I'm fuming!!!

[Doctor P]

I believe Pirate Dad is not mad at the fact that flights were cancelled.

I work in the Customer Service field.. I believe he was looking for a little compassion and understanding.

We cant blame nature. So, we look for a little help from people in specific fields when we need assistance. His flights were cancelled and he needed help.

I believe if the person had at least acknowledged his feelings of frustration, Pirate Dad would not have been so Put off. But, instead their response was a little cold and non- friendly.

They could have acheived a better feeling from Pirate Dad if the wording had been a little different.

Like for instance; Dear Sir,
Upon receiving your letter, I can understand how frustrating this was for you. I can not imagine the disppointment you and your family felt with all the things happening to you. Unfortunately, like yourself the events of that day were our of our control. We will discuss this with our cast members and advice them to "try" and help with some compassion in the future. I hope you come back and visit us again someday and your next adventure turns out as wonderful as your first trip.

Have a Magical Day. signed so and so.

I believe OP just wanted a little understanding.

Disney was not responsible for the weather.. They were not responsible for the rooms being gone. However, they could have been not so cold and the OP would not have been upset.

There is my 2 cents.. hopefully I "READ" the situation correctly.

Ah, yes. But when you write someone with a complaint who is blameless, no compassion is required in their response, IMHO. Note also that we did not get a direct quote from Disney, but rather the OP's interpretation of the response, which was, still, IMHO, neither nasty nor inappropriate.

 

[tw1nsmom]

One thing that confuses me is the room availability. I thought that if you were in a room and needed to stay another night, that there was a law that they couldn't force you out. I'm sure they wouldn't advertise or encourage it, but they also couldn't force you to leave.

 

[ChefBilly]

I hear what you're saying, but when it comes to weather throwing travel plans into chaos, there's not much you or anyone can do.

I just had a nightmare trip from New Hampshire to San Antonio, and what we were told all along the way was that if the cause for delays and cancellations was weather, the airlines and anyone involved didn't have to compensate or do anything at all.

It's wasn't fun, but I accepted that and just realized that I had to make the best of it.

However, I did tell my travel companion, "If I was going to WDW, I'd be a lot more upset about this."

As for giving your room away - I don't think they can book rooms anticipating bad weather altering travel plans.
That said, I really would've hoped they had another room open somewhere in the same resort. If they didn't, I guess I'd just attempt to grin and bear it - but that's just me. I'm unusually mellow most of the time.

Sorry you had the hassle. I've been there, I know how bad it can be.

 

[allie_to_you]

One thing I didn't understand from the OP though. It seems like you were upset that your room had already been given away even though your flight was canceled. I'm sure there was someone waiting to check in to that room. Can you imagine the chaos that would ensue if any of us got to our resort and were told "Sorry, the people who were here before you are still here, they had a change of plans?" No hotel can run like that.

Yes, hotels can run exactly like that as my DH & I have had it happen before...thankfully not at Disney but at other hotels. We were staying at a hotel in Montgomery and had reservations long before our trip, but when we got there, some tour group was staying at the hotel and had decided to extend their stay so we got stuck in a horrible room because the hotel said that since the group decided to stay, they couldn't kick them out. I personally think that that is a crock! If you want to stay longer, then you should make longer reservations and the hotel should make you leave or at least change rooms if they have already booked that room for another guest.

 

[Alicnwondrln]

i remember reading a thread that said somthing about if your in your room and decide to stay another day they cant do antyhing about it
is that true
i dont think they could have just kicked you out with nowhere to go? as for the flights that stinks but I am not suprised by disneys response

 

[ChefBilly]

Actually, let me add one more quick thing to this...

We vacationed on the Disney Wonder in October of 2000 (I think.) We sailed as Hurricane Irene hit. It was an awful experience all around, and we will never set foot on any cruise ship ever again - none of which is anyone's fault. Certainly not Disney's. They did everything they could to make us as comfortable as possible (free drinks, two for one drinks... Heh.)

I figured I'd write a letter, since all the excursions were canceled and we never made it to Castaway Cay, etc., etc., just to see what they said. Maybe they had some kind of 'we're sorry for the hurricane' pin.

The response I got was "Yeah, sorry. It was the weather."
The unspoken next sentence was: "You took a gamble during hurricane season and you lost. Deal with it."

The response was a bit short. I was hoping for a little more understanding, but I've been to WDW a lot since, so it didn't bother me that much.

