Honeymoon from Hell at the Beach Club Villas last week

[nicky mouse]

I'm so sorry that your honey moon didn't go as you expected. I would also have been very disappointed to get so sick on my honey moon. (We had a hurricane instead, but that actually wasn't too bad at all. Just stuck in our room in Virgin Islands for the first day.) I think the fact that you were sick is probably the biggest contributing factor to your disappointment. That's not to say that the other complaints aren't real, but in your letter to Disney I would leave out the mention of being sick and missing out on meals, because it weakens your argument. But that's just my 2 cents.

Try looking at it this way. Because you got sick and didn't have a great time you just have to plan a trip to go back and have a 2nd honey moon. Maybe pick a different DVC this time.

 

[rinkwide]

...BCVs were designed to look like Grandma's summerhouse...Perhaps BCVs theming has succeeded in being more complete than even VWL!

They just need to pump in the smell of baking cookies and arthritis balm, then we'll be all set.

 

[DrTomorrow]

They just need to pump in the smell of baking cookies and arthritis balm, then we'll be all set.

You forgot the large glass dish of 22-year-old hard candies....

 

[crisi]

I also think we are jaded. Look at the response debbiepump got to her complaint letter - which was walking into a room where the trash hadn't been emptied that had used sanitary napkins in the trash. Her previous stay (as I recall) was staying in a smoking room, when she had requested non-smoking for medical reasons. The DVC response is frankly what we've come to expect. Brandon is free to send his letter, but he should really not expect anything to come of his efforts - since it would be a miracle if they did.

For us, we've always had DVC live up to our expectation. And if the polls here are to be believed, while room problems happen, they aren't common.

 

[byoung]

I'm not a BCV lover, so I read your letter thinking it was going to be another problem with check in etc. I kept reading thinking I was going to get to the "big horrible" part, and I never got to it. Really, read your letter again and pretend you are the owner of a property that is receiving this letter. You will see how absurd most of it sounds. It really sounds like you are trying to blame Disney for you getting sick on your vacation.

Bugs? Hey, it's Florida! There are bugs there, and if you only saw 8 in a week, you were doing well! We have even had tree frogs come into our room when we have had ground floor rooms.

Worn carpets and flooring? It's a VERY busy always full to capacity DVC resort. Even doing non-stop maintenance, there are going to be issues. I can't speak of the roof, but then I doubt I have ever looked at a roof with much concern on vacation.

Either you are trying to be funny and pull chains around here, or you are looking for justification to send a complaint that looks pretty flimsy and almost laughable. There are going to be a LOT of things in your marraige that will be 100's of times more tramatic than anything in that letter. Maybe it's time to mature a little and rolll with the punches.

I agree with you Diane.

 

[bobbiwoz]

You forgot the large glass dish of 22-year-old hard candies....

We were lucky, grandma had M&M's peanut!

Bobbi

 

[MonkeyPants]

sorry to hear about the trip. I have only read the 1st page of replies but I am surprised by the responses. I agree that there is nothing Disney could do about the flu and I dont think you want them to, but since the flu had you down for the 2nd half of your trip it just kind of heightens your disappoint of your first half of the trip.

Now as for maintenance issues, I can completely see your pooint of view. I've been going to Disney since I was in the womb! One of the most amzing things over the years is Disney's attention to detail. The parks and resorts were kept in impeccable shape. But in the last decade or so I think that attention to detail as dropped off a bit. I still think Disney has 95% of everything else out there beat, but I dont know if they are now soooooo big and the pool of people who have a solid work ethic just isnt there and things are getting missed or people are just letting it slide. In the last year I took 3 trips down to Disney I noticed problems in the upkeep of some of the areas and sadly some incredible lapses in customer service in both the form of rude and incompetent staff.

While I agree that the OP could have reported all these things during the trip, he shouldnt have to. He's on vacation (his honeymoon) he isnt there to be the property maintenance supervisor. Come on, can you say Walt would ever have put up with stained carpeting (or bedspreads as I had during one of my stays) broken lighting fixtures and the like? There were bugs a plenty at the contemp when I was there in oct, I informed the manager and he spent 10 minutes explaining why there were bugs. I didnt need to know why or even care why. I was informing him so he could do something about. They were climbing the walls in the hallway at night and several almost dropped right on peoples heads as they left their rooms. I dont think the mother or father who has a 1.5-2 inch roach fall into his/her daughters' hair is going to care why they have bugs, they are just going to want them gone.


