Positive Experiences with Guest Services?

[jrogue]

Has anyone ever made a complaint, compliment, or comment to guest services and had a great turnout from it (either via e-mail, snail mail, or in person?)

For example, I complimented a couple of Cast Members at City Hall in the Magic Kingdom and got a free super FastPass from it! That was very nice of them, and they were very helpful and ensured that the proper people (whoever that may be!) would hear about the compliments I was giving the Cast Members.

 

[Cowboy Steve]

First: a positive experience! On our last trip to WDW we stayed at CS. One evening we were catching a late QS meal at the food court and I had gotten one of the single serving pizzas. There wasn't many pizza choices available (it was a grab-and-go item, not a made from scratch while you wait), so I took a pretty pathetic looking pizza - the only one in the warmer. Didn't really care at the time because I was just plain hungry! Many of the details of what happened next escape me now, but the gist of it was a CM in a shirt and tie was wandering around the seating at the food court chatting with guests and stopped by our table to see how things were going. I told him I was less than inspired by the quality of the pizza (I had just sat down). He took one look at it, agreed with me, and immediately went and requested a fresh made pizza. I told him that wasn't necessary and it wasn't that big of a deal... that I worked in the safety department of an amusement park, and totally understood stuff couldn't be perfect every time. He disagreed... lol. Turns out he was the supervising manager of the food court. We ended up chatting for almost an hour. Our conversations varied, but he was genuinely interested in my thoughts / opinions / impressions of not only the food court, but the resort in general. That wasn't the only thing we talked about, but it was a big part of it. I really appreciated his time! He said the best part of being in his position was the interactions with the guests... and constantly looking for ways to improve his part of the resort. You could tell he enjoyed his job. It was a good fit!

 

[Cowboy Steve]

I was going to share a less than positive experience... but that would not be in the spirit of the thread! And besides, it wasn't really a Disney issue as it was at a restaurant that wasn't run or managed by Disney proper. Kouzzina by Cat Cora. Made more sense after I realized it was a vendor renting building space on the Boardwalk lol

 

[jrogue]

First: a positive experience! On our last trip to WDW we stayed at CS. One evening we were catching a late QS meal at the food court and I had gotten one of the single serving pizzas. There wasn't many pizza choices available (it was a grab-and-go item, not a made from scratch while you wait), so I took a pretty pathetic looking pizza - the only one in the warmer. Didn't really care at the time because I was just plain hungry! Many of the details of what happened next escape me now, but the gist of it was a CM in a shirt and tie was wandering around the seating at the food court chatting with guests and stopped by our table to see how things were going. I told him I was less than inspired by the quality of the pizza (I had just sat down). He took one look at it, agreed with me, and immediately went and requested a fresh made pizza. I told him that wasn't necessary and it wasn't that big of a deal... that I worked in the safety department of an amusement park, and totally understood stuff couldn't be perfect every time. He disagreed... lol. Turns out he was the supervising manager of the food court. We ended up chatting for almost an hour. Our conversations varied, but he was genuinely interested in my thoughts / opinions / impressions of not only the food court, but the resort in general. That wasn't the only thing we talked about, but it was a big part of it. I really appreciated his time! He said the best part of being in his position was the interactions with the guests... and constantly looking for ways to improve his part of the resort. You could tell he enjoyed his job. It was a good fit!

That is awesome!! It's really that little bit of extra magic that helps make someones night! When I used to be a cast member at a Disney Store I used to get so bummed that the managers wouldn't like it if we spoke to guests for too long. So many of our guests had so many interesting things to say and all I wanted to do was talk to them! I'm glad you had such a nice experience! (AND a fresh pizza!! haha)

 

[Punky]

I have a few. The first time I took my daughter to Disney (2011), my mom and I were talking to a cast member at Hollywood Studio while waiting for a parade (not sure what it was) to start. I guess he liked us so he got us VIP seating for Fantasmic which was really nice and unexpected.

During her second (2013) visit we were having issues with our key card. We went to guest services and the cast member issued us new cards, but my daughter was crying because she was too small to get on TOT. The cast member asked that we wait for a second. We waited and she came back with a plush Minnie for my daughter. Again really nice and unexpected. Also during that trip because we had soooo many issues with our key card, we had to have our reservations rebooked and were given additional table service credits and reusable mugs. Oh... and I had an enjoyable conversation with a bus diver.

Last but not least... Our last visit we had an issue with our TV. The maintenance guy and I had a really nice conversation about life, working for Disney...etc. He was really professional and prompt.

Of course there are more, but I can honestly say I've never really had an issue at Disney (except 1, but that's for another thread).

 

[jrogue]

I have a few. The first time I took my daughter to Disney (2011), my mom and I were talking to a cast member at Hollywood Studio while waiting for a parade (not sure what it was) to start. I guess he liked us so he got us VIP seating for Fantasmic which was really nice and unexpected.

During her second (2013) visit we were having issues with our key card. We went to guest services and the cast member issued us new cards, but my daughter was crying because she was too small to get on TOT. The cast member asked that we wait for a second. We waited and she came back with a plush Minnie for my daughter. Again really nice and unexpected. Also during that trip because we had soooo many issues with our key card, we had to have our reservations rebooked and were given additional table service credits and reusable mugs. Oh... and I had an enjoyable conversation with a bus diver.

