What are your great customer service experiences at Disney?

[canadiandisneymommy]

We often see a lot of threads complaining about Disney. I thought it would be great if we could share some of our personal positive customer service experiences at Disney. I've got a few to share first:

1. We stayed at the Grand Floridian Villa in February and we checked out and went to Animal Kingdom for the day before checking into Saratoga Springs Resort for our split stay. My husband realized he left his wallet back in the safe in the room. We immediately called the GFV and were connected with mousekkeeping and they said they would look for it and call us back on our cell. Literally 10 minutes later we got a call that they found it and were going to have it delivered to SSR for us and that it would be in the manager's safe for safekeeping. Sure enough we arrived later on that afternoon and it was there, money, credit cards, cash and all. On top of that, they also found my son's favourite blanket tucked into the bedsheets that we have forgotten and sent that over too.

2. During the SAME vacation, my husband lost his set of keys (had his car fob keys, house keys...everything!) somewhere and we had no idea where. He didn't realize it until we arrived back at the Detroit Airport and he couldn't find the keys to get into our van (that in itself is an adventurous story). We got home safely eventually and called the GFV yet again the next day. They said they would look for the keys but couldn't get into the room for a few days because a guest was staying in there. We weren't hoping for much but got a call from mousekkeeping a few days later saying they had found the keys! It was tucked somewhere between or under the mattress or something. They sent the keys via UPS express and it arrived to us in Canada two days later and they didn't charge us a single penny!

3. I purchased a timer/magnet from Disney and a few months later I noticed one of the buttons was starting to stick. I assumed it was a lost but someone told me to call Disney Merchandise so I did. No questions asked virtually they just shipped me a new one via UPS to Canada at no charge and I got it two days later! It was worth less than $10 for the timer.

So has Disney ever exceeded your expectations in a situation? Please share!

 

[peg110]

Well I posted this in another thread http://www.disboards.com/threads/the-best-dessert-i-ever-ate-at-wdw.3416404/page-3#post-53793809 but out of the blue, our family (of 4) was treated to a LARGE sundae (suitable for 6) for Free.

Also our first time at Fort Wilderness we checked in and it was later in the day. We reserved a "Premium" site, and when we checked in it was getting dark. So we got our camper (mostly) setup and we settled in for the evening.

The next day as we were walking around, we saw that other sites had better grills and picnic tables (the premium sites were supposed to have upgraded grills and picnic tables). We soon learned that we did not have a "Premium" site. Apparently they didn't charge us for it either. Long story short we talked to the CMs at the front desk (Outpost). They offered to let us move to a premium site. While the site wasn't what we reserved, it was a bad site, and anyone that owns a TT knows it's not a simple matter to just pick up and move the camper to a new site. So we opted to stay. To make it right the CM offered park tickets, but we already had our tickets. Ultimately we ended up with free tickets to the Polynesian Luau for the 4 of us. We really weren't looking for free tickets, we were just trying to figure out what happened. So that was a pleasant surprise.

As a final note, while I have read this elsewhere, I can attest that it is true. "Be nice to others (including CMs) and they will (typically) be nice to you." It's just good advice. To that end, I was getting a coffee at the Friar's Nook. While waiting for the person in front of me, she took her order over to a table where she had 4 kids waiting. However this customer had left her wallet on the counter. I quickly took it over to her and came back for my coffee. The CM thanked me for taking the wallet over and took my order. When she brought me my coffee she refused to let me pay for it. I tried to insist but she just insisted more as a thank you for my efforts. It was nothing major, but it's little things like that just warm my heart and make me appreciate them that much more.

 

[loves to dive]

On our recent trip in May we arrived early, around 1:30 so our room wasn't ready, which was no big deal we knew that might happen but while checking in the cast member noticed a problem with our MBs, nothing was linked and it was a mess. She called back to someone in the back and worked with them over the phone to get everything straightened out, it was a pretty long process, may 45 min or so and we really didn't mind. When she finished our room was ready. I had booked a 1 bedroom standard view, the lowest tier of room available. Low and behold when we got to our room, we had a wonderful savannah view. It really wasn't necessary to upgrade us, we didn't mind waiting and we had a great chat with the cast member while she was fixing things so it wasn't really a problem for us. Just great customer service.

