Plans have been filed for DVC expansion at Caribbean Beach Resort

[dlavender]

Here, let me write this for you:

Dear Sir/Madam:

I am writing to you to express my dissatisfaction in the way my requests for assistance have been handled. I have contacted Guest Relations via phone not once, but twice, to express the concern I have over my upcoming reservation. I am currently scheduled to check into the Caribbean Beach Resort on (FILL IN THE BLANK HERE) under reservation number (FILL IN THE BLANK HERE) with (FILL IN THE BLANK) guests, "X" adults and "X" children. It has recently come to my attention through third parties that Disney is closing down the available food options at the resort during my stay. I am disappointed that Disney a: did not notify me directly (even if you did get the email, they can't prove it) and b: announced such a closure of amenities on short notice not allowing me to better plan for my upcoming vacation. However, what is most disappointing is that I have also been able to confirm, again through third parties, that guests have been compensated for this added inconvenience, and I have not while I have requested such not once, but twice, and now three times through the Walt Disney Company. I am not interested in moving resorts as I do hold an affinity for Caribbean Beach, however, I do believe a further discount is warranted off my current rate and I would accept a discount of $75 per night. I also understand Disney is doing its best to accommodate guests for the inconvenience by adding additional food service options, but in my opinion, these do not take the place of the options I was expecting at the time that I booked and I do not find them satisfactory in nature. There have been very few details released by Disney to bring peace of mind to this situation and therefore, knowing I may have to cut into other vacation plans by traveling further for dining options and possibly longer, the room discount will help offset that loss. It is still unknown to me how my fastpass+ windows will be affected by having to travel to other resorts for dining options or even other parks, such as Disney Springs. I am also concerned that since I am so close to my trip that I may have difficulty gaining ADR's due to other guests being displaced by these, while necessary, inconvenient closures.

I do hope you can empathize with my case and will see to accommodate my requests. I look forward to hearing from you soon. You may email me at (FILL IN BLANK) or I would certainly welcome a phone call to (FILL IN BLANK) between the hours of (FILL IN BLANK)

Sincerely,

WHOEVER YOU ARE

 

[PuppyJonathan]

Here, let me write this for you:

Dear Sir/Madam:

I am writing to you to express my dissatisfaction in the way my requests for assistance have been handled. I have contacted Guest Relations via phone not once, but twice, to express the concern I have over my upcoming reservation. I am currently scheduled to check into the Caribbean Beach Resort on (FILL IN THE BLANK HERE) under reservation number (FILL IN THE BLANK HERE) with (FILL IN THE BLANK) guests, "X" adults and "X" children. It has recently come to my attention through third parties that Disney is closing down the available food options at the resort during my stay. I am disappointed that Disney a: did not notify me directly (even if you did get the email, they can't prove it) and b: announced such a closure of amenities on short notice not allowing me to better plan for my upcoming vacation. However, what is most disappointing is that I have also been able to confirm, again through third parties, that guests have been compensated for this added inconvenience, and I have not while I have requested such not once, but twice, and now three times through the Walt Disney Company. I am not interested in moving resorts as I do hold an affinity for Caribbean Beach, however, I do believe a further discount is warranted off my current rate and I would accept a discount of $75 per night. I also understand Disney is doing its best to accommodate guests for the inconvenience by adding additional food service options, but in my opinion, these do not take the place of the options I was expecting at the time that I booked and I do not find them satisfactory in nature. There have been very few details released by Disney to bring peace of mind to this situation and therefore, knowing I may have to cut into other vacation plans by traveling further for dining options and possibly longer, the room discount will help offset that loss. It is still unknown to me how my fastpass+ windows will be affected by having to travel to other resorts for dining options or even other parks, such as Disney Springs. I am also concerned that since I am so close to my trip that I may have difficulty gaining ADR's due to other guests being displaced by these, while necessary, inconvenient closures.

I do hope you can empathize with my case and will see to accommodate my requests. I look forward to hearing from you soon. You may email me at (FILL IN BLANK) or I would certainly welcome a phone call to (FILL IN BLANK) between the hours of (FILL IN BLANK)

Sincerely,

WHOEVER YOU ARE

Perfect, thank you

 

[Sweettears]

Don't get me wrong...I like pop a lot. Port (not Dixie...which is different)...Coronado...

But since the rooms across property are so ridiculous...it has me draw ranks around DVC that much more. I have and will continue to pay occasionally out of pocket when the discounts are glaring - but that tends to be deluxes these days.

