Who else has had a room steward that was just "ok"?

[kellyb2000]

Not trying to nit-pick or anything but I've heard all these great stories about the room stewards doing all kinds of cute and out the blue things and that was just not the case for us. I consider myself lucky to have gotten a towel animal every night since he didn't do it in my mom's room one night. He just happened to be in the hall when we returned so we told him and he gladly did one and said he couldn't believe he forgot but still. I even took a stuffed animal in hopes that he would place it somewhere in our room in a cute position and left sunglasses out so he would put it on our towel animals but got neither. Are the stories about these wonderful room stewards few and far between? Is the norm just to have an o.k. one?
AND, one thing that really aggravated me was he set our alarm clocks on the last night for 5:30 a.m. and we were not planning on getting up that early!! We especially didn't want our 9-month-old up that early! I know he did this to all 4 of our rooms, probably his whole section. Is this something they do now - set your clocks for you?

 

[wendyk]

We were on the western this past March. Our room steward gave us a towell animal every night. He was not that friendly. It was like pulling teeth to get him to bring ice. I started ordering it through room service along with a snack. He moved our suitcases out from under the bed two nights in a row and placed them against the wall. No kleenex in the bathroom for 2 days. The first 3 days, our room was not cleaned until late afternoon even though we were out of there by 8AM. He finally told me one morning on my way out that I should put the card on the door if I wanted the room done in the AM. I told him I didn't have one. He also seemed peeved that I requested a second bed rail for DS 19 months so he could sleep on the pullout couch. (He was too long for the pack'nplay. We never got our couch back. It was left as a bed the remainder of the trip. DD bed from the ceiling was put away every day. I guess he figured we could sit on our bed to watch TV or on the verandh. I was not impressed. I guess reading these boards before our trip, and hearing about the excellent service, it was a let down.

Wendy

 

[moinab]

We were underwhelmed by both our room steward and our dining room servers. The room steward seemed overly timid. Whenever we made a request, he was saying ok before we had even finished talking, and most of the time the request was not honored. I don't think he really understood us. Our room was cleaned very well, but we didn't get things we requested, like ice, and we just gave up trying to communicate with him.

Our dining room servers were pleasant enough, but never spent any time at our table. They were always rushing around like crazy. I've read so many stories about servers doing magic tricks and bringing out extra entrees and desserts. We sat half the time with empty water glasses. It was disappointing, after reading so much praise.

 

[mnmomof1]

Our room steward was not very good at all. We did not have our room turned down in the evening until around 10:00. This seemed late to us. We were the last room on his list and it didn't get done any faster if we left the please service sign out. He only gave us new shampoo etc. 3 of our days on a 7 night, even though we removed it each time. We had no towels put in one side of the split bath a couple of nights. We only got towel animals when we left him a note asking for them. He also took our comforter off our bed completely when he turned it down and rolled it in a ball and would stick it under the bed. I didn't realize this until the night I repacked my suitcases and found it there. I had been freezing each night so I asked him to leave it on the end of the bed but he only did that the night I asked. He never brought us ice or did anything extra for us. Our steward last year was much better. He also never introduced himself to us. Overall, completely unimpressed with him but still had a fabulous cruise overall! Kim

 

[imgoingtodisney]

Did you adjust your tips to reflect this?

 

[ThreeCircles]

I have always experienced outstanding service from all of our service staff on my trips with DCL. They have always been exceptionally friendly, very hard-working, and have gone out of their way to fulfill any request we've ever made. (Not that we really make a lot.)

I think it's important to understand that these individuals have a LOT to do in a short amount of time. If you ever encounter anything that you're not happy with or something that doesn't meet your expectations on DCL, you should always let the staff know. It seems that it is their top priority to improve and make your voyage a fantastic one.

On a side note (and not to reflect on ANY of the posters above) I have seen some staterooms that have been total disaster areas! It's one thing if you want to keep your stateroom looking as if it has just been through a tropical storm, that's fine and great, but DON'T expect someone to clean it up for you! I mean really! That is NOT the job of the stateroom host/hostess!

 

[kellyb2000]

All of my tips did reflect the way I felt about the service. BUT, there were 2 adults and our infant son and there was no way I was paying suggested amount for him. I gave the suggested amount for us and not quite half for my son. Another thing that blew my mind with our room steward was what he did to my sister. You know how on the last day they bring you those tip papers you can fill out to see how much tip to leave? Well, my sister had her's filled out and it did not have the suggested amount on every blank (she has an infant also). Well, when she returned that evening, the one that she had filled out was GONE and a new one was replaced with the room steward's part almost filled out for her. He had put "3" in the number of people blank, circled the suggested amount and underlined 3 times where it said "including children". I'm sorry but you do not tell me how much I'm supposed to leave you. I was a waitress for 7 years and you just don't do that. I know they have a lot to do in a short amount of time but they aren't doing anything that an upscale hotel wouldn't do (and I mean cleaning our room)(and I do consider a disney cruise upscale) and it would be included in the cost of the room. Our dining servers were sweet and good but the only thing they did that a server at any "regular" restaurant wouldn't have done was cut my niece's filet. I really thought that having 5 children at our table, they would really put on a show. I did ask and our servers had 3 tables total, our's which was really 2 tables (we had 13 people) and another table of 6. So I guess I thought they would have time to do some of the extras I have heard about on this board. To end on a good note they did bring us 4 birthday cakes, two that were the month before and two that were a couple of weeks away!

