Just Back. Service went from Magical to Meh

[jenfur]

I have been going once a year for the past 14 years and I've had good and bad encounters with CMs each trip, however I can honestly say that the good has always outweighed the bad without question. And, any time that I have pointed out a problem it has been rectified above and beyond what I would have expected. I have more problems with the rude guests and they have definitely gotten worse over the years. For years I could only imagine how bad the CMs had it if it was so irritating to be just fellow guests of the rude bunches but my daughter did the CP this year and WOW. She tells me all the time how shocked she is by guest behavior. She typically goes above and beyond and I would guess that some guests get a kick out of seeing how far they can get CMs to go. She was once chastised loud and long for handing back change "wrong" and more recently, was reprimanded due an email complaint that she gave the wrong side and her voice being "too high". Her voice can't be helped and wouldn't it have been simpler for the guest to ask that the order be corrected on the spot? I don't know, preparing for this trip I am more concerned about the people entering beside me than the CMs greeting me. Even the tone on the boards has shifted. Everyone hates the magicbands, FP+, nothing is worth whats being paid, ect ect and this all before the trip happens. My family has always believed that the magic of the Disney vacation is 20% Disney and 80% what you take with you. The worst trip we ever had involved my husband breaking his foot with an unsecured pak'n'play and my youngest son vomiting for two days- you know what, still a great trip!

 

[MrInfinity]

This is such a weird thread... I keep reading how it's spiraling into "Really that's actually a concern for you?" territory. Everything from CM's don't get paid enough, to they need to be magical, to just wow.

Disney went above and beyond.

If you don't feel this is the case, you need to go to a Great America, Arbys, or shopping mall and remind yourself what average service is like.

Cast member cursing

Do you listen to the radio? I mean I don't love that those words are all over the place but this is the now. A CM can have a bad day. If they do it too often, they'll get called out on it and written up. Note the nametag, tell the manager about the one-off case, done.

Sold out TS restaurant answering in one word

So the greeter at a sold out restaurant does not have the time to idly chit chat and say "oh I'm so sorry sweetie we're just completely sold out today! Maybe if you'd like I'd be happy to tell you about all the other magical places you could go.." Come on. They're slammed and you don't have a res.

kind service but nothing memorable.

Kind service is not sufficient? Every order of chickens and fries must be presented in such a way that it creates a "memorable experience"? How would you even do that? If the person taking the order spent an extra 5 minutes with each guest talking about their experience and the line took 20 min instead of 5 min would you then be upset about how slow the cashier is? If one cashier is taking 2 min per transaction and one is talking to each guest for 5 min plus 2 min per transaction and each has 5 guests in line -- Which line would you want to be in?

For me, the magic always was in the Cast Members

For me, the magic was in our family enjoying WDW -- only one small part of which was the cast members. We might turn a random quick service meal memorable cuz our kids are doing something funny, not cuz a CM does so at every single meal.

Gruff boat driver

Honestly I think I know that guy! We've encountered him. We just smirk. He's the grumpy boat driver guy. Not everyone has to be sunshines and rainbows. We also know the corny boat driver guy who's been there just as long and tells the same jokes he did 5 years ago.

Overall I've found our Disney trips to be filled with CMs that take the time to talk to our kids, take pictures, make them smile, etc. We have awesome photos, and our kids remember specific instances! It comes down to you remember the good ones, and the average ones just slip by. And the particularly awkward ones like the grumpy boat driver makes for its own unique memories and inside jokes.

 

[lemonpan]

This is such a weird thread... I keep reading how it's spiraling into "Really that's actually a concern for you?" territory. Everything from CM's don't get paid enough, to they need to be magical, to just wow.

Disney went above and beyond.

If you don't feel this is the case, you need to go to a Great America, Arbys, or shopping mall and remind yourself what average service is like.

Cast member cursing

Do you listen to the radio? I mean I don't love that those words are all over the place but this is the now. A CM can have a bad day. If they do it too often, they'll get called out on it and written up. Note the nametag, tell the manager about the one-off case, done.

Sold out TS restaurant answering in one word

So the greeter at a sold out restaurant does not have the time to idly chit chat and say "oh I'm so sorry sweetie we're just completely sold out today! Maybe if you'd like I'd be happy to tell you about all the other magical places you could go.." Come on. They're slammed and you don't have a res.

kind service but nothing memorable.

Kind service is not sufficient? Every order of chickens and fries must be presented in such a way that it creates a "memorable experience"? How would you even do that? If the person taking the order spent an extra 5 minutes with each guest talking about their experience and the line took 20 min instead of 5 min would you then be upset about how slow the cashier is? If one cashier is taking 2 min per transaction and one is talking to each guest for 5 min plus 2 min per transaction and each has 5 guests in line -- Which line would you want to be in?

For me, the magic always was in the Cast Members

For me, the magic was in our family enjoying WDW -- only one small part of which was the cast members. We might turn a random quick service meal memorable cuz our kids are doing something funny, not cuz a CM does so at every single meal.

