Should I contact the resort to tell them this?

[jgraney106]

Hi all
I was wondering if I should contact the resort for this....
My nephew will be going to Disney and staying at the All Star Movies from August 15th to August 21st of this year. The 18th is his 12th birthday.
He will be going with his mom and her boyfriend.
The last time he went to Disney was in February 2011 with his mom and dad.
In May of this year his dad died.( He is still feeling the affects of his dad's death.)
Which means the last trip to Disney was with his dad.
Because his birthday is during the trip ,and the fact that his dad died in May of this year ,and his last memories of Disney was with his dad, I was wondering if I should tell the resort these things so that they will make this a special trip with a little extra pixie dust.

Has anyone any experience with this? If so, when should I call the resort to let them know? Please advise.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

So sorry to hear this especially since the lad is so young.

I really don't know what if anything they may do. However with Disney, it never hurts to call, explain and see what happens.!

I hope the lad and the family have a wonderful WDW trip!

AKK

 

[DisneyFansInLINY]

My sister worked at POP a few years ago. Her friend's fiancé was killed in Afghanistan and then his father passed away a month later. Her friend's fiance's mother and sister went to Disney shortly after their deaths for some much needed unwinding time. My sister informed the hotel of the events and they went above and beyond to make sure they had a wonderful and memorable time. So yes, definitely tell the hotel.

 

[auprincess]

I don't think you have anything to lose ~ he would probably at least get an autographed picture in the room for his birthday (I know we have the few times we have been to WDW for a birthday)

 

[dmoore718]

I would call the hotel directly. I called POR last year when my cousin and her husband and son went shortly after Christmas. They lost their baby girl 6 months earlier and Christmas was pretty tough so I called and they did make sure that they got all of the room requests that I put on their reservation. They really had a great time and it was very nice. They even had a photopass photog. take pics of them releasing balloons in her memory.

 

[dzorn]

I would call the hotel directly. I called POR last year when my cousin and her husband and son went shortly after Christmas. They lost their baby girl 6 months earlier and Christmas was pretty tough so I called and they did make sure that they got all of the room requests that I put on their reservation. They really had a great time and it was very nice. They even had a photopass photog. take pics of them releasing balloons in her memory.

All calls go to a call center none directly to the resort even though they answer it as if they are at the resort. I would have his mother note it on the reservation. Since the reservation belongs to her.

Denise in MI

 

[minnie mum]

I know that your heart is in the right place, but how will your DN's mother feel about you doing something like this? Is she aware of what you are planning? Does she approve? Could you not just suggest to her that she let the resort know about this?

 

[mariahasmousefever]

I know that your heart is in the right place, but how will your DN's mother feel about you doing something like this? Is she aware of what you are planning? Does she approve? Could you not just suggest to her that she let the resort know about this?

Really good point minnie mum... I don't mean to step on toes but it may be too much for her to talk about her husbands death but to get her blessing before the OP does it sounds like a great idea!

I hope your nephew has a wonderful vacation and memorable trip.

 

[MdmMim]

Hi all
I was wondering if I should contact the resort for this....
My nephew will be going to Disney and staying at the All Star Movies from August 15th to August 21st of this year. The 18th is his 12th birthday.
He will be going with his mom and her boyfriend.
The last time he went to Disney was in February 2011 with his mom and dad.
In May of this year his dad died.( He is still feeling the affects of his dad's death.)
Which means the last trip to Disney was with his dad.
Because his birthday is during the trip ,and the fact that his dad died in May of this year ,and his last memories of Disney was with his dad, I was wondering if I should tell the resort these things so that they will make this a special trip with a little extra pixie dust.

Has anyone any experience with this? If so, when should I call the resort to let them know? Please advise.

His father just died. He may be having difficulty with the BF in the picture so soon after his father's death. Poor kid. Too bad it wasn't a mother/son trip.

 

[TDC Nala]

You can explain (call 407 W-DISNEY, they will not give you any access to someone else's reservation, although maybe they will make a note on it - I am not sure calling the resort directly will help, as you don't get the resort but an offsite call center) but you can't expect something to be done for free. It is nice if they do it, but they don't have an obligation. The only way to assure it would be to order something, maybe through the Disney florist, and pay for it.

 

[jgraney106]

OP here. I sent a fax to the hotel this morning. The parents for my nephew were not married at the time of the dads death. The mothers friend has a good relationship with my nephew. So that is not a problem. And I am close with his mother.
Wasn't expecting free stuff for them, just a "So it's your birthday today" maybe with a cupcake. Or maybe some towel animals in the room. Just small stuff that wouldn't cost Disney anything but some pixie dust. Here's hoping for some magic.

