Who do I complain to?

[graygables]

~*~*IMPORTANT~*~* PLEASE READ!!!

If you want to speak to the "front desk" YOU MUST WALK TO THE FRONT DESK. When you pick up the phone and dial "0" or "front desk", you are talking to someone at the resort call center (which is still on property, just not at your resort); they handle ALL the calls for ALL the resorts. THEY ARE NOT IN THE RESORT WHERE YOU ARE STAYING. They know a LOT, but cannot know everything there is to know about a place. They can message the resort in which you are staying, but that is often ALL THEY CAN DO. It's not that they don't sympathize and WANT to help you, it's that they aren't the ones standing at the front desk looking at the availability to assign you to a new room.

Many, MANY headaches would be avoided if people understood how the system at WDW works. If I ever need anything, I GO to the front desk.

BTW, my oldest is a CM at the resort call center, she loves her job, she loves helping people, but it's VERY hard when people don't understand the limitations.

ETA: no A/C in Florida is unacceptable and the OP should have been at the front desk, speaking to the manager right then and there in person. It's very simple to insist politely and they will get someone for you and they will make it right. When there was no internet in our studio, the manager took me to one of the offices and let me use their computer to complete a business thing I had going on. I have never, EVER, not spoken with a manager when I've asked for one IN PERSON.

 

[momof3poohlovers]

We also only stayed two nights last week at AKV and had no problems, but, as I'm reading these posts it's making me second guess myself about booking for five nights with our 6 yr old gs the end of September.......maybe I'll need to reconsider and check availability at VWL or SSR.

I wouldn't let these posts scare you! Sometimes things go wrong and people mess up but I wouldn't let that stop you from giving it a try again. We stayed there in Nov. and had a wonderful stay. No problems with the front desk or room(the only disappointment was with our Savannnah View). We loved the resort and are choosing to stay again in July and Nov. It is truly a beautiful resort and I wouldn't hesitate staying here again.

 

[Wedgeh]

I wouldn't let these posts scare you! Sometimes things go wrong and people mess up but I wouldn't let that stop you from giving it a try again. We stayed there in Nov. and had a wonderful stay. No problems with the front desk or room(the only disappointment was with our Savannnah View). We loved the resort and are choosing to stay again in July and Nov. It is truly a beautiful resort and I wouldn't hesitate staying here again.

I'm relieved to hear this, I was getting worried about my honeymoon in September!

 

[dianeschlicht]

Since DVC moved in they actually have fewer guests to service. They took three guest rooms out of service just to make every Two Bedroom villa.

Personally, I would have placed one phone call to maintenance and expected it repaired by the time we returned to the room. If it wasn't, I'd have been standing by the front desk until they sent someone to the room. No yelling or screaming necessary.

With 30,000 guest rooms on property, they have replacement parts available somewhere. Even if it meant pulling the entire cooling system, the job should have been done in a few hours.

I totally agree with this post! When we have had maintenance issues at OKW, it only took a phone call, and within minutes someone was up there looking at the problem and getting started on fixing it. Once I didn't even callm but happened upon the maintenance guy out front as we were leaving, and when we returned our problem was already fixed.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Graygables is correct...Do NOT call the front desk. That only gets you someone sitting in a remote location who doesn't even know what your resort looks like. If you want the front desk you must go to the front desk. In this case though, maintenance was the place to call.

 

[WilsonFlyer]

Graygables is correct...Do NOT call the front desk. That only gets you someone sitting in a remote location who doesn't even know what your resort looks like. If you want the front desk you must go to the front desk. In this case though, maintenance was the place to call.

Due respect, I understand what you're saying but I think you're missing the point.

He did what he was suppose to do. He called the central number to register a complaint. From thereon, it sounds like many people fell down on the job (or just didn't give a crap)... multiple times.

The fault here lies squarely with DVC and it's up to them to fix it.

Let's not make excuses for them for poor customer service. Lately, they seem to be doing a good enough job of that themselves.

 

[Chuck S]

Due respect, I understand what you're saying but I think you're missing the point.

He did what he was suppose to do. He called the central number to register a complaint. From thereon, it sounds like many people fell down on the job (or just didn't give a crap)... multiple times.

The fault here lies squarely with DVC and it's up to them to fix it.

Let's not make excuses for them for poor customer service. Lately, they seem to be doing a good enough job of that themselves.

Actually, in this case, the fault is not DVC, but WDW Resorts, as they handle the front desk operations and maintenance for the resorts.

 

[tjkraz]

Let's not make excuses for them for poor customer service. Lately, they seem to be doing a good enough job of that themselves.

The point of these posts is not to make excuses but to remind people that there are other avenues for relief.

OP was without air conditioning for THREE DAYS!!! Over that period he/she probably walked thru the lobby a dozen times. I think sometimes we spend too much time hiding behind phone calls and email messages rather than good old fashioned human interaction.

