Which one of us is the knucklehead?

[jasontovey]

I just talked to a CM on the phone. I was calling about reservations and she suggested a breakfast at Fort Wilderness. We're planning to spend that day at the Magic Kingdom, so I was trying to figure out how parking and transportation would work. She reminded me that there's a boat from MK to FW. I asked, "So we'd take the monorail to the Magic Kingdom and then the boat to Fort Wilderness?"

Here's where it gets weird...

She told me that No, we would park at the Magic Kingdom and take the boat directly over to Fort Wilderness, and wouldn't get on the Monorail. So I asked, "Sorry -- are you saying there's parking for the Magic Kingdom that's not the Ticket and Transportation Center?" She flat out replied, "Yes. There's the TTC, and then each theme park has its own parking lot."

I haven't been to Disney as many times as some of you have, but I had a few season passes growing up; I've been to a few Nights of Joy. Heck, I was at the Magic Kingdom for a day just this past June, and I don't remember ever seeing a parking lot for the Magic Kingdom that didn't go through the TTC.

So I'll leave it to y'all to tell decide. Which of us doesn't know how WDW works?

 

[mskayjay]

I just talked to a CM on the phone. I was calling about reservations and she suggested a breakfast at Fort Wilderness. We're planning to spend that day at the Magic Kingdom, so I was trying to figure out how parking and transportation would work. She reminded me that there's a boat from MK to FW. I asked, "So we'd take the monorail to the Magic Kingdom and then the boat to Fort Wilderness?"

Here's where it gets weird...

She told me that No, we would park at the Magic Kingdom and take the boat directly over to Fort Wilderness, and wouldn't get on the Monorail. So I asked, "Sorry -- are you saying there's parking for the Magic Kingdom that's not the Ticket and Transportation Center?" She flat out replied, "Yes. There's the TTC, and then each theme park has its own parking lot."

I haven't been to Disney as many times as some of you have, but I had a few season passes growing up; I've been to a few Nights of Joy. Heck, I was at the Magic Kingdom for a day just this past June, and I don't remember ever seeing a parking lot for the Magic Kingdom that didn't go through the TTC.



So I'll leave it to y'all to tell decide. Which of us doesn't know how WDW works?

You would either boat (ferry) or monorail to the main MK entrance area and board a boat for FW. You could also walk to Contemporary and take the boat from there. So many options...... Sounds like she just got confused.

In fact, now that I'm thinking it through more, I think I would park at FW, have breakfast, boat to MK and just go right back to FW when you're done with MK. I don't know if that is technically okay so I may get edited for that but you *are* dining at FW so not sure it is a no-no either.

 

[mom2cookies]

MK does not have it's own parking lot other than the TTC.

 

[figment_jii]

I don't think I'd go as far as calling anyone an "idiot" over this because a lot of people get confused about the TTC. As the PPs said, the parking lot at the TTC is the parking lot for MK, but that does confuse folks because you still have to take some other form of transportation over to the MK entrance. So I would say the CM on the phone was incorrect about there being another parking lot for MK, but I wouldn't call her an "idiot".

 

[jasontovey]

..., but I wouldn't call her an "idiot".

OK, OK -- updated to "knucklehead".

 

[goofy4tink]

Oh, I don't know. I think I might say a CM is an idiot if one told me that MK has a parking lot, and that TTC is another parking lot...basically that's what was said.
Just another instance of a CM giving incorrect info. Drives me nuts!

 

[chartle]

Nm

 

[Betty Rohrer]

if you would decide to drive to the Fort, remember that car parking is at the other end of campground than Tails End. no car parking at that end, so you would have a bus ride or a walk of around a mile from where you park.

 

[figment_jii]

Oh, I don't know. I think I might say a CM is an idiot if one told me that MK has a parking lot, and that TTC is another parking lot...basically that's what was said.

I don't disagree that it's frustrating that the CMs on the phone have the basic information wrong sometimes, but I guess I'm old school in that it seems unduly harsh to call someone a name when they made an honest mistake. If the CM was deliberately giving wrong info, then it warrants the "idiot" or "knucklehead" naming, but not for an simple mistake.