That was my initial learning experience about dealing with the weather during vacations: If it's an act of God, don't expect much.

 

[ladhaz]

my wife and i were there 8/24-30 a few issues with the op. the day before the storm came there were phone messages, tv messages on disney world channel, not to mention every channel, abc, cbs, nbc, cnn all had storm coverage. when we got back to room on 29 the phone was flashing and said that there was a storm comming get your stuff straight. the following morning we went downstairs and got the room for one more night the desk clerk even gave me somesort of storm discount. i feel as if disney did more then enough to tell people in plenty of time to get there act together.

 

[serendipity]

Sorry that happened to you Pirate Dad! I agree with you as my mother has been a travel agent all of her life for the AAA travel company, for the last 10 yeras dealing primarily with Disney. I know for a fact that her supervisors would NOT have been happy if she had done the same.

 

[PirateBride08]

I booked a trip through Disney, as I always do using the internet, for December of 2006. We were suppose to go the 15-18th. Disney cancelled my airline tickets "by accident" and it ended up costing me an additional $230 to get them re-instated. Was I mad? Absolutelty! I didn't feel as though I should have been responsible for Disney's mistake. But at that point I was at the airport so I let it go. Then our flight, and every other flight leaving that day, was cancelled due to weather. We lost a night in our hotel and didn't arrive until 3:00 in the afternoon the following day.

Not once did Disney call to notify us, nor did I expect them too. I can understand the frustration and have been there myself with Disney Travel but I don't feel that they should have called me to tell me the flight was cancelled. I had to re-book my flight and did so directly with Air Tran.

I have booked many vacations with Disney online and have never had a problem UNTIL I have to call and speak to a Cast Member. I don't know what is going on in that office sometimes but I do hope that you don't let this bad experience prevent you from enjoying Disney for years to come!

 

[boomhauer]

Best advice I can give is keep in mind what I believe to be true:

There are 2 Disney World's.

One is the one we all know and love, where the parks are clean, the grounds are beautiful, and the CM's wee see in person are the nicest people around.

The other is CRO - Where it's a crap shoot whether you'll get a pleasant person, or a rude, unhelpful person who hates their job.

 

[Pirate Dad]

Thank you for all the responses. Perhaps more clarification is still needed….

I know that no one can control the weather. I know flights get changed and cancelled. That is not what I was upset about (this was just background info).

This is what happened. I called WDTC as soon as I found out about the flight cancellations. The agent said that the airline booked me on a flight for 6am the next morning (meaning we would have to catch a shuttle at 3am for the airport) and that we would have a 7 hour layover in Atlanta. I said I was travelling with my parents and three children under 5 and this was going to be very difficult. I asked the agent if they could find us a more reasonable flight, preferably that day. She said “no!” Next, I asked about accommodations for that night. They said I would have to book that on my own at the front desk of the hotel (ASM). Keep in mind I booked my entire trip through WDTC. So, I spent the entire morning on the phone with the airline and managed to get us on a flight for 3pm that day (eight of us). I felt since I used WDTC to book my trip, they should have been more helpful. Spending the entire morning on the phone and telling my daughters that we were not going to the MK that day was not a great way to spend our last day at DW.

Had I booked my trip through another TA I know I would have received better customer care (and the cost would have been the same). I thought maybe it was just a bad agent that I spoke to that day. When I spoke with customer care yesterday they said they would handle the situation “exactly the same way again in the future” (and that I could quote them on that). If this is the level of customer care you expect, then I think your standards are too low. In my experience, other travel agencies are much more helpful and accommodating. I will never use WDTC again!

 

[BionicEar]

my wife and i were there 8/24-30 a few issues with the op. the day before the storm came there were phone messages, tv messages on disney world channel, not to mention every channel, abc, cbs, nbc, cnn all had storm coverage. when we got back to room on 29 the phone was flashing and said that there was a storm coming get your stuff straight. the following morning we went downstairs and got the room for one more night the desk clerk even gave me somesort of storm discount. i feel as if disney did more then enough to tell people in plenty of time to get there act together.

I wondered about that. Did the OP ever check the weather, etc? We always have the TV on to check weather.

As far as airline travel, I would NEVER, EVER leave it completely up to the TA. When I travel by airline, I am alway keeping up with weather, flight time, and confirming my flight SEVERAL times in the 24-48 hours leading up to the departure time of my flight. I've sat on the runway at LGA for two hours due to a storm and that was 20 years ago.

