What makes you complain

[Bon1423]

Particularly in regard to in park disappointments/CM issues. What makes you go to guest services?

I just got done reading parts of the delightfully resurrected "un magical day" thread (hilarious, btw) and got wondering when is correct to complain, when is entitlement?

Here is my experience. I still have not decided how we should've handled it.
Our last trip was a busy October week and we were in MK on the non party night. We expected the crowds. We did not expect some of the cms. We had issues with our cards from the beginning all showing under one name making it a lengthy process to get through the gate. The cms there were very nice. But I wonder if that issue arose later.

MDE was down that day making things seem chaotic and frantic. After our 3rd FP (buzz) we went to a kiosk we waited an hour for. At the end of the hour she scans my bands and says. One member of your party didn't ride the last FP (uh he did, I have pics). So I said yes we all went. She said there's nothing I can do come back when that window is closed. Like five minutes from now. I was really unhappy about that. Not sure what they could have should have done but still it was irritating.

Went to space mountain, got out of the 120 minute que to take DS to the bathroom. 80 minutes into the wait (while I was away) cast members shut it down, wouldn't let me in and wouldn't give a FP to DS and I for that ride. I'm sure it's police, whatever but when DH asked the cast member "what about my wife" he said "not my problem". Which to me is really rude.

DH realizes he left his debit card at the wave over lunch so we have to head to guest services at this point. They call. They get no answer. The girl just stares blankly at him. DH said "What do I do about my card? I'm sure it's there." And she replied "I really am not sure". Wouldn't give us the restaurants direct number (didn't expect it) and said she could try to call again. No answer. "This really isn't my problem, your family should walk over there and talk to them personally."

If only there were these handy inventions called phones...

So at this point, we wouldn't have complained about anyone thin specifically but we were getting very grumpy and we happened to be at guest relations anyway, he asked for a manager. Explained the general cm response is "not my problem, figure it out" ". The manager was great. Called his friend on his cell at the wave and got our debit card left down at the front desk of the contemporary. Main problem solved, as that was really why were there. He apologized for the rude cm, gave us all three anytime FP and we proceeded to have a much better evening.

 

[MSS91]

Only time i can really think of that we complained about something was on our last trip at Christmas. We booked the Minnie's Holiday Dine and a guest in our party has a tree nut allergy. The waitress was incredibly rude and copped an attitude about it. Part of the dinner included a little glass of hot chocolate or some sort of chocolate milk thing the servers brought when first greeting the table. She came over with these offerings, saw the food allergy note, and actually said "Well i gotta take these back now, can't put them down!" We tried to reassure her that everyone else could have the hot chocolate, and that the individual with the food allergy did not have a contact allergy and only had a problem if she ingested tree nuts. Server refused to give them to us and made a huge fuss about how she had to get a chef to talk to us. Took a good 15 minutes to get the chef to come over. Chef reassured us that all the food, except for the desserts, were safe for tree nut allergy. We kindly asked waitress if there was a dessert alternative for the allergy guest, as we forgot to ask the chef when he was at our table. She said "how should I know? you should really know what you can and can't eat" and walked away. We were shocked! It's not like we are mind readers or we made the food ourselves! Eventually she stopped refilling our drinks and dropped the check off when we were still eating the main course.

Needless to say we didn't leave her a tip and we went to complain to guest services after the meal. The person with the food allergy was so upset that she was treated like this during dinner, and I was annoyed that the server stopped bringing drinks and started rushing everyone out.

 

[pa. dad]

Only time i can really think of that we complained about something was on our last trip at Christmas. We booked the Minnie's Holiday Dine and a guest in our party has a tree nut allergy. The waitress was incredibly rude and copped an attitude about it. Part of the dinner included a little glass of hot chocolate or some sort of chocolate milk thing the servers brought when first greeting the table. She came over with these offerings, saw the food allergy note, and actually said "Well i gotta take these back now, can't put them down!" We tried to reassure her that everyone else could have the hot chocolate, and that the individual with the food allergy did not have a contact allergy and only had a problem if she ingested tree nuts. Server refused to give them to us and made a huge fuss about how she had to get a chef to talk to us. Took a good 15 minutes to get the chef to come over. Chef reassured us that all the food, except for the desserts, were safe for tree nut allergy. We kindly asked waitress if there was a dessert alternative for the allergy guest, as we forgot to ask the chef when he was at our table. She said "how should I know? you should really know what you can and can't eat" and walked away. We were shocked! It's not like we are mind readers or we made the food ourselves! Eventually she stopped refilling our drinks and dropped the check off when we were still eating the main course.