I haven't had any discounts glare at me for some time. They seem to be a thing of the past. I should probably post that to the Things No Longer Seen At WDW thread.

 

[Sweettears]

C'mon, who hasn't rolled the dice on a gas station egg salad sandwich before?

Mmmm sushi

 

[DisFanDad]

C'mon, who hasn't rolled the dice on a gas station egg salad sandwich before?

once, in highschool, from the corner store not a gas station. Took it with me on a school trip. Was halfway done before I looked and saw that the "pepperoni" was grey and had green splotches on it. Thew it out, was very very sick a few hours later ...

Haven't touched one in 20 years. I can hardly even bring my self to eat a premade sandwich at the fancy deli in our grocery store, even though they look amazing and are fresh made daily.

 

[Nancyg56]

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/help/email/

AND

wdw.guest.communications@disneyworld.com


SEND BOTH!

Tell them you *KNOW* others have been offered a discount for the inconvenience, you're facing the same inconvenience, no matter how Disney tries to spin it as "not being that bad" the point is amenities that were available when you booked are now different and impact the enjoyment of your trip. Now you'll have to spend extra to get around to other dining options and you'll accept their offer of $75 off per night gladly.

I'm actually offended on your behalf that you're having such a hard time.

I was going to offer to do it for you, I was that peeved they did not budge, but @Madonna3 beat me to it, and was way more articulate that my snippy self would have been.

Please do send this. I generally am okay with decisions Disney makes. AS a guest we can choose to accept them or not, but once you are offered something, and make your purchasing decision based on that offer, I do not think Disney can make changes and then refuse to compensate you.

I have never understood how Disney can invest so much energy in regaining good will lost after a poor guest experience, but then dives right back in with blinders on again and again. Whoever makes these business decisions has forgotten that everyone has a line in the sand that they refuse to cross. If I was treated this way, that would be my line. I'm not sure that there would be any going back for me.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I was going to offer to do it for you, I was that peeved they did not budge, but @Madonna3 beat me to it, and was way more articulate that my snippy self would have been.

Please do send this. I generally am okay with decisions Disney makes. AS a guest we can choose to accept them or not, but once you are offered something, and make your purchasing decision based on that offer, I do not think Disney can make changes and then refuse to compensate you.

I have never understood how Disney can invest so much energy in regaining good will lost after a poor guest experience, but then dives right back in with blinders on again and again. Whoever makes these business decisions has forgotten that everyone has a line in the sand that they refuse to cross. If I was treated this way, that would be my line. I'm not sure that there would be any going back for me.

Well said - that is the aspect with this that gets me ... Disney changed the rules partway through the game, so to speak. You can't advertise a resort as having certain features and then change those features and not compensate people. I mean, I guess you legally can due to disclaimers - so perhaps I should word it as "you shouldn't do this" - particularly if you want to build / maintain client loyalty.

Funny thing is, if they started with "and due to this we are taking $25 off a night and giving you 3 fast passes" the vast majority of people would have been really happy about this (not everyone, there are some unique situations that it isn't the money its that they need some of these features to realistically have the vacation the want/need) and it would have garnered good will - now they are needing to do more than that just to do damage control

 

[Nancyg56]

Well said - that is the aspect with this that gets me ... Disney changed the rules partway through the game, so to speak. You can't advertise a resort as having certain features and then change those features and not compensate people. I mean, I guess you legally can due to disclaimers - so perhaps I should word it as "you shouldn't do this" - particularly if you want to build / maintain client loyalty.

Funny thing is, if they started with "and due to this we are taking $25 off a night and giving you 3 fast passes" the vast majority of people would have been really happy about this (not everyone, there are some unique situations that it isn't the money its that they need some of these features to realistically have the vacation the want/need) and it would have garnered good will - now they are needing to do more than that just to do damage control

Any offer would have shown that DIsney recognized that they were inconveniencing those who booked in good faith. All this damage control is likely costing more than what is tangible now. No matter what they offer, there will still be peole who feel tht they were disrespected during the process, and that cost is immeasurable

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Any offer would have shown that DIsney recognized that they were inconveniencing those who booked in good faith. All this damage control is likely costing more than what is tangible now. No matter what they offer, there will still be peole who feel tht they were disrespected during the process, and that cost is immeasurable

exactly - and they had the same thing with the ADRs cancelled at CRT for the special event, and even yesterday there were some mix ups with breakfast reservations for the new character breakfast at Trattoria al Forno being turned on in the system before they were ready/announced and some people booked and others couldn't etc.