Same trip, was a split stay two nights AKV and 3 nights BWV, when we got up for our move we called bell services and valet and had our bags taken down and car brought around, we had early morning ADRS at BOG so we had to leave really early to get over to BW, get checked in and catch the bus to MK. DIL left her purse in the closet that had her wallet and cc in it. She called over to AK and they went to the room, got the purse and had it sent to BW, she got a call later in the day from BW saying it was there. Let me mention that we told the cast member at the desk at BW that she had left it and instead of calling for us or giving us any help she said there was nothing she could do, maybe we could find the number for AKL and get them to find it. After we left the front desk we went over to concierge desk and they very nicely handled it all for us. So while the people at AKL were really helpful and the people at concierge were great, the cast member at the front desk was a complete fail. Still, we felt like it was a win/win situation as when she got the purse, nothing was missing.

Same trip, DS is a disabled Navy vet and was still technically in service as his vacation hadn't run out. His disability doesn't show but he has some mystery nerve damage that keeps him in pain from the neck down pretty much all the time. After driving 7 hours down from Georgia and then taking the Wynama (sp) safari at AKL he was in a decent amount of pain. He was not wearing anything that showed he was military, no pins or buttons although his hair was still high and tight since technically he was still active duty. The cast member doing the safari noticed he was shifting a lot during the ride and grimacing a bit (he tries very hard not to show it) and after the safari asked him if he was o.k. He explained he was fine but just had a little pain from the bumpy ride and a little about his situation, not going into details just that he was retiring due to disability. She snuck in to the restaurant as everyone was getting settled and mentioned it to the host of our table, he went out of his way during the meal to check on him a number of times to make sure he was o.k. and to make him comfortable.

I honestly can't remember a single trip to WDW (we've been over 25 times in the last 33 years) when something like the above didn't happen. On solo trips I've had the chef come out of the kitchen to chat with me, we've had room upgrades or even just a bump up in a line just because.

 

[BagOLaughs]

That's so sweet. Every time I hear of these nice things that CM do it makes me tear up a little. Thanks for sharing

 

[hsmamato2]

on our last trip,my Dh bought a small metal 'cars' car (I know,grown man lol) for 4.99 at the Character outlet store- we didn't notice the cm forgot to put it in the bag till the next day,and we had no car to get back there..... so we called the store,and they found the item,and shipped it to my Dh for free....it was only 4.99- but he was So excited to get that car in the mail! that was so nice....

 

[loves to dive]

Got another one. When DS was little he took a ratty old pillow everywhere he went. Couldn't sleep without that darn pillow. This was just a plain ole pillow, nothing special but he decided it was so it became "the" pillow. I was allowed to change the pillow case and that was it. So he took it to WDW, I'm not sure where we were staying but given he was little it had to have been one of MK deluxe resorts. Silly me didn't put a colored case on it, just a white one so you know when we left he picked up the wrong pillow. He noticed it in the car on the way home. No way I was turning back around for that ratty pillow. When we got home I called, not really expecting them to find the darn thing. They did and shipped it home to us for free along with a little plush Mickey.

 

[SandiKB]

Back in Feb 2007 we were at HS by the Indiana Jones Store, DH went somewhere and I was with the 3 kids 10,7 & 2. DS10 wanted to look around the store, so we went in. A couple minutes in, I turned to see him hiding behind a display like he was playing a game, told him to stop, didnt want him to knock anything over. Then I heard someone says he's fine. The CM at the store was playing with him, he had a blast with that CM for about 10 minutes. He's 19 now and still talks about that 10 minutes as one of his best memories

 

[disney2014plan]

I've written about this before - not huge things but definitely give you that "pixie dust" feel from our trip in December.

1) In Frontierland, we buy a turkey leg to share for lunch. The server gives the member of our party a free cookie. We joked that because they had spent so long chatting that she had flirted her way to a free cookie.
2) When the abovementioned server saw us sharing, he called us back over and gave us another turkey leg free! That meant that the person who bought the first one got some serious ribbing about just how flirty she had been. (of course we know it was just pixie dust/great customer service)
3) A few days later, we decided on a non-park day to see the fireworks at MK. We drove up there and asked at the front gate to check that the fireworks were on. The guard at the gate let us in without paying (OK, it's only $17, but still it's the little gestures).

 

[loves to dive]

I have a million of em folks. One year I jammed my toe into the back of DS size million tennis shoe and sprained it. I tried hobbling on it and got by for most of the day but we were at HS, it was August so it was a tad warm and it was busy so people kept going out of their way to try and see if they could step on it. Needless to say by about 3 I was really limping bad but still trying to soldier through. We were standing in line for lights/motor/action it was a long line in the sun and I was sort of trying to hold the foot up. A cast member saw me, came over and asked if I was o.k. I just laughed and said I was o.k. just clumsy and showed him the toe, which was a very pretty purple and swollen about 3 times it's normal size by now. This won't do he says, step to the side and sit right there on the floor. Um, o.k. this is not embarrassing but I did as told. A few minutes later a wheel chair appears (my DS and DIL had been trying to get me to get one all day but I was being brave) the cast member had called and had one brought back, he very sternly told me to get in the wheel chair and went back to his job. After the show while we were waiting for everyone to leave so my DS could wheel me out, the cast member came down to where we were and said I got this and wheeled me out. Needless to say I kept myself in that wheel chair the rest of the day and was very thankful for the kind young man.

