus didn't show for us, was over 30 minute wait and the expected time kept ticking up, and we finally took our car. Upon return, we were told we could not park in the lot we had been in due to a wedding. Were able to find 1 spot way in the back.

When we stayed at the BWI we would always drive to AK. And we would occasionally encounter parking issues. A few times we were forced to valet park. The excuse we got was 'sorry, a conference is onsite'. This has been our one annoyance with the Boardwalk.

 

[jerseygal]

Seeing dirty trays is a "pet peeve" of mine in resort hallways. If I see them in the halls for a long period of time, I will call down to housekeeping and advise them.

 

[bloomjes]

We did try to address the parking issue with the front desk, the manager pretty much shrugged it off. So then I called because I was annoyed he didn't manage the issue. The Cast Member on the phone was very apologetic and put us on hold then came back and said we should try to address it with the resort front desk I told her we did try to, she suggested I go back again. I told her I didn't want to spend my vacation complaining over again and I tell people how to do their jobs correctly when I'm at work, not on vacation . That was about as far as I wanted to take it. While it wasn't up to the standards I previously held for Disney, it was clear Disney didn't care and we still had a great time. I wanted to be in the pool with my kiddos. I did stop by the front desk to review the charges before we checked out and the Cast Member said "I hope you enjoyed your stay" I replied we did but would not be back and he said "sorry to hear that". lol World Class customer service it is no longer.

I just won't pay Disney prices again or for a good long time. I'm hoping that in the next couple of years, I hear on the boards that things have changed. Oh also we asked for later check out and were told no. I get that its not an entitlement but when we left the room there was no Mousekeeping in sight all the way to the elevator.

As for refurbishment, we did have paving outside our room one afternoon. Since it was so hot we had the doors closed anyway I closed the curtains to prevent smelling the asphalt. I really thought it would be worse when I saw the trucks but they were super quick. It was pretty impressive. Also they were doing a fence up around the pool when we were there one day but it didn't impact our experience at all. We had a room that faced the Swan and Dolphin.

 

[NH-to-FL]

I just won't pay Disney prices again or for a good long time.

When you get your 'How was your visit?' survey from Disney I encourage you to repeat the information you have presented in this thread.

While there are some things that are harder for Disney to improve, like the number of nearby parking spaces, there are things that can be attended to, like better housekeeping, if the data tells them that it is important.

 

[lbv7]

It is not the number of parking spots that is the problem. The problem is that they allow non resorts guests to park at the BW and then go to Epcot that is the issue.

 

[emilymad]

It is not the number of parking spots that is the problem. The problem is that they allow non resorts guests to park at the BW and then go to Epcot that is the issue.

This plus they hold a huge number of spots for valet that sit empty.