campingqueen
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Jun 2, 2000
I have sent a letter to the man that manages the campground and one that manages all resorts. I will let you know the out come. Looks like we will end up selling the camper since the only place we camp is Ft Wilderness and I am not planing on returning for some time. I have changed my reservations for 1 week in February to All Stars. I will post my letter that I sent below.
Dear Sirs,
I just arrived home last night from a weeks stay at the Ft Wilderness campground, and I am at the point of selling my camper. Let me try to explain. I have been visiting your campground since I was a young child. I am now 36 years old. This is a practice that I now do with my own children and husband. I'm sure if you looked in the reservation computer, under our names, you will see we visit every few
months and stay at either at Ft Wilderness or the All Stars Resort. You would also notice that is isn't only when the rates are at a reduced rate. We have paid from $34 to $72 a night to stay in the campground, it doesn't matter. You see my husband is a St. Pete police officer and this is his way of getting away from all the awful things he has to see day in and day out.
The problem I now have with the Ft Wilderness campground is the "snowbirds." They show up right around Halloween and don't depart until right before Valentine's Day. Only during the snowbird rate period. You won't find them staying at the
campground unless they are paying the greatly reduced rate. This has been proven in the past. During the Millennium celebration, the reduced rate was not offered during the holidays. They all left Ft Wilderness and stayed at smaller
campgrounds in the Orlando area until the rates went back down. I understand that the rate is given if the stay is 28 days or longer. I don't have a problem with the rate. The problem is where these snowbirds get to stay, how they conduct themselves and how several members of your staff cater to these subjects around the clock.
They have all managed to get themselves the best campsites, next to the comfort stations and in the larger sites with the bigger concrete pads. If you were to take a tour around the 1100, 1200 and 1300 loops, you would find that the 1100 loop is almost totally filled with these snowbirds, or "fulltimers" as several members of your staff have come to call them. The sites in the 1200 loop that are closest to the comfort station are also filled with these "fulltimers." Then you come to the 1300 loop. Again, most of the best sites near the comfort station are occupied by these snowbirds. You will find at site #1301, there is a woman that is beyond belief. She stores her trailer here in the Orlando area and lives up north. When she flies into Orlando, one of your cast members picks her up and sits with her until her trailer is delivered to Ft Wilderness... by another cast member. This is probably done out of friendship, but the attitude of the woman is that it is totally expected. We were unfortunate to be next to her while she waited for "her site" to be vacated by
another guest. During the four days we were next to her, we had to listen to her very boisterous visits with several of your cast members. One in particular, Larry, made it a point to visit her several times a day, while on company time. most of
these visits lasted 15 - 20 minutes each. If I had thought of it, I would have tracked the time he spent there, to calculate how much money he was stealing from the company. I was also informed that Larry would routinely take this woman to church
every Sunday in Disney company vehicles. After she was moved to site #1301, the very next day, one of the cast members drug an old set of wooden steps to her camp site. If my memory serves, these were the same steps that were attached to the old Fleetwood homes and should have been thrown away years ago. Larry and your night time cast member, Gene, have made a habit of hiding these steps for certain guests during the year, then dragging them out when their friends arrive.
While we were at the site next to her, I heard her bragging to another couple how she needed to get "her site" quickly, as she had 6 families that were coming to stay with her throughout the holiday season. That's six families who are not having to pay to
stay at Disney, while they stay with this woman at her greatly reduced rate. This is money that Disney will never see.
The group that has now taken over the 1100 loop area a site to see. They have organized themselves into a little commune, that behave, at time, worse than the "weekend warriors" who most of your staff have grown to resent. These snowbirds are convinced that if they stopped coming to the campground, it would cease to exist. In fact, several of your cast members have expressed the same sentiment. I don't understand how the snowbirds or the cast members can believe that. Many time we have tried to get reservations and the campground is full, or near capacity, without the snowbirds being there. In fact, I know of at least 4 families who have been trying to get reservations throughout the holidays, and they have been turned away, even
though they are willing to pay the regular rate. The snowbirds are only paying a fraction of what the rest of the visitors are paying.
