Magical Express and checking out

[Searc]

I just got back Tuesday and I definitely had a DND sign at AOA, prior to that we stayed at YC and also had a DND.

I just don't think this is something to worry about - the chances of DME alerting housekeeping of departing guests is so minimal, I sincerely doubt this happens as the effort it would take just isn't worth it.

As I said upthread the OP could add herself to the room on the last night, slap the DND on the door and sleep there with the kids and her dad.

You obviously didn't look very closely at that sign. LOL It says 'Room Occupied'. It is not a deterrent to staff and they will still knock. DND went away very shortly after Vegas.

 

[tjmw2727]

You obviously didn't look very closely at that sign. LOL It says 'Room Occupied'. It is not a deterrent to staff and they will still knock. DND went away very shortly after Vegas.

Yes I did read the sign and I know what it says and amended my post accordingly. IMHO it still serves the same purpose of alerting the staff to the fact the room is occupied and the family hasn't completely checked out.

 

[nkereina]

I just got back Tuesday and I definitely had a DND sign at AOA, prior to that we stayed at YC and also had a DND. Actually room occupied sign but it serves the same purpose.

I believe the poster you quoted is aware that the room occupied sign exists. The point is that the sign no longer means "Do Not Disturb". It simply alerts a person outside that there are people in the room. With the security checks, no one can expect the sign to prevent them from being disturbed anymore.

the chances of DME alerting housekeeping of departing guests is so minimal

No one said DME would alert housekeeping of departing guests, but the point I made is that housekeeping may be privy to DME departure times through the same reporting that they receive each morning letting them know which guests are due to check out. I can't confirm this, but they have to prioritize the rooms they need to turnover, so it would make sense they possibly have access to this information.

Anyway, the issue isn't whether OP would be permitted to remain in the room until 11am. The issue is just preventing OP from being disturbed at 7-8am when housekeeping is starting up. But even if the OP is listed on the reservation, housekeeping can and sometimes will knock early regardless.

 

[tjmw2727]

I highly doubt that housekeeping has DME information - the routes and times change daily and even the bellhops/luggage service CM's don't have access to this.

Regardless of the wording on the "dnd" sign it clearly indicates that there is someone in the room, it would be pointless for a housekeeper to knock in order to turn the room unless it was past the check out time. Yes, random checks happen but much less often than when first implemented, I visit many times a year and haven't had one in several years.

/out !

I believe the poster you quoted is aware that the room occupied sign exists. The point is that the sign no longer means "Do Not Disturb". It simply alerts a person outside that there are people in the room. With the security checks, no one can expect the sign to prevent them from being disturbed anymore.


No one said DME would alert housekeeping of departing guests, but the point I made is that housekeeping may be privy to DME departure times through the same reporting that they receive each morning letting them know which guests are due to check out. I can't confirm this, but they have to prioritize the rooms they need to turnover, so it would make sense they possibly have access to this information.

Anyway, the issue isn't whether OP would be permitted to remain in the room until 11am. The issue is just preventing OP from being disturbed at 7-8am when housekeeping is starting up. But even if the OP is listed on the reservation, housekeeping can and sometimes will knock early regardless.

 

[Searc]

Regardless of the wording on the "dnd" sign it clearly indicates that there is someone in the room, it would be pointless for a housekeeper to knock in order to turn the room unless it was past the check out time. Yes, random checks happen but much less often than when first implemented, I visit many times a year and haven't had one in several years.

Numerous reports on the Resorts board say otherwise.

If you have housekeeping, that is your security check. Opting out will earn you a random, unannounced check.

 

[nkereina]

I highly doubt that housekeeping has DME information - the routes and times change daily and even the bellhops/luggage service CM's don't have access to this.

Regardless of the wording on the "dnd" sign it clearly indicates that there is someone in the room, it would be pointless for a housekeeper to knock in order to turn the room unless it was past the check out time. Yes, random checks happen but much less often than when first implemented, I visit many times a year and haven't had one in several years.

As PP mentions, you would not receive a security check if you had housekeeping. And if you opted out of housekeeping, the security check could have occurred when you were not in the room, so there's no way you can confirm that.

