4 Walt Disney World Resorts to accept dogs

[larryz]

Good post. I do think Disney could (and likely will) easily resolve a lot of the issues by having a dedicated section of the hotel pet friendly and make that a category when you book the room. At POR they currently have regular rooms with these views:

1. Standard view
2. Garden view
3. Pool view
4. River view

Then they repeat those view types for Royal Rooms. Just add another section with Pet Friendly and the various view types. This way when you book you know if you don’t book in the pet friendly category you won’t get a dog room. They can also make sure anyone who specified a dog allergy is far from that section.

They could also restrict dogs from any indoor public space. They would need to figure out what to do with check-in but other than that the average guest wouldn’t even see a dog except maybe walking a path which really shouldn’t be too big a deal.

I think those 2 subtle changes could make almost everyone happy. As it is there are too many open questions for people with existing reservations to feel good about this.

Two more categories: sniffing or non-sniffing.

 

[njDizFan]

Oh trust me, I’m well aware of the entitlement people feel when at Walt Disney World. It’s almost impossible to avoid.

A Vegas hotel stated their exact policy’s.. a few others do as well.. many don’t.
I think the “I’ve never traveled with my pet, but know everything about pet friendly hotels” comments from a lot of posters are amusing.. but if you read the article I posted, it pretty much meshes with what all other dog owners-who travel with their dogs people have said in this thread.

People can choose to ignore all of that.. and keep pretending that not only is Disney the most expensive destination, and the only family one, it’s also about to be invaded by hundreds of horrible dogs...and that Hiltons, Marriott, Hyatt, W, Four Seasons, etc etc etc, are all small boutique hotels.
Cheers to over-exaggerating

I’ll say something about Kimpton though, since you chose to focus on them and ignore the major chains. If you’ve ever stayed at one, or know someone who has, ask them if the resort was overrun with pets..and if their room smelled like one. You would have a greater chance at any of the above in a hotel with under 200 rooms where all are pet friendly. Given the popularity of their hotels, I somehow doubt that you’ll hear too many of those stories.
lol
How often do we hear of issues at any of these hotels? How many bad reviews are written about hotels that allow dogs?
(Rhetorical questions- I’m hoping that maybe, possibly, someone may actually stop to think about it)


I do have one favor to ask.. if anyone cancels a standard room at BC, or a preferred room at POR for 11/16, please let me know ASAP. I’ll take your room for 2 nights.

lol

 

[GoofGoof]

I will be checking in to POR on Sunday, and I am going to make sure to give a complete report of what I see in regards to the dog issue. We won't be spending a ton of time at the resort, but hopefully enough to get a decent picture of what is going on.

That's great! Are you in the AB section? That's where we always stay, in a garden room, no less.
I honestly feel that this close to the roll out that there will not be many dogs yet. Most people book months out, so I think those reservations have to run out for the test to be valid. I have friends arriving on 11/3 to POR, and they are completely against this policy too. I think they are not going to see many dogs either.
Hope you have a great time, and looking forward to your report. Thanks!

This was posted on the Portorleans.org site on 10/18:

I have reached out to my contacts at the resort who have said that so far (i.e. in the first three days of the program) they have not yet had a single dog staying at the resort. Over the next seven days there are currently just four one-night reservations with associated comments indicating that the guest plans to bring a dog with them, against more than 100 comments over the same seven-day period asking to be assigned to a room away from the dog friendly areas. Those four one-night reservations are apparently all from local Florida residents, and personally I would not be at all surprised to find that some or all of them turn out to be from social media aware guests, or even bloggers or website owners, testing out the new policies for themselves. If there have been any booking cancellations because of this new policy then they have already been replaced with new reservations, as Riverside is either sold out or very close to it for the rest of the month.
​

Based on this post (assuming it is accurate) I would not at all be surprised if people there in the next month or so don’t see a single dog. We will probably need to wait until May or June to see the full impact when guests with dogs will have had a chance to plan around the new policy. I do find it interesting that the contact at the resort reported only 4 one night reservations made but over 100 people asking to be in rooms away from dogs. It is posted to an online blog so take it with a grain of salt.

