No Dreams, No Magic

[disneyfantotheend]

We just returned from Disney, and I feel that Disney's customer service in general has dropped (based on OUR experiences while there). We had trouble at check-in and it was almost 5 PM before we could get into our room; then the floor was so wet it soaked our socks. Repeatedly talked to front desk, managers, etc. I was told nothing could be done by all. I was crying and ready to go home after they talked to me. Housekeeping not done several days at Pop and CBR. When we complained, they threw some towels on the bed for us, did not even straighten beds, etc. Problems with DDP credits the day we checked out. We had plans this morning and it took over an hour to straighten out; and I didn't even get to eat after all that. Many other minor issues together made for a very unpleasant trip. I am a huge Disney fan that usually will defend Disney to no end, but we left this trip stating we are not sure we will return for a while. I have been planning to renew my wedding vows at Disney in 2009 and now I'm not sure I want to.

See now your experience was a bad one. I too would be upset. Why on Earth were your floors so wet? And your room not being cleaned at all is very unacceptable. BUT it has nothing to do with the YOAMD in my opinion. Everyone is blaming the promotion for their bad experiences. Maybe Disney service is getting poor, but I don't think it is because they are too busy serving the few dream winners.

And I also think that mking hit the nail on the head when she stated that people expect too much some of the time. They want everything to be perfect and noone and nothing in life is perfect. A lot of what a person sees in something is what they make of it. I have seen people say the rain ruined my trip, but I have seen others say, it rained but boy did it make the lines short. You have to look for the good in some situations and sometimes there truly is not any good, but try to make the best of what you are handed.

 

[Metro West]

I do dislike the promotion, however. A) It's not a single quantifiable discount, which is what I'm looking for. Being at WDW is "magic" enough for me. B) It leads to unrealistic expectations, like those of the OP.

I wonder just how many dreams people will see this year and I wonder if Disney will hit the million dream mark during the YOAMD?

 

[BamaFan121s]

I agree with what many are saying here. Not everyone is going to win something. Be glad if you do, have fun if you don't. The whole 'If I can't win I don't think anyone should' attitude baffles me. When in life is that acceptable really. Personally, I think that I I can't have a brand new Hummer then no one should. And that lottery? Forget it, if I can win it, you can't either. It's that big, green, ugly monster rearing it's head again...

(Not directed at the OP, just a general statement.)

 

[ky07]

sounds to me like everyone wants to cut huskies 90 down just because he is just stating the facts and really guys come on as far as expecting good sevice or magic as you like to call it is just common sense ,
figure it this way if you are like some of us and have to save up for awhile for your trip to Disney and you put out all this money wouldn't it dictate you would get good service and not rude employee's cause if you look at it the price you put out for the hotel room or rooms and then pile on the redicualsly high prices for a one day ticket you would expect more and as far as my experiance goes I have only been to Disney one time and that was 2 years ago but had an ok time just had to cut or trip short due to how high prices were and thats why we won't be going back but that is not to say I wouldn't but its just to expencive for me to take my family.
so go ahead let me have it now.

 

[mking624]

sounds to me like everyone wants to cut huskies 90 down just because he is just stating the facts and really guys come on as far as expecting good sevice or magic as you like to call it is just common sense ,
figure it this way if you are like some of us and have to save up for awhile for your trip to Disney and you put out all this money wouldn't it dictate you would get good service and not rude employee's cause if you look at it the price you put out for the hotel room or rooms and then pile on the redicualsly high prices for a one day ticket you would expect more and as far as my experiance goes I have only been to Disney one time and that was 2 years ago but had an ok time just had to cut or trip short due to how high prices were and thats why we won't be going back but that is not to say I wouldn't but its just to expencive for me to take my family.
so go ahead let me have it now.

Well it seems like you're already of the mindset that if someone responds, that it's them "letting you have it" rather than someone just being of a different opinion...so...

Anyway, who determines what good service is? A thread titled "no magic" started out by saying a dream wasn't won. Then it was compared to "well I got to be in a parade before"...sorry, but you can't always be the star of the show. Sometimes other people get to win. Then his idea of "rude" was the fact that he didn't get what he wanted when the ride shut down, even though he has no idea what the CMs were or were not instructed to do. He just made up his mind and that was that (we have no idea if the CM was rude or not). That's not just "stating the facts", but rather expressing an opinion on how he felt he should have been compensated somehow. He complains that the CM during check in wasn't smiling...yet I have to wonder if he himself smiles 24/7? Guess what? CMs are humans too and he has no way of knowing what is going on in that CMs life. But it doesn't matter to him (or her, I have no idea).

