state of things: our 3/27 - 4/3 trip

[aalan]

i am happy to report that while there were several instances of BAD SHOW, overall, things looked good. the parks were very busy, near summer levels as several cm's confirmed. this has to be a good thing. it made any talk of a boycott seem silly.

it was a rough start as the room we checked into at riverside in the magnolia terrace building (8502) smelled bad. really bad. at first, we thought maybe it just needed airing out, but i discovered that the carpet was soaked in front of the a.c. unit. we quickly requested a room change, and moved to 9603 parterre place, without any fuss or hassle. this room was nice, it could have used a paint job, but the carpet was decent, shower curtain and linens new. how they could even try to sell that first room to anyone is beyond me.

mousekeeping was adequate: although the mirrors were never cleaned and the lights needed to be dusted.

i forgot to mention that when you get your paperwork when checking in, a BIG dvc brochure is given to you. and i swear the dvc stands are like starbucks, they are EVERYWHERE, several in each park. its a little annoying, and not magical at all.

because it was so busy, almost everything was open. i suspect that maintenance has been on-going the last few months to get ready for the summer crunch. i saw some tired paint and rust stains, but nothing really bad. the magic kingdom still looks the most tired, but it IS 32 years old, and the tough florida weather takes its toll. not to mention millions of visitors. but dont get me wrong, most people are not going to notice the little things, overall, i thought everything looked good.

bathrooms were clean, except for the first sat. we were there: it must have been a busy day, because at night most restrooms were a mess. we walked into philharmagic because the parade was going, and it was a disaster, full of wrappers, bottles, paper, and only one over-flowing trash can. yuck. but we never encountered such a mess the rest of the week.

its a different world now: most of the cm's are now either retirees or foriegners. some of the bus drivers were great, very chatty and full of good info. the bus service was excellent, we never watied long. most of the help in the counter service restaurants could barely speak english. and they seemed bored out of their minds. no magical vibes there. the "disney-image" types are still there, but in fewer numbers.

really BAD SHOW: clean towels are delivered around variuos parking lots at port orleans in bright green containers, with the containers covered in plastic. they are there night and day, sometimes full, sometimes empty. i'm sure this makes it easier to distribute them, but holy cow, it looks like crap! they need to build a fence, structure, something. yikes. i didnt notice if it was happening at the other resorts.

and i know we pick nits here sometimes, but this also really bothered me: at the first parking lot you can see for the magic kingdom, two of the large parking lot lights were laying on their sides, waiting to be installed, i guess. they were there all week, and on the busier days, orange cones were placed around them and people parked next to them.

if thats not BAD SHOW, then i dont know what is. it didnt ruin my vacation, but i couldnt help thinking about people making that long drive in from I-4 and I-192, and when they get close to the entrance of the magic kingdom, the first thing they see are huge lights taking up space. instead of say, the fun topiary that years ago welcomed visitors. i do agree that current management just doesnt get it.

but still, we had a nice week. all of our meals were great, some suprisingly large. one area they havent scrimped too much on is the landscaping, many flowers, plants, and manicured shrubs everywhere. boat service to downtown disney was good, with only one long wait when all the parks were closed. one last thing: "the earl of sandwich" did not totally overtake what used to be the pantry. there is a smaller store there now that sells candy, coffee, and baked goods, called something like "goofy's candystore." you bet i bought a cookie.

i'd be happy to answer any questions.

 

[Planogirl]

Thanks for the report. This is how I saw WDW during our last trip, tired and a bit beat up but not the disaster some people see. I remember those big towel things too and wonder if they're used at all of the resorts?

Did you see any work on going? Any painting and other repair work?

 

[Uncleromulus]

Your take on the CM quality was interesting. I've often mentioned to Mrs. U that there seems to be a growing # of CM's whose "'Disney Traditions" training seems to have gone in one ear and out the other. They don't seem to want to be involved in the "Magic" and could care less about being "on stage".
Not to mis-understand---most of the CM's are just fine and Disney friendly. It's just that each trip there seem to be more and more of the "going thru the motions" type slipping in---.