 

[rteetz]

exactly - and they had the same thing with the ADRs cancelled at CRT for the special event, and even yesterday there were some mix ups with breakfast reservations for the new character breakfast at Trattoria al Forno being turned on in the system before they were ready/announced and some people booked and others couldn't etc.

Unfortunately the ADR thing is a common occurrence with new dining.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Unfortunately the ADR thing is a common occurrence with new dining.

and it seems something that should be relatively easy to monitor, etc. - especially with something like this that they have been promoting/advertising on the blog, they know people are really excited and anxiously awaiting the opening of ADRs and then to not get it right just creates such frustration for people

 

[BlvInMagic]

Another thought, how will it work for guests to send packages/purchases from the parks back to CBR if the Calypso Trading Post will be closed? I'm thinking maybe they'll be routed over to the Customs House?

 

[rteetz]

Another thought, how will it work for guests to send packages/purchases from the parks back to CBR if the Calypso Trading Post will be closed? I'm thinking maybe they'll be routed over to the Customs House?

Probably.

 

[DisFanDad]

I was going to offer to do it for you, I was that peeved they did not budge, but @Madonna3 beat me to it, and was way more articulate that my snippy self would have been.

Please do send this. I generally am okay with decisions Disney makes. AS a guest we can choose to accept them or not, but once you are offered something, and make your purchasing decision based on that offer, I do not think Disney can make changes and then refuse to compensate you.

I have never understood how Disney can invest so much energy in regaining good will lost after a poor guest experience, but then dives right back in with blinders on again and again. Whoever makes these business decisions has forgotten that everyone has a line in the sand that they refuse to cross. If I was treated this way, that would be my line. I'm not sure that there would be any going back for me.

Well said - that is the aspect with this that gets me ... Disney changed the rules partway through the game, so to speak. You can't advertise a resort as having certain features and then change those features and not compensate people. I mean, I guess you legally can due to disclaimers - so perhaps I should word it as "you shouldn't do this" - particularly if you want to build / maintain client loyalty.

Funny thing is, if they started with "and due to this we are taking $25 off a night and giving you 3 fast passes" the vast majority of people would have been really happy about this (not everyone, there are some unique situations that it isn't the money its that they need some of these features to realistically have the vacation the want/need) and it would have garnered good will - now they are needing to do more than that just to do damage control

I very much agree with both of you, and I don't in any way think WDW didn't know this was coming, 6 months, a year, 2 years ago. There is just no excuse for this, other than short term greed. Letting people "lock in" and then pulling the rug out from them at the last minute and just assuming most people will still come.

What I find frustrating on this board (and other boards which I have more experience with) is when people defend this kind of stuff from Disney, they tell people its up to them to "make it magical" or that if they don't like it no one is forcing them to go, they can always cancel their trip.

A) Its not up to me to make it magical, if I could just make it magical I would go camping and just pretend it was WDW and magical, it would be a lot cheaper. Seriously, we pay a premium to go and stay at WDW, we are paying for that magic, its why we love it. This is just a really bad excuse.

B) I think people overlook that there are huge financial and personal costs people face with cancelling a trip even a few months out. People have booked time off work, and might not be able to get it back. People have booked flights, and I don't know anyone that pays the double or triple the cost to give them the option of them being refundable, in most cases you are locked in. On top of that, a lot of people are themselves are excited about their trips, they invest personally in them, they have told their kids who are invest and excited.

C) defending this kind of stuff just sends the message to Disney that they can keep doing it and getting away with it. If we keep letting them do this kind of stuff, if we just keep handing over our money and not saying anything there is no incentive for Disney to do better by the customer.

 

[Madonna3]

I was going to offer to do it for you, I was that peeved they did not budge, but @Madonna3 beat me to it, and was way more articulate that my snippy self would have been.

Dual Masters Degrees have made me very good at nothing really except writing letters to Disney

 

[Madonna3]

Perfect, thank you

Feel free to add in any details I may have left out, just keep the tone empathetic. We want the person on the other end of the line to be empathetic and that is a very human emotion that often drives us to do better for others because we can understand the emotion.

 

[Nancyg56]

I very much agree with both of you, and I don't in any way think WDW didn't know this was coming, 6 months, a year, 2 years ago. There is just no excuse for this, other than short term greed. Letting people "lock in" and then pulling the rug out from them at the last minute and just assuming most people will still come.

