Castle Dream Lights Inexplicably Ended 12/31/10?

[T-1MILLION]

Did the studios advertise no Christmas music and then play it? Then after you were offended did you complain to guest services only to not even get someone who could pretend to care for the sake of kindness and it being their job? Of course not, so that comparison and attempt at sarcasm is not all that appropriate.



Its funny because people want to bash writing letters, yet if they were not so loyal and wrote more letters rather than silly moaning on the fansites the company would eventually listen in certain regards.

 

[wm49rs]

Did the studios advertise no Christmas music and then play it? Then after you were offended did you complain to guest services only to not even get someone who could pretend to care for the sake of kindness and it being their job? Of course not, so that comparison and attempt at sarcasm is not all that appropriate.



Its funny because people want to bash writing letters, yet if they were not so loyal and wrote more letters rather than silly moaning on the fansites the company would eventually listen in certain regards.

It's about as appropriate as any other drivel written around here......

 

[T-1MILLION]

It's about as appropriate as any other drivel written around here......

There are lots of good points here, but the fan loyalty goes a little too much when we start mocking concerned people with posts that ask for nothing if anyone has any explanations.

 

[wm49rs]

There are lots of good points here, but the fan loyalty goes a little too much when we start mocking concerned people with posts that ask for nothing if anyone has any explanations.

Or if we start over-analyzing posts looking for mockery....

Everyone's entitled to react how they will, within reason.

 

[T-1MILLION]

Or if we start over-analyzing posts looking for mockery....

Everyone's entitled to react how they will, within reason.

Sadly not.

 

[ToTBellHop]

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but I think some of you are overly trivializing what happened. I think there were several major issues with guest service that occurred, and Disney prides itself with having the best guest service anywhere. Therefore, they need to be alerted of this. I expect the lights not being shown on 1/2/11 was an oversight--the folks who schedule entertainment at the MK are not the same folks who write property-wide press releases. But that does not make it okay. They may not even be aware that they made this mistake, but I want them aware so that it hopefully does not happen again. And they CLEARLY need to know if they have a Cast Member who exhibits poor customer service. I wouldn't be as offended if it were a janitor treating me like this, but I took the time to go all the way to Guest Relations (when I would have rather been on rides). You have a right to expect good service if you go to Guest Relations. That is their job. Sitting around and letting Disney get sloppy is part of the reason we see so many complaints about burned out neon, chipped paint, etc. on these boards. If we alert Disney of their avoidable mistakes (not something absurd like "it rained a lot and I believe Florida is marketed as the Sunshine State." Please have enough respect to not make me out to be an idiot with absurd examples that you think are similar; they are not), we are ensuring a better experience in the future. Apathy gets nothing done.

And to those of you who have read more than a few of my posts here over the last 9 years, I am not usually one to complain about minor issues, so clearly I feel pretty strongly about this.

 

[wm49rs]

Sadly not.

Well, if you dislike mockery, that's what the little "Report Post" icon is for. Tattle away.....

 

[the-reason14]

It is not just about the misadvertising. See post above your last one.

Also, your comparison of a company advertising an attraction element to an 'act of God' is very different.

Exactly, and if you find no fault in it and don't feel you wasted time and money attempting to see a ride before it closed for refurbishment or a specific seasonal entertainment offering than that's your issue. You can go around walking in the rain trying to convince others the sky is still blue and the sun is shining. I'll be in guest relations getting fastpasses or free tickets.

 

[DisneyParksFan]

To the OP:
I'm curious as to how the Guest Relations CM acted rudely towards you? From your post, it appears as if he was passing on information that he had available and then went on to explain other offerings resort-wide that pertained to the holidays. I feel that his response aligns with your inquiry of if the castle lights were on.

As far as the press release is concerned, while Disney might had once released an article with a date on it, that said article's information could be changed anytime after publication without having to release an entirely new press release.

As far as I was concerned, the lights on the castle was scheduled to end 1/1/2011. I think that press release had outdated information. So as far as being compensated for the lack of one specific park offering, I'm not sure if I would justify it considering that the information you were going by was from an article released a couple months ago. Since it appears your vacation was planned around seeing the lights, that really is unfortunate that you were unable to view them. But, on the other hand, I feel that since you were devoted to seeing the lights on your vacation, you would have inquired again about them prior to arriving or at least prior to the time you assumed the lights would be turned on.
It's a tough call since you were under the assumption an event would occur. On that note, I would have offered compensation for something. Probably fastpasses.