 

[Galahad]

the parks were very busy, near summer levels as several cm's confirmed

We were there from 3/27 to 4/2 and thought the parks were pretty sparse for this time of year.

 

[KNWVIKING]

***"and i swear the dvc stands are like starbucks, they are EVERYWHERE, several in each park. its a little annoying, and not magical at all."***

Several in each park ? Did something recently change, because in the past each park had one location- well,Epcot had one in FW and one in WS.

 

[All Aboard]

two of the large parking lot lights were laying on their sides, waiting to be installed, i guess. they were there all week, and on the busier days, orange cones were placed around them and people parked next to them.

They've been there for about 3 months.

 

[OnWithTheShow]

They arent the same lights. New ones have been arriving as they get installed. It is part of the ongoing parking lot maintenance project.

There are two types of cast members those who work there because they think it is fun and not at all like a job, and those for whom it is a job.

The towel bins are used at all of the resorts and at the parks as well for cast members to use to dry things off. Some resorts do a better job of keeping them offstage. I guess in a way you get what you pay for because I have never noticed them at the deluxe resorts or DVC resorts. Only at the moderates and the values.

 

[irwinm]

Hi,

Thanks for all the news on Disney while you were there. I am leaving on the 21st of April. The 22nd is a early park entry day for Magic Kingdom. I hear that doing this is a bad idea because the park gets too crowded. Maybe I should go to Epcot on that day and go to Magic Kindom on the day that is scheduled to be an early entry day for Epcot. Resverse strategy. What do you think?

I'm also wondering since Easter will be over by the time I get there, will the crowds be down? How's the weather...really hot or pretty nice with cool evenings?

Thanks

 

[aalan]

plano: i dont recall seeing any work in the parks, but the oak manor building was closed at riverside, and there was painting, steam-cleaning, and refurbishing going on.

galahad: not crowded? any decent ride was at least an hour wait. and fastpasses were usually gone by early afternoon. we were at the world last year at the same time, and they werent even using the fastpasses, all rides were a walk on. thats why we decided to go at this time, and it was much more crowded. we may switch back to october visits, which seem to be less crowded.

knwviking: you may be right, i might be remembering the 2 stands at epcot. i swear i saw 2 at the animal kingdom, but i could be wrong.

one thought i forgot to mention: people these days are pigs. they leave their trash, wont pick up their trays, leave their cigarette butts everywhere. i guess that they feel they are paying for their vacation, and they can do as they feel. not to mention the stroller collisions, cutting in line, and refillable mugs so old the paint was wearing off.
me, i'm just happy to be on vacation, but the level of patience of most folks is definately dropping. i think its one reason some of the cm's just give up, and treat it like any other job. imagine getting asked what time the 3:00 parade starts a hundred times a day....

 

[raidermatt]

...people these days are pigs.

Yes, many are.

i think its one reason some of the cm's just give up, and treat it like any other job. imagine getting asked what time the 3:00 parade starts a hundred times a day....

Can't grant this free pass though. Partly because the shortcomings of others are never an excuse for our own, and partly because I think the real reason is poor leadership. The simple fact is employees will do a better job when they know senior management believes in and values what they are doing.

 

[KNWVIKING]

In reference to some CM's less then historic attitudes, do CM's that have to deal directly with "the pigs" get more frequent breaks or rotated to non face-to-face jobs just to prevent them from cracking up ? I'm a dealership service manager and I've come to the point that I hate everybody who walks thru the door, (not really,but you know what I mean) and on a daily basis a theme park CM deals with hundreds more people then I will. Have recent cut backs resulted in good CM's being just plain burnt out by spending too much time around guests ?

