Walt What Happened!!!!!

[eliz5404]

Just returned from a Magical Gatherings week at WDW. Just what is the Magical Gathering thing anyway???
15 family members booked 6 rooms at POR, (9 months in advance)
Went to check in at about 12:30, what a mess it took us 1 1/2 hours standing at the window to check in, this girl had no clue.
She wouldn't let us use our own Credit Card for room charges, we had to use the person that booked the rooms, now I know this shouldn't have been but we were all to tired to argue anymore. so we just used our credit card instead of room card for purchases. Our reguest for rooms together wasn't granted. 4 rooms were fairly close together and the other 2 were further away. They did manage to give us adjoining rooms but the key would fit both doors, I didn't like that, I know it's family but I like my door locked with me only being able to get in. They told me this couldn't be done.
The rooms were ok at Oak Manor, fairly clean, no real complaints, very quiet we were near the parking lot and didn't hear any noise.

I sent for What would walt do pins to give out to any disney cast member that was at all helpful to us. I left home with 6 pins and returned with 6 pins. There wasn't one pleasant person around, the only nice person was a waitress who went out of her way for us in an out of park restaruant called Giordano's. She got a 40 percent tip.
This park has gone down hill, none of the CM we encountered really appeared to enjoy their job. None were friendly. At the prices they charge for food, trinkets and rooms there, they should be kissing the guests feet. It was our parents 50th anniversay we were celebrating, we mentioned it a few times throughout the week and the usual response was "that's nice". Only at the Mickey BBQ did they announce it and ask them to lead in a dance. So if someone knows why they have magical gathering and what the benifit is to book as a magical gathering, i'd sure love to know.

We tried alot of restaruants out of WDW that were recommended by this board, and all were great. Also, loved the Turkey Legs as recommended on this board.

 

[DianeV]

Check out www.savedisney.com

You are not the only one who feels things are changing for the worse

 

[kild]

In our trip, we had 3 cm's that we encountered that seemed still have the Disney feel.
One cm at a drink stand in Epcot, said in a loud voice, "No sh*t!" when he was told how much beer they had sold in the last two hours. All the kids around loved that one. The parents seemed real pleased as well.

 

[Nanu57v]

Hi, my parents had a similar feeling about their 25th anniversary trip (congrats by the way on the anniversary.) They complained to a few managers until they finally got a response. That manager treated us all to dinner at Tony's.

My mom also sent a letter to Disney detailing the ups and downs of her trip. She received a phone call in response.

A few trips ago she did the same thing with the letter writing and received free one park one day tickets in the mail.

In the least it might help someone else's trip go smoother if you let management know about the problems, so why not write a letter and let them know?

 

[Cris]

Originally posted by eliz5404
. At the prices they charge for food, trinkets and rooms there, they should be kissing the guests feet.

No one should ever have to kiss your feet LOL!!! But really why do you say that, they get paid 7 dollars an hour and morale is low with being over worked, and little to none appreciation from guest and managers.

 

[OLT2004]

I am sorry your trip was not pure Disney Magic!

What is a "What Would Walt Do Pin"?

 

[floridafam]

I'm sorry.

They should be prepared to deal with Magical/Grand Gatherings. You are correct. You should have been able to put your credit card on your particular room.

 

[Cinderella37]

In places like Atlantic City and Las Vegas, guests are treated very well, especially repeat guests. Any other resort location, especially Ritz-Carltons and Four Seasons, treat their guests exceptionally well. My point in all of this is the WDW costs more than a trip to these places (my fiance and I are planning our honeymoon, and it costs less money to go 100% first class to Fiji for two weeks than it does for us to go to WDW for 11 days).

Now, we all choose to go to WDW because we expect an amazing vacation experience. One cast member having a bad day is forgivable - coming home with the same number of pins is not. When a company's slogan is "Where Magic Lives," it'd better deliver. WDW markets itself as the be-all end-all of pure vacation magic.

