"Rapid Fill" Mugs Coming to Walt Disney World Hotels

ddrongowski

ddrongowski

Well-Known Member
scout68 said:
Among all the the new "news" circulating lately expansions, parades, night time shows it's really nice and refreshing to get back to the really important and gripping stuff.

reading another refill thread is like turning the ac down to 65, sipping an afternoon hot toddy, and skimming over.......


...wiring specs for my fridge :p

Yours truly,
A LIFETIME DIXIE LANDINGS MUG OWNER!!!!
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Now that is fun, but it should only take about 5 to 10 minutes to understand it all. Really. Wiring specs are simple.
 
WDW1974

WDW1974

Well-Known Member
flynnibus said:
see what happens when businesses try to sluff off work to the customer.... 'oh here, you fill the drink order!!'

Eventually unintended consequences catch up to them. Now they have to spend millions to retrofit a technology onto a 50 year old proven concept to keep people from abusing it.

Imagine how simple and cheap it would be if getting a refill meant handing the cup to a CM behind a drink counter. No abuse there...
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I'd argue that the whole concept of mugs was flawed to start. It was fine when they only existed at FW and the new CBR (those were the first two ... to give folks some mug history). But when Disney expanded and started opening new resorts, deluxe resorts ... damn, those things just trashed carpetinng in rooms, halls and lobbys because there's nothing so cute as 3-year-old Briana trying to open her Minnie purse with one hand while sloshing Hi-C fruit punch around in the other.

Like many things at Disney, no one simply thought of anything down the line ...
 
ddrongowski

ddrongowski

Well-Known Member
lebeau said:
True story: On out honeymoon my wife got dehydrated at Hollywood Studios. She had consumed nothing by Coke on a hot day.
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I found this on the internet... so it must be true:).

Fact: Carbonated water can lead to dehydration if ingredients are added such as caffeine or sodium. These ingredients have a diuretic effect, which cause the body to rid itself of water. This in turn causes dehydration when adequate amounts of water are not restored
 
WDW1974

WDW1974

Well-Known Member
Fractal514 said:
If I were Disney I would take this approach. We realize that the current policy is not what you understood it to be when you purchased this mug. Therefore we will issue you and refund for your purchase price in exchange for the mug. This is the only way we can accomodate you. Have a magical day.

So then you can just buy back the old mugs and be done with it, or, the mug owners can get over it and realize that they got a great value out of it already. Either way Disney would win with this aproach, even if it cost them a bit to buy back the old mugs.
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hey, here's a thought: why don't they focus on the myriad of REAL substantial issues they are having at WDW instead of focusing on something that amounts to pulling wings off of flies?
 
lebeau

lebeau

Well-Known Member
ddbowdoin said:
I just ask for a cup of ice tap water... doesn't taste good but it is offered as a free service and is good for you.
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To continue with my true story: When my wife indicated she wasn't feeling well, I asked her if she had consumed anything other than Coke. She thought about it and answered that she had not. I sat her on a bench and walked to the nearest concession stand. I asked for tap water and was told they didn't have any. They offered to sell me bottled water which I declined. I walked to the next concession stand and got ice water.

Almost 10 years later, my wife is still annoyed I didn't buy the bottled water at the first stand. A lesson for any newlyweds out there.
 
WDW1974

WDW1974

Well-Known Member
Figments Friend said:
True.
I happily re-used several of my old-school 'fat mugs' over numerous visits without shame as i knew they were sold to me when the policy was :

'unlimited refills for your stay, and any future visits'.

There was actually signage that said this as well, posted in the Food Courts at that time.
It was one of the major marketing quotes that motivated you to want to buy a mug...and i did for that very reason.
I visited often every year and it would be something that i could use.

Never had a issue bringing it back over the years...actually had people comment on how nice the old mugs were.
i definately got my $11.99's worth out of those 2001 'fatties'....

:)
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I got my money's worth on my mugs back in the 90s. It isn't a question of that at all. It's forcing a company to stand up to its word and to make policies clear and visible and not backtrack over a decade later because they simply want to make more money. I will never buy another WDW mug again ... unless they somehow come out with some incredible design for one of my favorite resorts and we know that ain't happening.
 