So not only do they get the best and most convenient sites, but they get it for the cheapest amount. They also get undivided attention from most of the cast members. I can see the cast member's point though, as long as these snowbirds are there, concentrated into several of the loops, then that is less work that cast member has to do.
I am not the only one who has seen this. We have spoken with numerous other guests who have had to put up with the arrogance of these snowbirds, as well as not being able to be near a comfort station in a good loop. Even my daughter heard other guests complaining about the same thing at the Meadows store.
This last trip, my parents decided to also camp in their 5th wheeler. When the reservations were made, we were told that the notes showed we asked to be next to one another. I was told by room assignments, one day before my parents
arrived, that we were scheduled to either be next to one another, or across the street. We ended up six sites down from them, on the other side of the street. Coordinating dinners with them became a burden as it became difficult to maneuver
cooked meals down the street. The site that was next to them was taken approximately 10 minutes before our arrival. I understand the sites should be assigned on a first come - first served basis, but we have been on the receiving end
of not getting a site because it was being held for either groups camping together, or a guest with a special need. While we were setting up, a room assignment manager by the name of Greg, arrived, and presented the guests next to my parents with their paperwork, room keys and parking pass. When I questioned
Greg why that site was "held" for someone else, I was told by Greg that he did it and it was a "special" situation. After getting nothing but a standard "company" answer, Greg finally stated that the guest had a list of sites where his satellite dish
would work, so they gave them that site. When the conversation turned to the "special treatment" the snowbirds get, Greg tried to state that the company could not discriminate on the basis of who stays the longest and that everything is done fairly. Why then, if you go to the All Star Resorts, do you have to pay $10 more to stay near the food court or the pool. These snowbirds are getting better sites, for a lot less money! Greg's only response was this is how it is and it won't be changing.
As we were packing our stuff together to leave, an older couple walked up to the lady that was cleaning (Nancy) and asked for her to clean a site in the 1200. We found out that this is one of the ways the snowbirds get "their" sites. They bypass the check in line by sneaking in the gate. They find a site they like and move in. They then call the front desk and tell them where they will be staying. Shortly after, someone from the front desk arrives and hands them all their paperwork. I witnessed this twice on this visit and at least once during our October visit.
Our daughter is competing in Twirl-mania in February. We were originally going to stay at the campground for the week and had booked our reservations. We decided to try to stay at the All Star instead. When I called central reservations and told them I wanted to change from Ft Wilderness to All Stars and explained
that my entire week was ruined by the practices of the cast members and the snowbirds alike, the gentleman on the phone informed me that he had the privilege of being treated like garbage by these people when they called in and DEMANDED
certain sites and the reduced rate when they booked their reservations. More and more cast members we speak with throughout the company have become aware of this problem.
Two weeks ago, friends of ours who have a child with MS, called ahead and explained that they needed a special needs site, near the comfort station. When they checked in, they were on the 1200 loop, on the opposite side from the comport station. Even they noticed the number of snowbirds who had taken up most of the sites closest to the comfort station. Their child has difficulty walking and travels in a scooter and no consideration was given to this family.
Since I have gone on complaining about a problem, let me try to offer a solution. If these snowbirds are going to stay for long periods of time, and they all want to be together, then put them in the 1600, 1700, 1800, 1900 loops. These are not as
popular and are rarely full. Or, don't allow someone who is getting such a greatly reduced rate stay near the comfort station on the nicest loops. It is fair and is not discriminatory, as the company has taken a similar stance at the All Star Resorts.
Please don't believe the snowbirds are the savior of Disney or Ft Wilderness. I would bet that if they did not get a greatly discounted rate these people wouldn't even camp at Ft Wilderness. I would also venture to say, without these people, you would get more productivity out of Larry, Gene and several other of your cast members.