 

[webray]

I love these message boards...but the bad thing, is people getting their hopes up on what to expect. People only expect all the special service from disney...every where else...normal no frills service is normal.

Yes, you should expect a clean room.

 

[moinab]

I agree that if you have a problem with something, you should always make the staff aware of it. Our problem was that we couldn't communicate with our steward. We weren't making a lot of requests. We wanted a travel crib for our infant daughter, and a diaper genie. After asking our room steward, we ended up having to call at least 3 times before we got what we needed (this was over an 8 hour period.) We wanted ice twice a day. We got it exactly once. And the diaper genie was never emptied. The only other thing we mentioned was that we didn't need the 4th bunk made up, because our DD was sleeping in the crib.

We gave up trying to communicate because it was taking too much effort for too little pay-off. We didn't want to spend our 3-day cruise playing phone-tag. We always picked up our room before leaving, and our steward did clean it very well. We tipped above the suggested amount for 4 people (myself, DH, DS and DD,) because he was making up the crib for our DD, but we are usually very generous tippers, so he didn't get as much as someone who met our needs would have received.

For our dining room servers, we tipped slightly over the suggested amount for 4 people. In our minds, we were actually tipping for 3 people, because DD, who was exclusively breastfeeding at the time, slept through dinner every night.

I realize this is a very touchy subject. Having done my fair share of waiting tables and professional housecleaning, I know there are plenty of people out there who expect the moon and the stars and give nothing in return. I have to say, though, that I was disappointed, after hearing so many great reports on the service. ThreeCircles, I know you didn't mean anything personal with your comments. You're fortunate to have had such great service, but some of us haven't had the same experience, through no fault of our own.

Kelly, I am appalled by what happened to your sister. I would have notified guest services. I have never stiffed anyone, but if that happened to me, I'd be so angry, I would actually consider it. (and then my guilt would kick in, and I'd leave a tip, but it wouldn't be a good one!)

 

[outahere]

We had a pretty good room steward, but our dining room servers were just ok. We got towel animals at night and he even showed DS how to make them on the last night. He also gave him a few pages from their handbook with pictures of how to make them. Because of that, I gave DS some money to give him as an extra tip as we were leaving the last morning.

The dining room servers seemd very rushed. The assistant server was quite pushy about ordering wine or drinks. No magic tricks or anything special. We did have a couple of great servers at lunch in Triton's. I guess overall ours were ok, but I wouldn't try to get them again.

 

[mnmomof1]

Originally posted by webray
I love these message boards...but the bad thing, is people getting their hopes up on what to expect. People only expect all the special service from disney...every where else...normal no frills service is normal.

Yes, you should expect a clean room.

I disagree with this because we are expected to tip quite a bit for the service the room steward provides, therefore I atually expect some service. Towels, shampoos, etc. should be left as a normal part of service. I don't consider them an extra, yet our room steward did not always remember to leave them. Kim

 

[alexandrew]

KellyB2000:

I'm sorry, but I disagree with you about leaving stateroom host full suggested tipping amount....the infants and toddlers usually leave the biggest mess in a stateroom, so IMHO the full tip is warranted for each party in your stateroom....On the other hand, our DS's, 7 and 2, were in Oceaneers and Flounders respectively during dinner every eve....thus, I gave a little less than suggested tip for 4....

 

[eek40]

I have to agree with Webray......these boards are great to hear tips and stories of other peoples trips and experiences, but a lot of people build up their hopes thinking that all the things that happen for others will happen for them. I read a post somewhere on here about that very thing, but cant find it. I think that the "magic" needs to be a surprise. Go expecting a great vacation and take a positive attitude with you...if extra magic occurs along the way be grateful and enjoy it. If you just have a wonderful trip then enjoy that also

Aimee

 

[KarenK]

I agree that the room stewards are worked very hard and put in long hours. Of course there are some that are great and others just doing the job to get it done and make a paycheck. We have had all types on our last 4 cruises.

The very first one, was Susan (we still remember her name). She was from England and spent so much time with the kids, doing extra things. She would come by each night to see what they were wearing to dinner since we dressed them up. She had that magic pixie dust.

The next two cruises they were all right, a few towel animals. It was the Concierge Team that paid us the most attention on the last two cruises. They even gave me a another stateroom when I complained how bad the sofa bed was and my back was in such pain. Another example of magic pixie dust bestowed upon us.

