May 10, 2008 New Ship Of Thieves...May 2008 Repo Thread...Part 4

[lillygator]

hello all...I skimmed earlier this am...Kim, no it is usually sunny, we had a lot of storms yesterday!

John is closing tonight so the girls and I will be getting all their school Valentine's and goodies ready to go. It is another yucky rainy day.

 

[EllaEnchanted]

hello all...I skimmed earlier this am...Kim, no it is usually sunny, we had a lot of storms yesterday!

John is closing tonight so the girls and I will be getting all their school Valentine's and goodies ready to go. It is another yucky rainy day.

Hi V....how are you feeling this morning? Still stressed and exhausted? I thought you were going to have some good news to tell us soon. Then we hear about all the problems with the cars. That's not good news. Are you feeling any better and getting any sleep?

Valentine's Day with the girls sounds like so much fun.

 

[granmaz]

Good Morning Marilyn and John.....I doubt that there's any school here either. We had about four inches of snow yesterday then ice on top of that all night and now rain on top of all that today. Another weighted branch just fell off a tree and nearly hit the house. Just Great!

Our electric went off about 6:30am. I called to report it and they told me it would be back on by 8:30am. We'll see.

Just another typical winter day.

Hope your electricity is on soon Deb.

It is really just beautiful here and has that lovely promise of Spring to come. Makes you feel so much better.

 

[granmaz]

Deb, I seem to think I was one of the folk who put down 'don't know' for gifting, because I didn't understand.

Obviously I am on a fishmail team, and will be doing other drops, but I think I thought it was about something else.

Perhaps it is Lisa who needs to know this. Can never remember which Lisa that is though!!!!!!!!

 

[EllaEnchanted]

Hope your electricity is on soon Deb.

It is really just beautiful here and has that lovely promise of Spring to come. Makes you feel so much better.

Thanks Marilyn.

I love late winter early spring....it's one of my favorites. It makes you feel rejuvinated again, like you survived another winter and were looking forward to the warm weather.

Unless you're V....then the winter lasts three days and the warm weather is back!

 

[granmaz]

Thanks Marilyn.

I love late winter early spring....it's one of my favorites. It makes you feel rejuvinated again, like you survived another winter and were looking forward to the warm weather.

Unless you're V....then the winter lasts three days and the warm weather is back!

 

[EllaEnchanted]

Deb, I seem to think I was one of the folk who put down 'don't know' for gifting, because I didn't understand.

Obviously I am on a fishmail team, and will be doing other drops, but I think I thought it was about something else.

Perhaps it is Lisa who needs to know this. Can never remember which Lisa that is though!!!!!!!!

Lisa/LiserAnn are you reading this.....Marilyn wants to say yes to gifting and yes to fish extender available.

That about covers it Marilyn. The right Lisa will take care of it. Ha Ha

 

[gydell]

I'm heading home this afternoon. It's always good to get home but I'm leaving Friday morning to go to NC to visit parents. A trip I don't look forward to. My sister also lives there. My brother hasn't been home in 10+ years. I think he has the right idea!

Deb I talked to ******* about that matter we have discussed. She posted on cruise critic but got in BIG trouble! I think I have figured a way to go with it. Let you know when I get home.

 

[granmaz]

I'm sure I would have put down that I had a fish extender - unless I really had gone daft!!!

 

[gydell]

I like the idea of putting fish heads on Tom's door. They should be in green so he knows where they came from!

 

[lillygator]

I'm heading home this afternoon. It's always good to get home but I'm leaving Friday morning to go to NC to visit parents. A trip I don't look forward to. My sister also lives there. My brother hasn't been home in 10+ years. I think he has the right idea!

Deb I talked to ******* about that matter we have discussed. She posted on cruise critic but got in BIG trouble! I think I have figured a way to go with it. Let you know when I get home.

what am I missing?

 

[EllaEnchanted]

I'm heading home this afternoon. It's always good to get home but I'm leaving Friday morning to go to NC to visit parents. A trip I don't look forward to. My sister also lives there. My brother hasn't been home in 10+ years. I think he has the right idea!

Deb I talked to ******* about that matter we have discussed. She posted on cruise critic but got in BIG trouble! I think I have figured a way to go with it. Let you know when I get home.

Dent Dent Dent Dada....Dent Dent Dent Dada (sang to the Mission Impossible theme).....dontcha wish you knew what Gydell was talking about....dontcha. It's ok I don't either. Ha Ha Ha !!

Only kidding.....cool Gydell......good job! Glad you had a good time there with your friend and glad that you'll be home soon. Sorry it will be so short and then another trip, one you would rather not do. Hang in there, our cruise is almost here!

 

[Jhalkias]

OK guys, I wrote a letter . . .

Instead of Tom McAlpin, I sent it to Robert.Iger@disney.com

I copied roy.disney@disney.com, Tom.mcalpin@disney.com, and steve.jobs@apple.com . . . just a guess at email addresses, we'll see what happens.

Here is the letter:

Dear Bob,

(I hope it is OK to call you Bob)

I wanted to take a moment to fill you in on some difficulties my friends and I have had with the Disney Cruise Line reservation system.

You may have heard of the "DIS" boards, where everything Disney is discussed. Several friends of mine and I are members there, and we are all booked on the Panama Canal Repositioning cruise, West Bound. This last Saturday was the 90 day mark, wherein Castaway Club members have the opportunity for a "pain free" experience (as quoted in information sent to us) in booking reservations for excursions and Palo dining. We all anxiously awaited that date to firm up our plans. We were looking forward to getting online at midnight, booking our reservations, and going to bed shortly thereafter for Disney Dreams.

