Room Downgraded in MDE on Check-in Day? (Update on page 7, post #122)

[KrazeeK120]

But that isn't the point. Yes, the fine print allows them to put you anywhere in any room. As a gesture for good customer service, they should do everything they can in order to make up for having to do that. If I booked a 2-bedroom suite at the CR and was put in a family suite at AoA, I'd expect more than a "oh sorry - here's your money." They're potentially ruining your trip, especially for a family that spends tons of time at the resort. Stuff happens, but they should do whatever they can to make you happy. Just saying sorry, and giving me the money back they're required to give me anyway, isn't good enough.

People are starting to get a little extreme here. I've not seen any reports of the magnitude of a 2 BR suite at CR being sent to AOA. I think everything I've seen is a view downgrade or a downgrade from preferred to standard. Not someone booking one of the most expensive rooms at a deluxe and being sent to a value. Goodness.

 

[maxiesmom]

I agree they should get the difference in the downgraded room, no question. But I don't think it should be an automatic windfall either.

I know one of the times I was downgraded I asked to be switched to the type of room I had booked at a similar resort, only to be told they were all full. But I do think they will try and work with guests if they can.

 

[Suzanne74]

I also don't think you can site one instance of compensation and use that to say that is what everyone deserves. Maybe that one instance was Pixie Dust at it's finest. Who knows?

It was done in advance by a phone call, before she left for her trip. It was planned compensation similar to CBR giving $75 gift cards.

No one here is saying the OP deserved her room compensated. They are saying it was poor customer service to not attempt a thing for a major downgrade. Disney knew about it in advance, changed her room online, chose to never notified her, and after Check-in just said sorry. That is poor customer service. Even worse when others have been given more or even a free room for the same exact situation. If you think it is good customer service, fine but I just disagree that it is.

 

[Suzanne74]

People are starting to get a little extreme here. I've not seen any reports of the magnitude of a 2 BR suite at CR being sent to AOA. I think everything I've seen is a view downgrade or a downgrade from preferred to standard. Not someone booking one of the most expensive rooms at a deluxe and being sent to a value. Goodness.

So if you booked a Savannah room with your family and received a standard parking lot view at check-in, you would be okay? That is a big difference than a preferred to standard room. That is what OP received.

 

[maxiesmom]

It was done in advance by a phone call, before she left for her trip. It was planned compensation similar to CBR giving $75 gift cards.

No one here is saying the OP deserved her room compensated. They are saying it was poor customer service to not attempt a thing for a major downgrade. Disney knew about it in advance, changed her room online, chose to never notified her, and after Check-in just said sorry. That is poor customer service. Even worse when others have been given more or even a free room for the same exact situation. If you think it is good customer service, fine but I just disagree that it is.

I won't spend my life looking at others and wondering if they got better than me. That sounds like a way to be miserable. And I won't insist everyone get the same, as that would take away some magic from others. Just to make myself feel better.

And I don't consider it at all the same as what is going on at CBR.

 

[danikoski]

And I think it is good enough. Also, I am pretty sure they try to keep you in the same category when they downgrade.

I hate it that people feel justified to earn something when life goes a little wrong. Not every mishap or error should equal more money in your pocket.

It doesn't necessarily mean more money, but as previous poster said, if you pay for a Savannah room at AKL, and that's the only reason you are staying at AKL, and they downgrade you, you should be able to move resorts. And they should notify you in advance if they know in advance and allow for a resort change then. That equals good customer service.

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

I've been the recipient of upgrades and the past. We booked a 1 bedroom at Saratoga Springs and were upgraded to a 2 bedroom. We were told that they only had so many 1 bedrooms and that they sold out so we automaticlaly got upgraded. Pretty sweet setup for just the three of us. Another time, we booked Wilderness Lodge woods view and were "upgraded" to a courtyard view. I use the quotes because we WANTED the woods view. We didn't want to look out on the pool. But, when we went down to the front desk to tell them of the mistake, they told us that they upgraded us for free with big smiles. We told them we appreciated it and knew that they gave us the more expensive room for free, but we were really wanting a woods view. Sadly, they were out of woods views. It's pretty clear that when you get upgraded, more times than not, it's because they have sold out of the category you booked. One time we were upgraded, it was pretty darn great. The other time, it actually turned out to be a let down. Don't get me wrong, we enjoyed our room and didn't HATE looking out on the pool, but we had been looking forward to looking out on a bunch of trees.