I agree with most here. Disney can't be held responsible for weather and it's nearly impossible to keep up with the thousands to fly in and out of FL DAILY who are visiting WDW, much less know how to get in touch with guests, etc. Go with the flow. Be prepared to fend for yourself. Always have a backup plan just in case when you fly.

We drive to WDW, so it's a non-issue for us now.

 

[Tybug]

Actually, let me add one more quick thing to this...

We vacationed on the Disney Wonder in October of 2000 (I think.) We sailed as Hurricane Irene hit. It was an awful experience all around, and we will never set foot on any cruise ship ever again - none of which is anyone's fault. Certainly not Disney's. They did everything they could to make us as comfortable as possible (free drinks, two for one drinks... Heh.)

I figured I'd write a letter, since all the excursions were canceled and we never made it to Castaway Cay, etc., etc., just to see what they said. Maybe they had some kind of 'we're sorry for the hurricane' pin.

The response I got was "Yeah, sorry. It was the weather."
The unspoken next sentence was: "You took a gamble during hurricane season and you lost. Deal with it."

The response was a bit short. I was hoping for a little more understanding, but I've been to WDW a lot since, so it didn't bother me that much.

That was my initial learning experience about dealing with the weather during vacations: If it's an act of God, don't expect much.

This is where reading the cruise contract "before" your cruise really helps! A cruise itinerary can change at any time for any reason! Weather, mechanical issues, the island you are sailing to may have problems... anything can happen at any time.

To the OP... only other advise I'd give you would be to use an actual TA in the future(not just for Disney but for any vacation)... if you would have, you could have called them and they would have rebooked your return flights and you could have enjoyed the parks while they did the work. OH! And the most important thing... get a cell phone! And give that number for all contact while on vacation. If you would have had a cell and been at the parks, you would have received the call that you would have missed had you not been in the room changing flights.

One other thing... everyone, please... please... please... buy travel insurance! And remember... things happen on vacation. You can't expect everything to go according to plan all the time... be prepared!

 

[BionicEar]

OH! And the most important thing... get a cell phone! And give that number for all contact while on vacation. If you would have had a cell and been at the parks, you would have received the call that you would have missed had you not been in the room changing flights.

One other thing... everyone, please... please... please... buy travel insurance! And remember... things happen on vacation. You can't expect everything to go according to plan all the time... be prepared!

One thing with the cell phone... Most people leave it in their room safe while on vacation! (my dh does) Not only that... airlines are HORRIBLE at contacting passengers via cell when flights are being cancelled, so that's just not going to work. Your best bet is to be diligent yourself and not depend on anyone to stay on top of flight plans.

If you truly want to have someone else stay on top of it for you? Have a very good friend, or relative stay on top of that stuff when you travel by air rather than your TA. I do that for my dh when he travels. And that's how I know how bad airlines can be at contacting people.. they just don't.

 

[Tybug]

One thing with the cell phone... Most people leave it in their room safe while on vacation! (my dh does) Not only that... airlines are HORRIBLE at contacting passengers via cell when flights are being cancelled, so that's just not going to work. Your best bet is to be diligent yourself and not depend on anyone to stay on top of flight plans.

If you truly want to have someone else stay on top of it for you? Have a very good friend, or relative stay on top of that stuff when you travel by air rather than your TA. I do that for my dh when he travels. And that's how I know how bad airlines can be at contacting people.. they just don't.

An understandable view if you're not using a TA... or better said... a 'good' TA. I personally check all flights while my clients are traveling. If they don't give me their cell(or carry it with them...) it ends up being a waste of my time.

You can't depend on the airlines to call. Imagine a storm and how many flights are affected then factor in how many are on each flight... it would be impossible for the airlines to personally contact each passenger in a timely manner. Someone has to be at the bottom of such a list and of course that person will be the one to come to a board like this one and give a negative review of what transpired.

Cancellations are no fun, no matter the circumstances... and yes, you'd find out much quicker if a family member would keep on top of it for you(or better yet... the one traveling themselves)... why? Because 'you' are the only one they have to check and reschedule.