Advertising slogan or not, Disney has been defined for years by going the extra mile and having employees who are not employees, but CMs. The pure nomaclature of "Cast Member" does not mean that it is acceptable to swear, act rudely, or basically act like jerks to Guests. GUESTS, not customers.

Disney has set themselves up as the paragon of customer service. When reasonable expectations aren't met, there is a problem. As for the $7.00 an hour: cast members are free to work anywhere they want. As Orlando has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the nation, people have choices. When I was in high school, I was the Easter Bunny's "helper," since he is too busy to pose for pictures with all of the kids. I sweated my butt off for $5.00 an hour, but I made sure that every kid who saw me had a wondeful experience. I went above and beyond and I worked at a MALL.

It used to be an honor to work for Disney; I understand that management is not what it used to be and that's something that needs to be remedied. Until the board takes a stand and does something about it, starting with the top, these things will continue to happen. WDW simply needs to bring the magic back.

 

[Lisa Abomeli]

Hi There

I do not know what WDW is, but presume that it is a Disney resort (?)

Well I am currently in Japan, and yesterday went to the Tokyo Disney World.

The Cast Members - as you call them - were so fab!!!
If I had those pin things that you speak of I would have handed out more than I had and come back with -150 (minus that is!!)

I was blown away, and so was my husband.
Tokyo rocks.

Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee..

 

[Cinderella37]

WDW= Walt Disney World

 

[ddank]

My parents just came back from an anniversary trip. They have been going since the early 80s. They told me it was the best trip they have ever had. Said they never seen the CMs so happy and helpful. Got special treatment, upgrade to savanah view, the whole 9. I think magical gathering is a rip off and I think with a little research you wouldve seen youre not getting much for enrolling in that racket. But my point with this is its all a matter of timing and perspective. Next time you may go at the right time and have a totally different perspective on where the resort is headed.

 

[Mercy]

Originally posted by Cris
No one should ever have to kiss your feet LOL!!! But really why do you say that, they get paid 7 dollars an hour and morale is low with being over worked, and little to none appreciation from guest and managers.

I don't care what they get paid, there is no excuse for poor customer service or rude behavior. If you don't want to deal with the public, then work somewhere else.

 

[PartyOf5a]

So, sorry you had an unmagical time. I agree with the person that said this magical gathering thing is a rip-off. They make it look so appealing on the commercials (naturally) but then you hear stories like this.

Also, for the record, if you have ajoining rooms you CAN have it set up so each door has a different entrance key. In fact, one time when we stayed at Movies with adjoining rooms, the CM actually said they had to be separate keys and if we put one key in the wrong door it will deactivate for security reasons. What a nightmare that was (because we were the same family). I went down the next morning and had this corrected with a manager.

 

[stacy6552]

If you send a complaint, be sure to include that you know the thing about the credit card is total BS. Here's how I know....

A few months ago our friends went to the BC and I called ahead and bought a couple refillable mugs for them. The resort charged their whole trip to my card! Not only did I not make the reservation, I never set foot in the place.

 

[frannn]

It only takes a few small things to make a vacation memorable and special in a person's eyes. It also has to do with expectations. I expect to go to the theme parks and do a bit of waiting around, but I also expect my room and public bathrooms to be clean, and to get prompt and courteous service. If any problems are encountered and presented to CMs, I expect them to be resolved in a timely manner. I go to WDW because it is a happy place, and I love that in most of my visits, the CMs are always smiling and helpful. Its a shame that in all of this happiness and excitement, if there is one CM who is obviously unhappy with their job, it puts a damper on the whole experience. It is the small things that stand out. If a waitress at one of the character meals were to give my DDs a special gift, like a postcard, etc, that would be the talk of the entire trip, and we would go home feeling special. If, on the other hand, one CM was unhelpful in a fairly big way, that would be what would stand out on our trip. That's just human nature. Disney recognizes this most of the time and we love it. Thats why we don't vacation at Six Flags. I hope Disney continues to make our vacations magical, because if not, there's no point in giving them my $. I promise to try to look at the big picture after our trip, though!