 

[Raineman]

This was posted on the Portorleans.org site on 10/18:

I have reached out to my contacts at the resort who have said that so far (i.e. in the first three days of the program) they have not yet had a single dog staying at the resort. Over the next seven days there are currently just four one-night reservations with associated comments indicating that the guest plans to bring a dog with them, against more than 100 comments over the same seven-day period asking to be assigned to a room away from the dog friendly areas. Those four one-night reservations are apparently all from local Florida residents, and personally I would not be at all surprised to find that some or all of them turn out to be from social media aware guests, or even bloggers or website owners, testing out the new policies for themselves. If there have been any booking cancellations because of this new policy then they have already been replaced with new reservations, as Riverside is either sold out or very close to it for the rest of the month.
​

Based on this post (assuming it is accurate) I would not at all be surprised if people there in the next month or so don’t see a single dog. We will probably need to wait until May or June to see the full impact when guests with dogs will have had a chance to plan around the new policy. I do find it interesting that the contact at the resort reported only 4 one night reservations made but over 100 people asking to be in rooms away from dogs. It is posted to an online blog so take it with a grain of salt.

Hmmm. I wonder if people who might have been planning to bring their dogs right away are hearing the negative reactions, and are thinking twice about it. Either way, if you are in the “no dogs at WDW” camp and you are staying at POR soon, sounds like you should be OK, unless there is an unexpected rush of dog additions from people already booked.

 

[GoofGoof]

Hmmm. I wonder if people who might have been planning to bring their dogs right away are hearing the negative reactions, and are thinking twice about it. Either way, if you are in the “no dogs at WDW” camp and you are staying at POR soon, sounds like you should be OK, unless there is an unexpected rush of dog additions from people already booked.

That could be, but I would guess most people coming to WDW very soon with a dog they really want to bring on vacation with them will already have a room booked at a different dog friendly hotel. As we have heard repeatedly in this thread soooo many hotels allow dogs already It’s possible we will see some people who happened to be booked at one of these 4 resorts and were planning to board their dogs but will now just keep them in the room with them. Aside from that it sounds like at least POR is pretty well booked for the next few weeks so there won’t be a whole lot of new “dog reservations” coming in. Thanksgiving and Christmas weeks are probably also pretty well booked as well as marathon week in January. Spring/Summer should be pretty open (except maybe Spring Break weeks). That’s why I felt it was a dumb idea to rush this out without notice. If they announced starting May 1st they would be rolling out this pilot program it would have given everyone advance notice and avoided a lot of the issues with people switching resorts.

 

[Raineman]

That could be, but I would guess most people coming to WDW very soon with a dog they really want to bring on vacation with them will already have a room booked at a different dog friendly hotel. As we have heard repeatedly in this thread soooo many hotels allow dogs already It’s possible we will see some people who happened to be booked at one of these 4 resorts and were planning to board their dogs but will now just keep them in the room with them. Aside from that it sounds like at least POR is pretty well booked for the next few weeks so there won’t be a whole lot of new “dog reservations” coming in. Thanksgiving and Christmas weeks are probably also pretty well booked as well as marathon week in January. Spring/Summer should be pretty open (except maybe Spring Break weeks). That’s why I felt it was a dumb idea to rush this out without notice. If they announced starting May 1st they would be rolling out this pilot program it would have given everyone advance notice and avoided a lot of the issues with people switching resorts.

The only part of that post that I didn't like was when you mentioned that POR was booked well for a few weeks-I will be there all next week, and if that's the case, the buses are going to be full.....

 

[GoofGoof]

The only part of that post that I didn't like was when you mentioned that POR was booked well for a few weeks-I will be there all next week, and if that's the case, the buses are going to be full.....