I will also say that I think OP erred by not contacting maintenance directly. Should Disney have been able to relay a message from the "front desk" call center to maintenance? Yes. But let's eliminate the middle man and get the problem fixed!!!

 

[WilsonFlyer]

Actually, in this case, the fault is not DVC, but WDW Resorts, as they handle the front desk operations and maintenance for the resorts.

And who contracted "WDW Resorts" to handle DVC reservations and customer service? It's all the same thing (to me, anyway).

 

[WilsonFlyer]

The point of these posts is not to make excuses but to remind people that there are other avenues for relief.

OP was without air conditioning for THREE DAYS!!! Over that period he/she probably walked thru the lobby a dozen times. I think sometimes we spend too much time hiding behind phone calls and email messages rather than good old fashioned human interaction.

I will also say that I think OP erred by not contacting maintenance directly. Should Disney have been able to relay a message from the "front desk" call center to maintenance? Yes. But let's eliminate the middle man and get the problem fixed!!!

I understand. Good point.

I was just observing from a different angle.

 

[Chuck S]

And who contracted "WDW Resorts" to handle DVC reservations and customer service? It's all the same thing (to me, anyway).

The point is, if you have a problem, you really need to handle it then and there with the resort management. Not through a phone call to DVC or a letter/email after the fact. DVC may contract with WDW resorts for management and maintenance, but contacting DVC won't necessarily get the guest's air conditioner fixed. You need to contact the resort manager and/or maintenance. Contacting a reservation call center or member satisfaction puts another layer between you and the people that can fix the problem during your visit.

 

[wisbucky]

I realize it is very easy to become highly disgusted when your vacation is not going well. Over time I have found that being polite and very cheery to CM's gets you much further than being upset and coming across displeased with their service. Remember CM's take a lot more criticism than compliments during the day. However your situation is over and done with. So you may want to bring a little cheeriness in your letter out and point out some positive things as well. Rather than coming across with a lot of aggression. Just my two cents worth!

 

[graygables]

Graygables is correct...Do NOT call the front desk. That only gets you someone sitting in a remote location who doesn't even know what your resort looks like. If you want the front desk you must go to the front desk. In this case though, maintenance was the place to call.

I just want to clarify something, the CMs who work at the resort call center DO know what your resort looks like. They tour ALL the resorts as part of the training and continue to visit the resorts periodically to keep updated. They are also encouraged to dine in each resort restaurant and spend some time on their own. They are VERY knowledgeable, but simply cannot know everything. Also, their computers don't have the necessary accss to be able to move you to a different room. That is the job of the PHYSICAL front desk of your resort.

I agree, call maintenance, but I would have followed it up with a visit to the front desk.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I just want to clarify something, the CMs who work at the resort call center DO know what your resort looks like. They tour ALL the resorts as part of the training and continue to visit the resorts periodically to keep updated. They are also encouraged to dine in each resort restaurant and spend some time on their own. They are VERY knowledgeable, but simply cannot know everything. Also, their computers don't have the necessary accss to be able to move you to a different room. That is the job of the PHYSICAL front desk of your resort.

I agree, call maintenance, but I would have followed it up with a visit to the front desk.

That may be, but some of them sound like they don't even know that OKW has more than 1 building! I had a bad experience with calling the front desk once about 10 years ago, and that's when I learned that it's not really the front desk.

 

[Sammie]

And who contracted "WDW Resorts" to handle DVC reservations and customer service? It's all the same thing (to me, anyway).

It is defnitely not the same thing. DVC handles the reservation thru Member Services but once you arrive at the resort, it is a Disney resort especially the ones that are not stand alone such as SSR and OKW. The staff works for Disney Resorts.

 

[graygables]

That may be, but some of them sound like they don't even know that OKW has more than 1 building! I had a bad experience with calling the front desk once about 10 years ago, and that's when I learned that it's not really the front desk.

They have resort maps at their fingertips. Anywhere you go, even at the actual front desk, you are going to find people who are not as knowledgeable as others, but they do try. Point is, people need to stop thinking that when they pick up the phone and dial "0" that they are talking to someone who is actually "down at the front desk" who works at the resort and can do something directly to fix their problem. They can answer questions and refer or transfer you to a more appropriate department, but cannot fix your A/C or change your room.

The guest has a responsibility, too, and that is to be proactive about any issue you have WHEN you are having them and not, as a PP said, wait to write a nasty-gram when you get home.

 

[illiram]

The guest has a responsibility, too, and that is to be proactive about any issue you have WHEN you are having them and not, as a PP said, wait to write a nasty-gram when you get home.

I was very polite a couple of times. I asked that a front desk manager call me back. The third time I was told that all of the managers at AKV were in an all day meeting. I asked the person I was speaking to to politely interrupt one of them so I could speak with them and they refused to bother them in their meeting. The guests should come first. Meetings can be put on hold.