 

[HatBoxSteve]

My best friend and I went in Feb of 2014, the first day there we took it easy and went to Downtown Disney. We got some ice cream at Ghirardelli, we found a seat outside and waited...and waited...and waited, literally for 45 minutes. Apparently there was some confusion with our number as they thought they had given us our ice cream already. An older gentleman who worked there noticed us sitting there for awhile and asked us what was wrong. We informed him we have been waiting for a long time so he went inside and asked, about 5 minutes later we got our ice cream and our money back on the tray without even asking. My friend and I are both really laid back and were extremely happy to be on vacation so even though we had to wait such a long time we never complained because we figured it would work out in the end and Disney 9 times out of 10 handles problems very well. This time was no exception, it was nice to eat free ice cream on a wonderful night.

 

[Eandbmom]

Last year we went to meet Tink at MK. We were next up in line and waited a bit. They only let us into the room with Tink where she was finishing up with one family. She spent a good 5-7 minutes with just us. It was my DD birthday so Tink was giving her birthday party suggestions . It is a wonderful memory and we got a ton of great pictures

 

[philharmagic fan]

Years ago, before the refurb of Starring Rolls at the Studios, DH had a tray of drinks on the shelf adjacent to the cash register, but the tray was wider than the shelf and the drinks were at the outer edge, so when he let go of it to take out his wallet, the whole thing (four soft drinks) went onto the floor. DH was mortified (luckily it was a slow time and we were the only ones in the place) and asked for a mop, paper towels, whatever, so he could clean it up. The cast member at the register asked us what the drinks were, poured four new ones, and insisted we go to the outside seating area to drink them while he cleaned up. DH protested that it was his fault and he should help, but the cast member said "you're a guest - clean-up is my job, yours is vacationing, so please enjoy the rest of your day and I'll take care of this. Wish I had gotten his name to give to Guest Relations.

 

[Hootch]

Mine is not a customer experience really but an interaction with some dedicated CMs.

I was returning our locker key at Typhoon Lagoon. Sunglasses are sold off to one side. The two CMs commented on my glasses which are prescription sunglasses. I picked them out because I liked how they look. I knew they were Italian and handmade because that is written on the inside. I could not have told you the brand.

They mentioned the brand name which I didn't recognize. I started to chat with them and they began with the history of the brand. They noted that the smoothing process for the metal parts takes four days and a whole bunch of other information on the company. I asked then how many days of training they had been through. None. These CMs had done deep research on the glasses on their own to be better at their jobs.

I commended them on their resourcefulness.

 

[Barbydoll8]

These are wonderful stories. I have two. Staying at AKL and upon check out, DH left his Harley Davidson jacket in the room. We are only about 65 miles away but the thought of turning around when we were almost home...well, less than pleasant. I called them asap and told them we would be back in a day or so to pick it up if they found it. They Fed Ex'd to us. Wonderful service.
Also once staying AKL - Kidani (We are DVC and this is our home), we checked in kind of late. Around 7 pm-ish. Our room had never been cleaned. I called the front desk and let them know expecting mousekeeping to come and clean it. I was totally fine with that. In such a large place, logistical boo-boos are bound to happen once in a while. I kept telling them it was not a problem. Nope. The supervisor moved us to another room and gave us $100 credit on our account for dinner. I wasn't expecting that not did I ever indicate that we deserved anything special. It was a super nice thing for them to do.
I always try to take note of CM's that take extra time, smile a little wider and are just full of pixie dust. We look for managers to tell and I put their names in the memo area of my phone so I can call them out when I get surveys from Disney. They do get extra stuff when they are recognized (an extra break, a free meal etc).

 

[tomatecerise]

When we arrive at the lobby the person at the concierge desk seen my cane and he got to the phone to give us a room near elevators and amenities. We are very happy with our room, it was our litlle paradise. We made our check in online for Pop Century in the 60's with lake view. It was all of that!