There’s no quiet season anymore at WDW. I can’t vouch for the accuracy of that post. It came from a fan site:
http://www.portorleans.org/news.php?first=131017

 

[Club34]

this is disgusting. i cannot believe disney is doing this. animals completely take over a dwelling with their hair, dander, and smell.

 

[AEfx]

Surely then if the parks and resorts weren't in any position to hold or house dogs, they wouldn't allow service dogs in hotels or parks? They wouldn't have brought in this new policy in the first place. I'm not saying they do have to specify, however someone's arguement was dogs are "animals" and humans are not. Humans are classed as animals. Also, why are you insulting me over a debate? I've caused no personal offence to you, so why react in that way?

Because you are being pedantic. Again. You really aren't impressing us here. I already answered your question, yet here you are spewing it again.

/wave

It was nice meeting you, but given your contributions so far, I'd rather not see my alerts cluttered up with such nonsense.

 

[21stamps]

Hmmm. I wonder if people who might have been planning to bring their dogs right away are hearing the negative reactions, and are thinking twice about it. Either way, if you are in the “no dogs at WDW” camp and you are staying at POR soon, sounds like you should be OK, unless there is an unexpected rush of dog additions from people already booked.

I think it’s most likely due to what’s already common at existing pet friendly hotels-
“Pet Friendly” doesn’t equal “Pets Everywhere”, it might mean 1 on property.. or maybe 3, maybe a couple more, but I’ve never stayed at a hotel where I can say there were “a lot of dogs”. .

There’s people who travel with their dogs, and there’s people who don’t travel with their dogs, and then there’s a group out of the travel with dog segment who don’t want to take their dog to Disney World...but maybe some others out of that segment who now will.
It’s still not a large portion of the general public.

 

[AEfx]

My popcorn is out of butter. Guess Ill have to make a fresh batch if I want to keep watching the childishness displayed in this thread..along with many others. Haha

That's so cute that you are calling everyone else childish while making your own childish post.

At least other people are on the topic; you just posted to make an immature comment.

 

[disnyfan89]

I was thinking about this...
Do people bring their dogs over other people's houses?
With extremely few exceptions, the answer is "no."
Why not?
Well, we know why not.
Hair, smells, possible behavior problems, the possibility of it relieving itself in or around the hosts home, and so on.
For those very reasons hotels used to not allow dogs.

People who like dogs or own dogs do. When I got my golden retriever puppy I had a whole list of people that wanted me to bring him to visit.

Someone such as yourself who doesn't like dogs, probably not. I would never impose my dog on someone or someone's home (or hotel/business for that matter) that doesn't want him there. However, Disney is saying as a host that they are cool with me bringing my dog to their "House" so I now would consider bringing my dog with me.

 

[GoofGoof]

People who like dogs or own dogs do. When I got my golden retriever puppy I had a whole list of people that wanted me to bring him to visit.

Someone such as yourself who doesn't like dogs, probably not. I would never impose my dog on someone or someone's home (or hotel/business for that matter) that doesn't want him there. However, Disney is saying as a host that they are cool with me bringing my dog to their "House" so I now would consider bringing my dog with me.

When I was a kid we always brought my dog over to my grandparent’s house. They always had at least 1 dog of their own and never cared. I agree that I wouldn’t bring my dog to someone’s house unless invited. I also agree that since Disney put this policy in place people with dogs should feel free to bring them. I don’t think the people opposed to this should blame the dog owners, it’s Disney’s policy.

 

[John park hopper]

People who like dogs or own dogs do. When I got my golden retriever puppy I had a whole list of people that wanted me to bring him to visit.

Someone such as yourself who doesn't like dogs, probably not. I would never impose my dog on someone or someone's home (or hotel/business for that matter) that doesn't want him there. However, Disney is saying as a host that they are cool with me bringing my dog to their "House" so I now would consider bringing my dog with me.