 

[gmeh1]

I don't disagree that it's frustrating that the CMs on the phone have the basic information wrong sometimes, but I guess I'm old school in that it seems unduly harsh to call someone a name when they made an honest mistake. If the CM was deliberately giving wrong info, then it warrants the "idiot" or "knucklehead" naming, but not for an simple mistake.

Thank you Figment, you took the words right out of my mouth. Unless you are perfect in every way, you should not throw names at people who make errors. IMHO, calling this CM a knucklehead or idiot was totally uncalled for.

 

[goofy4tink]

I don't disagree that it's frustrating that the CMs on the phone have the basic information wrong sometimes, but I guess I'm old school in that it seems unduly harsh to call someone a name when they made an honest mistake. If the CM was deliberately giving wrong info, then it warrants the "idiot" or "knucklehead" naming, but not for an simple mistake.

Thank you Figment, you took the words right out of my mouth. Unless you are perfect in every way, you should not throw names at people who make errors. IMHO, calling this CM a knucklehead or idiot was totally uncalled for.

While I completely understand what you're saying, I do have a huge issue with someone that is paid by Disney to help out guests and then gives completely wrong info. That's not being a knucklehead!!! Who knows how many people this CM has spoken to and has given out bad info to. Now? You have guests that are basing their transportation on this bad info. And that's just not right.
CMs are supposed to have good and correct info. Dear God, this info is right in the guidebooks...surely Disney CMs can get this stuff right. It's the same as the CMs telling people that buses run only an hour prior to park opening, that if you have an early ADR, you have to take a cab..there won't be any transportation. The info is just wrong.
I'm not saying that everyone has to be perfect, but for heaven's sake, CM's should have good info. I can see not being sure about some things..but that's pretty basic info. I've even had a CM tell me that if I need to get into Epcot, prior to park opening, and I'm staying at BW, I have to take a cab to the front entrance...the IG doesn't open until 11!

 

[Lewisc]

I don't disagree that it's frustrating that the CMs on the phone have the basic information wrong sometimes, but I guess I'm old school in that it seems unduly harsh to call someone a name when they made an honest mistake. If the CM was deliberately giving wrong info, then it warrants the "idiot" or "knucklehead" naming, but not for an simple mistake.

Would you prefer the term incompetent? I'd agree with your point if the person who gave the wrong information was a poster on DIS, a CM working at a Disney store at your local mall or even a TA. A CM who is helping guests making WDW reservations should know that kind of information. It's there job. It would be, a little, different if Disney started to outsources these calls.

The confusion is the fact that the MK parking lot is located at the TTC.

At one time Disney ran a bus from FW and WL to the TTC. I know the bus route from WL-TTC was discontinued and I think the FW-TTC was also discontinued.

 

[chartle]

At one time Disney ran a bus from FW and WL to the TTC. I know the bus route from WL-TTC was discontinued and I think the FW-TTC was also discontinued.

Yes there is no longer a bus from the TTC to FW. I have taken that bus and I think you had to transfer at the TTC if you were going to a WP or DTD.

Note this was in '99 so I could be wrong about the DTD part. But I'm pretty sure that you had to transfer there for a WP.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Why is this such a big deal? The CM made a small, inconsequential mistake.

 

[figment_jii]

While I completely understand what you're saying, I do have a huge issue with someone that is paid by Disney to help out guests and then gives completely wrong info. That's not being a knucklehead!!! Who knows how many people this CM has spoken to and has given out bad info to. Now? You have guests that are basing their transportation on this bad info. And that's just not right.
CMs are supposed to have good and correct info. Dear God, this info is right in the guidebooks...surely Disney CMs can get this stuff right.

We agree on the fundamental issue that the CMs on the phone should give out the correct information and perhaps Disney should institute some more training that gives them this (or at least provide them with a guide book to read).

However, whether the CMs need better training or not has nothing to do with what I was trying to say about calling the CM an "idiot". My point was simply that calling someone a name, like an "idiot," seemed unduly harsh. The OP could have gotten the same question across by asking something like, "which one of us is wrong/confused/incorrect?" without calling anyone, themselves or the CM, a potential "idiot". I think this is something that you and I should just "agree to disagree" on. You think the CM should be called an "idiot" and I don't.

