P & P Party Rant.

[MinnieGirl33]

Guess maybe Disney ought to take a hint from this, and go back to closing/clearing the parks before admitting the parties. I hear it was more magical that way.

 

[DisneyGirl4188]

Didn't read all comments, so forgive me if this was said already. I think the real problem that the OP had was the way the CM acted, not that he was being asked to leave. While I certainly agree that he shouldn't have been in the park at 7:45, that doesn't excuse rudeness on the part of the CM. The CM asked him to exit the park, and he replied that he was waiting for his wife to finish her purchase, and they would leave. At that point, the CM should have waited patiently to escort them from the park. A bad attitude is never excusable in a customer service oriented business. Had the CM been pleasant while waiting, the point would have been gotten, the OP would have still been escorted from the park in exactly the same amount of time, and would have had no reason to complain. Not excusing the OP, just think diplomacy on the part of the CM was called for.

While the CM may have been rude, we are only hearing the OP's version.


I attended two MVMCP's and both times the signs outside indicated the closing time AND had MVMCP on it. An announcement was also made on the monorail. Heck, there were even signs inside the park and on the times guide. It was pretty hard not to see.

Even though the OP posted his timeline, I still feel he was wrong. He knew that the park was closing, regardless of the reason. He was told he needed a wristband to enter a store (he indicated that he had been to MVMCP before, so he had to know what having a wristband meant- especially since a woman told him of the P&P party). When the party starts, there is special merchandise that only party goers are entitled to. If someone that didn't pay for the party, but still enters a store, it's possible for them to get the special merchandise.

I know not everyone does as much planning and research as I do, but really if you should do some. I want to know what special events are happening so I can plan around them. Ignorance is no excuse.

 

[MichelleVW]

While the CM may have been rude, we are only hearing the OP's version.


I attended two MVMCP's and both times the signs outside indicated the closing time AND had MVMCP on it. An announcement was also made on the monorail. Heck, there were even signs inside the park and on the times guide. It was pretty hard not to see.

Even though the OP posted his timeline, I still feel he was wrong. He knew that the park was closing, regardless of the reason. He was told he needed a wristband to enter a store (he indicated that he had been to MVMCP before, so he had to know what having a wristband meant- especially since a woman told him of the P&P party). When the party starts, there is special merchandise that only party goers are entitled to. If someone that didn't pay for the party, but still enters a store, it's possible for them to get the special merchandise.

I know not everyone does as much planning and research as I do, but really if you should do some. I want to know what special events are happening so I can plan around them. Ignorance is no excuse.

Agreed!!! I also don't think they should go back to the old way of clearing the park....I would much rather people trickle in rather than all crowd the gate at once!!

 

[SnowWitch]

Maybe Disney has recieved numerous complaints from the guests who have purchased the ticket for the event. I know we have attended many of these events and seen TONS of people without wristbands just taking up space. Not on rides but in shops and on the streets. This may not seem like a big deal to some but to me...I find it annoying. I purchase the ticket expeting much lower crowds, not a sea of people who shouldn't be there to begin with. We have seen this time and time again with the late hours for resort guests. The crowd level isn't comfortable until an hour or so in because of all the non resort guests diddle dallying around.

I for one am glad to hear they are enforcing wristbands or at least trying.

 

[pammypooh]

Could I have a clarification please - do people that have purchased a special ticket for the pirate/princess party have to also have a "regular" park pass for admission into MK - or is pirate/princess party the only thing that is needed for the 7:00 p.m. party?

Sorry if this is basic information, it is not something I have experience with.

Thank you.

Pam

 

[mom2of2]

Could I have a clarification please - do people that have purchased a special ticket for the pirate/princess party have to also have a "regular" park pass for admission into MK - or is pirate/princess party the only thing that is needed for the 7:00 p.m. party?

Sorry if this is basic information, it is not something I have experience with.

Thank you.