 

[Buried20KLeague]

yes, that is correct... I sit by computer pressing F5 over and over and over and over and over and over again until someone responds right after my post... good one

Doesn't seem like too far a stretch for someone with 450 posts in 7 months.

And as I said, you did it to reply to my second post...

:shrug:

ETA: Don't know what F5 does. Sounds like maybe a cool trick I should know. Care to share with the class?

 

[ToTBellHop]

To the OP:
I'm curious as to how the Guest Relations CM acted rudely towards you? From your post, it appears as if he was passing on information that he had available and then went on to explain other offerings resort-wide that pertained to the holidays. I feel that his response aligns with your inquiry of if the castle lights were on.

As far as the press release is concerned, while Disney might had once released an article with a date on it, that said article's information could be changed anytime after publication without having to release an entirely new press release.

As far as I was concerned, the lights on the castle was scheduled to end 1/1/2011. I think that press release had outdated information. So as far as being compensated for the lack of one specific park offering, I'm not sure if I would justify it considering that the information you were going by was from an article released a couple months ago. Since it appears your vacation was planned around seeing the lights, that really is unfortunate that you were unable to view them. But, on the other hand, I feel that since you were devoted to seeing the lights on your vacation, you would have inquired again about them prior to arriving or at least prior to the time you assumed the lights would be turned on.
It's a tough call since you were under the assumption an event would occur. On that note, I would have offered compensation for something. Probably fastpasses.

Lecturing me on what is and is not posted online is rude. I don't think it is ever appropriate for a Disney Cast Member to tell a guest that they are wrong in their vacation research, especially when it turns out I was right, and they were marketing the end date as 1/3/11. Of course I cannot show you the image now, but back in December, on disneyworld.com they were displaying a banner that even listed the Dream Lights available thru 1/3. So, based upon the information that a future guest living 1000 miles away has reasonable access to, I planned my vacation. I do not think it is then my job to call some mythical person at Disney who can verify with me whether information on official Disney websites is still accurate. It's not my job to maintain accuracy of their websites, even if I knew who to call for this information.

Let me give you an example of a similar situation. I am a professor and my students pay money to receive a service from me (like me paying twice as much per night to stay in a hotel to view something Disney is marketing). My students then have a reasonable expectation that I will fulfill the duties I "market" in my syllabus. That is the official way that I communicate my policies to my students, much like a press release. If I decide to change a policy during the semester, it is my duty to communicate the change to my students--it is not their job to check with me to make sure what I said in September still applies. If I then make a mistake (an honest mistake) and break one of the promises in my syllabus (like asking an unfair question on something the syllabus says they are not responsible for), it is my job to find a reasonable way to compensate them (typically by adding a few bonus points). This lets my students know that I understand their reason for being upset, I accept that I made a mistake, and I want to do something to retain their trust. If I were to basically blow off my students, say they should have checked with me the night before the exam to make sure exam material was still what I told them it was, and tell them their grade stays the same, I'm sure they would go to the Dean, and I would find myself in trouble. If I continued to behave like that, I would soon be unemployed.

When someone makes a mistake, it is reasonable to accept that it was just an honest mistake. But it is not reasonable to expect for there to be no repercussions. If I mess up at my job, I am going to hear about it from my boss. In the same way, if Disney messes up, and they did, I think it is reasonable for me to tell them about it.

 

[DisneyParksFan]

^ By no means am I disagreeing with you, merely just sharing a potential reason as to why the lights where not on.
As far as expectations go with attractions and shows, you're paying to enter a theme park and what happens to be operational that day. Not necessarily for a particular experience (attraction, show, dining option...). But if they had advertised the lights would be on, I would expect them to be on. And if they weren't, an explanation as to why. If that CM did act rudely towards to, that's sad to hear.

I was even at MK the night of January 2 and noticed that the castle lights weren't on. I wished I had inquired about them that night.

 

[heathermn]

. And they CLEARLY need to know if they have a Cast Member who exhibits poor customer service. I wouldn't be as offended if it were a janitor treating me like this, but I took the time to go all the way to Guest Relations (when I would have rather been on rides). You have a right to expect good service if you go to Guest Relations. That is their job. .