Needless to say we didn't leave her a tip and we went to complain to guest services after the meal. The person with the food allergy was so upset that she was treated like this during dinner, and I was annoyed that the server stopped bringing drinks and started rushing everyone out.

I also have a tree nut allergy. A lot of the time I don't mention it if I'm going to have something like a pizza or a dole whip or a hot dog, etc.
If I see a lot of items on the menu mentioning nuts or items on the buffet spread, I will say something. We ate at Tusker House for dinner in January. I told the waitress that brought the drinks and she told me that I had to wait for a chef to come out and walk me through the buffet. Luckily for me, it was only like a 5 minute wait.
The dinner was good and the chef told me what was okay and what wasn;t. The dessert part was not very enjoyable for me though. Basicly everything had nuts so they brought me a "special" dessert which was like a chocolate muffiny thing that tasted like cardboard. It was nut free but it was also flavor free.
From your story and my experience, it seems like they have ONE maybe two chefs on duty at a time who knows all the nut contents and that many of the other employees may not know much at all in that area. Most other non disney world places the waiters/waitresses seem to know a lot more than the disney ones do, which appears to be almost zero.

 

[powellrj]

I'm not sure if this would count, but a few years ago they put us in a king size handicap room, with my family of 4 at pop. It was late and our room was really far away, so instead of going back to the front desk, we called the front desk. An hour later they sent a bell hop to move us. By then it was after midnight. We got an upgrade to a preferred location. I didn't complain, but I did call and make the suggestion for the preferred location.

 

[bbak30]

Nothing rings a bell right now, I guess we have been pretty lucky. There have been several minor hiccups though. Rude service, bad food. But nothing that I thought was worth complaining about. Not yet anyway, lol.

 

[maxiesmom]

I've only had what I consider real issues twice. Once was when I purposely booked a moderate resort (POR) solely because my pool slide loving niece was coming on that trip. Went to the parks the first day, came back and put our swimsuits on, and found the pool slide was closed. Thought maybe they had shut it down for the night. Next day, left the park during the middle of the day, went back to swim, and slide is still roped off. No sign up at the pool, nothing explaining what was going on. Went to the front desk to find out what was going on, and unfortunately got a CM with a huge attitude. Found out the slide would be closed our whole stay. When I asked why we were not notified so that we could have switched resorts (which we would have) was told that they could shut down whatever they wanted, they didn't have to give guests prior notification. I said if we had been told at check in we would have switched resorts, and he just shrugged his shoulders and repeated that they didn't have to notify us. And when I said I wanted to talk to a manager he said he was the manager. I stayed away from POR for many trips because of it.

They other time was when I arrived at ASMu with my 70 year old dad to find we were downgraded from our paid in full preferred room to standard. And they were not even going to tell us! The check in CM pointed at the map to where our room was, and I said "But that is not preferred". He looked at me, and said he had to go get a manager. The manager stated they had no preferred rooms left, and that no value had them available. They offered to move us if one became available, but we were on the dining plan and I didn't trust them to not mess that up. I was very angry, but felt there was nothing I could do, and I didn't want to spend the night arguing with them. Though the guy next to me at the check in counter said I let the off too easy. The real problem came when they didn't credit me back the difference between the preferred room and the standard one. I sent off an e-mail about that, and got a call from a nice lady who apologized and gave me that money back. She also said things like that were never supposed to happen. As that was the second time booking preferred and ending up with standard at the Music, I haven't gone back.

 

[jalapeno_pretzel]

The only time I think I've complained was our first visit. We checked into CBR about 10am and our room was ready. We didn't stop by the room though, and headed right to Epcot for the day. We got back to the resort about 8pm and dragged all our stuff out of the car to walk to the room, and when we opened the door, the room was completely trashed. Beds unmade, trash cans overflowing, wet towels on the floor. At first I thought we had been given someone else's room, but then we realized it hadn't been made up from the previous guest. I called the front desk probably 5 times in the next hour, to let them know the issue, asking for housekeeping, asking to please be switched to a room within walking distance since we had all our stuff out of the car already and since it was taking so long to get housekeeping out there. They couldn't give us a different room, and finally after about an hour of us waiting with our piles of stuff and two young kids, housekeeping and a manager finally arrived. I was changing my 9 month old's diaper on the ground outside the room when they walked up. I was pretty mad at that point, but the manager was so apologetic and immediately told us they would remove the charge for that first night from our bill.