What I find frustrating on this board (and other boards which I have more experience with) is when people defend this kind of stuff from Disney, they tell people its up to them to "make it magical" or that if they don't like it no one is forcing them to go, they can always cancel their trip.

A) Its not up to me to make it magical, if I could just make it magical I would go camping and just pretend it was WDW and magical, it would be a lot cheaper. Seriously, we pay a premium to go and stay at WDW, we are paying for that magic, its why we love it. This is just a really bad excuse.

B) I think people overlook that there are huge financial and personal costs people face with cancelling a trip even a few months out. People have booked time off work, and might not be able to get it back. People have booked flights, and I don't know anyone that pays the double or triple the cost to give them the option of them being refundable, in most cases you are locked in. On top of that, a lot of people are themselves are excited about their trips, they invest personally in them, they have told their kids who are invest and excited.

C) defending this kind of stuff just sends the message to Disney that they can keep doing it and getting away with it. If we keep letting them do this kind of stuff, if we just keep handing over our money and not saying anything there is no incentive for Disney to do better by the customer.

I agree. While I feel that any business can set prices without a guarantee that all can afford entry, and they are able to restrict access to wherever they choose, they can't do so after the fact without consequences. It really is up to the consumer to hold business accountable, but if we decide that there is one company that is exempt because of nostalgia, then we all deserve to get what we get.

 

[Madonna3]

I agree. While I feel that any business can set prices without a guarantee that all can afford entry, and they are able to restrict access to wherever they choose, they can't do so after the fact without consequences. It really is up to the consumer to hold business accountable, but if we decide that there is one company that is exempt because of nostalgia, then we all deserve to get what we get.

Excellent statement. We, as Disney consumers (I am guilty myself at times), put a price on nostalgia that the company does not. They give us an opportunity to make good memories, which invokes emotion, on which the individual places a value. Maybe last year popcorn buckets were $8, but this year they're $10. Nothing has changed. Popcorn didn't go up. The quantity didn't change, but the first time you bought a bucket of popcorn, little Johnny dropped a piece and a bird made off with his hat while Mickey boarded a spaceship, but it all made you laugh, so now you get a popcorn bucket every year because of nostalgia and you pay the $2 because well, "it's only $2 and it's tradition".

Rooms used to cost $99 at CBR. Now they're close to $200. The size of the rooms didn't change, the amenities didn't change, NOTHING changed, but "we always stay there" so we keep paying because WE valued our traditions and nostalgia.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I agree. While I feel that any business can set prices without a guarantee that all can afford entry, and they are able to restrict access to wherever they choose, they can't do so after the fact without consequences. It really is up to the consumer to hold business accountable, but if we decide that there is one company that is exempt because of nostalgia, then we all deserve to get what we get.

I agree - though in some ways I feel like we need to hold Disney to a higher standard because of that nestaglia factor and because of it we are willing to pay higher prices.

Did they *have* to do anything for people impacted by this? legally, no - but if they didn't that just makes them like any other 2nd run rate location .... but Disney (at least to its fans) is different - they are all about magic and pixie dust - and that buys them a lot of loyalty.

If they become "just another place" then long term that is going to negatively impact them a lot more than anything they would profit in the near term

 

[Nancyg56]

Excellent statement. We, as Disney consumers (I am guilty myself at times), put a price on nostalgia that the company does not. They give us an opportunity to make good memories, which invokes emotion, on which the individual places a value. Maybe last year popcorn buckets were $8, but this year they're $10. Nothing has changed. Popcorn didn't go up. The quantity didn't change, but the first time you bought a bucket of popcorn, little Johnny dropped a piece and a bird made off with his hat while Mickey boarded a spaceship, but it all made you laugh, so now you get a popcorn bucket every year because of nostalgia and you pay the $2 because well, "it's only $2 and it's tradition".

Rooms used to cost $99 at CBR. Now they're close to $200. The size of the rooms didn't change, the amenities didn't change, NOTHING changed, but "we always stay there" so we keep paying because WE valued our traditions and nostalgia.

I am also guilty, but I know that when I make my purchase I am aware of what I buy. I think what Disney dies when they sell a resort but then reduce the amenities and increase inconvenience after the fact is way different. There is no reasonable excuse to do so without some sort of recompense to those who made their purchase in good faith.

I also wonder what the bar is when folks like me and you, those who have continued to visit knowing the costs have increased exponentially, day enough. I'm not sure Disney can sustain if they rely on the once and done folks. If frequent flyers get disillusioned by disrespectful treatment or skyrocketing costs stay away we will be seeing " slow seasons" again