When the Guest Relations Mgr. called me in response to my letter he said they typically put there BEST at the Guest Relations in the MK. He said my issue with the DDP should of been forward to a Mgr or refered to the resorts guest relations.

 

[llrain]

ok, so then if they have no legal right to cancel or close something without notice to avoid guests from crying for compensation then why would they even bother to spend the ink on the card to read you a disclaimer that they are forwaring you that if necessary for ANY reason the could close something....Why would they bother?
To cover their ______ from guests trying to get some compensation, this covers them period...
THis friggin guy wont get diddley cause lights were on during a time he was at the park...gimme a friggin break

thats like saying, I booked Narcossis SPECIFICALLY because they had Mahi Mahi on the Menu, I called to make sure they serve it and they confirmed. ....Now my dinner time comes and when i order they tell me they do not have any more Mahi Mahi today. Am I supposed to demand from them to comp my whole bill cause your menu says you have something you arent serving...

this is ridiculous you people think he should be compensated because of some stinkin LED lights.....Im sure he went to WDW SPECFICALLY to see these lights too..

Okay, if we're talking about "objective facts" their disclaimers on room keys, tickets, or on wherever else they have said disclaimers printed do not necessarily give them legal rights. I realize you can't be troubled with reading anything besides your own posts (and apparently those that agree with your position), but as I stated before, disclaimers carry very little force.

 

[Sir Goofy]

It is not just about the misadvertising. See post above your last one.

Also, your comparison of a company advertising an attraction element to an 'act of God' is very different.

Im sure I will get attacked for this post as well- whatever-

If the main purpose of my upcoming trip was to see the castle dream lights, I might consider calling before I book to confirm the dates and program. Sure, the press release said 1/3 (and as we have all learned, disclaimers made by Disney are not valid nor enforceable) but if thats the main purpose of the trip, why not call to confirm? IT appears from a CM on here, some were aware that 1/1 was the final date, and calling ahead may have prevented the issue...

I just got off the phone with member services to confirm my ADR's and Illuminations boat cruise for next week- it took 5 minutes, and I was ble to catch 2 errors in their system- pretty painless...

 

[jDoor]

I can tell you that cast knew that the last day was the 1st since November 2nd.. If you didn't check the schedules again as your trip was closer.. That is your own fault..


Schedules are altered all the time.

 

[unkadug]

I can tell you that cast knew that the last day was the 1st since November 2nd.. If you didn't check the schedules again as your trip was closer.. That is your own fault..


Schedules are altered all the time.

Cast members are wrong a lot of times also.
And, it was CLEARLY stated that they would run through the 3rd.
http://www.wdwnews.com/ViewPressRelease.aspx?PressReleaseID=115273

Castle Dream Lights – When daylight has passed during the holiday season, Magic Kingdom guests can behold a breathtaking transformation during the Castle Dream Lights ceremony. Each evening Nov. 8, 2010, through Jan. 3, 2011, Cinderella and favorite characters decked out in holiday garb take to the stage and magically transform Cinderella Castle into an ice palace aglow with 200,000 white lights – a perfect centerpiece to a park all decked out with wreaths, bows, garland and towering Christmas trees.

Sounds like false advertising to me.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

I can tell you that cast knew that the last day was the 1st since November 2nd.. If you didn't check the schedules again as your trip was closer.. That is your own fault..


Schedules are altered all the time.

If that were true then why did every CM the OP ask about the lights respond with the question "They aren't on?". Also, if that were true why did a Guest Relations CM not know the answer to the question THEN give the OP an answer with innaccurate information? :shrug:

 

[llrain]

This is like the How do I get to Point B from where I am..
you will always get a different answer....not everyone knows everything

If that were true then why did every CM the OP ask about the lights respond with the question "They aren't on?". Also, if that were true why did a Guest Relations CM not know the answer to the question THEN give the OP an answer with innaccurate information? :shrug:

 

[sweetpee_1993]

This is like the How do I get to Point B from where I am..
you will always get a different answer....not everyone knows everything

My point exactly. If all the cast doesn't know & they work there then why would people here question why a guest who already had an ending date from Disney not know? That makes no sense to me.