To the CM's on the board: what is the one "tip" you can give us?

[sorahl]

I"m not a CM but I wish I was.
Here is something we learned on our last trip. I read the thread and no one mentioned it. It is not a ride/room/meal tip but..it can make your trip a lot better
we were last in WDW in August 2008. RIGHT when the Tropical Storm was visiting too! We were worried about just flying in!
Ok. so. Tropical Storm means an excessive amount of rain, right? August has rain lots of times anyway! So even if there is no nice and friendly TS visiting when you are this may help you. IF your shoes/sneakers get wet it can be uncomfortable. Especially the next day when you are putting them on to start your day.. Just grab a news paper and STUFF them tight. I mean REALLY tight at the endof your day (we even did this on an afternoon break). Overnight your shoes will be dry, guaranteed.
This really helped us to deal with the total deluge we got for our first 4 days at WDW last time. I hope it will help you..

one other comment. I am so glad to see that so many people experience extra magic on their visits. We haven't on ours but you know what.....all our trips are magical. My wife, my two son's and I are in WDW...together.. that's magical to begin with. So....IF YOU don't get that upgrade, or a free ice cream, or whatever you see someone else get just be happy for them! then take your spouses hand in yours, your kids in the other and go have a great day

John

 

[BabyEeyore]

one other comment. I am so glad to see that so many people experience extra magic on their visits. We haven't on ours but you know what.....all our trips are magical. My wife, my two son's and I are in WDW...together.. that's magical to begin with. So....IF YOU don't get that upgrade, or a free ice cream, or whatever you see someone else get just be happy for them! then take your spouses hand in yours, your kids in the other and go have a great day

John

Wonderfully put.

 

[kimmar067]

...Let yourselves and *especially* your kids relax and smell the roses. Seriously. Don't be commando...

...sheesh, try convincing my DH of THAT one...

 

[shalom]

one other comment. I am so glad to see that so many people experience extra magic on their visits. We haven't on ours but you know what.....all our trips are magical. My wife, my two son's and I are in WDW...together.. that's magical to begin with. So....IF YOU don't get that upgrade, or a free ice cream, or whatever you see someone else get just be happy for them! then take your spouses hand in yours, your kids in the other and go have a great day

So much of this thread boils down to, "Treat people with consideration and appreciate what you have." The last time I was in Disneyland was in the 1970s, and I haven't been to Disney World yet, but in comparing my childhood trips (misery) to the trips I've taken with hubby and kids (terrific!), if you're traveling with people who do both those things, you're going to have a good time.

 

[kimmar067]

2. Do not let your kids run up and draw on characters.

...wow, is this really a problem??

 

[kimmar067]

Actually it's been proven that the majority of people will go right as the majority of people are right hand dominant. Even in a chase situation, the runner will turn right more than left. It's just the funky way we are wired.

I like the new quick order machines at Pecos !!! People were standing in line like sheep, and there wasn't one person using the machines !!! I was in and out of the booth, and had my food before two people even ordered at the regular line.

When did they install quick order machines? I LOVE Pecos Bill, we go there every year when we're in MK and I've never seen them! Was there last year in July...are they fairly recent?

...hey, mebbe they should start putting these pre-ordering machines in at all the counter-service eateries....

 

[SiAmCrAzY]

bumping to read later fab thread thank you

me too

 

[WLSILVERCREEKSPRINGS]

Here's something that's less of a tip, but more of a request.

Please don't try to get us to "break character." Even those of us who aren't characters are involved with a storyline, especially the attractions CMs. I work on the safari and I always have people trying to get me to tell them "the real deal"

Yes, the safari is actually 2 weeks long (but its so fun you'll feel like it was only about 20 minutes)
Yes, those baobab trees and ostrich eggs are real (even though the backstage tour told you differently)
Those chains on the ground are only to get mud off our tires (but you'll notice that animals don't cross them into other areas)

There is only one Mickey Mouse and no amount of you winking or making sure there are only adults around will change that. He doesn't wear a costume, there is no one inside of him and the Cinderella you just saw was the same one you saw yesterday.

We love our jobs and we preserve the magic for everyone, not just those young enough not to know better. Of course, this doesn't mean that you'll never hear a backstage tip from a CM, but just because you tell me you've been to Disney 50 times and understand and there are no children around does not necessarily mean I'm going to break character to "let you in on it." If you want the real deal, take a backstage tour, buy a book or surf the net. It's all out there.

You and other CM'S like you are what make DW magical for families like ours; thanks for all of your hard work, ya'll are awesome!

 

[misha-ginger]

2. Do not let your kids run up and draw on characters.

Really??? What were the parents thinking?

 

[ronnmel]

3. Talk to us!!! Characters are one thing, but I just absolutely love it, when, for example, I worked the doors to the Land building and a kid comes up to me and tells me a whole story about his day. Most attractions have special posts called "Greeters" that welcome you to a ride and give you details about it - also checks height's, whatnot.. but it's also a great time to talk to our guests! I had this kid who was visiting for a week and every time he saw me, we'd stop what we were doing and go into a battle of rock, paper, scissors!