Pam

no, Pam they do not. A P&P ticket is all you need for that night

 

[LUV2DZNEE]

Most people are guilty of trying to squeeze every available minute out of their Disney visit. No one ever wants the fun to end. But . . . the OP admits he knew the park was closing at 7:00 and still squeezed in one more ride at 6:58. If stopping at the ice cream shop, the bakery and shopping on Main Street was important, then they should have planned to be on Main Street before 7:00 instead of sneaking in another ride on Buzz. It sounds to me like they had quite a bit planned for after the park closed. IMO that's bending the rules a little too far.

 

[laceemouse]

Could I have a clarification please - do people that have purchased a special ticket for the pirate/princess party have to also have a "regular" park pass for admission into MK - or is pirate/princess party the only thing that is needed for the 7:00 p.m. party?

Sorry if this is basic information, it is not something I have experience with.

Thank you.

Pam

No, you don't need a regular ticket to get into the party, you only need the party ticket. We went to the P&P on Friday night and did NOT use one of our days on our 5 day pass that day. We went to DTD for the day, and did not show up for the party until a little after 7. HTH.

 

[DisneyGirl4188]

Most people are guilty of trying to squeeze every available minute out of their Disney visit. No one ever wants the fun to end. But . . . the OP admits he knew the park was closing at 7:00 and still squeezed in one more ride at 6:58. If stopping at the ice cream shop, the bakery and shopping on Main Street was important, then they should have planned to be on Main Street before 7:00 instead of sneaking in another ride on Buzz. It sounds to me like they had quite a bit planned for after the park closed. IMO that's bending the rules a little too far.

 

[lordnamis]

Also, I don't know if i'm correct here so tell me if I'm wrong. Don't they bring out special merchandise to be sold in the stores after 7pm, I'm sure I read on another post that a guest was in a store watching them put out P&P exclusive pins at 7pm. That is another reason they don't allow the shopping after 7pm.

CM wasn't rude just doing her job.

I was a manager at a large electronics store before and closing is closing, if we were closing at 7 you had to be in line at 6:50, people were told to stop looking after that because 7pm is 7pm. That way we still had a few there till 7:05 but 45min would never be acceptable.

I do hope your next visit goes better though, don't let 1 borderline incident ruin the magic of Disney.

 

[CoPirate]

I think it is a poor excuse to say you "didnt know about the party"

Do your research. Find out whats going on while you're at WDW, plan accordingly.

 

[Michigan]

My guess would be that they stop selling if you don't have a wrist band so they can keep track of how much revenue is taken in by the special parties.

 

[CanadianGuy]

Maybe I'm the weirdo...

But when I'm planning ANY time at the parks, I do my research way in advance.

I find out when the park hours are; what special events might intrude on our park time.. the works. For our upcoming visit at the end of Feb, I already have a piece of paper with the park hours for each park, along with EMH, fireworks & parade times and special hard-ticket events happening each day.

This info is not hard to get it.

And then when I get there, I check the info I have against the info screen available to all on-site guests in their hotel room .. and then on the day of the park visit, I get the daily park schedule.

Special event park hours are posted everywhere possible. You can't complain about not knowing in my book. If you didn't know, you intentionally chose not to find out for the most part. If you're posting on this board, you've got a computer and access to the internet. ALL this info is readily available with a minimal amount of digging.

J

 

[lillygator]

Didn't read all comments, so forgive me if this was said already. I think the real problem that the OP had was the way the CM acted, not that he was being asked to leave. While I certainly agree that he shouldn't have been in the park at 7:45, that doesn't excuse rudeness on the part of the CM. The CM asked him to exit the park, and he replied that he was waiting for his wife to finish her purchase, and they would leave. At that point, the CM should have waited patiently to escort them from the park. A bad attitude is never excusable in a customer service oriented business. Had the CM been pleasant while waiting, the point would have been gotten, the OP would have still been escorted from the park in exactly the same amount of time, and would have had no reason to complain. Not excusing the OP, just think diplomacy on the part of the CM was called for.

I think until we hear the CM's side of the story we really can't make a call as to who was demonstrating a bad attitude....

 

[MissyDVC]

In defense of the CM (even though I admittedly don't know their side), it must have been very frustrating to have to stand there and wait for a family who was clearly in a park that was closed to them 45 minutes after they should have been. Especially when the people were adults. I imagine that they hear every excuse in the book at those events and it must get very discouraging to have to stand there and wait to accompany people out of the park. Just a thought

 

[lillygator]

I think it is a poor excuse to say you "didnt know about the party"

Do your research. Find out whats going on while you're at WDW, plan accordingly.

