ME Luggage Tags? - UPDATE 4/20 - NEW UPDATE 4/26

[BettyCv]

Just to clarify, yes, I can certainly see picking up your own luggage if you didn't receive luggage tags yet. I meant that it was sounding like people planned on taking their luggage with them onto the bus, even if they DID receive their luggage tags. That is where I picture everyone waiting on the bus while some passengers go to the luggage carousel to get their bags....

Hopefully, everything will get worked out quickly. The first reports should be interesting!!

Betty

 

[mrscoobs]

Posted this on another board but I will place it here since it is pertinent (over on the theme park strategies I think):

I called DME this afternoon since our luggage tags have not arrived yet. I spoke with an absolutely wonderful CM who checked to make sure I was in the system (which she confirmed through my last name and then making sure I was on my way to the contemporary) and then said that I *should receive my tags next week (which is fine, I am not to worried. As others have mentioned, it is a free ride!) The interesting thing about the conversation was the CM told me that if the tags do not arrive on time for our departure that upon passing through security we should head directly to the DME check in on the third floor and then give the CMs there my baggage claim numbers and description of luggage or if they are available they will go to baggage claim with me to pull it and send it on the truck while we then go to bus. I thought that was rather interesting and we will have to wait and see!

 

[Disney_1derland]

Okay, so, the point of ME is to save me time and hassle, but if I don't have the luggage tags they are actually adding time and hassle to the beginning of my trip. That just doesn't sit well with me. To have to go find their employees, hope that someone is free to go down to baggage claim with me, go down, retrieve my own luggage, then pray it gets to my hotel and THEN have to go back and hope that my bus hasn't left already and I'll have to wait for the next group. This just does not sound productive to me. I don't care if it is free, if it adds frustration, I'll pay for the towncar.


Here is my other question....for those of you that haven't received tags yet, are you flying on a partner airline or a non-partner airline? I just wonder if they aren't giving preference to people flying on the partner airlines before dealing with the rest of us. That truly does NOT sound magical to me.

 

[mhochman]

Okay, so, the point of ME is to save me time and hassle, but if I don't have the luggage tags they are actually adding time and hassle to the beginning of my trip. That just doesn't sit well with me. To have to go find their employees, hope that someone is free to go down to baggage claim with me, go down, retrieve my own luggage, then pray it gets to my hotel and THEN have to go back and hope that my bus hasn't left already and I'll have to wait for the next group. This just does not sound productive to me. I don't care if it is free, if it adds frustration, I'll pay for the towncar.


Here is my other question....for those of you that haven't received tags yet, are you flying on a partner airline or a non-partner airline? I just wonder if they aren't giving preference to people flying on the partner airlines before dealing with the rest of us. That truly does NOT sound magical to me.

I'm flying on a partner airline. I understand your frustration, but I think we have to be a little tolerant given the level of complexity with kicking off a program like this. I arrive on day one (5/5); I'd have to be pretty naive to have thought there wouldn't be any potential problems. Grabbing my luggage (if that's what I end up having to do) is no different than it would have been if I was going rental car or Mears. This is free, so I won't complain a bit.

 

[Disney_1derland]

I'm flying on a partner airline. I understand your frustration, but I think we have to be a little tolerant given the level of complexity with kicking off a program like this. I arrive on day one (5/5); I'd have to be pretty naive to have thought there wouldn't be any potential problems. Grabbing my luggage (if that's what I end up having to do) is no different than it would have been if I was going rental car or Mears. This is free, so I won't complain a bit.

I agree that we can't expect it to work perfectly but I would expect they would have worked out what seem to be major flaws in the system by now. I think the luggage tag issue is a huge deal and that since they are experienced in handling this for Cruise passengers this is not a totally new system, just and expansion on something they already do and do well.

In my case, there is a week of operations before I head in and I'm hoping to hear some positive feedback before then. If not, I will reserve a town car. Free or not, it will not be worth my frustration to be at the mercy of a system that is not working the way it is supposed to. That, of course, is just my $.02

 

[localdriver]

Here is my other question....for those of you that haven't received tags yet, are you flying on a partner airline or a non-partner airline? I just wonder if they aren't giving preference to people flying on the partner airlines before dealing with the rest of us. That truly does NOT sound magical to me.