But the best part was the Stateroom Host my sister had on the last cruise. We never saw him for 7 days. He never emptied the garbage cans, or filled the ice. But on the last day he knocked on the door with street clothes on and asked for "the envelope" because he was departing the ship early. My sister just looked and him and was confused by what he was asking. She did not know who it was or his name. The worse part was the nerve at 6:30 am asking and waking the kids up because he wanted to get off the ship. His tip reflected the rudeness that he showed. That is the only way you will get the service to be better. People should not feel obligated to tip a required amount. I would rather pay more for high qualty service than to reward minimally for lousy service.

 

[ThreeCircles]

Originally posted by eek40
I have to agree with Webray......these boards are great to hear tips and stories of other peoples trips and experiences, but a lot of people build up their hopes thinking that all the things that happen for others will happen for them. I read a post somewhere on here about that very thing, but cant find it. I think that the "magic" needs to be a surprise. Go expecting a great vacation and take a positive attitude with you...if extra magic occurs along the way be grateful and enjoy it. If you just have a wonderful trip then enjoy that also

Aimee

I think this is an excellent point. After four Disney Magic cruises we've had a wide variety of wait staff. Each have had their own style in the way they approach their work and I think it is wonderful that DCL allows that flexibility in their Cast Members. These are not robots that should be pre-programmed to perform magic tricks, tell jokes, or act in a specific way. Each Server, Assistant Server, and Stateroom Host/Hostess is a unique individual with a unique style and personality. To say that a Server was "poor" because he or she was quiet and was not "outgoing enough" is a very negative way of looking at the world.

As for the towel animals, we've never *not* had those in our staterooms each evening. (And I'm thankful for them!!!)

I agree with Alexandrew (a fellow September 4th Cruiser!!! ) about the tipping. If you have four people, regardless of age, you should tip for four. That is the standard
.

 

[alexandrew]

I'm sorry, but I respectfully disagree....

I expect excellence and "magic" when on DCL....we pay a premium for it!!!!

Lucky for us, every cruise we've taken has been "magical"....everyone, from our stateroom hosts to our waiters have all been great....

 

[ThreeCircles]

We agree, to disagree!

I'm just saying that I can appreciate the differences in individuals and wouldn't disregard someone as being a "poor" performer if they were soft-spoken and didn't perform magic tricks for us at our table. I've had Servers who have done this, and servers who haven't. I would describe both as providing exceptional service and adding that Magic to DCL!

One should celebrate diversity in all aspects of life!

And we've also had wonderful experiences with all of our wait staff!

 

[Dreamer04]

Our stateroom host in Jan'03 was fine. That was before I found the DISboards, and I wasn't expecting a thing except for service. He did have a difficult time understanding us, but we made our needs clear. We didn't have too much. Once we wanted ice. Yes, we had a towel animal once.

Now, I can't lie. I am a messy person. I tried to keep the cabin as neat as I could. But, I was not expecting him to spend his whole shift picking up after me.

We always came back to a neat cabin with fresh towels and a turned down bed.

I expect the same service when we cruise in Feb '04.

Ursula

 

[firstcruiser]

As a recent first time cruiser (August 16th), I'd like to add my thoughts. Our room steward did everything asked but was not friendly. I was disappointed after reading on these boards how friendly they are, etc. We would pass her in the hall and if we didn't say hi first, she would ignore us. If you're going on your frist cruise, don't expect them to become part of the family. We were also disappointed in our servers. They were nice but not overly friendly. The head server seemed like the whole thing was beneath him. The servers at the table next to us looked like a lot of fun and were doing tricks and really interacting with their guests. We kept looking over and wishing we had them. So again, don't get on board thinking they are going to be the best servers you have ever had. I hope I don't sound overly negative and we are planning on doing another Disney cruise in 2005 but not for the food or servers. Mostly for the activites where are kids are included like disco and night club acts, etc. They loved those.

One server we loved was our server at Palo's. She was excellent.

P.S. The cookies from room service are not that great either. McDonald's fresh baked cookies are much better. Another thing I read on these boards that I couldn't wait to try and was disappointed in.

 

[moinab]

I think we're discussing different levels of service. There's the "pixie dust" level of service, such as towel animals and magic tricks, that one would hope to experience on DCL, but is dependent upon the differing personalities of the crew members. (For the record, I don't even like magic tricks, so I'm glad our servers didn't do this. I just mentioned it as an example.)

Then, there is standard level of service, such as room stewards emptying trash, providing fresh towels and ice, and dining room servers refilling water, etc. These things are part of the job.

In my case, I wouldn't say the level of service was "poor." I would say it was adequate. Some things were done well, other things were not. My problem with the room steward was not about his timidity, but with his inability/unwillingness to communicate with us. When I tried talking to him about the ice, he was walking away, saying, "ok,ok," before I was even finished making my request.

I don't believe that expecting a standard level of service means I don't appreciate diversity. It just means I expect my water to be refilled at dinner and the trash bin in my room to be emptied