Question about DVC and cleanliness

[isyne4u]

Do you get less cleanliness at a DVC than at a non DVC resort?
I ask because this is my first trip as an owner and I'm very unhappy with the cleanliness of the room.

We can't walk in barefeet on the carpet because our feet turn black, the coffee pot had coffee all over the outside, there appear to be toothpaste or soap scum marks on the walls around the sink, the packs of utensils had been opened and the spoons used by the previous tenant and not replaced. ....etc. My CBR room was cleaner than this last year.

So I'm just wondering if being "home" means it is as clean as home really is.

Other than that we love the resort. The buses are fantastic and the staff has been great. The food at ARtists Pallette is great and the location is wonderful. It is just the cleanliness part that is bugging us!

Thanks for any input you might you have!

tara

 

[JimMIA]

Obviously, the problems you cite should not be that way. If you are still there, I would certainly complain...and it wouldn't be just to housekeeping. I'd go to the front desk and request to speak to the manager on duty and detail your complaints.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

It's a shame, but I've always said the one weak link with DVC is the housekeeping. I just don't think they are given enough time to do a thorough job.

MG

 

[bobbiwoz]

Conditions like that should not happen!
Bobbi

 

[isyne4u]

I was thinking by doing DVC we would get tip top cleaning...so it doesn't quite feel SO homey! LOL!

I am still here, leaving on Sunday, and losing internet in just over an hour! But I will talk to someone before I go and see what they say.

Overall, our experience has been great....but being clean is one of the things that we really look for when we stay in a hotel, any where.

thank you for your input and I'll update after I get back!!

tara

 

[billmac50]

I agree, that "maybe" housekeeping could be a little better. None of my stays hasn't been bad enough to complain, but a little extra effort would help.

But I think it could be a little "catch 22" Many of us arrive early and try to check in early) at least we do. Could this be putting pressure on housekeeping to get these rooms ready sooner and not doing as good a job? Maybe, maybe not.

 

[wildernessDad]

There is a thread going around here about the relatively high percentage of our dues that goes to housecleaning. A clean villa should be the first thing that we see when we open the door. That, imo, goes a VERY long way in making a pleasant vacation.

I have never experienced a poorly-cleaned villa thus far, but if I did, a call would definitely be made to the front desk.

I am sorry that you did not experience a clean room, especially on your first trip home. I do hope that the front desk listens and does something about it, if not now, then for the future.

 

[tomandrobin]

Seems that the house keeping issue is similar to the bus/transportation issue, its all hit or miss. We have been fortunate so far with the cleanliness of our rooms. If I had to give house keeping a grade on our last visit, I would have given them 9 out of 10. That was only because of slight issue with the master bathroom.

 

[JimMIA]

I agree, that "maybe" housekeeping could be a little better. None of my stays hasn't been bad enough to complain, but a little extra effort would help.

But I think it could be a little "catch 22" Many of us arrive early and try to check in early) at least we do. Could this be putting pressure on housekeeping to get these rooms ready sooner and not doing as good a job? Maybe, maybe not.

We have never had any issues with cleanliness at DVC, but if we did, this explanation certainly would not work with me. We almost never get our room until 4 PM, but even if we did, checking in early is no excuse for unsanitary conditions.

OP's situation looks very much like the housekeeper did nothing more than a T&T service -- plus hopefully changing the bedding. When housekeepers do shoddy work, it's not because they're lazy or having a bad day -- it's also because they know they can get away with it because their supervisors are not doing their jobs.

The problem is not unreasonable member expectations or lack of time. The problem is that cleanliness is not a priority. If it were a priority, DVC would make sure their housekeeping supervisors ensured that the rooms were clean before being put back into inventory.

I don't like nitpicking complaints, but when we find true uncleanliness in a room, that is an appropriate time to complain to someone well above housekeeping. The resort managers don't have time to randomly check rooms to see if they are clean -- if they don't hear from us, they assume everything is okay. If things are not okay, it's our responsibility to let them know.

 

[PBader]

In all our years of membership we have never walked into an unclean room. We have always been pleased with our rooms. We have had minor maintenance issues, which we have always had addressed in a timely manner.

 

[DVC Mike]

So I'm just wondering if being "home" means it is as clean as home really is.

I guess you've never seen my home...

Seriously, it does take more time and effort to clean a DVC villa than a regular hotel room (especially with the full kitchen, etc). However, DVC should have sufficient staff on hand to ensure the rooms are adequately cleaned and prepared for the next owner.