Last but not least... Our last visit we had an issue with our TV. The maintenance guy and I had a really nice conversation about life, working for Disney...etc. He was really professional and prompt.

Of course there are more, but I can honestly say I've never really had an issue at Disney (except 1, but that's for another thread).

That's amazing!! It sounds like you have definitely had very good luck with cast members! I'm glad they were able to make extra magic for you guys!

 

[rob0519]

In the parks, not really, but I've not had much reason to complain in the parks. However, once years ago at the CR, their guest laundry was in horrible shape. The dryer simply did not dry. None of them worked. I called the front desk around Midnight and asked the location of the nearest coin op laundry I could use in the morning. I was told someone would call me back. About 20 minutes later a woman called and identified herself as the night manager. I explained my situation and she said she would send up as many laundry bags as I needed and she would have our clothes dry cleaned at no charge. I was skeptical, but put half of the clothes I wanted cleaned in the bags and placed them outside our rooms. Sure enough late the next afternoon all the clothes were delivered back , dry cleaned and on hangers, even underwear and socks. I sent the GM of the Contemporary a nice note thanking him for his outstanding staff. The following day I asked the concierge why go to such an expensive length and she said resort managers will do everything they can to keep a guest from leaving the property whenever they can.

 

[jrogue]

In the parks, not really, but I've not had much reason to complain in the parks. However, once years ago at the CR, their guest laundry was in horrible shape. The dryer simply did not dry. None of them worked. I called the front desk around Midnight and asked the location of the nearest coin op laundry I could use in the morning. I was told someone would call me back. About 20 minutes later a woman called and identified herself as the night manager. I explained my situation and she said she would send up as many laundry bags as I needed and she would have our clothes dry cleaned at no charge. I was skeptical, but put half of the clothes I wanted cleaned in the bags and placed them outside our rooms. Sure enough late the next afternoon all the clothes were delivered back , dry cleaned and on hangers, even underwear and socks. I sent the GM of the Contemporary a nice note thanking him for his outstanding staff. The following day I asked the concierge why go to such an expensive length and she said resort managers will do everything they can to keep a guest from leaving the property whenever they can.

That's really awesome! And good to hear they went so far to help you. I would have been a little skeptical as well and worried that my stuff wouldn't make it back to me either in time or at all. It makes sense that they are trying to keep us on property. Helps the idea of the whole packaged vacation!

 

[olie64]

Well it's in another thread but I will give a quick run down here. My wife and I are expecting and we wanted to do a gender reveal at Disney. We ask the front desk for some ideas, my wife had a bunch already but thought we ask, anyway as the night manager did way more than I wouldn't expect. She made a sign that was really cute got us a fast pass to meet Mickey to get picture with said sign. But the coolest part I though as when we got back to the room one day the made sign and a tiny Minnie with the blanket thing was waiting on us. It was a little gesture but I was really impressed.
Also all the cm when they saw our congratulation button were awesome asking about the name. The characters where awesome to. We had made out own small sign saying it was a girl and hand ears made with her name on it but it was a really neat experience all the way around. This was just last week that we were there.

 

[Darth Figment]

Heres a positive ... i booked a trip we had a day before we werw supposed to leave and used up our passes. We got an extra day for 12$ a person ... so does that mean i can book a trip for a week .. pay for 1 day park pass for 100$ a person, then go get extra days for 12$ instead for 100 something $ aday ? Hmmmm

 

[Cowboy Steve]

Heres a positive ... i booked a trip we had a day before we werw supposed to leave and used up our passes. We got an extra day for 12$ a person ... so does that mean i can book a trip for a week .. pay for 1 day park pass for 100$ a person, then go get extra days for 12$ instead for 100 something $ aday ? Hmmmm

I'm thinking it doesn't work like that... lol. I was surprised to see it was only an extra $10 to go from a 6 day to a 7 day ticket for our trip coming up in Dec. I think that pricing only kicks in if you have a minimum number of days at the regular price... probably min of 4 or 5 days.

 

[projectorguy1]

I think I can trump all of these...with a special gesture by a very kind guest services employee...

My wife recently lost her oldest son - he was only 24, and it was sudden, and a shock. As you might imagine, the whole ordeal was a blur for the both of us, and MANY people were, and still are, devastated. She was in such a terrible state, that I truly feared for her immediate well being. I was able to convince her to take a leave of absence from her work, and at the last second, booked us on a cruise out of Miami. My motivation was to just get her away for a week or so, just as a change of surroundings, and some peace. As it turned out, the trip did a lot towards those ends, but things have been, and continue to be EXTREMELY difficult.