The fact of the matter is that housekeeping are under pressure to turn rooms over quickly, and many resorts are short-staffed in housekeeping. Even if you have the Room Occupied sign on the door, a housekeeper can and will (as evidenced by other reports) knock on your door to confirm you are still in the room and perhaps get a read on when you will be leaving. This also adds pressure to the guest to get a move on. So knocking on the door with a room occupied sign earlier than 11am can have its benefits for the housekeeper.

Also, again, I can't confirm if housekeeping has access to DME data for check-outs. But It wouldn't make sense for luggage service to have that because it adds no value to their roles. It would add value for a housekeeper because they can use it a rough guide of how to prioritize rooms, or gauge which rooms may have left early. Housekeepers where I have worked typically run a report of check-outs right before their shift starts so they know which rooms to turn over. The data is real time data at the time they run their report. Check-outs can change too, so saying they can't have access to DME data because it can change doesn't make much sense. If its something they are privy to, it would be run in the morning before their shift as well.

 

[bumbershoot]

Just add yourself to the room after you have all checked in. Explain why.

And if you have a credit card on file for express check out, you don’t need to check out at all.

you never need to do a checkout process.

if you don’t have a cc on file, you cannot charge to the room, so there’s nothing to check on. If you’ve charged to the room you have to have a cc on file so they’ve taken care of it for you.

Put the DND on the door before you go to sleep and don't worry about it.

Ah, I miss the DND signs. So clear. So concise about what you need. Alas. They are no more and the clarity they provided is gone.

But they shouldn't be assuming someone is out of the room unless they're actually checked out.

Since there is no need to do the checkout process, they would all be waiting until 11. Yikes.

Actually room occupied sign but it serves the same purpose.

Oh if only.

Yes, random checks happen but much less often than when first implemented, I visit many times a year and haven't had one in several years.

Vegas wasn’t even 2.5 years ago, not several, so...

They aren’t random. They are every day. I’m guessing your room checks happened when you weren’t there.

 

[sam_gordon]

If a housekeeper is assigned 50 rooms to clean, there may be 10 or 20 that are checking out on the same day. The rest are normal cleanings for them from carry over guests that require less time to attend to. Housekeepers DO have to jump from room to rooms sometimes because people are in the room, haven't checked out yet, etc etc. If they waited until 11am to clean all the rooms that were due to check out, check in time wouldn't be until 5pm or later. Check out rooms take longer to turn over, so they want to start on those as early as possible, especially at hotels that operate at high capacities where they know people will be waiting to get into those rooms.

Since there is no need to do the checkout process, they would all be waiting until 11. Yikes.

So cruise ships can fully turn over every room in a 4-5 hour window, but that's impossible at a land base hotel? And who said anything about waiting until 11 to do anything? They can clean rooms of people staying, they can turn over rooms where they know the people have left. They can pre-make towel animals, whatever.

 

[nkereina]

So cruise ships can fully turn over every room in a 4-5 hour window, but that's impossible at a land base hotel? And who said anything about waiting until 11 to do anything? They can clean rooms of people staying, they can turn over rooms where they know the people have left. They can pre-make towel animals, whatever.

A cabin attendant on a cruise ship is assigned fewer rooms to turn over than a Disney housekeeper, so by nature it would take them less time. Cruise ship cabins are also smaller, and they do not have to juggle continuing guests, trying to catch guests when they are out of their room, etc. because everyone is disembarking at the same time. A hotel housekeeper at Disney has many more rooms, plus rooms that are larger than standard (i.e. DVC, suites, etc) in some cases.

They DO have other things they can do prior to 11am, but many will try to get a jump on the check-outs they know have left prior to 11am because they are more time consuming to turn over than cleaning a continuing guest's room. And they know arriving guests will be waiting for these rooms. I am sure management also pressures them to get the rooms turned over early, because as we know, people like their rooms ready early or when they arrive.

I don't mean this to sound snarky, but I'm not sure what point you're trying to make? Its a fact that housekeepers will turn rooms over prior to 11am if the guest has already left. Guests who have not left yet are fully entitled to stay in the room until 11am, but that doesn't preclude them from getting a knock from housekeeping to see what the status is - just as it could occur if you were still in the midst of your stay. In the OP's case, she will be allowed to stay in the room until 11am even if the father leaves, but it doesn't mean she won't be disturbed early by housekeeping knocking.