So far (knock on wood), I have not experienced walking into a room that was not clean. So, I personally have been satisfied with the cleanliness of the rooms.

However, as noted above, owners who experience this problem should report it while onsite to the resort management.

 

[jekjones1558]

I agree with MG that housekeeping is a weak link in DVC. That said, overall we have been lucky to have clean rooms. I do not do a white glove test, but a cursory check each time has almost always been positive.
I would be willing to bet that good housekeeping employees are the hardest for Disney to recruit and keep. The work is tiring, requires good physical conditioning, can be downright disgusting (thanks to some gross manners of guests), and tipping is not expected as a financial and personal incentive. I know that I am way out in left field on this subject, but I am on a one-woman crusade to honor good mousekeepers when I am at WDW. On our recent trip I called the mousekeeping supervisor to praise the condition of our GV at OKW upon check-in. I asked that the message be passed to the mousekeeper and she was soon at my door so that I could tip her. (Side note: She often checked to see if all was fine while we were there!) I realize that I am only a single guest but I think of the story of the person tossing starfish back into the ocean... I will not solve the big issue, but maybe I can encourage just one mousekeeper to stay and keep up the good work. JMHO. YMMV.

 

[3DisneyKids]

There are certainly enough threads these days about poor housekeeping to warrent it as a true concern for DVC as a whole.

As others have said, we have never had a cleanliness issue on any of our many DVC stays. Everything has always been **** and span (and DH is a MAJOR germ-a-phobe and things have even passed his standards).

I have said this on other threads as well, but WDW has nearly 60,000 employees. And you have to figure that housekeeping is one of the least desireable of those 60,000 jobs. There are just not enough committed people in the area to adequately cover all of those jobs with the level of service that Disney requires, thus we are seeing issues like this throughout the World.

 

[RLCarmichael]

I don't like nitpicking complaints, but when we find true uncleanliness in a room, that is an appropriate time to complain to someone well above housekeeping. The resort managers don't have time to randomly check rooms to see if they are clean -- if they don't hear from us, they assume everything is okay. If things are not okay, it's our responsibility to let them know.

I've run into some maintance items that weren't noticeable. But if nobody reports them they don't get fixed.

DVC isn't an off site timeshare that you can buy for $10 online. We pay premium $$$$ and we have every right to expect premium services. If you don't get this level of service let them know...

dvcmembersatisfactionteam@disneyvacationclub.com

 

[jarestel]

Generally speaking, the DVC units are in acceptable shape upon check-in. Not what most people would call first class condition, but certainly acceptable. If the majority of rooms had serious cleanliness problems, it's unlikely we would all still be posting here since most of us would have palmed (whoops - I mean sold) our interests off to newbies and gone back to staying at the resorts.

But it is definitely in the long term interest of DVC members to make housekeeping/maintenance/resort management aware of things that were overlooked, forgotten or omitted. Plastering a "Goofy" smile on one's face while cleaning up after housekeeping with a "don't make waves 'cause hey! - I'm at WDW. How bad can it be?" attitude doesn't really do anybody, housekeeping or members, any good in the long run.

 

[squirrlygirl]

I've run into some maintance items that weren't noticeable. But if nobody reports them they don't get fixed.

DVC isn't an off site timeshare that you can buy for $10 online. We pay premium $$$$ and we have every right to expect premium services. If you don't get this level of service let them know...

dvcmembersatisfactionteam@disneyvacationclub.com

And who is next when they don't reply?

We also had problems; we talked with the manager while there and were promised a fix. They didn't follow through. When we got home, we sent an email to the above address and received an automated reply saying to give them 5 business days.

It's now been a few weeks without response.

 

[eliza61]

And who is next when they don't reply?

We also had problems; we talked with the manager while there and were promised a fix. They didn't follow through. When we got home, we sent an email to the above address and received an automated reply saying to give them 5 business days.

It's now been a few weeks without response.

Keep at it squirrly, I know it's a pain in the butt, but I was a customer service rep for a large hotel chain and for a major retailer that has stores all over the country. Some times it takes a few repeat emails to get a proper response. I would also try a dig up a phone number and make a call, I don't have one but check the dvc site or even deb willis's site.

I've been very fortunate that I've never had any housekeeping issues but I did have a few maintence issues at OKW (stove burner didn't work, coffee pot didn't work). I made it a point to let the manager know, not to complain but to get it fix. If they don't know, nothing can be done.