 

[undertheradar]

So the OP wants WDTC to change how it handles weather created problems, even though it was the airline who scheduled them on a new flight? The airline got your large group on the same plane the very next day and you didn't like the flight times! You expected the WDTC to make your plans the #1 priority when thousands were affected by the impending storm? I would have phoned the hotel front desk to advise of the cancelled flight and extending your room 1 night- this would have been the first call! I then would have phoned WDTC to attempt to change my flight - remember, thousands of people were affected by the flight changes - not just you! You come across as wanting restitution for your inconvienience, even though no human controls the weather. Chalk up the lack of compassion to all the frivilous lawsuits filed everyday(TIGGER!). The CM at WDTC probably was just as upset as you but cannot force the airlines to do anything.
Best advice: stay away from Disney and the WDTC until you can see your experience for what it was- a weather related travel delay!

 

[NEWEARS2006]

It is my understanding that Pirate Dad was initially upset about the flight cancellation and the rooms being resold, however, I think it was the lack of service and assistance he received that made him the most irritated. I have a travel degree and worked in a travel agency for 10 years (that was 10 years ago). If something went wrong with my flights, my first instinct would be to call my travel agent, which he did. They offered absolutely no assistance to him. That is what the commission paid to them is for, their assistance. This would upset me too. I know that none of the effects of the weather are their responsibility, but a little bit of service is.... I was also at disney Aug 24 to Sep 01. Due to the storm, Disney cancelled the Luau that we had booked. When we came back to our room there was a message to go to the service desk. The rep there had to rebook all of our dinner reservations for the rest of the week to accomodate us going to the Luau another night (you all know how difficult ADR are during Free dining). However, she researched everything for us and rebooked all of our reservations and even threw in an additional meal for our trouble. I think this was all Pirate Dad was looking for, a little bit of help We are not all travel professionals!!

 

[dizprincess717]

...Sheesh!

Would you have like the Walt Disney Travel Company to hold your hand as you boarded the plane?

Or, do you just think that WDTC has the time and manpower to call the hundreds (even thousands) of Guests each and every time a flight is cancelled?

And as far as them re-booking a room for you when the flight was cancelled... There were other Guests anxiously awaiting their check-in for that day. How would THEY feel if they got there and were told "Oh, we're sorry, you will have to go find another hotel for the night." Totally would have ruined THEIR vacation when you were only put at an inconvienience for the last day.

Good grief.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

I feel sorry for the OP, but having traveled a lot, I have learned that these things happen every day and you need to look out for yourself and not depend on a travel agent or anyone else. You need to be aware of the weather or any other circumstances which may affect travel and plan accordingly.

Keep in mind that even when it's obvious that there will be delays or cancellations in flights due to weather, the airlines often insist up to the very last minute that flights will leave as scheduled. It could be the case that a travel agent isn't getting accurate information either.

Your trip is not guaranteed to go smoothly. Be prepared with alternate plans if they do not. It's just a waste of time to blame a TA or an airline for a weather delay or expect any big apology if you are inconvenienced.

One thing with the cell phone... Most people leave it in their room safe while on vacation!

??

I don't think this is true at all. Why would you leave your cell phone back at the hotel, at least if you are traveling in the US?

 

[Hannathy]

I don't get why the OP is complaining about the TA not doing what they were supposed to either 1. They did get his family on a flight first thing the next day-which is what most people want when their flight is canceled -the very first flight available. He just didn't like the flight times, well guess what they have thousands of people to deal with in a weather event like this and they aren't nit-picking about times they are pulling up flight looking say OK 8 seats I need 8 seats book em, and moving on. If you want to fiddle with the times you can they don't have the time during an event like this.

2. I was also in Disney during this exact time and I don't know how anyone who was conscious couldn't have known there was a hurricane coming! It was on all the Disney channels, there were announcements. The CM's were talking about it, The parks and hotels were battening down the hatches, plus the weather was actually changing to the point that you could feel it.

There were open rooms at POP, if you had to move for one night so what, I'm sure you were already packed, and I would much rather move into another room at Disney than be sleeping in the Airport which could easily have happened if you had maybe got out of MCO only to have had to land in Atlanta due to weather. Considering the delays and stuck people in that storm I would be thanking my lucky stars that my family was "stuck" in a hotel room at Disney, safe, feed, comfortable and entertained and not sitting in an airport loading gate somewhere. It took my DS and myself 17 hours to get to Orlando that trip due to weather, should I blame my TA, who by the way didn't even know it happened ,nor did she call to tell me about it.