Gruff boat driver

Honestly I think I know that guy! We've encountered him. We just smirk. He's the grumpy boat driver guy. Not everyone has to be sunshines and rainbows. We also know the corny boat driver guy who's been there just as long and tells the same jokes he did 5 years ago.

Overall I've found our Disney trips to be filled with CMs that take the time to talk to our kids, take pictures, make them smile, etc. We have awesome photos, and our kids remember specific instances! It comes down to you remember the good ones, and the average ones just slip by. And the particularly awkward ones like the grumpy boat driver makes for its own unique memories and inside jokes.

I won't refute you point by point but I just have to say that we all have different experiences. I'm glad that you've only had the best and that no cast members have ever treated you anything less than "average." Like everyone who turns the turnstiles at Disney, I pay for the experience and this experience wasn't great.

And if a young person laughing in the face of a 70 year old and making her feel bad is something that doesn't bother you, good for you! I felt differently, however.

 

[J and R's mom]

I won't refute you point by point but I just have to say that we all have different experiences. I'm glad that you've only had the best and that no cast members have ever treated you anything less than "average." Like everyone who turns the turnstiles at Disney, I pay for the experience and this experience wasn't great.

And if a young person laughing in the face of a 70 year old and making her feel bad is something that doesn't bother you, good for you! I felt differently, however.

I'm with you.

Besides, I think his/her username says it all.

 

[MrInfinity]

I won't refute you point by point but I just have to say that we all have different experiences. I'm glad that you've only had the best and that no cast members have ever treated you anything less than "average."

Um. Did you even read the post? I said I've gotten the full gambit, from great to not. But the great ones add to the magic and the others just fall by the way. After all, it is the comparison to the average and the sub-average ones that makes the great ones great. Right? "Great" is a relative term.

Like everyone who turns the turnstiles at Disney, I pay for the experience and this experience wasn't great.

So you're saying that because of these 4 CMs, you had an unenjoyable trip? i.e. if you could wipe that trip from your kid's memory and get the money back. Now. You would do so?

And if a young person laughing in the face of a 70 year old and making her feel bad is something that doesn't bother you, good for you! I felt differently, however.

Young people do this all the time. It's called being young and learning as you grow up. Tell the manager, move on. Don't let it ruin your trip. One kid insults your mom and you come home thinking it was a terrible vacation? That's just so... extreme. That you can't shrug off such a regular-world-experience and have a great time at Disney World.

And one of your complaints were that CMs were "only kind - not memorable". My cashier example you completely ignored. Sometimes you just want a friendly efficient CM, not magical at every turn.

 

[lemonpan]

Um. Did you even read the post? I said I've gotten the full gambit, from great to not. But the great ones make it magical and the others just fall by the way. After all, it is the comparison to the average and the sub-average ones that makes the great ones great. Right? "Great" is a relative term.



So you're saying that because of these 4 CMs, you had an unenjoyable trip? i.e. if you could wipe that trip from your kid's memory and get the money back. Now. You would do so?



Young people do this all the time. It's called being young and learning as you grow up. Tell the manager, move on. Don't let it ruin your trip. One kid insults your mom and you come home thinking it was a terrible vacation? That's just so... extreme. That you can't shrug off such a regular-world-experience and have a great time at Disney World.

And one of your complaints were that CMs were "only kind - not memorable". My cashier example you completely ignored. Sometimes you just want a friendly efficient CM, not magical at every turn.

Again and again and AGAIN I've posted that these experiences did NOT ruin our trip. Again and again and AGAIN I've posted that I believe the cast members need more support. Again and again and AGAIN I've had good exchanges with other members of the board, some of us who disagree.

You seem irritated about how I feel about our experiences.

I live in the real world, I shop, I have GREAT customer service experiences at non-Disney parks. Therefore, as a big grown-up person, I can tell good customer service from bad. The cast member at Captain's Grill who was "slammed"? The entire dining room had empty tables and no one was around her podium. The way she spoke to me? Not okay.

I didn't get people's names and turn them in. Why? Because nothing was too terrible and doing that would have been problematic for the cast member. Why make someone's life harder. What I did do is write a general letter to Disney and posted this on a board of ardent Disney fans. I believe service is what sets Disney apart. If the service goes down and the cast members don't get support. Disney=meh.

Edited to add: Since you mention children, clearly you didn't read my posts. 1. I don't have kids. 2. This was a mother-daughter trip.

 

[Tonyz]

I've never had a cast member be anything less than incredibly helpful and pleasant. I kinda have problems believing some stories like this. I think some people just need something to complain about and will exaggerate their story to fit the bill.

 

[MrInfinity]

Again and again and AGAIN I've posted that these experiences did NOT ruin our trip. Again and again and AGAIN I've posted that I believe the cast members need more support. Again and again and AGAIN I've had good exchanges with other members of the board, some of us who disagree.

Fair enough. Not trying to make you mad. Appreciate all the varying views.

You seem irritated about how I feel about our experiences.