OP, how did you enter the park? We went a few weekends ago and there is a display on both sides of the enterance BEFORE the BAG CHECK...one side is Pirate, one side is Princess....and has a sign about the party.

Pictures here: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1339419

 

[labattblue]

Are P&P ticket holders always allowed to enter the MK at 4PM or does the entrance time vary? I plan on being at the MK on 2/26 and it may impact how I treat my last 3 hours(4 to 7PM) in the park.

Thanks!

PS For all those complaining that at 7PM all the day guests should be ready to leave, letting P&P ticket holders in early seems to be a decision that was not well thought out by the powers that be.

 

[beattyfamily]

Are P&P ticket holders always allowed to enter the MK at 4PM or does the entrance time vary? I plan on being at the MK on 2/26 and it may impact how I treat my last 3 hours(4 to 7PM) in the park.

Thanks!

PS For all those complaining that at 7PM all the day guests should be ready to leave, letting P&P ticket holders in early seems to be a decision that was not well thought out by the powers that be.

In my previous post, I mentioned that they started letting party goers in after 4:00p since 2001. The time hasn't varied since 2001.

It is your right to have the opinion that it wasn't well thought out but obviously, Disney has a different opinion than you and my guess is they have a good reason too. My guess is that if everyone entered at 7:00p for the party (anywhere from 10,000 - 30,000 guests) it would be absolutely insane and take hours to accomplish especially considering that many many day guests wait till park closing time, or even later, to leave.

 

[karibritt01]

While the CM may have been rude, we are only hearing the OP's version.


I attended two MVMCP's and both times the signs outside indicated the closing time AND had MVMCP on it. An announcement was also made on the monorail. Heck, there were even signs inside the park and on the times guide. It was pretty hard not to see.

Even though the OP posted his timeline, I still feel he was wrong. He knew that the park was closing, regardless of the reason. He was told he needed a wristband to enter a store (he indicated that he had been to MVMCP before, so he had to know what having a wristband meant- especially since a woman told him of the P&P party). When the party starts, there is special merchandise that only party goers are entitled to. If someone that didn't pay for the party, but still enters a store, it's possible for them to get the special merchandise.

I know not everyone does as much planning and research as I do, but really if you should do some. I want to know what special events are happening so I can plan around them. Ignorance is no excuse.

I couldn't agree with you more that the OP was wrong to still be in the park 45 minutes after closing. I always do PM EMH when in Disney, and get very irritated over the people riding and doing that do not have armbands. Last October I purchased 6 adult and 2 child tickets for MNSSHP. I do feel they need to enforce the rules on park closing times. That being said, I worked in customer service for 5 years. Situations can be handled 2 ways... diplomatically or ungraciouslly (sp?) The OP said the woman was " basically scolding me and my kids" for being in the park. This is ungracious. My point is that the guest left the park no quicker because of her attitude, but left with a bad taste in his mouth for Disney. This is poor customer service, hands down. All the CM needed to do for the situation to be handled correctly was wait patiently, keeping the irritation to herself, and smile as she said goodnight. Her mission is accomplished, the family is "ejected" from the park, and the party goes on. Anyone with any experience in management or customer service will know that if you can accomplish your goal, without offending the other person, then you come out the winner.

BTW - yes, I only have the opinion of the OP to base my argument on (as do you). However, the poor impression of how the CM handled the situation, and the negative feelings the OP has now, only prove my point. Handled correctly, the OP would have had nothing to complain about, and wouldn't have left with a bad taste in his mouth over Disney.

 

[lillygator]

Are P&P ticket holders always allowed to enter the MK at 4PM or does the entrance time vary? I plan on being at the MK on 2/26 and it may impact how I treat my last 3 hours(4 to 7PM) in the park.

Thanks!

PS For all those complaining that at 7PM all the day guests should be ready to leave, letting P&P ticket holders in early seems to be a decision that was not well thought out by the powers that be.

many party goers have AP's or use a day ticket as well.....