 

[Accident]

I actually wrote into customer service about this one (with a great follow up from them). On our Halloween trip end of sept 2014, after checking in we decided to hit hollywood studios. We were unaware at the time that frozen was so popular at the parks, they still had frozen summer happening at the same time as halloween and the food festival. We thought it would be a safe place to grab dinner since it should have been the park without anything special happening the first night. It was a spontaneous trip only being booked 24 hours earlier so we hadn't planned our first night and figured we'd just take in hollywood and go with the flow. After hitting just about every sitdown restuart, we were getting ready to give up and just eat at the resort when '50s prime time said there was no seats but we're more than welcome to order food at the bar. By the time we left, I think there was more people eating in the bar and waiting area than sitting down at tables. It really turned a "did we make a mistake rushing here" moment into one of our best trips to disney. We didn't really want to do quick service and the lines weren't short, it was packed!

We usually make 50's prime time our first or last meal because of this.

 

[court4short]

This is about our last trip in November of 2013. It was myself, my mom and my aunt who went. It had been a few years since my mom had went last and unfortunately, she had surgery several times on her knee and feet in that time, along with being diagnosed with a herniated disk. She can walk short distances, but walking during DW trips is out of the question now. We ended up renting an ECV for the week, and while she never said anything, I know she felt self-conscious over the use of the scooter (both because she didn't want to be an inconvenience to anyone, nor did she like accepting the fact that it was needed).

Our first MK trip that trip was a MVMCP event, and she wanted to head to Space Mountain. We weren't sure of the course of action in regards to ECV users and the queue, so since it wasn't too busy we asked a lovely CM at the front of the ride. She was so very sweet with explaining the process of my mom needing to transfer to a wheelchair and whatnot. As we did that, she began asking us about our trip so far, and we explained that we had been to AK already the day before and were already itching to go back for one of the jalapeno cheese pretzels. Her face just lit up and she was saying how it was one of her favorite snacks on all property, and then asked if we had tried the cream cheese pretzel at the Launch Pad. We told her we hadn't, but if she insisted, we would put it on our list. She was very friendly and helpful and it distracted my mom away from the ECV/wheelchair stuff, because no one was really focusing on that as we talked about our love of pretzels. The CM wished us a happy ride and the rest of our evening and we were off into the queue.

When we got off the ride and headed back to the ECV, the CM was nowhere in sight, but we noticed a small piece of paper had been taped to my mom's ECV. She had filled out a slip giving us three free cream cheese pretzels at the Launch Pad. We looked for her again, but nothing! We knew it was nothing big, and it's not like we couldn't afford the pretzels, but the gesture completely blew us away, and I was so appreciative of it because it just made my mom let go of some of the worry.

I made sure to take a picture of the paper so I could email guest relations (as well as have the memory of it). Who would have known that three free pretzels would have been one of the highlights of our trip.

 

[Accident]

We had an issue with a magicband in december last year. It worked everywhere except to get into the park. It really confused everyone that tried to help because usually it doesn't work on rides or doesn't work when you touch it against "a mickey". A few people at 2 different parks tried to help out and reset the band and account but to no luck. The first person to help did put in a "complaint" on our behalf. Later that evening, as if someone was tracking for us to sit still and be somewhere in WDW that a phone call was not interrupting called us. We had purchased the holiday special magicband and had activated it to fix the problem on our own by that time. Once they got more information, they not only refunded our purchase of the most expensive magicband in the park, but left a surprise of more than a few use anywhere at anytime you want fast passes. While it would have been great to get a new band earlier in the day, a free limited christmas band and a lot of fastpasses isn't too shabby especially since it's usually the grey bands they replace broken ones with.

 

[hiddenl1fe]

Back in '09 we were staying at BCV. We were booked into two 2 bedrooms (my parents and aunt/uncle in one & my brother, me, my cousin and her kid in the other) across the hall from each other. When we walked into our room, there was a huge stain/burn on the carpet and one of those industrial blower fans going. We we went to the front desk about this, they were very apologetic, moved us to a corner room in the regular part of the resort (a connecting 1 bedroom and studio unit). They also ave all 8 of us full club-level privileges for the whole stay and refunded us the full amount for the room for the 4 days we were "inconvenienced". Eventually the room got fixed and we moved back, but those 4 days (and that trip) just proved to us why we will continue to vacation at WDW.

 

[BekahBelle]

Last time we went to Disney, the lady who checked us in was very kind to us and gave us a room upgrade "just because." Little things like that make the trip so magical!
Another time, when I was really little, my dad was carrying me on his shoulders and went through a doorway. I forgot to duck and hit my head. I started crying and about five cast members came out of nowhere and started giving me stickers and asking how I was. They let me cut in line and everything. Some people might say they were just concerned about being sued, but it was still nice