Magical Express/Room Ready

[kathleena]

Posed a question to MS re: the Room Ready and Magical Express room assignments. Here is the response.

"What you would be referring to would be that when people that are utilizing Disney's Magical Express are being assigned rooms at the airport when they arrive and board the motor coach, while those that do not take Disney's Magical Express are assigned a room when they check in at a resort. This is
done to provide the best Guest Service experience possible. If we know that guests are on their way, we can either find them a clean and ready room with also keeping their requests in mind, or we can make our best effort to have a room ready in the about an hour it takes to arrive from the airport.

Obviously, for those Guests that are not utilizing Disney's Magical Express, we will have no idea when they are on their way to the resort until they arrive."


I guess what I take exception to is this statement "This is done to provide the best Guest Service experience possible."

Apparently - you can only have the best Guest Service experience possible if you use Magical Express. If you use a rental car, you get the sub-par service.

JMHO, I don't like this at all - and I even plan on using ME from time to time. It just doesn't sit right with me that the ME users get first crack at rooms. We've gone from the resort owners getting first crack if they reserved early - to ME users getting it.

Does not sit well with me. How does anyone else feel about it?

 

[Beca]

I'm right there with you!! If they truly want to provide the "best service", maybe they should ask people what time their plane is arriving when they make their ressie (people could call MS back if they do not already have plane ressies). Then, the people at the hotel could just assign rooms based on whose plane is scheduled to land first.

If a person is driving, they could ask what time the member is planning to arrive at the resort.

Does this sound like too much work? Well, I have an idea...let's just assign rooms when EVERYONE checks in at the hotel....or, better yet....assign them based on the date that they BOOKED the room (sorry!!! just HAD to throw that one in!! ).

However, what DOES make sense to me is that this "check-in at the airport" thing would be a GREAT perk to those who take ME when WDW is CHARGING for the service (i.e.....a great incentive for people to pay WDW for the service..."Well, we could take a towncar, but if we pay WDW to transport us, our room will be ready when we get there...otherwise we will have to wait to get into our room."

I am SUCH a cynic!!!



Beca

 

[RobDoc]

In our case, it didn't help at all last month when we did use DME. We had none of our requests met when we arrived in the evening, we got what was supposedly the only room remaining in spite of reserving 11 months ahead and using DME.

It sounds as though MS is suggesting that members NOT using DME can also call ahead to define their arrival time, in spite of what is posted on the DVC site. This is the same suggestion made to me by two different front desk managers at OKW over the past 8 months- despite an emphatic denial from the operations manager that members should call ahead.

It would sure be nice for DVC/MS to provide details about the room assignment system so members may make arrival plans based on whatever system is used. At one time, it was unerstandable that the earlier the reservation was made, the more likely to have requests met. At this time, it appears to be based on a variety of mysterious factors, with earlier arrival as the central benefit point in the system.

 

[Cruelladeville]

Ladies, please! This ME is just for a year or so, and, besides, all rooms are nice, with one or two exceptions. It's not like Disney will put you in the parking lot if someone is standing in line before you! When you arrive, most CM's reshuffle the rooms to get you one that's ready, if possible, other than at OKW, of course, so how is this any different? You need to chill out.

 

[Simba's Mom]

I agree that it does seem rather unfair to those who drive or rent a car (but then again, I'm totally with you on assigning rooms based on when the reservation was made). But maybe it explains why the time I got a room that most closely met my requests was the time I used Magical Express. And having seen people who were assigned a smoking room, even though they'd clearly asked for non-smoking, I can't agree that virtually everyone would be happy with any room. I could say "As long as I don't get a HA room, I'll be happy", but last time I said that to a CM, I got a HA room!

 

[Duckfan-in-Chicago]

It sounds as though MS is suggesting that members NOT using DME can also call ahead to define their arrival time, in spite of what is posted on the DVC site. This is the same suggestion made to me by two different front desk managers at OKW over the past 8 months- despite an emphatic denial from the operations manager that members should call ahead.

It would sure be nice for DVC/MS to provide details about the room assignment system so members may make arrival plans based on whatever system is used. At one time, it was unerstandable that the earlier the reservation was made, the more likely to have requests met. At this time, it appears to be based on a variety of mysterious factors, with earlier arrival as the central benefit point in the system.

This is my only real complaint with DVC and WDW in general. It seems like the rules change with the wind and for as well as the place is run, sometimes nobody really knows the answers to certain questions. They already have the DVC website. How hard would it be to update it with any current changes?

BTW are you saying you think MS is suggesting to call when we're a few hours away if we're driving?