Now, that said, if I booked Animal Kingdom Lodge, I would absolutely book savannah view. I have no desire to stay at AKL and would only do it if I was planning on spending a lot of time in the room and in that case, I'd want to sit on my balcony and look at animals. If I got downgraded to standard view, I'd be pretty ticked and no amount of "well, if you read the fine print it says we can't guarantee a certain category blah blah blah We refunded the difference blah blah blah" would make me any less ticked. That is a pretty big downgrade. And, for a person like me who would only be interested in the hotel if I had a savannah view, hearing stories like this make it likely that I will never chance booking there.

 

[KrazeeK120]

So if you booked a Savannah room with your family and received a standard parking lot view at check-in, you would be okay? That is a big difference than a preferred to standard room. That is what OP received.

I'd initially be disappointed, but as long as they gave me my money back, I would move on. I'm incredibly privileged that I can go to Disney at all. I know people that can barely afford the local zoo, never mind Disney World. I tend to focus on what I have, rather than what I don't. There are other places within the resort to see animals. (Well, maybe. It's called Savannah View, not Animal View. There is no guarantee you'll see any animals.)

 

[IrishNYC]

So if you booked a Savannah room with your family and received a standard parking lot view at check-in, you would be okay? That is a big difference than a preferred to standard room. That is what OP received.

I would be fine with it. Disappointed, but as @KrazeeK120 said, as long as they gave me my money back. Good gravy, I'm at Disney, I'm not going to let what I see from my balcony ruin my trip. There are enough hardships in life to worry about, and I've lived through enough tragedy that would make a room change less than a blip on the radar.

 

[Disneylover99]

So if you booked a Savannah room with your family and received a standard parking lot view at check-in, you would be okay? That is a big difference than a preferred to standard room. That is what OP received.

I'd be ticked, so I'd vent to a manager and get it off my chest. If something bugs you, you should definitely speak up.

 

[Nancyg56]

So if you booked a Savannah room with your family and received a standard parking lot view at check-in, you would be okay? That is a big difference than a preferred to standard room. That is what OP received.

I cannot tell you I would be happy that my room got the short stick, but I would not let this ruin my trip. I know that these downgrades are not the norm, and If I was refunded the different experience in cost, I'd roll with it. Now I know that if I had youngsters with me they might not understand at first, but instead of treating them to a scene, I would use the experience to teach them how to handle a problem with grace and how to accept that in life there are times when things are not in your control. Stuff happens. I would never let anyone see me "pitch a fit", that is not my style.

 

[jcjen519]

Op-sorry that happened. I think Disney could and should do better. They updated mde earlier in the day. They could have also attempted a phone call and offered options. Could they have moved her to a cl room a day sooner? She may have wanted to even if she had to pay something. A different resort? Let her make an informed decision.

I have no doubt that they are legally able to move you and compensate the price difference but it's not great business practice. If Disney called me before a trip to let me know my booking wasn't available I would be irritated but if nothing acceptable to me was available I'd go another time and strongly consider the nearby four seasons. If I showed up there prepared to stay in the main building of the grand Floridian and I was downgraded I'd be livid (if they could have given notice and didn't) even if they offered me my trip for free. I don't see it as a windfall. I'm happy to pay for what I want.

Why do people think compensation from Disney is like winning the lottery? I've received compensation from Disney for various things. It sucked. I don't want something to happen on my vacation that warrants a free room.

 

[IrishNYC]

I suspect Disney does not make it a policy to call when something like this happens because they don't want to turn it into a dozen rounds of "Let's Make a Deal," but clearly many people do.

I don't want something to happen on my vacation that warrants a free room.

Outside of a very small handful of things - tragic accident, room being destroyed by fire/flood/plague after your arrival, alien invasion, I cannot imagine what FOR ME would warrant a free room. "Free room" wouldn't even cross my mind for a single circumstance described in this thread.

 

[Suzanne74]

I hope all of you who expect something extra for a downgrade plan to pay them for any upgrades you do get

This comment is ridiculous. Why do you always post in threads and get so personally offended if people state opinions that are not favorable to Disney? They aren't perfect.