 

[OnWithTheShow]

Breaks are pretty consistent with hourly cast members with the exception of service and trade union members and entertainment. For an 8 hr shift you normally get an hr total. Depending on how the computer feels (if you are in a cds location) you can get two 15's, and a 30, two 30's, or one hr long break. I think some cast members are burnt out simply from the reduction in the number of cast. Many greeter positions have been eliminated and registers in merchandise locations and restaurants go unused.

 

[grinningghost]

Another vote for CM's that aren't all that interested in contributing to "good show". Although I can't really say it's because they're foreign or retired, just because they don't seem too into it.

In fact, two of the best CM's I encountered last trip were a guy from Vietnam in World of Disney and an older gentleman working at ASMo. Both very friendly and their love of Disney was apparent.

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

We were at POR 3/8-3/13 and I was surprised at how disinterested the CMs were there. Young, old, all ethnicities, etc, in five nights at POR I encountered several CMs who seemed to be just going through the motions. In fact, I remember thinking how ironic it was that they were no more friendly than the checkout people at the local Wal-Mart. I never ran across one -at registration desk, in gift shop, in food court, at pool, etc. -who stood out as being happy or inetersted in making sure guests have an amazing experience. I suppose it comes down to a question of whether "good" is good enough.

I also noticed the "towel trolleys" and thought that it was funny that I would see them there but I had not ever seen them at value resorts.

POR is a gorgeous place, but due to CMs and small "bad show" things I think we'll try somewhere else on next trip.

 

[KNWVIKING]

I was in The World five different weeks last year and can honestly say that I never noticed a problem with the CM's. I didn't sit around and watch how they interacted with other guests, but whenever my DW or I needed info they were cheerfull and very helpfull. We asked a CM at guest services at the Y&B front desk about the backstage tour at AK. She told us what she knew, which she admitted wasn't much, then said "wait a minute" and hurried thru door and brought out another CM who she stated was an expert on the tour and would love to tell us all about it- and she quite happily did. They were great.

Now, I don't mean for this to sound like I'm bragging, but whenever I have a problem or need info, I don't approach a CM with an arrogant attitude. I treat them the way I'd like to be treated - a big S.E.G. goes a long way - and never have a problem.

 

[NeverEnufWDW]

What kind of "quality" or you expecting from a bunch of minimum wage workers at an amusement resort ?

If not for WDW, they'd all be at the local Jack in the Box, KFC, or BK.

If Ei$ner an Co. really gave a crap about having decent CMs - they would be more selective and pay more.

 

[KNWVIKING]

Can any CM's comment on the pay scale ??

But more importantly, what does the hourly wage have to do with doing your job well ? You voluntarily applied for a job knowing what the pay was before you accepted the position. Is it acceptable for that person to then decide not to live up to their end of the bargain, their job description ?

 

[OnWithTheShow]

It's hard the first few years because the union rules prevent merit based pay raises. Everyone gets an annual increase. It certainly isnt pay capable of raising a family in my opinion but it can certainly support one person comfortably.

 

[raidermatt]

But more importantly, what does the hourly wage have to do with doing your job well ?

For any given individual, it shouldn't have anything to do with it.

However, whenever you look at groups of employees, how they are treated is going to have an overall impact on the job they do. Its just a fact of doing business that you can't ignore.

That said, pay is not the only thing that affect how an employee feels they are being treated.

 

[KNWVIKING]

Matt,

I guess I just won't accept the disgruntled employee excuse for poor workmanship. Is every CM doing a poor job ? Are they all exhibiting their current displeasure with ME by treating guests poorly? Or are most CM's professionals, people who give the customer & the job 101% while they're on the clock. When a CM - or any employee - gets to the point of letting their feelings towards management affect the way they treat the customer, it's time for them to look for a new job.

But my original comments about wage were based on this post: "What kind of "quality" or you expecting from a bunch of minimum wage workers at an amusement resort ?"

His/her theory would mean a minimum wage CM who worked for Walt would be just as bad as one working for ME.