WDW1974

WDW1974

Well-Known Member
The Mom said:
I also remember that they were touted as "good forever" way back when. But that was in the day when all of the resort hotels had a full service restaurant or two, not just a food court.
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Not CBR at the very start ... since it opened as a value resort it didn't have full serve. They carved one out from the food court 3-4 years later.

For me, this whole thing boils down to loyalty ... much like being a Charter APer ... I have been a whale to Disney over the years, discounts or not, DVC owner or not. I don't even want to begin to think what I have spent just in Orlando, not all my overseas jaunts or years when I was also a DLR local etc. If free soft drinks are too much for them, then I'll take my business elsewhere.
 
WDW1974

WDW1974

Well-Known Member
The Mom said:
I think it is more along the line as something that was promised, through signage and advertising, as a benefit to entice you to use a service.

I bought a car in the past at a dealership that used to provide a free loaner when your car was being worked on. Now they get you a rental at a reduced rate. I wasn't "stealing" the service while using it, but would be stealing it now if I just took a car anyway, because I was accustomed to getting one free while my car was being serviced.

That doesn't mean that I didn't tell them that I disliked the "new" policy. As many are doing here. But I would not try to circumvent it, even if I could.
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You need to join me and live on the wild side a bit. ... You'll like it!:D
 
Wilt Dasney

Wilt Dasney

Well-Known Member
This is based on absolutely nothing but my own speculation, and a little insight into how companies typically choose the path of least resistance with really persistent, irate customers: I'm guessing if somebody walked in with a chipped and fading old mug and swore adamantly enough that some Dixie Landings manager said in 1994 that they were good for life, they'd probably just give them a free RFID mug for that visit. And then just do the same every time they bring that mug back and make enough noise. (They might make a token attempt to have you give them the old mug, but you could probably talk them out of that too.)
 
ScoutN

ScoutN

OV 104
Premium Member
The Mom said:
I think it is more along the line as something that was promised, through signage and advertising, as a benefit to entice you to use a service.

I bought a car in the past at a dealership that used to provide a free loaner when your car was being worked on. Now they get you a rental at a reduced rate. I wasn't "stealing" the service while using it, but would be stealing it now if I just took a car anyway, because I was accustomed to getting one free while my car was being serviced.

That doesn't mean that I didn't tell them that I disliked the "new" policy. As many are doing here. But I would not try to circumvent it, even if I could.
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The dealer we go to is much more stand up that that. Those who bought cars under certain promised services still get that service. From free oil change to loaner.
 
G00fyDad

G00fyDad

Well-Known Member
WDW1974 said:
No, sorry. Not crap.

i wouldn't want someone going to jail for stealing food for her starving children, when I would say you jail a bank robber or even a bank CEO that helped cause the economic collapse.

But there is a misconception that people who bring back their 1996 WL or BC mugs are stealing. They are not.
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Sorry. But they are.
http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/04/24/man-arrested-for-stealing-soda-refill/

It doesn't matter how insignificant people make it seem. When John or Jane Doe walk into a Disney eatery and refill a year or older mug then they have just circumvented the price Disney would have otherwise gotten from selling that soft drink. It doesn't matter how well you spin this, it is still theft. Way back in the day when I worked in Loss Prevention I had a co-worker that would bust people walking out of the door for eating out of the grocery section without paying for it. Did taking that one grape from the bunch constitute an almighty crime? No. But it was still stealing and classified as a felony in the state of Indiana. Of course it would always get reduced to a misdemeanor and a fine so would I have bothered with it? He** no. But it is still stealing. You can justify it any way you want, but in the end it is still theft when someone goes into Disney and refills an old mug, milk jug, or soft drink bottle. It is not the biggest crime of the century, I agree. However, Disney must see that this RFID scheme will be paid off in no time with the amount of soft drink and mug sales that they will get now that were being stolen from them previously. (This is going to be rough so hold on....)If you factor in approximately 17 million guests per year at Disney World, then low ball it to 10% of that who bring in old mugs, bottles, and various other crap to fill up at the drink station you get 1,700,000 people. 1.7 million multiplied by $16.57 (mug after taxes) you get $28,176,310 in revenue from those who would now have to buy the mug. Of course these are ballpark and really rough numbers, and they may be very far off, but there can be no denying that Disney will now make more money off of soft drink sales than they did before. And haven't we already determined that Disney is out to make money?
 

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