Getting the money back they owe you for downgrading a room is not getting compensated, like you said. It is illegal to overcharge a listed room rate. That is why they refunded her the difference. They aren't being nice. It is a must because her room is $150 less than the Savannah room she paid for. She is owed that money. It is not in good favor.

No one here expects upgrades. I have never received one and don't care if I do. And like most people have said, it isn't usually being nice pixie dust, it is usually because they are sold out and it is nicer to upgrade than downgrade. But if they can only downgrade it would be nice not to see it online, never be told, and half-heartedly be told sorry at check-in. That sucks. And more so because many people only consider AKL for Savannah view. Otherwise the hotel isn't worth the price how far off the beaten path it is.

And no one said they would make a scene and no one said it would ruin their trip. All people and myself are saying is that is not good customer service. If you want to continue to think the OP received great customer service, wonderful. Not everyone agrees and that is okay.

 

[Suzanne74]

Luckily we have never had this happen to us yet. In July we are staying at AK and have requested a Savannah view room. Does anyone know if for some reason you are downgraded to a standard room if WDW will allow you to just move to less expensive resort? I am assuming everything will be fine with our reservation but we decided to splurge on Animal Kingdom specifically because we wanted to relax on our balcony and watch the animals. I would hate to end up getting a standard view room and paying more for that room than a room at a Moderate.

That is a good question. If you pay the current rack rate of the mod, I am sure they would. But if you purchased a discount room at the time you reserved and could have purchased a mod at a discount, I doubt they would give you the discount that was offered since it is no longer offered.

 

[AngiTN]

This comment is ridiculous. Why do you always post in threads and get so personally offended if people state opinions that are not favorable to Disney? They aren't perfect.

Getting the money back they owe you for downgrading a room is not getting compensated, like you said. It is illegal to overcharge a listed room rate. That is why they refunded her the difference. They aren't being nice. It is a must because her room is $150 less than the Savannah room she paid for. She is owed that money. It is not in good favor.

No one here expects upgrades. I have never received one and don't care if I do. And like most people have said, it isn't usually being nice pixie dust, it is usually because they are sold out and it is nicer to upgrade than downgrade. But if they can only downgrade it would be nice not to see it online, never be told, and half-heartedly be told sorry at check-in. That sucks. And more so because many people only consider AKL for Savannah view. Otherwise the hotel isn't worth the price how far off the beaten path it is.

And no one said they would make a scene and no one said it would ruin their trip. All people and myself are saying is that is not good customer service. If you want to continue to think the OP received great customer service, wonderful. Not everyone agrees and that is okay.

And I think it's ridiculous to expect more than a refund of the difference.

Trust me, I'm not personally offended. Disney is far from perfect and I've said so many times. Remember, I'm one that did get downgraded and I did get annoyed about it.

I still maintain that if anyone expects more for a downgrade those same people ought to be paying up when they get an upgrade

I never said a word about making a scene. No idea where that comment came from

And with that, I'm done. This thread has reached levels I didn't even think The Dis could go. Silly is a word that doesn't begin to describe

 

[hippiechicken]

I think I was downgraded once. I booked a King room at POFQ because it was cheap with a CM discount, and at checkin they offered me a $75 credit per night to move to a double bed room.
I've been to WDW about 20 times. I have been upgraded several times. Once to a YC CL suite for a one night stay. The other times were just for room views and I was not notified. I didn't complain.

 

[Crispity]

I'm the PP that got the free room at AKL when they downgraded me to standard view. This thread has gotten quite heated! Apparently, some people here would have absolutely insisted on paying for the downgraded room after being offered it for free. Good for them, I guess. Disney went above and beyond by comping our room, and it made us very happy to have a $400+ credit on our account at the beginning of our stay. I didn't expect or ask for it, but it sure was nice!

If we had only been offered the difference in room rate, it certainly would not have ruined our trip, but I would have been irritated, because what we booked was not what was delivered. I don't think it is unreasonable to expect some kind of goodwill gesture if you get downgraded. Even something as small as a sincere apology and some extra fastpasses could go a long way.

