bpadair32
Well-Known Member
I realize this is lengthy but I actually left out a lot, so my apologies for that but Christmas week 2010 at AKL was more like experiencing being the target of a hidden cam prank show. I don't know that I'd believe all this happened, esp in one week at Disney, if it hadn't happened to us, the worst being felony drug theft by staff. If you make it reading to the end, lol, you're def patient person and thank you!
Although my AKL Christmas week experience has now been 8 years ago, it was truly so horrific that as much as my family loves WDW, we have yet to return. We're now grandparents and would desperately love to take him this fall, thus why I'm here, but we lost all trust in Disney, as I'm sure most would in our shoes. And I hate that.
We arrived exhausted very late at night (it was possibly very early in the morning) but it was abt midnight, +-2 hours. We were there to celebrate my daughter's engagement. They were unable to put us in the computer as they were down but they said we could just check in/register the following morning. Because we couldn't check in, we couldn't get an electronic room key - by their computer, we weren't even in a room but we didn't care bc Disney!
I awoke early and left my family sleeping to explore the gorgeous lodge. Abt 2 hrs later I'm ready to return & realize I couldn't even remember the floor we were on, let alone room number, I guess bc I was exhausted at check in. I went to the lobby to ask, assuming it would've at least been written down we were in the hotel. Nope. The manager couldn't tell me our room number and had no suggestions on how to find my room. So I went to every floor ovet and over, walking up and down the halls figuring eventually I'll run into my family, knowing they wouldn't leave the resort without me. After 90 minutes and upset and frustrated, I went back to the lobby hoping somehow, someone could help me. By coincidence it was the manager who talked to me bc others were busy. It was roughly 10a by now. He offered to let me guess at room numbers and take me to those room. He knocked and if no answer, he used his key to open the doors and allow me to peek in as I'd immediately recognize our belongings. 30 min later no luck and the manager had to go. I was beyond upset by this point and in desperation and anger, I started on the 2nd floor and walked down the hall screaming my husband's name and did the same on way back to the elevator. Finally on 6th my husband heard me screaming for him and opened the door. I broke down crying like a hypersensitive, fruitcake, wallflower. Almost 4 hours had passed. I perked up, it's Disney!
My husband went to check us in and came back saying we had to switch rooms bc we weren't actually in a Savannah room view that we'd paid (dearly!) for. But our room wasn't ready yet and bc the current room was going to someone else, we had to wait in the room until our Savannah room was ready so we could remove all our belongings and they could clean. Ok. Another setback but lets finally go do Disney, day 1!
On day 2 after dinner I realized the surprise welcome cake for my family I'd ordered to have in room on arrival. They were apologetic and said they couldn't give me a cake from the bakery I'd ordered but offered me a pre made one. Staff did feel bad and were extremely quick bring a cake and a major amt of plates, etc to our room. We were still all good though! Disney! When I cut the cake, it's half frozen. Deep breath!
Day 4 abt 10a I discovered that sometime between the previous morning someone had went through our suitcase, found our medicine in a bag with a key, STOLE our medicine, but thankfully, kindly left our spare house key. I was now livid. I called front desk and security came up and took a report and started an investigation. He told us we had a right to report the theft to the police. He had already explained he would know who every person was that entered our room and would go from there. I asked for assurance a thorough investigation would happen & (my family assumed it was the housekeeper, security didn't want to guess) when the person responsible was found, he would take appropriate action so I declined calling police.
We had to have the medicine bc it'd be too long going without until we got home and to dr, so we called our respective doctor's offices and told the doctors would call in the med to the pharmacy we gave them. I guess the manager was aware of the theft when we walked through the lobby to go to the pharmacy bc he caught up to us and told us they'd take care of getting us to CVS and to take one of the several taxis parked in front. Our doctors weren't fast abt calling CVS and by the time we finally arrived back at AKL it was almost time to leave for dinner reservation. The day was spent dealing with our stolen med. We were given $100 comp.
The final straw was when I asked on 2nd to last day why my daughter and fiance's engagement hadn't even been recognized, as it had been hyped at time of reservation that they'd be given tons congrats, a few surprises and at least one surprise cake bc that's how Disney rolls. They hadn't even received a congrats, let alone token or cake. The waitress looked on their computer and there was no mention of any engagement and explained the lack of ... everything. Our celebration and Christmas week at Disney had been crap.
Back at AKL my husband was angry and talked to whoever and they gave us a free night to stay the following night. These aren't the only bad experiences, just the worst, and it was very obvious by then managers were avoiding eye contact with us when we would walk through the lobby. Not sure if it was bc they knew it was bc even they recognized our week had far too many screw ups, even for a cheap dump hotel but inexcusable when the week was a Disney resort & cost $12,000... or maybe they started ignoring us bc the number of Disney staff-caused things that went far-too-wrong, thus forcing mgmt to respond, and they were tired of dealing with us. To us, it sermed like the second but we were just as tired of dealing with problems they caused us as they were of dealing with us.
Had we received an apology at the end of our week for all that had happened, it probably would've helped a lot but instead by day 4/5, the managers started intentionally ignoring us, quickly looking the other way or even walking into the side area to leave the desk. If Disney weren't famed for staff exceptionalism & at least a smile every time, that we initially experienced by resort staff, it likely wouldn't have been so obvious when the smiles & eager to help changed to blatent ignoring. Maybe they still have record of that week, even 8 years later but even if not, I feel free speaking about staff stealing meds, special cakes not delivered, blah blah, because it's the truth, whether they have record still or not. Side note: we know we were complacent bc it was Disney & it was irresponsible of us not to lock our meds in safe; "Disney love" isn't felt by a housekeeper wanting drugs! Also, I didn't ask for special engagement things to happen or be given to our daughter & fiance, I was asked if we were celebrating anything at reservation time & the CS rep giddily told me of the things staff would do, how characters would acknowledge their engagement, numetous times by staff every day, doing this and that. When told this will be their experience, then get nothing, it's disappointing & would've been better to not promise anything to me for the couple. Last, this was a pretty big breech of trust, mainly bc we had history of wonderful times prior to that week, and maybe those prior times are why that week still feels like *** and no trust. Managers ignoring you, ensuring you get the message they're tired of dealing with your problems they caused, broke that Disney love feeling and trust. We hope to just get over it though, and return this fall! I know he would love it! Oh, and we had to leave at 9p on the free night bc a snowstorm had occured earlier that day, our cat sitter left, and we worried about our cats and electricity going out! That we had to leave instead of staying for the free night is obv no fault of Disney.
This is a joke or a delusion. There is simply no way that this is a true story.