I love Disney, joined the DVC today in fact, but I am not blind to the fact that Disney is not perfect.

 

[corpcomp]

As a new BCV owner, I was sorry to hear about your experience and hope that the next one is better.

I have not read all the comments sent to you but wanted to ensure you knew one thing.

One of the reasons you saw roof tiles missing is that tens of thousands of houses in Florida were damaged from the hurricanes as I'm sure you know.
In fact if you took the Magical Express you would see house after house of pure roof damage, still not repaired. I saw this in April and was stunned at the level of damage.

What you probably don't know is that there is a shortage of the clay tiles as a result and companies that make them are trying to pump out millions of them but you have to be able to match the colors, which is a problem. My sister lost a whole section of her roof and it is still not repaired and was told it will take another 3-4 months before matching tile arrives. Disney may have money but they don't make their own tiles. And besides, if it did not leak in your room it really should not matter. It could have been worse, you honeymoon could have been planned for New Orleans.

I've stayed at the Poly spending $450 a night only to find mold all over the bathroom wall. I've stayed at All Stars only to deal with terrible long bus lines. For a non DVC resort, I've found Coronado the best of them all and reasonably priced. You should try that next time. Much nicer than Pop Century.

Good luck with you next trip and congrats on your marriage. At least you got to spend time together.

 

[BWVNUT]

For us, we've always had DVC live up to our expectation. And if the polls here are to be believed, while room problems happen, they aren't common.

BINGO!

...BCVs were designed to look like Grandma's summerhouse...Perhaps BCVs theming has succeeded in being more complete than even VWL!

They just need to pump in the smell of baking cookies and arthritis balm, then we'll be all set.

And let's not forget the moth balls - to keep some of those pesky bugs away...

 

[LK03]

OP I see exactly where you are coming from. I was looking into DVC and the BCV because we liked the BC so much. Well, once I saw the pictures online I was NOT impressed. You mentioned the crooked lights and a few other minor things, well you know what, if that were my house I'd be upset about it too. A few things out of whack the place does look like shambles. Would you believe I just picked up a few piles of papers and dog toys and my apartment looked much better. It's those minor things that add up that can really bring the ambiance down of a place. I guess it's glad you didn't buy DVC before staying.

I agree with the others if you send the letter, take out the part about the sickness, that will only detract the reader

 

[Sherri]

We love DVC, but we know it isn't for everyone.
I'm sorry it didn't live up to your expectations.
For us, we love it.
It is the best purchase we ever made.

 

[MrShiny]

The moral of this story seems to be, if it isn't as it should be, do something while it can be changed.

I was at the BCV about a year ago and noticed nothing of that was described. Not that it didn't exist, just didn't notice it or it wasn't in the areas I was in.

The room should be clean when you enter. If it isn't, then make it so. Otherwise it will add up if other things go wrong, as it did here. I hazard if any one of those things had been the only thing wrong on an otherwise great vacation, it would have been a non-issue.

I've never had a bug in the room, but did have a tree frog in a 3rd floor WL room back in 2001! It's Florida, so I just caught it and let it go outside.

It's awful that you got sick. As a DVC owner, I wish you had mentioned the other controllable things while you were there.

Part of the issue is many many people pass through these halls. I would expect things to wear and break, perhaps even more in DVC, as we probably as a whole spend more time in the rooms than non-DVC.

I suggest you go again and stay at DVC to see if it right for you. If you are a frequent Disney goer, it makes so much economic sense that it would be a shame to not do it based on what I think is an atypical experience.

 

[DrTomorrow]

[...]Now as for maintenance issues, I can completely see your pooint of view. I've been going to Disney since I was in the womb! One of the most amzing things over the years is Disney's attention to detail. The parks and resorts were kept in impeccable shape. But in the last decade or so I think that attention to detail as dropped off a bit.

Well, that's the first "Things have gotten so much worse since I was a fetus" comment I've ever seen.

While I agree that the OP could have reported all these things during the trip, he shouldnt have to. He's on vacation (his honeymoon) he isnt there to be the property maintenance supervisor. Come on, can you say Walt would ever have put up with stained carpeting (or bedspreads as I had during one of my stays) broken lighting fixtures and the like?