Again it boils down to responsible dog owners, I have brought my Golden to other peoples homes but would never dream of allowing her to get on someones furniture or bed. I would hope people who bring their dogs to WDW would have the same rules, however I don't think that will be the case for all. I beleive you can request clean blankets on check in if anyone is concerned dogs may have been sleeping ont the bed

 

[Pixieish]

I'm opposed to this because people are notoriously bad at following rules and making choices. I don't blame pet owners for this policy, as clearly Disney is the one who developed the policy. I hold Disney responsible for the lack of forethought into the rules and implementation of the policy. I adore dogs and used to have one that I could bring *almost* anywhere. The exception was the city or anyplace that was highly developed and had a TON of people...he was too curious for his own good in highly developed areas. That being said, I would never have brought him to Disney World. (Funny though, he was great at work with me, was great around and playful with horses, loved and was great at the beach, etc. etc.)

Here are the problems I foresee...

1. Dogs will be allowed on furniture even though it's against the rules as shown by a previous poster.
2. Dogs will be toileted in inappropriate areas (I'm not talking about accidents - just look at the diapers people leave lying around instead of throwing them out).
3. Dogs will be brought to the parks even though ONLY service animals are allowed there - people will lie to bring them in.
4. There will be accidents in the rooms as people will forget how long they've been away from the room and that their poor dog needs to toilet.
5. Dog/dog problems. Not all dogs get along - there's bound to be at least a few instances of dogs seeing each other in the outdoor pet-friendly areas, and not all of these will be able to end well.
6. Dogs nipping and/or biting a person/child who approaches them too quickly, from a bad angle, etc. etc. I am NOT saying that this is the dog's fault. I hold humans responsible for all the items in this list. In this case, it's both the approacher and owner at fault - owner for bringing a dog who gets stressed under certain circumstances to an enormously loud/busy theme park resort, and approacher for not using common sense when approaching an animal they don't know (in the case of children - parents for not teaching them).
7. I have personally known WAY too many dog-owners who thought their dogs were the best thing since sliced bread, and the ABSOLUTELY WERE NOT. Example 1: My MIL's dog would rip your leg open scratching at you to either be pet or given food, but especially food. She knocked down both of my sons when they were small so she could steal food from them. Example 2: Poodle mix owned by a friend - we were assured said dog was kid-friendly. WRONG - the dog was only friendly with the kids she shared a house with. Example 3: Another friend's dog would consistently and constantly dig in any dirt that wasn't in their own yard. I could go on and on.
8. I have ZERO faith that the majority of dog-owners will think objectively about their pets when it comes to bringing them to a Disney Resort. Humans are, by nature, very self-centered creatures and I'm sure a lot of the decisions made to bring dogs to Disney will be based on how happy it makes the humans involved feel, NOT on how it makes the dogs feel.
9. There are way too many small, high-strung dogs that are purchased as an "accessory" for their owner that will pee simply because they're scared to death of all the noise/people/etc.
10. MANY people who regard their pets as their "children" treat their dogs as if they are more important than other humans - I can see huge issues arising because of this.
11. Dogs will be brought to areas they are not supposed to be in because the owner "didn't know" *sarcasm*.
12. How many of us REALLY think that the front desk CMs are going to remember to ask for proof of vaccinations for every dog? (I ADORE CMs, but they are really busy sometimes, and I think the proof should be provided before check-in so as to not add pressure to an already pressurized job...overly-demanding guests, anyone? I REALLY hope they build into the computer system a cue asking for it for guests checking in with dogs, but I realize that may be expecting a bit much.)

I'm just going to say again that my biggest issue with this policy is NOT the dogs - it is with irresponsible dog-owners and the inability of humans to generally make good choices and behave appropriately.

 

[Incomudro]

I'm opposed to this because people are notoriously bad at following rules and making choices. I don't blame pet owners for this policy, as clearly Disney is the one who developed the policy. I hold Disney responsible for the lack of forethought into the rules and implementation of the policy. I adore dogs and used to have one that I could bring *almost* anywhere. The exception was the city or anyplace that was highly developed and had a TON of people...he was too curious for his own good in highly developed areas. That being said, I would never have brought him to Disney World. (Funny though, he was great at work with me, was great around and playful with horses, loved and was great at the beach, etc. etc.)