Yes, people do expect good service and magic...but there also comes the common sense of being reasonable. I don't personally believe everything needs to go my way for magic at the parks to exist. The magic comes from what I make of it, not what I expect others to do for me. And I ruin my own magic when I become upset over things like "well they didn't give me a fastpass...how rude!!"

As far as prices go...well you'll come to find that there are many places considerably more expensive than Disney. What I'd like to see is what your idea of a good ticket price would be...yet still have the upkeep of the parks that Disney does.

 

[GemmaPixie]

I agree with the OP- flame me all you like, I really don't care!

Since I started going to Disney, it has just gone downhill. They used to provide "magic" for it's guest by doing whatever they could for them. Now? They just have different promotions each year to excite the guest and so they can keep coming back. Just MY opinion.

I think the Disney Company totally take advantage of their CMs with really long hours and crap pay- of course some of them are going to have a bad day!!

Nothing really to do with YOAMD but just Disney in general.

I much prefer Universal and OP- hope to see you there for some mummy-magic!!

 

[Suzimom]

I did not care about winning/receiving anything and like I said, I barely saw any dreams or evidnece of dreams so I had nothing even to whine about. But in my observations, the service (Or "magic") was not the same this time. I mean, the guy checking us into the resort didn't even smile during the entire check in. Sorry, my friend, but that is a clear FACT!!

I haven't read all the posts, yet, so if this has been addressed, my apologies...

You certainly sound frustrated, not only by your experience (or lack of it) and by the dissers that have replied. What came to my mind was your comment about the CM not smiling at all. A previous poster mentioned that perhaps there was a tough customer right before you...I think that's entirely possible. As magical as I think it sounds to work at Disney, I imagine it's incredibly full of irritations and disappointments like any other job. Customer service has to be one of the most difficult positions to have (as you know). I've done it (and I'm never going back!!!!!!! ) Kudos to those of you who deal with grumps and mean people on the phone or in person everyday!!!!! Me -- I prefer 8 year-olds in my classroom...not always angels, but learning to make good choices and treat each other nicely.

I always hope when I encounter a grumpy, nonsmiling CR in any setting that maybe I can help brighten their day as well. It can be invigorating to think I might have made a difference in someone's day. Please understand that I'm in no way saying you weren't kind; it's just a strong belief about how I try to live. I think we all make our own happiness the best we can.

I hope your next trip is better for you.

 

[mking624]

I agree with the OP- flame me all you like, I really don't care!

Since I started going to Disney, it has just gone downhill. They used to provide "magic" for it's guest by doing whatever they could for them. Now? They just have different promotions each year to excite the guest and so they can keep coming back. Just MY opinion.

I think the Disney Company totally take advantage of their CMs with really long hours and crap pay- of course some of them are going to have a bad day!!

Nothing really to do with YOAMD but just Disney in general.

I much prefer Universal and OP- hope to see you there for some mummy-magic!!

No flames here, but I will state that this can even go back to the OP's statement that it's about customer perspective. And by my statement that it's all relative. For some people (such as myself & DH), the magic has increased.

Bottom line is that Disney can't please everyone. For some people, the magic has never been lost, for others it has. If others are experiencing wonderful magic, can that really mean Disney has lost it? Or is that really saying that it's how we respond to our experiences that creates or loses the magic? Interesting thought to ponder....

 

[Buzz Litebeer]

The economy is booming and demand for both Disney time and employees is up. Visitors don't need as much magic because demand is so high to go, and employees don't need to outperform to keep their jobs because their work is in great demand.

Horse pucks.

I can assure you that CMs try to give each and every one of our visitors as much magic as we possibly can. Yes, we have bad days, or even bad moments; we are human, after all. But we do try.

I can also assure you that CMs are still held to Disney's high standards. This is made perfectly clear to all CMs from day one, and if a CM's performance is not up to Disney standards, they will be coached, reprimanded, and if necessary, terminated.

 

[Buzz Litebeer]

I wonder just how many dreams people will see this year and I wonder if Disney will hit the million dream mark during the YOAMD?

Disney is expected to give away the 1,000,000th dream sometime next month (September, 2007).

Bear in mind, of course, that's 1,000,000 dreams -- both large (trips around the world) and small (dream ears) --shared between WDW, Disneyland, Disneyland Paris, Hong Kong Disneyland, and Tokyo Disneyland.

 

[keishashadow]

We were not rewarded any dreams in fact, in 6 days I saw maybe 6 or 7 dream fastpasses around people's necks, 3 or 4 ears and exactly 2 dream cast members, one walking into town hall and the other talking to other cast members by Everest. We received much more magic on previous trips including being asked to be in the parade at Animal Kingdom and just dealing with friendly happy cast members going out of there way to make your vaction better. I think it is ironic that on this trip I didn't even see that. The disney magic was very flat for us. Maybe Disney was too busy granting dreams for everyone else, they felt they didn't need to take care of us.