We spent a couple nights at the Disney Swan hotel prior to the cruise, just to lengthen the getaway a bit, and to enjoy the Disney World area...particularly the Boardwalk area. My wife felt very weak, and one afternoon, after walking over to Hollywood Studios - Just to see the view without the big hat through the gates, she felt like taking the resort boat back, versus walking. I am assuming they had a problem with one of the boats, because there was a REALLY long wait....maybe 45 minutes. Normally, we would just walk back, but she was really not feeling up to it. I called guest services to see what was going on, and to get an idea when another boat was coming. In the process, I explained that we hadn't been in the park, and our trip in general....The gentleman asked how long we'd been there, etc.

When he heard out what happened with my wife, he asked me a few questions about what shed like for dinner, when, etc.

He went on to book us for dinner at Tutto Italia restaurant at Epcot, arrange for two one-day passes to Epcot (we didn't have park passes for this trip), and gave us a $100 gift card to pay for dinner!! We were able to stay the rest of the evening at Epcot, and see Illuminations...

When I told my wife, Patti, what he was doing for us, she burst into tears...as did I (we had been doing quite a bit of crying that day, but this was a better kind of crying - the crying you do when you see someone do a very thoughtful act of kindness).

The person who did this wonderful, unexpected thing related to us that he had just that week, lost someone very close to him, and understood, at least a little, how my wife felt. What a wonderful gesture - One neither of us will ever forget!

My wife doesn't have the experience I do with Disney (I've been many times...her only once before); I told her that this kind of thing is what makes WDW such a magical place...for me anyway..

I'd like to say that that REALLY SPECIAL gesture took away our pain, but you know it can't, and shouldn't...But it certainly gave us a few hours of distraction, with a little (maybe more than a little) pixie dust thrown in...

I will never forget this kindness, or a company that encourages employees to make such special moments happen...

Thank you Disney!

 

[jrogue]

Want to bump this thread I made years back in case anyone has any more new great stories to share

 

[eliza61nyc]

I've never had less than stellar customer service at the world but generally I don't expect perfection when I travel so I do let a lot of stuff roll off my back.

but once staying at the Boardwalk my balcony was filled with old cigarettes butts. I was more mad at the entitled guest who felt they didn't have to follow the rules. the only reason I was concerned because my niece and I have severe allergies. anyway, went down to the front desk and I swear before I even got back to the room the manager of mousekeeping was there to check out the situation. He did ask if we were going to the parks because evidently the pressure washer he wanted to use was noisy and he had other options if we were not leaving. we assured him we were headed out and they must have pressure washed the heck outta the balcony because we came back and every thing was uber cleaned.

Next was a less then stellar steak at Le Cellier. now I grew up in my family's restaurant so I know that anyone can have a bad meal. I told the waiter the problem, they gave me another steak and threw in a free dessert for everyone for the wait. Can't argue with that.

 

[durangojim]

Yes. I can't go into details but I sent a snail mail about an issue many years ago. It was followed up by Disney calling me a couple of times and then resulted in a free trip for my wife and I and VIP status at a couple of the resorts for the past 10 years.

 

[larryz]

Probably the most positive thing I can say is that I can't recall ever having to go to Guest Services with an issue. And not having to fix any problems is, itself, a positive experience with Guest Services.

 

[jrogue]

Probably the most positive thing I can say is that I can't recall ever having to go to Guest Services with an issue. And not having to fix any problems is, itself, a positive experience with Guest Services.

LOL can't argue with that

 

[jrogue]

Yes. I can't go into details but I sent a snail mail about an issue many years ago. It was followed up by Disney calling me a couple of times and then resulted in a free trip for my wife and I and VIP status at a couple of the resorts for the past 10 years.

That's really awesome!

 

[sy278]

Had a few good experiences, My son and I were waiting to board BTMRR and were at the air gates for the front row and we got chatting to the dispatcher. Nothing in particular just friendly chat and he rewarded us with 4 super FPs. Later on the same trip we had FPs for all 4 of us in our group for Peter Pans Flight, as my 2.5yr old daughter really wanted to do it. Unfortunately the Florida heat got the better of her and she fell fast asleep less than 10mins before the FP window opened. We tried to wake her but couldn't, so we hovered around PPF for a bit to see if she would waken and a CM realised what had happened and came over and gave us Return FPs for later in the day.

 

[jloucks]

For example, I complimented a couple of Cast Members at City Hall in the Magic Kingdom and got a free super FastPass from it! That was very nice of them, and they were very helpful and ensured that the proper people (whoever that may be!) would hear about the compliments I was giving the Cast Members.

Encouraging positive behavior? Nice! Society needs more of this!

...I don't have any stories either way. I dealt with a really bad cast member once, but I assumed they were just having a bad day and didn't complain about it.

Correction: I have a slight example. My family was hand selected at random(?) by as cast member to beta test the near finished Brave garden area before it was open to the public. We (and 2 other families) got to watch them work/learn the three small bears and of course meed Merdia, shoot at targets, etc. It was a very calm intimate experience. The kids got lots and lots of Merida time (like 15-20 minutes). The actress was really good at keeping the kids totally enthralled and immersed.

I gushed thanks to the staff for selective us. Nothing came of it, but that's ok. We received plenty.

Oh, see, now you got me thinking. My son was also secretly selected to pull the sword from the stone. He was super thrilled. I never did see who had the remote, so I couldn't thank anybody immediately.