Here are the problems I foresee...

1. Dogs will be allowed on furniture even though it's against the rules as shown by a previous poster.
2. Dogs will be toileted in inappropriate areas (I'm not talking about accidents - just look at the diapers people leave lying around instead of throwing them out).
3. Dogs will be brought to the parks even though ONLY service animals are allowed there - people will lie to bring them in.
4. There will be accidents in the rooms as people will forget how long they've been away from the room and that their poor dog needs to toilet.
5. Dog/dog problems. Not all dogs get along - there's bound to be at least a few instances of dogs seeing each other in the outdoor pet-friendly areas, and not all of these will be able to end well.
6. Dogs nipping and/or biting a person/child who approaches them too quickly, from a bad angle, etc. etc. I am NOT saying that this is the dog's fault. I hold humans responsible for all the items in this list. In this case, it's both the approacher and owner at fault - owner for bringing a dog who gets stressed under certain circumstances to an enormously loud/busy theme park resort, and approacher for not using common sense when approaching an animal they don't know (in the case of children - parents for not teaching them).
7. I have personally known WAY too many dog-owners who thought their dogs were the best thing since sliced bread, and the ABSOLUTELY WERE NOT. Example 1: My MIL's dog would rip your leg open scratching at you to either be pet or given food, but especially food. She knocked down both of my sons when they were small so she could steal food from them. Example 2: Poodle mix owned by a friend - we were assured said dog was kid-friendly. WRONG - the dog was only friendly with the kids she shared a house with. Example 3: Another friend's dog would consistently and constantly dig in any dirt that wasn't in their own yard. I could go on and on.
8. I have ZERO faith that the majority of dog-owners with think objectively about their pets when it comes to bringing them to a Disney Resort. Humans are, by nature, very self-centered creatures and I'm sure a lot of the decisions made to bring dogs to Disney will be based on how happy it makes the humans involved feel, NOT on how it makes the dogs feel.
9. There are way too many small, high-strung dogs that are purchased as an "accessory" for their owner that will pee simply because they're scared to death of all the noise/people/etc.
10. MANY people who regard their pets as their "children" treat their dogs as if they are more important than other humans - I can see huge issues arising because of this.
11. Dogs will be brought to areas they are not supposed to be in because the owner "didn't know" *sarcasm*.
12. How many of us REALLY think that the front desk CMs are going to remember to ask for proof of vaccinations for every dog? (I ADORE CMs, but they are really busy sometimes, and I think the proof should be provided before check-in so as to not add pressure to an already pressurized job...overly-demanding guests, anyone? I REALLY hope they build into the computer system a cue asking for it for guests checking in with dogs, but I realize that may be expecting a bit much.)

I'm just going to say again that my biggest issue with this policy is NOT the dogs - it is with irresponsible dog-owners and the inability of humans to generally make good choices and behave appropriately.

Excellent Post.

 

[John park hopper]

I'm opposed to this because people are notoriously bad at following rules and making choices. I don't blame pet owners for this policy, as clearly Disney is the one who developed the policy. I hold Disney responsible for the lack of forethought into the rules and implementation of the policy. I adore dogs and used to have one that I could bring *almost* anywhere. The exception was the city or anyplace that was highly developed and had a TON of people...he was too curious for his own good in highly developed areas. That being said, I would never have brought him to Disney World. (Funny though, he was great at work with me, was great around and playful with horses, loved and was great at the beach, etc. etc.)

Here are the problems I foresee...