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

I'm sorry but I do agree with the OP. I don't think CMs should kiss my feet. But Disney is charging top notch for rooms, food etc. When you pay a certain amount, you expect so much in return. My trips to WDW have always been great (knock on wood) LOL with a few minor exceptions and can't wait for our trip in Nov. But there have been more than a few people who have returned lately with some valid complaints. And its not my fault these CM's get paid 7.00/hr. You know what the pay scale and job description is, if you don't like it work elsewhere. A persons vacation should not be ruined by an employees attitude. Like another poster stated, my DH and I frequent the Sandals and Beaches resorts. They recognize their repeat guests and reward them for coming back. Some recognition might be nice, for the loyal repeaters.

 

[OneMoreTry]

I hate posts like this but they are a reality. Sometimes WDW doesn't meet it's own standards.

My impression is that the OP's check-in nightmare cast a cloud over the whole trip, magnifying the other negative experiences. I also think a Disney moment would have broken the spell, but Disney never provided that like we've heard they do in some cases.

That's too bad!!

I've definitely had less than great Disney experiences. In fact I don't think I've ever had an experience where a CM seemed to go way out of the way for me or my family. I realize that is in part due to my overly-demanding nature, and I try to keep that in check. When I do I enjoy my trips much more.

We have to be careful not to feed off one another's negative posts.

 

[jaguar9748]

Having been to Disney many times, there are certain trips that are worse than others. There are certain resorts that offer better service than others. The point is that this poster didn't have a magical stay, nor did their family. As a result, Disney may have lost some repeat guests. There's no doubt that Disney management is in turmoil. Hopefully it will work itself out so that more attention is paid to the Disney parks. Some hotels need updating. Some rides in the parks need to be updated or replaced. Regular retraining is needed for CM's. I encourage the poster to contact WDW management. They need to know of the experience.

 

[Sammie]

I think sometimes though expectations are predetermined before arrival and therefore we set ourselves up for disappointment.

When you book mulitiple rooms at Disney I think before you arrive you need to determine if you can set up individual credit cards for room charges. To me it is very logical if all the rooms were in one person's name then that person is responsible for the bill. When we travel in a group we all book our own rooms. They can link the reservations together if you want to request being near each other. This way everyone has there own keys and charging priviliges. When you check in if you feel you have gotten an employee that is not aware of what you need, ask for a manager. If you don't give somone the benefit of fixing something I don't see where the complaint is. There was a notation by the OP they booked 9 months out. This has no bearing on requests. The resort has no idea if you booked 5 years ago or 5 days. If the resort was near occupancy getting that many rooms together would be almost impossible in a place a busy as Disney. All rooms that are setup to be connecting have the same keys, I have never found that to be different anywhere we have stayed.

I agree that some of the employees have lost the Disney spirit, but then I would write a letter and let them know this. No one should be rude to anyone but I think at times we except too much for Disney employees. I don't expect them to ever kiss my feet. I expect them to be polite and do their job.

 

[Kim&Chris]

During my last visit this past March, I was really upset over a few things....

1. Overflowing trash cans in bathrooms and FILTHY floors. I saw this in both the parks and in some resort bathrooms. Also, broken toilets and dirty, slushy floors. YUCK.

2. Two cast members in Fantasyland using the "F" word loudly.

3. Rarely, if ever, being thanked after making a purchase.

4. Gum all over the personalized bricks at the Magic Kingdom entrance. This REALLY ticked me off....because one of the bricks was MINE.

These, among other disappointments, prompted me to write a lengthy letter to Disney. A few weeks later, I received a phone call with a generic 'canned' answer....said they take pride in the cleanliness and friendliness, blah blah blah.

I then sent an email to Roy Disney, reminding him that he was crazy for voluntarily leaving his uncle's pride & joy in such poor shape.