 

[SaraJayne]

I don't disagree that it's frustrating that the CMs on the phone have the basic information wrong sometimes, but I guess I'm old school in that it seems unduly harsh to call someone a name when they made an honest mistake. If the CM was deliberately giving wrong info, then it warrants the "idiot" or "knucklehead" naming, but not for an simple mistake.

The CM did deliberately give bad info. As someone that works for Disney, they should be reliable enough to give correct info.

However, as anyone on these boards know that has ever spoken to a CM on the phone, that is rarely the case.

 

[gmeh1]

While I completely understand what you're saying, I do have a huge issue with someone that is paid by Disney to help out guests and then gives completely wrong info. That's not being a knucklehead!!! Who knows how many people this CM has spoken to and has given out bad info to. Now? You have guests that are basing their transportation on this bad info. And that's just not right.
CMs are supposed to have good and correct info. Dear God, this info is right in the guidebooks...surely Disney CMs can get this stuff right. It's the same as the CMs telling people that buses run only an hour prior to park opening, that if you have an early ADR, you have to take a cab..there won't be any transportation. The info is just wrong.
I'm not saying that everyone has to be perfect, but for heaven's sake, CM's should have good info. I can see not being sure about some things..but that's pretty basic info. I've even had a CM tell me that if I need to get into Epcot, prior to park opening, and I'm staying at BW, I have to take a cab to the front entrance...the IG doesn't open until 11!

I have had a CM at the ESPN club on Boardwalk tell me that I can take a boat to MK from Boardwalk. I just laughed, cause I knew she was wrong.
BUT, in the case of the OP, there could have been miscommunication. As with anything (including anything I say) there are always three sides to every conversation. Yours, theirs and the actual facts. Not calling anyone a liar, but, often miscommunication can cause real problems.

 

[joelkfla]

The "knuckleheads," IMO, are the Disney execs who don't think it's important enough to spend the bucks on training.

WDW is so big & complex that every cm can't be expected to know everything, but certainly someone responsible for assisting guests with dining reservations should be educated about the basics of how the guests can get to the restaurants.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

I just talked to a CM on the phone. I was calling about reservations and she suggested a breakfast at Fort Wilderness. We're planning to spend that day at the Magic Kingdom, so I was trying to figure out how parking and transportation would work. She reminded me that there's a boat from MK to FW. I asked, "So we'd take the monorail to the Magic Kingdom and then the boat to Fort Wilderness?"

Here's where it gets weird...

She told me that No, we would park at the Magic Kingdom and take the boat directly over to Fort Wilderness, and wouldn't get on the Monorail. So I asked, "Sorry -- are you saying there's parking for the Magic Kingdom that's not the Ticket and Transportation Center?" She flat out replied, "Yes. There's the TTC, and then each theme park has its own parking lot."

I haven't been to Disney as many times as some of you have, but I had a few season passes growing up; I've been to a few Nights of Joy. Heck, I was at the Magic Kingdom for a day just this past June, and I don't remember ever seeing a parking lot for the Magic Kingdom that didn't go through the TTC.

So I'll leave it to y'all to tell decide. Which of us doesn't know how WDW works?

Seems the CM just made a mistake !......no reason to call them names...........you never made a mistake at work???????????

AKK

 

[goofy4tink]

The "knuckleheads," IMO, are the Disney execs who don't think it's important enough to spend the bucks on training.

WDW is so big & complex that every cm can't be expected to know everything, but certainly someone responsible for assisting guests with dining reservations should be educated about the basics of how the guests can get to the restaurants.

And to think that so many of us here could hand out correct info...and we're not paid!!!

Seems the CM just made a mistake !......no reason to call them names...........you never made a mistake at work???????????

AKK

Sure, the CM gave out incorrect info, and made a mistake. BUT...my issue is that this was probably told to others as well. This CM seems to think that's the right info. The OP questioned the CM and was told they were mistaken.
So yeah, people make mistakes. All the time. I think that when someone represents a company, and they hand out bad info, that is going to negatively impact a guest, and then reflect poorly on that company, they need to be retrained. It isn't a simple 'mistake' A mistake would be ...'Oh, I'm sorry, I misspoke..you're right.'
An idiot? Okay, maybe too strong a word. But surely a knucklehead!!!