 

[AshleeH]

The one and only time we've ever gone to GS is when we had a split-stay and the day we changed hotels, our tickets wouldn't let us in the parks. We are very easy to please, so we've never had cause to complain about anything while at Disney. Hopefully that streak continues.

 

[Shanti]

Particularly in regard to in park disappointments/CM issues. What makes you go to guest services?

I just got done reading parts of the delightfully resurrected "un magical day" thread (hilarious, btw) and got wondering when is correct to complain, when is entitlement?

Here is my experience. I still have not decided how we should've handled it.
Our last trip was a busy October week and we were in MK on the non party night. We expected the crowds. We did not expect some of the cms. We had issues with our cards from the beginning all showing under one name making it a lengthy process to get through the gate. The cms there were very nice. But I wonder if that issue arose later.

MDE was down that day making things seem chaotic and frantic. After our 3rd FP (buzz) we went to a kiosk we waited an hour for. At the end of the hour she scans my bands and says. One member of your party didn't ride the last FP (uh he did, I have pics). So I said yes we all went. She said there's nothing I can do come back when that window is closed. Like five minutes from now. I was really unhappy about that. Not sure what they could have should have done but still it was irritating.

Went to space mountain, got out of the 120 minute que to take DS to the bathroom. 80 minutes into the wait (while I was away) cast members shut it down, wouldn't let me in and wouldn't give a FP to DS and I for that ride. I'm sure it's police, whatever but when DH asked the cast member "what about my wife" he said "not my problem". Which to me is really rude.

DH realizes he left his debit card at the wave over lunch so we have to head to guest services at this point. They call. They get no answer. The girl just stares blankly at him. DH said "What do I do about my card? I'm sure it's there." And she replied "I really am not sure". Wouldn't give us the restaurants direct number (didn't expect it) and said she could try to call again. No answer. "This really isn't my problem, your family should walk over there and talk to them personally."

If only there were these handy inventions called phones...

So at this point, we wouldn't have complained about anyone thin specifically but we were getting very grumpy and we happened to be at guest relations anyway, he asked for a manager. Explained the general cm response is "not my problem, figure it out" ". The manager was great. Called his friend on his cell at the wave and got our debit card left down at the front desk of the contemporary. Main problem solved, as that was really why were there. He apologized for the rude cm, gave us all three anytime FP and we proceeded to have a much better evening.

Wow, it sounds like you interacted with exceptionally rude cm's. I'll take your post at face value, and not ask if you were first hostile to them (which can naturally lead to a defensive, "look, this isn't our problem"). If you were reasonable & polite & got that response, I would definitely make a polite complaint at guest services and call and/or write to Disney after the trip.

I would only complain about the rudeness, not the issue of crowd control on rides (I wouldn't expect to be let back in after leaving to go to the bathroom- that opens the door too wide to cheaters), or the restaurant not being able to answer the phone at all times. These aren't the kind of restaurants where customers call in, so you can't expect them to staff the phone all day at every restaurant for lost & found issues, which genuinely are the guests' fault (just stating a fact, not pointing fingers- I lost my phone at WDW once.)

I would expect to be able to leave my contact info & details of the loss, and have someone get back to me, hopefully with the lost item. This happened to me last spring after I left my phone at Hoop Dee Doo. I went back later, saying I was sure it was in there. For procedural reasons, they couldn't let me in, but looked everywhere themselves & couldn't find it, so they gave me a number to call & make a report, which I did. The day after we got home, they called telling me they had my phone (which was found by a maid in the Hoop Dee Doo laundry hamper), and mailed it free of charge & with a nice note. Typically if you have reasonable expectations & follow procedures, Disney will demonstrate that they really do want to help.

If I ran into a just plain rude for no reason CM, though, I wouldn't hesitate to lodge a complaint.