I was proactive when I was there. In retrospect, I should have camped out at the front desk until I could speak to their rude management at AKV. I don't have time to waste on vacations complaining at the front desk. I am always extremely embarrassed for the people that are yelling at front desks. That's just not me. I'm more of a phone person.

 

[graygables]

I was very polite a couple of times. I asked that a front desk manager call me back. The third time I was told that all of the managers at AKV were in an all day meeting. I asked the person I was speaking to to politely interrupt one of them so I could speak with them and they refused to bother them in their meeting. The guests should come first. Meetings can be put on hold.

I was proactive when I was there. In retrospect, I should have camped out at the front desk until I could speak to their rude management at AKV. I don't have time to waste on vacations complaining at the front desk. I am always extremely embarrassed for the people that are yelling at front desks. That's just not me. I'm more of a phone person.

I don't think you are understanding. The people you spoke with on the phone were at the resort call center. They CANNOT just walk over to the AKV, knock on the door, and get a manager out of a meeting to speak with you. They are located over behind the MK. You don't have to yell at the CMs at the front desk, but, in this case, you DID need to speak politely with one of them after you called maintenance and your problem wasn't fixed. Your playing phone tag with an off-resort call center was clearly not effective and it's not THEIR fault. It's just the way it works. You waiting until you get home to write a letter and call the management "rude" for not returning your call will accomplish nothing at all.

Memo to other guests: If you have this kind of issue, WALK YOURSELF TO THE FRONT DESK and talk to a CM who can actually address your problem face to face.

As a PP pointed out, how many times in those 3 days did the OP have to walk through the lobby and RIGHT BY the front desk? Why not just step over and take a few moments to DEAL WITH IT? Why not take a few moments to walk down as soon as you realized the A/C wasn't working? It's not that far, quite frankly.

 

[tjkraz]

Memo to other guests: If you have this kind of issue, WALK YOURSELF TO THE FRONT DESK and talk to a CM who can actually address your problem face to face.

graygables:

You seem to know more about this than most people so I'm wondering if you can answer a question. Why is it that Disney seems to pretend that they will help guests from this "front desk" line when they really can't (or won't)?

Most of us are speaking from experience when we preach the "go to the front desk" approach. Once you get burned by using the call center, you know better. Why don't the call center people just tell guests that they should go to the front desk instead of (apparently) pretending that they can solve the guest's problem?

 

[graygables]

graygables:

You seem to know more about this than most people so I'm wondering if you can answer a question. Why is it that Disney seems to pretend that they will help guests from this "front desk" line when they really can't (or won't)?

Most of us are speaking from experience when we preach the "go to the front desk" approach. Once you get burned by using the call center, you know better. Why don't the call center people just tell guests that they should go to the front desk instead of (apparently) pretending that they can solve the guest's problem?

The vast majority of the calls they receive are general questions/wake-up calls that the call center can either handle themselves or "triage" easily. Some of the calls they field are people who didn't push the right button on the phone, so instead of the "suitcase" key, they just hit "0". In that case, the call center redirects the call to the resort's bell services. If the guest doesn't understand the phone tree concept (press 1 for luggage assistance, press 2 for valet, etc) and hits "0", back to the call center, who then has to explain the phone tree and redirect the call. If the guest has a maintenance issue, the call center puts in a ticket. If the guest has a bell services issue, the call center puts in a ticket. The ticket then goes back to the resort maintenance/bell services (or whatever) to be dealt with. As you can see, there is an extra step where the ball can be dropped.

Say you call the "front desk" and that person tells you to GO to the front desk. If you don't understand the system, your first reaction is going to be POed b/c you think they are being a smart-aleck since you are SPEAKING to the front desk, darn it! Only, you aren't. The VAST majority of the time, the guest never has to know, the situation is dealt with. It's the few times like the OP's situation where it becomes an issue.

For example, even though I know how it works, I had an issue with missing luggage at WL last year. As soon as I got to the room and had no luggage (this was a resort transfer and we got to the room at 1130pm), I called bell services with no answer, so I finally called the "front desk". I knew I was getting the call center, but I did not let on that I was anything other than a guest. The call center said they would send the message to bell services, but also advised me to go check at the bell services desk (which I did and my luggage was finally found). You can see how they were able to deflect and manage my call without giving me any idea that they weren't really AT the WL and without ticking me off. Incidentally, our stay was dreadful and as we were checking out the next morning, I went to the front desk and asked to speak to the manager. He promptly was called and came to hear my comments. I didn't ask for anything, just for him to hear me and make some adjustments. He called a van to drive us to AK, since that's where we were headed and he wanted to make up for some of the time we'd spent dealing with issues.

This is why whenever there is a complaint related to the call center that I hop on with WALK YOURSELF TO THE FRONT DESK if it's something big. It seems to be my mission in life to explain the resort call center so that guests can understand. I hope it doesn't ruin any "magic" for anyone and I really hope it is helpful.