No, but he does have an affirmative responsibility to inform the authorities if there is a problem. And this "Walt" stuff is totally off the wall; you're not trying to tell me that the minute someone makes a permanent stain in a bedspread, Walt would have had it replaced immediately? Within seconds? It takes time to repair/replace things - and even longer if no one notifies the authorities.

I love Disney, joined the DVC today in fact, but I am not blind to the fact that Disney is not perfect.

That's all we are saying: Disney isn't perfect; they make a good effort to keep up, but they can't do everything at once, so they prioritize. And a simple call to Housekeeping bumps up the priority of your problem.

IMHO - YMMV - Be well!

 

[MonkeyPants]

Well, that's the first "Things have gotten so much worse since I was a fetus" comment I've ever seen.

is that how it sounded if that is how it sounded, it wasn't intended that way...was just trying to give the perspective that I have pretty much grown up Disney. As for the Walt comment being off the wall, no I dont think so. I think the park/resorts should try to live up to his ideal of quality.

Yes, if things are bad they should be reported, but they should be constantly being reported BY THOSE THAT WORK THERE (not yelling, just emphazing)

I am a nurse and if I see something is wrong with a patient...am I supposed to wait til the patient notices there is something wrong or should i take proactive measures?

The mousekeeper during a clean up cant tell that 'hey these comforters are stained and perhaps shouldn't be put on a bed but sent to be recleaned or replaced completely? Or she notices roaches, she shouldnt take the initiative to notify the bug person? A guy who works the front desk notices the lighting fixtures are loose, or sees a crack in a wall or walkway, he should ignore it?

I am not saying that 100% would be captured by those who work the resorts, but there are indeed many things that they can not help but notice. I would like to think they take as much pride in the resort as they would their own homes.


just my 2 cents, I was just saying a person on vacation, should havent to play the role of quality control inspecter.

 

[mickeyfan2]

Well, that's the first "Things have gotten so much worse since I was a fetus" comment I've ever seen.

 

[kaytieeldr]

So, you want to complain about the carpeting in the hallway? Was the carpeting at Pop Century better?

Um, well, since Pop doesn't have hallways... but yeah, I'd think the Pop carpeting in the rooms was better simply because it's a newer, therefore less-worn, resort.

I think the point is that most of us don't think your experiences were all that awful, besides the catching the flu part. Did you fly? You might have caught it on the plane.

Yes! I ended up with pneumonia (and, ultimately, in the Presidential Suite at Celebration Health ) on a much-anticipated Disney trip several years ago - and I'm positive I got it on the flight down - because I'd had a physical two days before I left and my lungs were absolutely clear. Much as I theoretically tried to blame my illness on the restaurant where I first started feeling lousy,,,

I just don't notice the roof of a building, honestly. And a light being out in an elevator button is something I would notice for about two seconds and then never think of again.

LOL! Management in my apartment complex just had one of the elevators in my building replaced (after several years of promising to do that), and right from the start, the light on the button for one of the floors never - on the other hand, since this was after many instances of the old elevator itself not working, we can overlook it

How much extra is the additional housekeeping anyway? Want to know for our upcoming trip.

I think it's $25 a day... and where did you get that mug???

so I think the properties should be kept a little better and maid service should come without me reminding them to come. I was there for 2 wks in Jan. at BWV and I never received maid service once, not until the night before I checked out

Now that's funny (and I do believe you!) - I stayed at OKW last January and had to change rooms after one night. I got Housekeeping on my fourth day at the RESORT, not, as I expected, my fourth day in the new room!

As far as the bugs go, you only mentioned 1 of the bugs was a roach right? The other 7 you don't mention but I think after around the 3rd bug I may have called someone, but it still would not have ruined my vacation. Just step on the bug, they are much smaller than you!

No can do - didn't you see "Men in Black"?

maybe if housekeeping was a routine daily thing... the place wouldn't be a dirty as it seemed to me?

Your original post addresses: missing roof shingles, scratched elevator floors, gum stains (not sure how the source of the stain/s would be determined, but I digress) in the elevators, worn hallway carpeting, stained hallway carpeting, hallway light fixtures askew, a wall stain, a missing/detached closet(?) rod, eight bugs over a one week period, a pushed-in elevator panel, cracking around that panel, a dented/missing 'chunk' of wall in the hallway, stale smoke in the ice room, noisy neighbors, early lawnmowers, and a shower that appeared to need cleaning..
With the possible exception of the shower, and possibly the bugs, NONE of these issues is even remotely housekeeping-related. Having housekeeping clean each room every day, or even every hour, would NOT address fourteen of the sixteen issues you mention.