 

[disneychic2]

I think it is very nice of you to be thinking of your nephew and wanting to do something to help him with what is bound to be a difficult time for him. I don't see anything wrong with contacting the resort and just giving them a heads up. I hope you get a response from your fax.

 

[*Fantasia*]

I'm sorry about his dad. I hope they will do something nice for him. An autographed card and a picture from Mickey and his friends and a nice birthday cake with balloons would be great. I think Disney can afford a cake. I'm sure this will make his birthday even more magical! Sending your nephew with some ~*Pixie Dust*~

 

[amberpi]

As I know another poster mentioned, I think you might be overstepping your bounds a bit, even though, I understand from your position your heart is in the right place. If one of my DH's relatives did something like that I would be FURIOUS (my family would know better). It would seriously, significantly damage our relationship. I'm very private and I can't imagine that information being shared. I know you'd sent the fax already but please, let it go from here and remember that your wishes and thoughts may not be other people's. If I got special treatment and knew that WDW knew of my personal issues it would ruin the magic for me. That's just me, but I also don't understand those restaurants that sing happy birthday to people. We don't usually frequent that type of establishment but when we do, I just feel horrible for the person trying to quietly celebrate. It would feel like an inappropriate voliation of trust, but again, i KNOW your heart in the right place, but it'd be a huge issue for me. Please consider that in the future.

 

[TDC Nala]

Maybe Disney can afford a cake, but that doesn't mean one should be expected. Even under these circumstances. I don't think they can arrange towel animals either, that's up to whether the housekeeper has the time to do them and knows how. If I really wanted to make sure something special was done for the child, I'd look at the services they have for ordering special packages delivered to the room.

 

[Gorechick]

If you would like something special done for this family then it should be up to you to arrange and pay for it. It is not the resort's responsibility to treat your friend in any special way. Asking for "pixie dust" is opposite the whole idea of it. WDW Florist has many ideas in all price ranges from gift baskets to in room celebrations. Try looking there.

 

[gwynne]

You probably know some things your nephew would like. Maybe a nice giftcard, and then contact Disney and arrange a yummy birthday cake. (Between you and his mom, this should be fairly easy.)
Maybe he'd just like to quietly remember his Dad, his way. He's still grieving, that's normal. I hope if Disney does anything it's very low, low, key. The things he's going through are very private.
I think the very best pixie dust would be sensitivity, and happy surprises that you purchased in connection with his visit and birthday.

 

[lampshadehead]

His father just died. He may be having difficulty with the BF in the picture so soon after his father's death. Poor kid. Too bad it wasn't a mother/son trip.

I totally agree.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

1) What are you expecting?
2) Probaly MOST people at WDW have a special occassion.
3) What would you like them to do for the nephew?

*************************************************

For birthdays, anniversies, and other celebrations,
no restaurant/resort is that much better than another.

1) Acknowledgment is a matter of the CM's personal initiative.
. . . depends upon how much they like you as a guest
. . . depends if they feel like doing anything special today
. . . depends upon the phase of the moon
2) CM's can do a lot, or they can do nothing at all.
. . . they are under no obligation to give goodies or even acknowledge, or
. . . they can go way overboard and give lots of gifts to a guest
3) The CM's have a lot of leeway of things to do or not do for you.
4) Have your anniversary-birthday-celebration noted on the ressie and ADR's.
5) Some of the things a CM can do for free are
. . . decorate table with Mickey confetti
. . . best table location
. . . special personalized menu
. . . character-autographed birthday cards
. . . balloons
. . . wine or champagne or Shirley Temples
. . . appetizers or desserts
. . . cakes
. . . cupcake with candle (almost always available for the asking)
. . . placemats autographed by characters
. . . free appy or free dessert
. . . room full of balloons and/or flowers
. . . fruit basket or wine basket in hotel room

 

[Stupid_Judy]

If you would like something special done for this family then it should be up to you to arrange and pay for it. It is not the resort's responsibility to treat your friend in any special way. Asking for "pixie dust" is opposite the whole idea of it. WDW Florist has many ideas in all price ranges from gift baskets to in room celebrations. Try looking there.

Exactly. It's a sad situation, and I in no way mean to downgrade that, but to ask for pixie dust is a little entitled in my opinion. Plan & pay for something special if you feel you need to. I hope he has a great trip.