I am not asking for preferential treatment, or to be treated better then anyone else, I am only asking to be treated fairly and the same way as everyone else.
Dear Sirs,
I just arrived home last night from a weeks stay at the Ft Wilderness campground, and I am at the point of selling my camper. Let me try to explain. I have been visiting your campground since I was a young child. I am now 36 years old. This is a practice that I now do with my own children and husband. I'm sure if you looked in the reservation computer, under our names, you will see we visit every few
months and stay at either at Ft Wilderness or the All Stars Resort. You would also notice that is isn't only when the rates are at a reduced rate. We have paid from $34 to $72 a night to stay in the campground, it doesn't matter. You see my husband is a St. Pete police officer and this is his way of getting away from all the awful things he has to see day in and day out.
The problem I now have with the Ft Wilderness campground is the "snowbirds." They show up right around Halloween and don't depart until right before Valentine's Day. Only during the snowbird rate period. You won't find them staying at the
campground unless they are paying the greatly reduced rate. This has been proven in the past. During the Millennium celebration, the reduced rate was not offered during the holidays. They all left Ft Wilderness and stayed at smaller
campgrounds in the Orlando area until the rates went back down. I understand that the rate is given if the stay is 28 days or longer. I don't have a problem with the rate. The problem is where these snowbirds get to stay, how they conduct themselves and how several members of your staff cater to these subjects around the clock.
They have all managed to get themselves the best campsites, next to the comfort stations and in the larger sites with the bigger concrete pads. If you were to take a tour around the 1100, 1200 and 1300 loops, you would find that the 1100 loop is almost totally filled with these snowbirds, or "fulltimers" as several members of your staff have come to call them. The sites in the 1200 loop that are closest to the comfort station are also filled with these "fulltimers." Then you come to the 1300 loop. Again, most of the best sites near the comfort station are occupied by these snowbirds. You will find at site #1301, there is a woman that is beyond belief. She stores her trailer here in the Orlando area and lives up north. When she flies into Orlando, one of your cast members picks her up and sits with her until her trailer is delivered to Ft Wilderness... by another cast member. This is probably done out of friendship, but the attitude of the woman is that it is totally expected. We were unfortunate to be next to her while she waited for "her site" to be vacated by
another guest. During the four days we were next to her, we had to listen to her very boisterous visits with several of your cast members. One in particular, Larry, made it a point to visit her several times a day, while on company time. most of
these visits lasted 15 - 20 minutes each. If I had thought of it, I would have tracked the time he spent there, to calculate how much money he was stealing from the company. I was also informed that Larry would routinely take this woman to church
every Sunday in Disney company vehicles. After she was moved to site #1301, the very next day, one of the cast members drug an old set of wooden steps to her camp site. If my memory serves, these were the same steps that were attached to the old Fleetwood homes and should have been thrown away years ago. Larry and your night time cast member, Gene, have made a habit of hiding these steps for certain guests during the year, then dragging them out when their friends arrive.
While we were at the site next to her, I heard her bragging to another couple how she needed to get "her site" quickly, as she had 6 families that were coming to stay with her throughout the holiday season. That's six families who are not having to pay to
stay at Disney, while they stay with this woman at her greatly reduced rate. This is money that Disney will never see.
The group that has now taken over the 1100 loop area a site to see. They have organized themselves into a little commune, that behave, at time, worse than the "weekend warriors" who most of your staff have grown to resent. These snowbirds are convinced that if they stopped coming to the campground, it would cease to exist. In fact, several of your cast members have expressed the same sentiment. I don't understand how the snowbirds or the cast members can believe that. Many time we have tried to get reservations and the campground is full, or near capacity, without the snowbirds being there. In fact, I know of at least 4 families who have been trying to get reservations throughout the holidays, and they have been turned away, even
though they are willing to pay the regular rate. The snowbirds are only paying a fraction of what the rest of the visitors are paying.