 

[Shanti]

I also have a tree nut allergy. A lot of the time I don't mention it if I'm going to have something like a pizza or a dole whip or a hot dog, etc.
If I see a lot of items on the menu mentioning nuts or items on the buffet spread, I will say something. We ate at Tusker House for dinner in January. I told the waitress that brought the drinks and she told me that I had to wait for a chef to come out and walk me through the buffet. Luckily for me, it was only like a 5 minute wait.
The dinner was good and the chef told me what was okay and what wasn;t. The dessert part was not very enjoyable for me though. Basicly everything had nuts so they brought me a "special" dessert which was like a chocolate muffiny thing that tasted like cardboard. It was nut free but it was also flavor free.
From your story and my experience, it seems like they have ONE maybe two chefs on duty at a time who knows all the nut contents and that many of the other employees may not know much at all in that area. Most other non disney world places the waiters/waitresses seem to know a lot more than the disney ones do, which appears to be almost zero.

They have the actual chefs come out & discuss allergens (rather than waiters & waitresses, who don't work directly with the food) for the safety of guests, & I'm glad about that. My son has to be gluten-free & that restricts our choices at times, but I'm glad that there is always something for him to eat at every restaurant at Disney. Can't say that for the real world: we were just turned away from a local restaurant last night that had no gluten-free entrees.

 

[verleniahall]

Only time i can really think of that we complained about something was on our last trip at Christmas. We booked the Minnie's Holiday Dine and a guest in our party has a tree nut allergy. The waitress was incredibly rude and copped an attitude about it. Part of the dinner included a little glass of hot chocolate or some sort of chocolate milk thing the servers brought when first greeting the table. She came over with these offerings, saw the food allergy note, and actually said "Well i gotta take these back now, can't put them down!" We tried to reassure her that everyone else could have the hot chocolate, and that the individual with the food allergy did not have a contact allergy and only had a problem if she ingested tree nuts. Server refused to give them to us and made a huge fuss about how she had to get a chef to talk to us. Took a good 15 minutes to get the chef to come over. Chef reassured us that all the food, except for the desserts, were safe for tree nut allergy. We kindly asked waitress if there was a dessert alternative for the allergy guest, as we forgot to ask the chef when he was at our table. She said "how should I know? you should really know what you can and can't eat" and walked away. We were shocked! It's not like we are mind readers or we made the food ourselves! Eventually she stopped refilling our drinks and dropped the check off when we were still eating the main course.

Needless to say we didn't leave her a tip and we went to complain to guest services after the meal. The person with the food allergy was so upset that she was treated like this during dinner, and I was annoyed that the server stopped bringing drinks and started rushing everyone out.

Were you there opening night? I have a gluten allergy and had a VERY similar experience. Only - she said that chef was too busy to talk to me and that she would give me a tour of what was safe to eat. I ate something (can'tm remember exactly what) and i got an imideate stomach ache. I asked the server about the food item and she started yelling that I was trying to get her fired and that she had told me multiple times that that item was not GF. I asked for the chef and manager and it took 30 minutes for them to get to the table. They were very sorry and offered to credit us our credits back, but we were leaving the next morning (this made for a VERY uncomfortable flight home FYI) so they gave us some boxes and told us to get some dessert to go (which was really nice and thry brought me almost an 8x8 gf brownie to take with me)

 

[MSS91]

Were you there opening night? I have a gluten allergy and had a VERY similar experience. Only - she said that chef was too busy to talk to me and that she would give me a tour of what was safe to eat. I ate something (can'tm remember exactly what) and i got an imideate stomach ache. I asked the server about the food item and she started yelling that I was trying to get her fired and that she had told me multiple times that that item was not GF. I asked for the chef and manager and it took 30 minutes for them to get to the table. They were very sorry and offered to credit us our credits back, but we were leaving the next morning (this made for a VERY uncomfortable flight home FYI) so they gave us some boxes and told us to get some dessert to go (which was really nice and thry brought me almost an 8x8 gf brownie to take with me)

No we were there around the week before Christmas, so the Holiday Dine had been going on for at least a few weeks before we arrived. I think we just had luck of the draw (or lack thereof) in our server. Normally we never have a problem with her having a tree nut allergy, and everywhere else is so accommodating and nice about it. This server just had some issue with us i guess.

