Update! This is the 2nd part of a recap of the things that went wrong on our recent trip:
1. Our neighbors told us about the free transportation from the airport. We tried it. It wasnt very good. We got to the hotel and no bags. We later found out that you have to have a reservation first for this service to be effective. Disney needs to do a better job of explaining stuff!
2. My wife and I are chain smokers. However, we absolutely can not stay in a smoking hotel room as we dont like the smell. We requested a non-smoking room, and the hotel graciously accommodated us. I typically smoke with the door open, but on several occasions, bugs flew in the room and it was oppressively hot, so I did not think anyone would mind if I closed the door for a couple of drags. Well...one of the guests saw me and complained about us. People need to get a grip. We are on vacation. Why do we need to worry about where we smoke? I also found out later that they frown on smoking on rides and in attractions in the parks.
3. My kids birthday is in February. He has always wanted a birthday at Disney, but our trip was in June. I decided to make some phone calls to make sure that everyone would know that we would be celebrating his birthday during our trip. I called guest services, every restaurant we planned to eat in, the hotel front desk, the local fire house (my kid loves fires), and the Orlando Tourism Board (never know if they might send some coupons). I even made my kid wear the happy birthday button everyday. I was shocked by the lack of attention and stuff we got. I think he got a free drink, a cupcake at a restaurant, and a fastpass (it was for Its a Small World my kid is afraid of dolls). Our hotel room was never decorated, we never got a free meal, and we got no discounts anywhere. Nothing! I promised my kid he would be able to hang out with the characters by himself for a while since we were celebrating his birthday. They apparently "dont do this" so it never happened, and he did not talk to us for most of the trip after that.
4. We stayed in All-Star Music Motel. (See earlier post about them putting us in the Country Western Building my kid likes rap). I was extremely disappointed in our pool. No diving board, no slide, no waterfalls. Well if I am paying over $45 a night, I want a pool with a dive or at least a sliding board. We visited several hotel pools that week (Fort Wilderness Hotel, Wild Animal Lodge, Fort Orleans Resort, etc.). None of these pools satisfied my kid because he wanted to try the pool at Peach Club. We dropped him off at the resort since we were sick of swimming. Three hours later we find him in the lobby crying because he could not swim without some sort of wristband. He was shot for the day (it was close to 8pm so not too big of a deal). We were furious. I screamed at the manager and told them we would never stay there again. He yelled back something about us not even being a guest there. I did not quite hear it, as I was in hurry to go outside and smoke.
-NL
1. Our neighbors told us about the free transportation from the airport. We tried it. It wasnt very good. We got to the hotel and no bags. We later found out that you have to have a reservation first for this service to be effective. Disney needs to do a better job of explaining stuff!
2. My wife and I are chain smokers. However, we absolutely can not stay in a smoking hotel room as we dont like the smell. We requested a non-smoking room, and the hotel graciously accommodated us. I typically smoke with the door open, but on several occasions, bugs flew in the room and it was oppressively hot, so I did not think anyone would mind if I closed the door for a couple of drags. Well...one of the guests saw me and complained about us. People need to get a grip. We are on vacation. Why do we need to worry about where we smoke? I also found out later that they frown on smoking on rides and in attractions in the parks.
3. My kids birthday is in February. He has always wanted a birthday at Disney, but our trip was in June. I decided to make some phone calls to make sure that everyone would know that we would be celebrating his birthday during our trip. I called guest services, every restaurant we planned to eat in, the hotel front desk, the local fire house (my kid loves fires), and the Orlando Tourism Board (never know if they might send some coupons). I even made my kid wear the happy birthday button everyday. I was shocked by the lack of attention and stuff we got. I think he got a free drink, a cupcake at a restaurant, and a fastpass (it was for Its a Small World my kid is afraid of dolls). Our hotel room was never decorated, we never got a free meal, and we got no discounts anywhere. Nothing! I promised my kid he would be able to hang out with the characters by himself for a while since we were celebrating his birthday. They apparently "dont do this" so it never happened, and he did not talk to us for most of the trip after that.
4. We stayed in All-Star Music Motel. (See earlier post about them putting us in the Country Western Building my kid likes rap). I was extremely disappointed in our pool. No diving board, no slide, no waterfalls. Well if I am paying over $45 a night, I want a pool with a dive or at least a sliding board. We visited several hotel pools that week (Fort Wilderness Hotel, Wild Animal Lodge, Fort Orleans Resort, etc.). None of these pools satisfied my kid because he wanted to try the pool at Peach Club. We dropped him off at the resort since we were sick of swimming. Three hours later we find him in the lobby crying because he could not swim without some sort of wristband. He was shot for the day (it was close to 8pm so not too big of a deal). We were furious. I screamed at the manager and told them we would never stay there again. He yelled back something about us not even being a guest there. I did not quite hear it, as I was in hurry to go outside and smoke.
-NL