1. Dogs will be allowed on furniture even though it's against the rules as shown by a previous poster.
2. Dogs will be toileted in inappropriate areas (I'm not talking about accidents - just look at the diapers people leave lying around instead of throwing them out).
3. Dogs will be brought to the parks even though ONLY service animals are allowed there - people will lie to bring them in.
4. There will be accidents in the rooms as people will forget how long they've been away from the room and that their poor dog needs to toilet.
5. Dog/dog problems. Not all dogs get along - there's bound to be at least a few instances of dogs seeing each other in the outdoor pet-friendly areas, and not all of these will be able to end well.
6. Dogs nipping and/or biting a person/child who approaches them too quickly, from a bad angle, etc. etc. I am NOT saying that this is the dog's fault. I hold humans responsible for all the items in this list. In this case, it's both the approacher and owner at fault - owner for bringing a dog who gets stressed under certain circumstances to an enormously loud/busy theme park resort, and approacher for not using common sense when approaching an animal they don't know (in the case of children - parents for not teaching them).
7. I have personally known WAY too many dog-owners who thought their dogs were the best thing since sliced bread, and the ABSOLUTELY WERE NOT. Example 1: My MIL's dog would rip your leg open scratching at you to either be pet or given food, but especially food. She knocked down both of my sons when they were small so she could steal food from them. Example 2: Poodle mix owned by a friend - we were assured said dog was kid-friendly. WRONG - the dog was only friendly with the kids she shared a house with. Example 3: Another friend's dog would consistently and constantly dig in any dirt that wasn't in their own yard. I could go on and on.
8. I have ZERO faith that the majority of dog-owners with think objectively about their pets when it comes to bringing them to a Disney Resort. Humans are, by nature, very self-centered creatures and I'm sure a lot of the decisions made to bring dogs to Disney will be based on how happy it makes the humans involved feel, NOT on how it makes the dogs feel.
9. There are way too many small, high-strung dogs that are purchased as an "accessory" for their owner that will pee simply because they're scared to death of all the noise/people/etc.
10. MANY people who regard their pets as their "children" treat their dogs as if they are more important than other humans - I can see huge issues arising because of this.
11. Dogs will be brought to areas they are not supposed to be in because the owner "didn't know" *sarcasm*.
12. How many of us REALLY think that the front desk CMs are going to remember to ask for proof of vaccinations for every dog? (I ADORE CMs, but they are really busy sometimes, and I think the proof should be provided before check-in so as to not add pressure to an already pressurized job...overly-demanding guests, anyone? I REALLY hope they build into the computer system a cue asking for it for guests checking in with dogs, but I realize that may be expecting a bit much.)

I'm just going to say again that my biggest issue with this policy is NOT the dogs - it is with irresponsible dog-owners and the inability of humans to generally make good choices and behave appropriately.

You have concisely stated valid concerns of dog owners and non owners in a 1/2 page what has been covered in 88 pages

 

[ford91exploder]

Except your basis for the claim is a TV show that is about individuals who have difficulty training their pet which as a source is biased as often these style of shows involve scripting and harsh editing to make things more dramatic and theatrical to entice viewership. I'm sure the dogs on that show are hardly an accurate representation of the 78 million dogs that can be found in 44% of the homes in America.

That's like saying most parents can't raise their kids and have little to no control over their kids based on watching a show like "Supernanny" and should not be allowed to parent a child without proper training.

Based on your logic I should expect to be attacked by a misbehaving child as much as I should a dog when using Reality TV as a sample spread of the average American Household.

DW is a teacher and she has been attacked by kids in her Kindergarten class more than once she's come home with cuts and bruises and bites more than once, thank the gods for 'incident reports'

Most dogs are better behaved even when they jump up on you to lick your face.

 

[ford91exploder]

I've been handling police dogs for fourteen years. We always try to use rewards over compliance....however, sometimes a good lead-pop works wonders.

Treats and negative reinforcement both are needed with dogs even for the best behaved ones

 

[John park hopper]

DW is a teacher and she has been attacked by kids in her Kindergarten class more than once she's come home with cuts and bruises and bites more than once, thank the gods for 'incident reports'

Most dogs are better behaved even when they jump up on you to lick your face.

Sad commentary on the state of parenting in this country, thugs in the making