 

[MinnieGirl33]

again... what in the heck are DVC members paying for if they don't keep the place looking betten than the way I saw it last week. ...

I think most DVCers do have a high expectation of maintenance conditions but most of also understand that WDW / DVC are enormous properties to care for. I think it's fair to say that nothing in WDW is tended to the way it was "on the old days".

That being said, I do believe many DVCers are concerned more about how issues are addressed when they are made known to management at the time.

People can't fix what they don't know is broken be it insects or an abrupt cast member. While I wish everything was always perfect from the minute I arrive home, I know that is unrealistic. I do expect that if I call the front desk about an issue that it will be handled in a timely & professional manner to my satisfaction.

If you truly aren't looking for compensation I think your letter would be better received if it read more along the lines of "just wanted to let you know this is what we saw", just the facts.

Congratulations on your marriage.

FWIW, my guess is that the flu probably came on from exhaustion (think about all that pre-wedding stress wearing your immune system down) & breathing in the germy air from 100+ germy people on the plane.

 

[fishermouse]

is that how it sounded I have pretty much grown up Disney.
Do you think maybe our standards tend to change as we grow up? I've been going a long time also, no WDW or DL when I was in the womb but a long time non-the-less.Some things are better some are not. Food in the parks has improved greatly over the years.

Yes, if things are bad they should be reported, but they should be constantly being reported BY THOSE THAT WORK THERE (not yelling, just emphazing)
I agree in hotels that are serviced daily but DVC is occupied by "owners" for the most part and we need to keep them informed of any problems we find.

I am a nurse and if I see something is wrong with a patient...am I supposed to wait til the patient notices there is something wrong or should i take proactive measures?
I also work in the health field and some things are not readily observed, it is up to the patient in your case to tell you if something hurts. In my case, I service the Imaging Equipment, Xray ,Nuc Med etc. Athough I go through the departments several times a day, If a tech or nurse has a problem with equipment he/she needs to let me know.

The mousekeeper during a clean up cant tell that 'hey these comforters are stained and perhaps shouldn't be put on a bed but sent to be recleaned or replaced completely? Or she notices roaches, she shouldnt take the initiative to notify the bug person? A guy who works the front desk notices the lighting fixtures are loose, or sees a crack in a wall or walkway, he should ignore it?
No they should do something about it or be replaced by some one that will. Having guests that are willing to inform them of problems does not relinquish them of their duties, it allows us to have problems addressed a little sooner.

I am not saying that 100% would be captured by those who work the resorts, but there are indeed many things that they can not help but notice. I would like to think they take as much pride in the resort as they would their own homes.

just my 2 cents, I was just saying a person on vacation, should havent to play the role of quality control inspecter.

100% correct on both statements. Everything we report to the front desk should be reported to MS via email when we get home, if the problems are reported over and over I HOPE Ms would look into it. Like you just adding my .02 cents.for what it's worth.

 

[Johnnie Fedora]

Look at the bright side...Any future anniversary trip you take will automatically top your honeymoon!!

Since you are just "starting out" you life together, you may consider investing in a vacation home that you exclusively own. That way, every light will be lit, every bug will be outside, every cartpet will be clean, the bathroom will be stocked with dozens of towels, and when you visit...you'll never get sick. I think your expectations are unrealistic for a "shared property".

I find little things like you describe everytime I visit DVC. They are run of the mill maintenence issues. If they affect my vacation experience, I either fix them myself or call housekeeping/maintenance.

Best of luck. Next time, book through CRO and complain to the front desk.

 

[tmt martins]

Well I didn't read all the post .

But you most likely got sick from reusing your towels for that long .

Why would you not (or did you not know) wash them .Or call housekeeping and get new ones You can even just pat a small amount and get T & T everyday or full house keeping .Even an eaxtra set of towels are only $6.50.

You wash and dry your ENTIRE body with them then they sit in a hot dark area like a peatree dish.

Take some responsibility for things that as an Adult you should have taken care of.

As for the condition of the over all resort it looks like you were looking for defects instead of the great things it had to offer.