 

[Bon1423]

Wow, it sounds like you interacted with exceptionally rude cm's. I'll take your post at face value, and not ask if you were first hostile to them (which can naturally lead to a defensive, "look, this isn't our problem"). If you were reasonable & polite & got that response, I would definitely make a polite complaint at guest services and call and/or write to Disney after the trip.

I would only complain about the rudeness, not the issue of crowd control on rides (I wouldn't expect to be let back in after leaving to go to the bathroom- that opens the door too wide to cheaters), or the restaurant not being able to answer the phone at all times. These aren't the kind of restaurants where customers call in, so you can't expect them to staff the phone all day at every restaurant for lost & found issues, which genuinely are the guests' fault (just stating a fact, not pointing fingers- I lost my phone at WDW once.)

I would expect to be able to leave my contact info & details of the loss, and have someone get back to me, hopefully with the lost item. This happened to me last spring after I left my phone at Hoop Dee Doo. I went back later, saying I was sure it was in there. For procedural reasons, they couldn't let me in, but looked everywhere themselves & couldn't find it, so they gave me a number to call & make a report, which I did. The day after we got home, they called telling me they had my phone (which was found by a maid in the Hoop Dee Doo laundry hamper), and mailed it free of charge & with a nice note. Typically if you have reasonable expectations & follow procedures, Disney will demonstrate that they really do want to help.

If I ran into a just plain rude for no reason CM, though, I wouldn't hesitate to lodge a complaint.

Yes we had a lovely combination of crappy luck and bad CMs. I wouldn't have complained about any one of them alone, or any of the situations, as many of them were our fault, it just made for an overall bad experience, especially when the girl called about the card and said "they didn't answer" and was going to make no attempt to take our name, give us advice, etc. not great customer service.

I was talking to DH about this the other day and he reminded me that when we were getting on a boat at MK, he wantes to make certain we were going the right way and asked the boat captain(?) standing at the rope if this was the boat to Fort Wilderness and he said "That's what the sign says" but not in a friendly joking manner, just really rude.

I'm hoping for much better CM interaction this next trip. Everyone at the resorts and restaurants were so great, but it was like everyone at MK was in the worst mood.

 

[Shanti]

Yes we had a lovely combination of crappy luck and bad CMs. I wouldn't have complained about any one of them alone, or any of the situations, as many of them were our fault, it just made for an overall bad experience, especially when the girl called about the card and said "they didn't answer" and was going to make no attempt to take our name, give us advice, etc. not great customer service.

I was talking to DH about this the other day and he reminded me that when we were getting on a boat at MK, he wantes to make certain we were going the right way and asked the boat captain(?) standing at the rope if this was the boat to Fort Wilderness and he said "That's what the sign says" but not in a friendly joking manner, just really rude.

I'm hoping for much better CM interaction this next trip. Everyone at the resorts and restaurants were so great, but it was like everyone at MK was in the worst mood.

I'm sorry to hear that.

 

[rg35]

On our last trip we didn't get seated at CRT until about an hour after our ADR. They gave us a paper anytime fastpass (big whoop).

We must be pretty lucky, because I don't really have many complaints. My biggest ongoing issue is that the photographers aren't that good. It's frustrating to look at all your memory maker photos with the characters and find that so many aren't straight or poorly exposed and so forth.

 

[rjb123]

We are heading back to WDW in around six and a half weeks. I was last there in Jan with one of my DD who was competing at a gymnastics meet at the Wide World of Sports. We had to leave home a day early due to winter weather so I added an extra night at POR. The next day we were due to move to the WL for the rest of our stay (three more days). When we checked in to the POR it was just a mess! We were sent to our room, but had to race out as DD had a practice scheduled. When we got back that night it was freezing so we turned the heat on. Literally smoke started coming out of the radiator! I turned it off and (no lie) the thermostat fell off the wall! I called guest services and the person literally said "oh ok, we will get to it later." When I asked when (it was late and COLD in there!) the CM got nasty and told me that there were no time guarantees. He then hung up. I waited 45 min then called back (no one had come or contacted us). and asked to speak to the manager. I never got them, but did finally explain to someone who comprehended that we were NOT staying in that room. DD has asthma, she was sick from the stench, I was sick from the stench and oh by the way, it was like 40 degrees in the room! We got moved to another room, but had to haul our stuff ourselves, bell services never showed up (another 45 min wait!). Thankfully the next day we moved to the WL where they apologized over and over for our experience (I told the girl at the desk when we were checking in). I was appalled! I have had better service and response at a holiday inn than what we had there! We travel to Disney a good bit, and I literally can't even count the number of times I have been there in my lifetime, so to say that this was the WORST I have EVER seen is saying a lot. I am crossing my fingers we have a better experience in a few months! (we are staying in the CL)