Not at all! I've just booked a trip to WDW and I'm excited to be going. In fact I'm kind of beside myself because there's nothing to plan w it being a year out. So I'm hanging out on the dis. You had a rather scathing report of how these CMs were just awful to you, and so I was making conversation as to whether it was really so bad. Were there no magical ones to offset? Not only focusing on these 4, but your post hinted that you thought all CMs had degraded in general. I was posting a counter point, to say that while I've certainly encountered the occasional less-than-magical CM, it has never in any way made our trip worse, and we found tons of great CMs too. Those that were bad, we even joked about like the boat driver guy (who probly was the same guy!)

If you're going to suggest in general that the CMs are not magical at WDW, I am entitled to share why I think in general they are. That is not being irritated at you for feeling that way.

I didn't get people's names and turn them in. Why? Because nothing was too terrible and doing that would have been problematic for the cast member.

If a CM curses, and it bothers you, I think that's the right thing to do.

Why make someone's life harder.

Because they'll get written up for it and learn from it. Or they won't, and eventually they'll get fired. Ignoring it or posting on the dis will not help.

What I did do is write a general letter to Disney and posted this on a board of ardent Disney fans. I believe service is what sets Disney apart. If the service goes down and the cast members don't get support. Disney=meh.

Fair enough, but your letter to Disney will be taken as a general letter and not get them to the real problem, which was a couple specific CMs that did things you were not happy with. It was not Disney in general, it was those individuals. Pointing out to a manager w the name from their name tag would have had a more real effect on improving the situation.

 

[lemonpan]

I've never had a cast member be anything less than incredibly helpful and pleasant. I kinda have problems believing some stories like this. I think some people just need something to complain about and will exaggerate their story to fit the bill.

I totally understand that. When/if you have a less than stellar experience, you will understand.

 

[Tonyz]

Since cast members in the parks tend to make a whopping $8.03 an hour and many cannot afford basic rent, I'd be in 'not so magical mood' myself.


I would personally cut them some slack.

Yeah, this might be the most of the thread.

But I think they're getting upped to 10 bucks an hour next year, right?

 

[Tonyz]

I totally understand that. When/if you have a less than stellar experience, you will understand.

Yeah, good point.

 

[surferdave]

I've never had a cast member be anything less than incredibly helpful and pleasant. I kinda have problems believing some stories like this. I think some people just need something to complain about and will exaggerate their story to fit the bill.

Do you ever listen to the DIS podcasts? Would you believe the people who run this website, who are in the parks a lot, and who are travel agents depending on a good WDW reputation for their livelihood when they describe similar experiences?

 

[Tonyz]

Do you ever listen to the DIS podcasts? Would you believe the people who run this website, who are in the parks a lot, and who are travel agents depending on a good WDW reputation for their livelihood when they describe similar experiences?

Yeah, I love the show. I believe that there are some cast members that are less than stellar, but I just can't see them yelling the "f word" in front of kids!

I have no problem with honest criticism. That's part of what makes the DIS podcast so freaking good. I fully agree with Pete's criticism that the problems with cast members is the traditions training being cut. He clearly knows what he's talking about, and he doesn't cast dispersion on all of them. His is more of a detailed, constructive criticism.

However, (and I do love him) some of Kevin's "less stellar" experiences with cast members sound like they were written for a sitcom. I think there's a touch of exaggeration.

 

[lemonpan]

Yeah, I love the show. I believe that there are some cast members that are less than stellar, but I just can't see them yelling the "f word" in front of kids!

I have no problem with honest criticism. That's part of what makes the DIS podcast so freaking good. I fully agree with Pete's criticism that the problems with cast members is the traditions training being cut. He clearly knows what he's talking about, and he doesn't cast dispersion on all of them. His is more of a detailed, constructive criticism.

However, (and I do love him) some of Kevin's "less stellar" experiences with cast members sound like they were written for a sitcom. I think there's a touch of exaggeration.

Just to clarify, the cast member was speaking to another cast member and talking about a FP+ scanner that was down. She said something like, "And this 'effing' thing...". It's not like she hollered it at a bunch of five year olds. However, she did say it and a dad (or a man who looked like a dad with a young kid) called her out on it and, I believe, was speaking to her. After she rolled her eyes at him.

 

[surferdave]

Just to clarify, the cast member was speaking to another cast member and talking about a FP+ scanner that was down. She said something like, "And this 'effing' thing...".

I can almost forgive her for that.

 

[lemonpan]

I can almost forgive her for that.

Hee. And that's why I didn't complain. It's just that when the machine at my local Starbucks goes down, I don't expect to hear them swearing about it in front of guests. It just seemed to be an odd choice because there were tons of kids around.

 

[JanaDee]

I've never had a cast member be anything less than incredibly helpful and pleasant. I kinda have problems believing some stories like this. I think some people just need something to complain about and will exaggerate their story to fit the bill.

Just because you haven't noticed it doesn't mean it isn't there.

I've had plenty of "meh" cast members, polite but distracted CM's, and unnecessarily curt CM's.

 

[lemonpan]

I just listened to this week's podcast. It perfectly covered how I felt and what I was trying to explain in the opening post.

If you have a chance, give it a listen.