To say the least, this was NOT the experience. Many spent hours and hours trying to make reservations, deprived of sleep, and still unable to get this image out of their minds, as it is now seared in their brains:

If Mr. McAlpin or other DCL executive happens to make an appearance on our cruise, we may just surprise him with a shirt with the above on it.

Should you wish to read a blow by blow account, I would direct you to this page of our meet thread where the madness began:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1709944&page=212

Since this is a family site, to say the least, the comments were restrained. Fortunately, I had gone to bed because one of our cruising companions was kind enough to do the honors to try and obtain reservations for us.

There was a similar experience with this cruise last year, where Disney Cruise Line was going to charge an additional $100 per guest for passage through the Panama Canal. After many emails, and finally contact from the media, Disney finally rescinded that announcement.

Needless to say, these experiences have left a very bad taste in the mouth of many of us, all of whom are great and loyal Disney fans.

However, I am thinking that what is worse is being treated like just another dollar sign by the staff at Disney. One of the things we all felt that Disney was known for in the entertainment industry is personalized service. When we attempted to contact Disney, and Disney Cruise Line, we get responses like this:

Dear XXXXX,

Thank you for choosing a Disney Cruise Line Vacation!

I sincerely regret the challenges you've encountered while trying to
manage your reservation online.

Recently our website has been experiencing higher volume of traffic than
usual, as our Guests are preparing for their up coming Panama Canal
cruise.

I understand your concern, and I regret that the site was not been
permitting you to manage your reservation. Thank you for bringing the
matter to our attention.

I see that you pre-reserved:
XXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXX

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

We look forward to sailing with you!

Have a Magical Day!!!

JD
Reservations Department
Disney Cruise Vacations

*If applicable, please include your full name, reservation number, and
phone number on all correspondence.


Now Bob, we are all adults, many of us professionals, and we know a form letter when we see one. Is this the kind of response that would make you happy with a company when you had voiced a concern to them? Would you have a "Magical Day" after reading that response?

The overall conclusion we have reached is that your system is greatly flawed, and in need of revamping. With two new ships coming on soon, I am sure this is not the experience you want your guests to remember. One suggestion sent to Mr. McAlpin (which was not addressed at all) was that you allow booking for these things immediately upon payment in full, thus getting the money in your hands sooner, and allowing those who do so the opportunity to book these things in a more timely and ordered fashion. It has also been noted that Disney has outsourced their IT systems such as the Disney Cruise Line web site. If this is so, the outsourcing company should be FIRED. If they cannot handle the traffic of several hundred guests trying to book reservation requests, they are not worth whatever Disney is paying them. Perhaps some consultation with your friend (and large shareholder) over at Apple, Steve Jobs would be a good idea. None of us can believe that the founder of Walt Disney, Walt himself, would have ever stood for this level of customer service.

Every one of my friends and I continue to be amazed and delighted by the level of service while onboard the Disney Magic. You all should be very proud of the job that you do, and the return business of your guests reflects this. This will be our eighth Disney cruise since 2000, and we have no interest in any other cruise line. The level of service while not on the ship is another matter, and we are extremely disappointed and wonder if this can even be the same company.

I look forward to a non form letter response. I don't care if it is just a few sentences. However, should I get the same form and canned response as others, I will not be a happy camper, and I suggest that you give a more intelligent response to those who have already written as well. If I am told to have a "Magical Day" by someone, I will then decide whether to forward the correspondence on to the individual at the Orlando Sentinel who helped us out with the $100 fiasco last year. Perhaps the only way to get Disney to respond is by going to the Media.

Until then, I will not wish you a "Magical Day", and just say that I hope to hear from you or someone in Disney Management.

Sincerely,

John W. Halkias

DCL Reservation Number xxxxxxxx
Phone number xxx-xxx-xxxx

PS - DVC Member, Disney Shareholder (yeah I know, one share framed that my wife bought me for Christmas years ago), and message being sent from my Macbook, while my 7 year old daughter watches the Disney Channel on a school snow day.

 

[granmaz]

what am I missing?

Me too. Now we all want to know who ******* is!!!

 

[granmaz]

John - that is fantastic and very amusing!!! Well done.

I await the reply!

 

[Jhalkias]

I'm heading home this afternoon. It's always good to get home but I'm leaving Friday morning to go to NC to visit parents. A trip I don't look forward to. My sister also lives there. My brother hasn't been home in 10+ years. I think he has the right idea!

Deb I talked to ******* about that matter we have discussed. She posted on cruise critic but got in BIG trouble! I think I have figured a way to go with it. Let you know when I get home.

I'm with V . . . what is this all about?

 

[EllaEnchanted]

I like the idea of putting fish heads on Tom's door. They should be in green so he knows where they came from!

I LOVE this idea.....especially the DIS green color of the fish heads.......I'm so on the floor holding my stomach laughing. I wish there was a way to find out if he'll be on board and if so, what his room number is. We really really should try to do this. It's so funny.

 

[gydell]

OK guys, I wrote a letter . . .



[/COLOR]

Love the letter!

 

[gydell]

Me too. Now we all want to know who ******* is!!!

Soon enough!

 

[lillygator]

see John, I told you!
Great letter!!!


GYDELL.....come on! DISH GIRL!