 

[maxiesmom]

We are heading back to WDW in around six and a half weeks. I was last there in Jan with one of my DD who was competing at a gymnastics meet at the Wide World of Sports. We had to leave home a day early due to winter weather so I added an extra night at POR. The next day we were due to move to the WL for the rest of our stay (three more days). When we checked in to the POR it was just a mess! We were sent to our room, but had to race out as DD had a practice scheduled. When we got back that night it was freezing so we turned the heat on. Literally smoke started coming out of the radiator! I turned it off and (no lie) the thermostat fell off the wall! I called guest services and the person literally said "oh ok, we will get to it later." When I asked when (it was late and COLD in there!) the CM got nasty and told me that there were no time guarantees. He then hung up. I waited 45 min then called back (no one had come or contacted us). and asked to speak to the manager. I never got them, but did finally explain to someone who comprehended that we were NOT staying in that room. DD has asthma, she was sick from the stench, I was sick from the stench and oh by the way, it was like 40 degrees in the room! We got moved to another room, but had to haul our stuff ourselves, bell services never showed up (another 45 min wait!). Thankfully the next day we moved to the WL where they apologized over and over for our experience (I told the girl at the desk when we were checking in). I was appalled! I have had better service and response at a holiday inn than what we had there! We travel to Disney a good bit, and I literally can't even count the number of times I have been there in my lifetime, so to say that this was the WORST I have EVER seen is saying a lot. I am crossing my fingers we have a better experience in a few months! (we are staying in the CL)

In case you are unaware, when you call guest services while you are at the resort, you are not getting anyone actually at the resort. You are getting the call center. I know it is a pain, but if you have a problem with your room the best thing is to go down to the front desk.

I hope you sent of an e-mail once you were home and made them aware of the attitude and lack of service you experienced. They really need to do better.

 

[Dis703]

I think the only 2 times I've complained were both issues related to my children's food allergies. The first wasn't really meant as a complaint so much as a suggestion that there really needed to be an easier way to navigate the menus at restaurants for families with multiple allergies. In particular, we walked from place to place at AK looking for safe counter service meals and had to order a little something from one and a little something from another. It was hot, the kids were hungry and cranky and it was just a miserable experience circling the entire park going over ingredient lists and being turned away again and again. When I got home I took the time to write to them about our experience. This was before the allergy kiosk at AK.

The other time was on our most recent trip. I ordered allergy free fries, waited 40 minutes and asked if it was going to take much longer. I was told the manager was getting my order and ended up waiting yet another 30 minutes. Flagged down a manager at that point and was told they didn't have my order and they were not able to accommodate my son's allergies as their fries had a coating and were pre-cooked in oil he was allergic to. This after the cashier answered every question assuring me otherwise. I went to Guest Relations because I was so upset over it and in particular the cashier CM gave me completely incorrect info about the food and ingredients which can be downright dangerous. I felt better after talking to someone and was able to brush it off and go about my day.

 

[rjb123]

In case you are unaware, when you call guest services while you are at the resort, you are not getting anyone actually at the resort. You are getting the call center. I know it is a pain, but if you have a problem with your room the best thing is to go down to the front desk.

I hope you sent of an e-mail once you were home and made them aware of the attitude and lack of service you experienced. They really need to do better.

Oh I actually called the front desk- not guest services- my mind blanked on "front desk" when I was typing this! I considered sending an email to them, but I just never got around to it. I imagine it is too late to do it now. Ah well...

 

[maxiesmom]

Oh I actually called the front desk- not guest services- my mind blanked on "front desk" when I was typing this! I considered sending an email to them, but I just never got around to it. I imagine it is too late to do it now. Ah well...

There is no way to call the front desk. Even when calling while you are at the resorts they actually route calls to a call center that pretends they are the front desk.