 

[bobbiwoz]

On Sept. 30th my plane will get in at 1PM and I'll have a rental car. I guess I should be glad that Dcuz will be using ME and she's getting into MCO around 9AM. Her name is on the ressie, so I guess she and I will "luck out," we'll be in the "checked in" column sooner, but really, I don't like that this system.

Bobbi

 

[RobDoc]

...
BTW are you saying you think MS is suggesting to call when we're a few hours away if we're driving?

I don't truly believe they want to promote that as a policy, but when they are willing to send a written explanation to a member stating
" If we know that guests are on their way, we can either find them a clean and ready room with also keeping their requests in mind, or we can make our best effort to have a room ready in the about an hour it takes to arrive from the airport." an argument could be made that ALL members should call ahead and not just those using DME. Again, that was the suggestion made to me on two occasions by desk managers, although the operations manager denied that as a policy.

It sounds like DVC needs to give everyone (CMs) an update on the actual policies being used so they can be more consistent with comments posted on the member website, in written communications from MS and in verbal comments made to members. Consistency seems to be an elusive concept at WDW in general and within DVC in particular. I have no issue with CM's bending policy at times to be able to provide some "magic" for guests, but there still needs to be some baseline level of behavior that guests may depend upon when planning certain aspects of their vacations.

At this point, I'm a little gunshy about late arrival, since I've had to accept handicapped rooms that have been smoked in twice in the past few months simply because we arrived well after 4pm. Our request had been for an upper floor villa in a Peninsular Road building (all of those buildings are non-smoking)- so we got a ground floor room (HCA) where the previous occupant had smoked. If the policy is actually "last-come-last-served" as it seems now, then I'll change my arrival to the next day and forego one night staying on points. If DME guests are getting special treatment simply because the resort knows when they will arrive, then it sure sounds like anyone should be able to call when they are within an hour of getting to the resort and expect the exact same preferential treatment.

 

[CarolA]

I am sorry, but I see nothing wrong with this. I figure the MOST those ME guests have on you is a few minutes.... It's not like they get thier room automatically at 8 am an you have to wait until 4.

If they don't do this it is going to take longer at check while they LOOK for open rooms for the 20 families that just got off the bus and are in line and front of you and then you will complain. "ME makes the lines too long!"

As for driving and/or flying and telling them... you would then have to tell them you have been delayed. (And most folks wouldn't) If you are delayed on ME, they don't start assigning you a room. So those delayed folks are not using up your potential room. Whereas that delayed driver would be holding up a room while you waited because you drove faster and arrived two hours early.

 

[ferastu]

The original post isn't clear enough on how the resort is getting information on the ME arrivals.

When I read it I assumed that it was built into the ME system, not that the traveller was calling the resort to say 'I am on my way'.

It makes sense (from Disney's point of view, not mine) to give this as a perk to those using ME. If ME is the one sending the confirmation to the resort there is a guarantee that the guest will be there. Any other random guest could still be in there air, just driving across the Florida border, six hours away, etc.

I personally don't like it since I have the ability to make all my reservations close to the 11 months out and will almost always rent a car.

Now if they could ME my family to the resort and have my rental car waiting for me, that would be service!

 

[cruise-o-matic]

Could this be what they are doing?......

When you use ME, they also have to deliver your bags to your room. By getting the assignment at the airport, they can also tag your bags with your room #. So when your bags arrive at the resort, there isn't a further delay in getting them delivered to your room.

 

[Chuck S]

Personally, I think they should go back to express check-in. Call ahead, give them your CC number, they check you in and assign an available room...no matter how you will be arriving. Then when you arrive, you can show your ID, grab your information packette & room keys and go to your room and unpack.

 

[RobDoc]

Could this be what they are doing?......

When you use ME, they also have to deliver your bags to your room. By getting the assignment at the airport, they can also tag your bags with your room #. So when your bags arrive at the resort, there isn't a further delay in getting them delivered to your room.

It took them just over 4 hours to deliver our bags to our room using DME. The DME tags already had the resort imprinted, so I don't see any big time savings by adding room information at the airport- it would actually delay things even more having to add numbers by hand at the airport.

Again, my experience recently was that DME provided no advantage when checking in at the resort. Perhaps the program does offer some increased efficiency at this time, but at the "expense" of other guests not using the service. If that's the system in place, then fine- just let all members know it in advance so they can choose to take advantage of the extra benefit or not.