Disney has dropped the ball on the luggage tag issue. But your "other question assumes something else. When an airline unloads luggage, it goes from the plane to the luggage claim area. Somewhere in that process, people contracted by Disney, not the airline, grab the bags, with the DCL or ME tags. The airlines have nothing to do with it, once it gets off the plane. No tags, no grab, it goes to the claim area.

So the partner airline thing doesn't wash. Partner airlines only matter for the return, (luggage check-in at the resort)

Airlines/airport is not the issue.

The issue is the failure of Disney to get tags to all of you in a timely fashion and to be upfront about what the problem really is.

 

[tamu91]

Disney issuing luggage tags is nothing new. They've been talking about ME long enough to have gotten their act together but here we were in the 11th hour with no tags.
I called ME myself several days ago, and from others reports on this board, some CM are basically telling us not to expect tags, period. It sounds like they've given up on some of us

 

[seashoreCM]

Just to clarify, yes, I can certainly see picking up your own luggage if you didn't receive luggage tags yet. That is where I picture everyone waiting on the bus while some passengers go to the luggage carousel to get their bags....

I am guessing that buses will be leaving full every half hour most of the time, more often (perhaps as fast as they can be loaded) during peak times. I doubt if buses will be waiting for folks to get their luggage, other folks will be there to fill up the bus.

I do expect that there will be times when people are lined up waiting for ME buses, the same way people are lined up for Disney Transport buses and monorail trains to and from the resorts or the same way people are lined up for rides in the parks.

 

[Disney_1derland]

Disney has dropped the ball on the luggage tag issue. But your "other question assumes something else. When an airline unloads luggage, it goes from the plane to the luggage claim area. Somewhere in that process, people contracted by Disney, not the airline, grab the bags, with the DCL or ME tags. The airlines have nothing to do with it, once it gets off the plane. No tags, no grab, it goes to the claim area.

So the partner airline thing doesn't wash. Partner airlines only matter for the return, (luggage check-in at the resort)

Airlines/airport is not the issue.

The issue is the failure of Disney to get tags to all of you in a timely fashion and to be upfront about what the problem really is.

I think you misunderstood what I was saying. To clarify, what I was trying to say is that I feel like maybe they are first sending out luggage tags to people who are flying on partner airlines since the only people I know of that have actually received their tags *are* flying on partner airlines. I am flying on a non-partner airline and have not received my tags. Disney does have our flight information, they do know what airlines we are flying on and I am beginning to think that perhaps they are taking care of the partner airline passengers first and foremost. You are correct, it has NOTHING to do with the airline itself, it is all about Disney.

 

[MaryJ]

I think you misunderstood what I was saying. To clarify, what I was trying to say is that I feel like maybe they are first sending out luggage tags to people who are flying on partner airlines since the only people I know of that have actually received their tags *are* flying on partner airlines. I am flying on a non-partner airline and have not received my tags. Disney does have our flight information, they do know what airlines we are flying on and I am beginning to think that perhaps they are taking care of the partner airline passengers first and foremost. You are correct, it has NOTHING to do with the airline itself, it is all about Disney.

I am flying on a partner airling (Delta) on May 16 and have not received my tags yet. I called and made my reservation thru DVC Member Services 5-6 weeks in advance of our trip.

 

[Disney_1derland]

I am flying on a partner airling (Delta) on May 16 and have not received my tags yet. I called and made my reservation thru DVC Member Services 5-6 weeks in advance of our trip.

Hopefully they'll have all this mess worked out by the time you fly We arrive on the 12th and don't have anything yet either. I know there are lots of people going in on the 5th that haven't received anything either.

 

[goofy4tink]

For those of you who have already gotten the tags....what are they like? I ask because if they are barcoded for each individual person, then Disney could not have made them up way in advance. If they are just 'generic' yellow tags (or color coded to a particular resort) then, yes, they should have been ready to go 3 weeks ago!! But....and this is the thing, if they are made up specifically for each person and then when Disney received them they found the ink/printing on that batch to be defective, then I can see how the backlog could have happened. Since they are experienced in this already it would make sense to have 'personalized' luggage tags be the issue. I'm sure that DCL tags are not nearly as huge in numbers for any given day. And when they had to have over 6,000 of the darn things printed, just for the first day, then that could have been the issue.

 

[Disney_1derland]

Posted by a CM on another board....


>>>>NEW INFORMATION!!!
Due to the printing error and delay, if your bag tags do not arrive in time to mark you luggage before you depart, DISNEY representatives will use your claim tickets to pull your luggage and transport it to your resort. In this case the luggage will travel on your motor coach to ensure proper delivery to your room.