So not only do they get the best and most convenient sites, but they get it for the cheapest amount. They also get undivided attention from most of the cast members. I can see the cast member's point though, as long as these snowbirds are there, concentrated into several of the loops, then that is less work that cast member has to do.
I am not the only one who has seen this. We have spoken with numerous other guests who have had to put up with the arrogance of these snowbirds, as well as not being able to be near a comfort station in a good loop. Even my daughter heard other guests complaining about the same thing at the Meadows store.
This last trip, my parents decided to also camp in their 5th wheeler. When the reservations were made, we were told that the notes showed we asked to be next to one another. I was told by room assignments, one day before my parents
arrived, that we were scheduled to either be next to one another, or across the street. We ended up six sites down from them, on the other side of the street. Coordinating dinners with them became a burden as it became difficult to maneuver
cooked meals down the street. The site that was next to them was taken approximately 10 minutes before our arrival. I understand the sites should be assigned on a first come - first served basis, but we have been on the receiving end
of not getting a site because it was being held for either groups camping together, or a guest with a special need. While we were setting up, a room assignment manager by the name of Greg, arrived, and presented the guests next to my parents with their paperwork, room keys and parking pass. When I questioned
Greg why that site was "held" for someone else, I was told by Greg that he did it and it was a "special" situation. After getting nothing but a standard "company" answer, Greg finally stated that the guest had a list of sites where his satellite dish
would work, so they gave them that site. When the conversation turned to the "special treatment" the snowbirds get, Greg tried to state that the company could not discriminate on the basis of who stays the longest and that everything is done fairly. Why then, if you go to the All Star Resorts, do you have to pay $10 more to stay near the food court or the pool. These snowbirds are getting better sites, for a lot less money! Greg's only response was this is how it is and it won't be changing.
As we were packing our stuff together to leave, an older couple walked up to the lady that was cleaning (Nancy) and asked for her to clean a site in the 1200. We found out that this is one of the ways the snowbirds get "their" sites. They bypass the check in line by sneaking in the gate. They find a site they like and move in. They then call the front desk and tell them where they will be staying. Shortly after, someone from the front desk arrives and hands them all their paperwork. I witnessed this twice on this visit and at least once during our October visit.
Our daughter is competing in Twirl-mania in February. We were originally going to stay at the campground for the week and had booked our reservations. We decided to try to stay at the All Star instead. When I called central reservations and told them I wanted to change from Ft Wilderness to All Stars and explained
that my entire week was ruined by the practices of the cast members and the snowbirds alike, the gentleman on the phone informed me that he had the privilege of being treated like garbage by these people when they called in and DEMANDED
certain sites and the reduced rate when they booked their reservations. More and more cast members we speak with throughout the company have become aware of this problem.
Two weeks ago, friends of ours who have a child with MS, called ahead and explained that they needed a special needs site, near the comfort station. When they checked in, they were on the 1200 loop, on the opposite side from the comport station. Even they noticed the number of snowbirds who had taken up most of the sites closest to the comfort station. Their child has difficulty walking and travels in a scooter and no consideration was given to this family.
Since I have gone on complaining about a problem, let me try to offer a solution. If these snowbirds are going to stay for long periods of time, and they all want to be together, then put them in the 1600, 1700, 1800, 1900 loops. These are not as
popular and are rarely full. Or, don't allow someone who is getting such a greatly reduced rate stay near the comfort station on the nicest loops. It is fair and is not discriminatory, as the company has taken a similar stance at the All Star Resorts.
Please don't believe the snowbirds are the savior of Disney or Ft Wilderness. I would bet that if they did not get a greatly discounted rate these people wouldn't even camp at Ft Wilderness. I would also venture to say, without these people, you would get more productivity out of Larry, Gene and several other of your cast members.
I am not asking for preferential treatment, or to be treated better then anyone else, I am only asking to be treated fairly and the same way as everyone else.