As for the suggestion that the DME program will make only a few minutes difference, if two guests arrive on the same flight- one using DME, the other renting a car - the DME guest will be "checked-in" right at the airport - about an hour prior to arriving at the resort. Even if both guests arrive at the same time (or if the non-DME guest arrives first), the DME guest has already been assigned a prepared room, while the other guest may very well have to wait until another room has been prepared - possibly after 4pm.

 

[CarolA]

As I understand it from reading. The ME system notifies the resort when you check into board the bus. You are not "checked in", they are just notified that the following guests have arrived and are on thier way.

Now, this could impact you or it could have NO impact. A lot would depend on are there any guests arriving at your time who are going to the same resort, with the same room type. I actually figure this is not as big an issue as the litany of room requests. For example, if I have ME and have a BW View, non smoking, 4th floor, close to the elevator, non handicapped, with "pixie dust" on my request it could make NO difference. (And we all know that at least some room requests are longer then this, I just couldn't remember all the options LOL!) Especially when I arrive and DEMAND that since I made my reservations 11 months ago and flew the red-eye for early check in my requests be met. (I have watched at least two DVC members DEMAND a lot including one who threatened to sue the check in CM over his room location at OKW!) Since BW view at is pretty much fully booked I can arrive via ME at 6 AM, but the last folks will still be sleeping there. Now in the mean time, Fred arrives in his car having driven all night. Fred has a non-BW view with one request (something easy like non-smoking). There were 5 empty studios last night that met Fred's request. Fred is IN while I wait for the sleepers to leave and the room to be clean.


I can actually see this having a bigger impact on the hotels where there are not as many variations. (Your average Disney hotel does not have Studios, 1 BR, 2 BR, GV/ Smoking/Non Smoking/Handicapped/Nonhandicapped/BW View etc...) There are usually only a couple of view options and probably 90% of the arriving guests only have something like smoking or non-smoking so there is a lot more flexiablity in putting folks in rooms.

 

[disneyholic family]

we're not using DME because as it is i'll be thrilled if our luggage makes it half way around the world and through the various plane changes and gorilla baggage handlers....i didn't want to add on the disney part of it as well....one more chance for someone to lose or break something...

so we're picking up our suitcases and taking them in the car we'll rent....

do you know if they have a place at OKW to check luggage if your room isn't ready?

in the past few years we've stayed in concierge where they made a point of checking exactly when we would arrive and having our room ready, regardless of the time of day (even early in the morning)...
that's one of the things i'll miss about concierge.....but i'd still rather have room to spread out this time around...

 

[DebbieB]

For someone arriving in the morning, the ME guest might be assigned to a room that went empty the night before, which might not be a popular request room. It's really luck when the room with your requests is ready. One may not be ready until 4:00. What bothers me more is when this all started Carol posted that she was told her room would be ready by noon (I think she arrived at 10:00am). She later found out that the room that was assigned to her was reassigned to an incoming ME guest and she had to wait until 4:00. Now that's wrong.

 

[disneyholic family]

From phone conversations I've had with Central Reservations, I have the impression that there is a priority hierarchy for handling of just about everything. Those with full packages are higher priority than room only, and so on down the food chain. It's irritating since certain return visitors, get pushed down the hierarchy (for example, people with APs).


but i'm not going to let anything bother me....at least i'll try not to....

 

[Tamar]

I wonder what would happen if you used ME to handle your bags, checked in wherever you check in for ME at the airport, but didn't actually take the bus.....(i.e., picked up your rental car at the airport after "checking in" for ME).

 

[thelobstershanty]

I would think that ME would have less of an effect on guests arriving in the early morning then those arriving on afternoon and evening flights.
As someone else posted there are many different types of DVC villas that are booked. There are also many other non DVC rooms that ME guests will be booked at. I do not think a whole bus load of ME guests are all going to be checking into the same DVC resort with the same villa requests. My guess would be maybe 2 or 3 families per bus that would be checking into the same resort, with the same villa requests at the same time as a DVC member who is not using ME.

 

[Simba's Girl]

Hmmm-after reading all of this I'm wondering if this has less to do with ME and more to do with people's opinons of the "room ready" policy.

I dunno, it really dosen't matter to me in the least who gets "cuts" and who dosen't. We all know the policy and we either agree or disagree with it. I am not wasting my breath about it its a vacation home, not a real home. Sure as an owner you want all of your requests met, and if you got 'em all met that'd be great and super. Knowing that a request isn't a guarantee is more than enough for me not to be totally having a hissy fit over getting a HA room (which we did get last December and I don't see the big deal over, even with a toddler and a preschooler ). Sure I make my ressies (try to) at the 11month window, but why should that make me better than anyone else, the policy is still the same. I'm not reserving a specific room just a place on the list.

Heather