For any guest traveling on or after May 17th, all printing delays HAVE been corrected and your luggage tags will be sent out approximately 15 day prior to your arrival by regular mail. Disney is now expecting them to arrive to the guest about 5 – 10 days in advance of you trip.

If you book through a Travel Agent your DME bag tags go to the travel agency, not the guest. The Travel Agent will then redirect them to you. The bag tags for Travel Agencies will be printed earlier and sent out 21 days in advance to arrival at the agency about 15 days prior to arrival. These guests should expect them at their home again about 5-10 days in advance of your trip.

 

[localdriver]

I think you misunderstood what I was saying. To clarify, what I was trying to say is that I feel like maybe they are first sending out luggage tags to people who are flying on partner airlines since the only people I know of that have actually received their tags *are* flying on partner airlines. I am flying on a non-partner airline and have not received my tags. Disney does have our flight information, they do know what airlines we are flying on and I am beginning to think that perhaps they are taking care of the partner airline passengers first and foremost. You are correct, it has NOTHING to do with the airline itself, it is all about Disney.

I can see how you might think that could happen.

My point is "Partner Airline" only comes into play on the return, so you can check in your bags into your airline at the resort and have them transported to the airport.

So I can't see any real purpose to put one before the other.

Incoming, all airlines do the same thing. Get the bags off the plane. Some where between the plane and the claim area Disney grabs the bags that are tagged.

I'm wondering if the reason there aren't more "Partner Airlines" is the expense of manning a baggage check-in desk at the resorts. Are airline employees doing this? or is it someone else? Either way, I'm sure it costs those Airlines $$ to do it.

Anyway, I'm sure it will all sort itself out. ..LOL

Have a great trip!!

 

[skallis214]

We received our luggage "tags" on April 28 for our May 7th Disney trip. They aren't "luggage tags" the way I thought - they are yellow sticky tags that have our name and our resort (CBC) on them along with bar codes on the bottom and Mickey Ears in Blue with the letters EC in them. Each one of us received 2 tags. We also received "transportation vouchers" to give to the motorcoach driver.

 

[Disneyorbust05]

Skallis214 - which airline are you using? We are also leaving on the 7th (Southwest) and haven't recieved ours yet. I think I will give them a call tomorrow.

 

[MickeyEars]

Thanks for the description of the luggage tags skallis214. I know that several people had asked what they look like. We leave June 4th and I sure hope Disney has all these problems worked out by then!!!

Carla

 

[skallis214]

Disneyorbust05 - we are flying in on Delta (run by Song) on Saturday morning. My mother is going with us for 4 of our 8 days but she flys out an hour earlier then we do (same airline) and she has not received her ME luggage tags yet.......very disorganized for Disney.

 

[JudicialTyranny]

Well, there is hope....

I just heard from my travel agent at AAA and she received my ME tags today (May 3) for my May 5 arrival! Talk about cutting it close...

She is DHL'ing them to me today so I get them tomorrow (although that does not always mean they'll be here if it is DHL...).

 

[Tiggers&Springs]

Ok, I give up. Gotta vent. I have every intent of still using ME (traveling May 8), and this is a great idea and THEORETICALLY it should work just fine. BUT I am expecting an absolute zoo when we get to Orlando. I predict there will be:
1. People who didn't sign up for the service (who may have thought they did) trying to get on the bus;
2. People who didn't get their tags trying to describe their black rolling suitcases (yeah, I've got two of 'em) and handing over their baggage claim checks; (let's not all use the same color ribbon, ok? Dibs on purple.)
3. People who didn't get their tags going to baggage claim to get their bags themselves, and dragging them back to the checkin line and insisting they get put on the bus;
4. Hoards of CMs. (who gets the short straw on THAT one?)

Reluctantly, I may end up in the third category. Yeah, it may end up contributing to the pandemonium, but I may never see my bags again otherwise. Or maybe a few days later. But until I see 'em personally, who's to say/know they didn't end up damaged or lost by the airline? (With the ME tags, I'd assume the airlines have a system in place for locating the guest through Disney, but without it the guest has to raise the alarm, right?) I was really all on board with this service before, but....

Disney, what's up?!

At the very least, they have all our names in their systems. Why no email? Letter? Phone call? They knew this would be a problem for a few weeks now, apparently. If I wasn't reading this board, I'd have no idea what to expect.

On the bright side, at least we'll all get a vacation!