For example, after deciding to forgo fastpasses for Kali River rapids, we instead joined the posted 5 minute standby line only to get to the front of the line 45 minutes later just as the ride closed for technical difficulties. Now, I know, Disney can't control the posted wait times or the rides going down, but I was shocked that they didn't give out fastpasses to everyone who waiting in the line. That has always been the case when attractions go down (especially Test Track). We did not make a stink but there were some pretty tricked off people. In my opinion, the Cast Members did a terrible job handling the irate customers only saying there is nothing they could do. There is always SOMETHING that can be done and sometimes you gotta throw a bone. The fastpass thing would be an easy fix, I mean isn't that the point of fastpass, to hold your place in line??

Anyway, we of course had a great time at Disney, but we experienced a heck of lot more "magic" during the second part of our trip which was three nights at Royal Pacific at Universal. It was our first trip to Universal and I hate to say it, but we had a better time there. I guess the Universal Team Members don't need a stupid promotion to provide great experiences for their guests...

What a heart-felt post, sorry your trip didn't turn out the way you had hoped

Our recent trip, split between WDW & U, was our most magical ever. We experienced a few bumps @ Disney - Splash Mt. down 1st thing in the morning & no fast passes either...CM said he didn't have any & couldn't find any Being the pit bull my DH sez I become...I corraled a "more seasoned CM" maintenance man Hi Lamar. He went the extra mile, walked to the nearby gift shop & handwrote a FP for us. Behind schedule, walked over to BTM & received our 2nd set of YOAMD FP. told the CM who said we should by FL lottery tix, we did & won, left it for mousekeeping as a tip.

My point -my individual experience was satisfying, another's could be totally different; especially when compared to a prior trip or glowing reports read here.

I agree 100% on FP distribution when the lines are down. BTW, some fool pulled the fire alarm @ U's Poseiden ride & the poor folks didn't get FPs either...i would've freaked if we didn't have FOTL.

I am thankful we are able to visit Disney often, not sure if familiarity breeds contempt or you just have a certain point of reference to compare visits after the initial pixie dust has disapaited.

Disney is very expensive, yet we don't regret paying the big bucks because we've always received top value. We're DVC & Disney stockholders, certainly respect the bottom line, just do agree that things have changed over the last 5 years:

*Dining plan has "dumbed down" the menus & made it nearly impossible to get an ADR unless you book months ahead of time, add to it the change next year of no tip/appetizer...why not just increase the price and be honest about it?

*Last Oct. we had an unfortunate incident wherein the mgr @ the BCV dropped the ball on correcting a roach infestation in a timely manner ; corporate offices say he was severely reprimanded and it will never happen again. we won't stay there again, yet have had all excellent experiences elsewhere on site.

On the flip side we had issues @ RPR that weren't resolved @ checkin, they comped us a furture night when I wrote the GM

IMO, good customer service is based upon listening and validating the customer's concerns. If the problem cannot be solved to the guest's satisfaction, CMs should IMMEDIATELY refer the guest to mgmt for resolution or at least 'professional damage control'.

 

[bubba's mom]

As far as prices go...well you'll come to find that there are many places considerably more expensive than Disney. What I'd like to see is what your idea of a good ticket price would be...yet still have the upkeep of the parks that Disney does.

First let me say I think it's a shame the @$$ rippin' the OP is taking for posting his thoughts and opinions....really getting outta control here.....

I have been to WDW, I have been to less expensive places, I have been to more expensive places.....I think a good ticket price is the current Universal deal of 7 days for $86...even renewal of my AP for $99...now THOSE are good prices....and IN MY OPINION, Universal has the "upkeep" of the parks, the same, if not better, than Disney. Again, my opinion.

To the OP: I hope this thread doesn't deter you from future trip reports and postings....we are all here to share stories, experiences, opinions and gather information to make our own trip more enjoyable. I always enjoy hearing about others' trips....the good, the bad AND the opinionated.

 

[mking624]

First let me say I think it's a shame the @$$ rippin' the OP is taking for posting his thoughts and opinions....really getting outta control here.....

So you quote me and then decide it's a good time to come down on those who happen to disagree with the OP?

have been to WDW, I have been to less expensive places, I have been to more expensive places.....I think a good ticket price is the current Universal deal of 7 days for $86...even renewal of my AP for $99...now THOSE are good prices....and IN MY OPINION, Universal has the "upkeep" of the parks, the same, if not better, than Disney. Again, my opinion.