I see this tip given often, especially when it comes to AK CMs, that they have lots to say about animals. I'd love to do this, but I'm quite shy and not very good at starting conversations. How can I strike up a conversation about the animals at AK? Or a general conversation anywhere else? (btw, I'm a 29 woman)

 

[troyer]

Bump

 

[JerseyMamaBear]

We always do! Same for what I do- a simple thank you works wonders. I usually say- "Have a great day!" to the CM's we see leaving the ride. We try to get our DD's and DS to say thank you to the janitorial staff especially-they have to clean up after our messes!

On my Birthday trip this past January, we were having lunch at cosmic rays. A family next to us left there trays and food along with a spilled drink leaking onto the floor. The sweetest cm came to clean it up but had her hands full with other trays. There was a bit of a language barrior so she was a little hard to understand. I bent down to help her pick up the cup and straw and she insisted that I just enjoy my lunch and not go out of my way. I nicely explained to her that she was doing a great job keeping the area neat and that I appreciated it. She actually began to cry! She said people come and go all day and never even say hello or thanks to her. She said it made her day . I always return the kindness to the CMs. They are one of the reasons our trips are always perfect.

 

[lauralong81]

This is wonderfully amazing!!! Most people would take this situation and whine and moan and some would even come back and post here that it "just ruined the ENTIRE trip!!!" Seriously, I could see reading this in the opposite light as a rant, so MAJOR kudos to you for turning into something fun and wonderful, a sort of adventure! And thank you for the reminder as well, to do the same! Awesome, just awesome. I think everyone that posts a "rant" should be PM'd this story.

That is a GREAT idea. We have written to WDW thanking CM's for outstanding services on a few occasions. Sometimes we remember the CM's name, sometimes not.

We will carry a notebook next time.

Be Kind To The CMs is just danged good behavior. We have had some great conversations with CMs. We were walking back to the train from RS at AK and a gardener was working. We stopped and had a long conversation with her about the plants and flowers at AK and I think MK.

We got up one day for early EMH at AK while staying at AKL. Usually the AK to AKL buses run back and forth pretty quickly but this morning no buses. After 30 minutes or more a DH bus pulled up and I asked the driver if AK had morning EMH. He said no but DH did which differed from my notes. What the heck, we have not been to DH yet so off we go.

We get to DH and the place is empty. We walk up to the gates which is surrounded by a gang of CMs trimming the bushes. Hmmmm, this is not looking good. We look at them. They look at us. They tell us the park does not open for another hour or two

What had happened was the bus driver looked at an OLD schedule. The new schedule had come out the morning so he was off a week.....

We chatted a bit with the CMs and they gave all the girls and women in the party fresh cut flowers right from the bushes.

Some people would have pitched a fit at this point but we wandered back to the bus stops wondering how we were going to get out of DH to ANYWHERE when in drove a WDW van. Turns out it was one of the bus managers. He appeared to be checking things at the building near the bus stop but I wonder if the CMs at the gate called and let the bus CM's know that some guests were at DH trying to get to AK.

Anywho the manager took us over to AK and we had a great talk about the bus system and WDW. He dropped us off right up front and in we went. I can't remember if we missed RD or not. If we did it was not by much time. And it certainly did not effect our day in a negative way.

In fact the whole little side trip turned into a great little WDW memory.

But I could see someone with a bad attitude turning the whole episode into a real bad experience for the CMs at the gate and the bus manager. And in return the guests bad attitude would have been bounced right back at them and ruined the guests day. What for us was a positive would have been a negative. The only difference was ATTITUDE.

Be Kind To CMs.
Be Kind To Other Guests.
Have Fun.
Go Slow Do Not Hurry And Rush.

Later,
Dan

 

[Sabbie]

I see this tip given often, especially when it comes to AK CMs, that they have lots to say about animals. I'd love to do this, but I'm quite shy and not very good at starting conversations. How can I strike up a conversation about the animals at AK? Or a general conversation anywhere else? (btw, I'm a 29 woman)

If you're talking about the CM's who have animals on them or are near animals - simply go up them and say. "Hi."

Really, after you start the first time, the rest are a breeze. I'm pretty shy outside of my role, too, so don't worry! Even if you do know what an animal is, another question would be, "This is a _____, right?" Just to confirm!

You don't have to 5 to talk to us. Everyone is a kid at Disney, regardless of age. I'd rather have 500 guests talk to me in a day than 5.

Feel free to PM if you need more specific ideas.

 

[fall08CP]

I see this tip given often, especially when it comes to AK CMs, that they have lots to say about animals. I'd love to do this, but I'm quite shy and not very good at starting conversations. How can I strike up a conversation about the animals at AK? Or a general conversation anywhere else? (btw, I'm a 29 woman)

We love to talk about the animals! I'd suggest reading signs and asking about the animal facts, what they eat, when they're most active, the coolest/most unusual thing the CM has seen the animal do, if there are any babies, etc. Listen to our answers and build off of them. The only questions I didn't like getting were "are they real?" and "what are their mating habits?" For some reason, I got those at least once a day and the men always asked!