 

[famy27]

I've been the recipient of upgrades and the past. We booked a 1 bedroom at Saratoga Springs and were upgraded to a 2 bedroom. We were told that they only had so many 1 bedrooms and that they sold out so we automaticlaly got upgraded. Pretty sweet setup for just the three of us. Another time, we booked Wilderness Lodge woods view and were "upgraded" to a courtyard view. I use the quotes because we WANTED the woods view. We didn't want to look out on the pool. But, when we went down to the front desk to tell them of the mistake, they told us that they upgraded us for free with big smiles. We told them we appreciated it and knew that they gave us the more expensive room for free, but we were really wanting a woods view. Sadly, they were out of woods views. It's pretty clear that when you get upgraded, more times than not, it's because they have sold out of the category you booked. One time we were upgraded, it was pretty darn great. The other time, it actually turned out to be a let down. Don't get me wrong, we enjoyed our room and didn't HATE looking out on the pool, but we had been looking forward to looking out on a bunch of trees.

Now, that said, if I booked Animal Kingdom Lodge, I would absolutely book savannah view. I have no desire to stay at AKL and would only do it if I was planning on spending a lot of time in the room and in that case, I'd want to sit on my balcony and look at animals. If I got downgraded to standard view, I'd be pretty ticked and no amount of "well, if you read the fine print it says we can't guarantee a certain category blah blah blah We refunded the difference blah blah blah" would make me any less ticked. That is a pretty big downgrade. And, for a person like me who would only be interested in the hotel if I had a savannah view, hearing stories like this make it likely that I will never chance booking there.

Something similar happened to us when we were in New Orleans last year. We were staying at a hotel on Bourbon Street, and we were "upgraded" to a room with a balcony facing Bourbon St. After the first night, I politely asked the front desk to downgrade us back to our original room type. It was so ridiculously loud that we couldn't fall asleep until 4:00 am and then had the lovely sound of the garbage trucks to wake us up at 7:30. If I were 21 and on spring break, I probably would have loved it, but I am old and just want to sleep. It turns out our original room type wasn't available, so the only option was a courtyard view of the pool, which was completely ripped out, looking at a giant pile of cement and construction debris. We happily took that room and the price difference. I honestly would have paid them extra just to get some peace and quiet. DH and I joke that the front desk people were probably snickering behind our backs when they first told us about our upgraded room and were happy that they found some chumps to take their horrible Bourbon St room.

In regards to the Disney upgrades/downgrades, I would generally be fine if they moved my view. In fact, we almost had that happen at YC (where we were going to be moved from a pool view, or whatever they call SAB view), but then our CM moved us to a room at BC. We didn't ask or complain, he just said he had it in his system and could move us if we didn't mind changing resorts or we could have the YC woods view. It ended up being a nice upgrade, since it was a newly-renovated room. But I would have been totally fine with the woods view. My only exception would be AKV. If I booked savanna and got standard, I'd be unhappy. If I knew in advance, I would absolutely switch resorts. If I couldn't have a savanna view, I'd switch to a monorail or EP resort. So I really think Disney does need to notify people of things like this in advance. I'd much rather deal with it a day or two before I get to WDW than standing at the check in desk after travelling all day. It's a question of information. If Disney knows something has happened or will happen that is negative, they should let you know. I have the same issue with airlines. If my flight is delayed five hours, that's fine. Just tell me. Don't tell me every 30 minutes that it will be another hour. Be upfront. Communication is key.

 

[Disneylover99]

And I think it's ridiculous to expect more than a refund of the difference.

Trust me, I'm not personally offended. Disney is far from perfect and I've said so many times. Remember, I'm one that did get downgraded and I did get annoyed about it.

I still maintain that if anyone expects more for a downgrade those same people ought to be paying up when they get an upgrade

I never said a word about making a scene. No idea where that comment came from

And with that, I'm done. This thread has reached levels I didn't even think The Dis could go. Silly is a word that doesn't begin to describe[/QUOTE

Some people only use their room for sleeping and showering. Others, (like me) spend a lot of time at their resort so their room choice is very important. Being downgraded could negatively impact my entire trip.

I can roll with many things at Disney......ride closures, crowds, bus waits, etc... But the type of room I book is my number one priority. Maybe for you, it's different.

I would expect them to move me back to the room category I booked the following day, or if that was not possible, move me somewhere else (agreeable to me) in a comparatively priced room. I don't think that's ridiculous.