Yes it is your opinion...and many people feel the opposite. 7 days for $86 decent when you're not having to operate the amount of things that Disney operates or pay the amount of employees Disney pays. Logistically speaking, there is quite a difference and that probably is a big reason why they don't need to charge as much. Which is why I asked the question on what someone would think a good ticket price should be in order to do the upkeep they do.

To the OP: I hope this thread doesn't deter you from future trip reports and postings....we are all here to share stories, experiences, opinions and gather information to make our own trip more enjoyable. I always enjoy hearing about others' trips....the good, the bad AND the opinionated. [/COLOR][/SIZE]

Well that seems kind of contradictory to the comment you made towards those who were "opinionated" and apparently making "bad" comments....

 

[noseybuddy]

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[bubba's mom]

So you quote me and then decide it's a good time to come down on those who happen to disagree with the OP?

I quoted you to address your question of "decent price"...that's why I started my post with "First off....." (don't take it personally )

Yes it is your opinion...and many people feel the opposite.

That is fine, welcome and respected.... i just cannot get over why people get "flamed" for voiceing their opinion???

Well that seems kind of contradictory to the comment you made towards those who were "opinionated" and apparently making "bad" comments....

What I meant, is i like to read people's opinions of the parks, people, their trip reports, etc..... what I don't like to read is flaming because of a person's opinion....it's okay to disagree, but sometimes posts on the DIS get out of control and downright mean. If someone posted something and got flamed, that would deter them from posting again...and the person feels bad and stops posting/sharing. (And I know it happens because I know some of these people) When I read the DIS, I am here to gather info and learn...the good and the bad... I hate to read pages and pages of people coming down on one person because they stated their opinion...(and yes, i have read the few posts on here that agree w/ the OP....but nobody mentions those... )

 

[bubba's mom]

I agee with the op. I just got back from disney, was there August 17th - August 21st. I wasn't feeling the magic either. In fact I got yelled at several times by cranky CMs. Once because I was getting on the bus to fast , in the candy store because I accidently drop some candy that didn't make it into the bag I was filling and the best one yet, my daughter was asked for ID at the Sci Fi Diner for taking a sip of my Milkshake. The manager, I guess that's who he was totally ignored DH and I and went straight to my DD and asked her for ID. We looked at him confused, like WTH are you talking about. He never said who he was and never addressed my DH and I except for telling me to keep my milksake on the other side of the table. I wanted to slap him right in his face but this was only the second day of the vacation so I had to shake it off. Let's just say this was my 11th trip to WDW and I think I am finally not feeling the magic anymore. If I go again, it probably won't be until I have grandchildren.

uh..... what??? Was this milkshake spiked or something?

 

[LilGMom]

uh..... what??? Was this milkshake spiked or something?

I want to know too! If it was, what was it called and how was it? I think I might "need" one.

 

[disneyfantotheend]

I don't get the milkshake thing either, but yikes those are bad experiences once again, I feel bad for everyone who had such awful experiences. To date I have never had any bad ones, but we don't go all the time, more like once every 4 years. Maybe the more often you go the more likely you are to run into this stuff or maybe it is just par now. I will let you know my opinion once I get back from our December trip.

 

[mking624]

I quoted you to address your question of "decent price"...that's why I started my post with "First off....." (don't take it personally )





That is fine, welcome and respected.... i just cannot get over why people get "flamed" for voiceing their opinion???



What I meant, is i like to read people's opinions of the parks, people, their trip reports, etc..... what I don't like to read is flaming because of a person's opinion....it's okay to disagree, but sometimes posts on the DIS get out of control and downright mean. If someone posted something and got flamed, that would deter them from posting again...and the person feels bad and stops posting/sharing. (And I know it happens because I know some of these people) When I read the DIS, I am here to gather info and learn...the good and the bad... I hate to read pages and pages of people coming down on one person because they stated their opinion...(and yes, i have read the few posts on here that agree w/ the OP....but nobody mentions those... )

Ok I do see what you're saying now...thanks for clarifying.

There are cases from thread to thread where "extreme flaming" occurs. More often than not on the DIS, however, most of the "perceived flaming" stems from feelings of being upset due to posters not agreeing with the OP. There have been times when people responded to a thread and the OP called them rude for no good reason other than the responder didn't agree. Flaming has become such a odd term on this board because it goes all the way from simple comments being taken the wrong way all the way to very clear cut cases of verbal abuse. Anyway...not necessarily talking about this thread, but heated threads in general. I've learned the hard way that my opinions are more than likely to be torn apart on here.

 

[noseybuddy]

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