 

[DisneyFamily123]

"...and it's good training for my kids..."
....The world would be a better place if more parents took the time you do to think about how their actions affect their children. While your kids may not know now what you're doing for them, some of your fellow parents in the world do...and we applaud you.

A small thing... but we got mickey balloon(s) each trip. The helium balloons stay floating a long time. Even after 9 days, still floating.... so my son gives them to another child, just checking in.

For CMs... at restaurants or other places, I sometimes ask to see the manager. I expect most people only ask to see the manager when they are unhappy and have a complaint..... I ask to see the manager to tell them when my waiter/service/food was outstanding! When we have a great waiter/waitress, I tell them what we really enjoyed about our meal and the service. I used to wait tables, and sometimes it was hard to know if I did a good job.

 

[Rita007]

On another occasion we were at DTD and we didn't realize that busses did not go directly to the parks from there. We had an ADR so we hopped on the first bus that was headed to a resort with the intention of catching the next bus from the resort to HS. The bus driver heard us talking and since he didn't have anyone get on the bus at the resort told us he would drive us to HS. We were so thankful, if it hadn't been for him we would have been late for our ADR.

In October 2008 we were a party of 10 and had splurged on an Illuminations Cruise. When I told our "captain" we had to get back to POFQ she insisted that it would take us too long to use Disney transportation from YBC and instead dropped us off at a quiet dock at Hollywood Studios so that we could take a single bus back to our resort. With 5 little ones in our party...she got a BIG tip from us! It certainly helped to top off a wonderful evening!

 

[gzh6464]

OK obvious advice:

Disney gives lot's of opportunites to avoid the dreaded ride lines. Recently returned during busy spring break period and never waited more than 15 min for any thing (some standby's were 2 hr ...because:

- Used EMH (especially AM)...people on vacation like to sleep maybe eat a big meal...the early bird catches the worm (or avoids the long line, gets FP) - . Sorry if your staying off property do rope drop...amazed how much you can do before the hoards wake up or finish their breakfast buffets. If you're a night owl and they have early AM EMH (I actually mean EMH from 11p-3AM on peak times...it's an amazing time and the place is practically yours alone...Ok you may need to sleep in late the next day but it's worth it!)

-Used FP - collect them throughout the day, they DONT have to be used in the window printed on the ticket (but do expire at the end of the day), ride popular stuff early and get FP if you want a second trip - ride non FP things when your waiting for a FP window to open -or during parades/fireworks or traditional meal hours when others are doing these things (of course if you want to see fireworks/parades -then enjoy, it's just not necessary for me the second or third time on a trip). You may hold multiple FP at a time (just cant get second FP until first window opens). As soon as the window opens for a new one get a new one. Sometimes this return for a new one is sooner than the window to go on the ride (be aware)....if theres one fit person in the group designate them as the FP runner -great way for one person to get lot's of exercise

- Single rider (EE,TT, RnRC) - sometimes better than FP. You can wait with a friend family member together...and if you can separate from them for the 5 min of each of these rides...you'll be back together sooner than you know and off to the next thing long b4 the time had you waited stand by...and not wasted a FP opportunity

- Rider swap - for some have small kids along can be a drag (eg an older kid whose sib is too short for a ride)...but for others it's a gold mine...3 automatic FP (one for the second parent and two more...WOW...and these are good ALL DAY LONG/and there doesn't seem to be a limit on the number you can get as long as you play by the rules.

Mix and match all of these and you'll be amazed how much you can do and how little you will have to wait for certain attractions.

Have a plan of attack but be flexible...nothing almost always goes 100% as planned...have fun.

 

[thumper*]

WOW what great tips. Not a CM (THANKS TO ALL CM FOR THE MAGIC) but one tip I have is in regards to planning. Big planner here....while researching WDW online I post all interesting sites in a favorites folder. But the biggest help (since I'm getting old and a bad memory) has been starting a word doc. and copying and pasting tips into it (being sure to note site it's from). It's amazing everytime I read back through it the stuff I had forgotten.

A tip I came up with when we use to boat all the time.....in regards to sealable plastic bags. I always save the zippered plastic bags that linen/comforters come in (various sizes), many have built in handles. The small ones are great for storing stuff you want to keep dry on rides. If my trip has several stages I will pack for the individual stages IE: Driving down to WDW will stay a nt or two on the way I will pack a plastic bag with the things I will need for that stay leaving the big suitcases in the car. Much easier carrying in a small bag and a cosmetic bag. I will then reuse this bag for dirty clothes. Hope these help.

 

[waynesgirl]

-Used FP - collect them throughout the day, they DONT have to be used in the window printed on the ticket (but do expire at the end of the day), ride popular stuff early and get FP if you want a second trip -

Wow! Not really sure what you mean, or that maybe you got lucky a lot, but I have seen people be denied trying to use a FP that was expired 2 hours. I hope that one would follow the guidelines- and not do like that very same guest and yell at the CM because they waited 2 hours too late.

No need to flame me but that seems pretty harsh to tell someone to buck the system like that...