I know this may be heresy, but... About This Page:

[Bman]

Okay, I may be opening myself up to criticism but here it goes:

Has anyone noticed that the level of service at WDW is slipping? We just got back from our WDW trip and were surprised by the difference in service that we've come to expect at WDW. Now, I should qualify that, by most any other standard, the service wasn't BAD, but it wasn't Disney good.

Allow me to explain: in past visits, we were greeted with smiles and happy greetings by virtually every cast member that we met, be it at the resort, in the parks, wherever. The few times that we we weren't greeted in such a manner were so rare that they stood out in our memories. Not so on this trip. In fact, the big smiling Disney greeting was the exception rather than the norm. Cast members weren't rude, but that Disney happy greeting just wasn't there most of the time. We could have been in any hotel or theme park given the level of service that we received most of the time.

Another example: I heard cast members complaining about things with people all around. That's something that I would find surprising in ANY business, with the exception of teens at a normal theme park. But these weren't teens and this wasn't a normal theme park. We'd barely been in Epcot for an hour on our first day when I heard the following exchange:

CM #1: "You look like you're having a GREAT time"
CM#2: "Just another day"
CM#1: "Yeah, I've got another hour and half and I'm outta here."

This was between a guy emptying trash and one of Belle's handlers within a few feet of the bench on which we were sitting and the line of people waiting to see Belle.

A short time later, we stopped to get our picture taken at the Canada pavilion and I said (smiling) to the photographer "You look like you're dying to take someone's picture" and she responding with "No, I'm just dying". No smile, no greeting, just a tone of voice and body language that said that she'd rather be anywhere but there.

Now these were probably the worst examples and anywhere else they wouldn't have stuck out as terribly bad, but this sort of thing would NEVER have happened at WDW before - at least not in our experience.

I also don't want to make it sound like all of the CM's were rude or unfriendly. We had some great CM experiences - our waitress at the Biergarten (Svetlana?) and our waiter at the Diamond Horseshoe (Russel) were two awesome examples of the Disney experience, But the fact that they stand out is probably telling because they were what we've come to think of as the norm for WDW. Most everyone else was just what I'd consider to be average for the normal world which is below average for WDW.

And I know that, just based on this post, it could sound like we didn't have a good time and that's not the case, but the service was enough for us to take notice. So has anyone else noticed this? Have things slipped in the five years since our last visit?

Bman

[HiddenMickey]

This is a huge topic of discussion over on the DIS. Others have had your experience. Some people haven't though.

[Bman]

Originally Posted by HiddenMickey

This is a huge topic of discussion over on the DIS. Others have had your experience. Some people haven't though.

Sorry I'm not as up on my acronyms as I should be: What's the "DIS"? Thanks.

[LegoMom]

Originally Posted by Bman

Sorry I'm not as up on my acronyms as I should be: What's the "DIS"? Thanks.

Short for the DIS Boards ( www.disboards.com ) . Similar to here, but bigger. And not as friendly (in my scarred, humble opinion.....).

And I haven't been to the World in almost 2 years now, but I've noticed the same thing as the OP. It's not that I didn't enjoy myself and every CM wasn't awful, but Disney has said in the past that they hold themselves to a higher standard and yes, you do come to expect it. I think they are probably cutting corners with staffing as much as with guests (just in different ways) and it's starting to show in the general morale....


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[minniemagic]

We were there in November. My DH is a travel agent and books many trips for clients to WDW. We were in All Star Sports. My husband ordered an egg white omelet, no cheese, nothing really hard to cook. The two college age girls at the counter were talking with each other and complaining about something. They were taking the orders from the line, but there was no other interaction with the guests. My DH got his order, went to the table and found cheese in his omelet. I took it back and told one of the girls. She grabbed it from me and threw it on the chef's counter and told him he messed it up. She was a little loud and I was embarrassed for both me and the chef. It was busy and I understood that mistakes happens sometime. The chef made a face and she said something snarly to the other girl. They never said sorry or apologized for having to do the order again. When I took it back to my DH, it wasn't cooked all the way. He took it back that time, and again, the girl at the counter was a little rude. My husband has a lot of patience (more than me) and he went to complain to the manager. He told the manager that he books a lot of clients to WDW and he tells them about the customer service and how nice everyone is. Now he understands that people have a bad day, or sometimes, it is hard to be overly nice to someone, but he thought that the 2 girls were exceptionally rude. The manager apologized and offered to refund our meal. My DH said that wasn't necessary, but he felt that either the girls needed to be separated as they seemed to egg each other on, or someone needs to monitor how they treat the guests. The manager said he would address it with them and thanked us for telling him. He said that they understand if someone needs a break or has an issue with a guest, making them not so magical and wants the cast member to tell them when they need a break or help.

[KMB733]

It's been over a year since I've been to Disney, but I listen to a Disney podcast where they talk about this all the time. It is a shame since in the past Disney has gone above and beyond to make a guest experience the best. On my last trip, thankfully I only had one encounter with a CM who was less than helpful and practically had to plead with her to get something that should have been no problem in the past. I'm hoping that this isn't turning into the new norm.

[Bman]

Hmm, I'm thinking that people need to provide this feedback to WDW. They can't fix the problem if they don't know that it exits. I'm composing a feedback (of the good and the bad) in the hope that it may help.

[Bman]

Also, can anyone provide a link to the thread on disboards? I did a quick search and couldn't find it. Thanks!

[Her Dotness]

Several people here have given Disney such feedback with no notable results.

We complained to the BOG breakfast manager at Christmastime about DH's bacon-egg sandwich which was literally as cold as if pulled out of the fridge and served. Barely a month later, two different PassPorters reported having gotten that same item served cold.

Cold food appears to be an ongoing problem there when one would think that several complaints would result in resolution.

I'm not saying that it's pointless to complain either immediately or upon returning home, but I do agree that standards are slipping in many more places than once was the case.

[LegoMom]

Originally Posted by Bman

Also, can anyone provide a link to the thread on disboards? I did a quick search and couldn't find it. Thanks!

There is probably more than one, but I found this one:

http://www.disboards.com/threads/her...noyed.3489042/

It's quite lengthy but seems, from a quick scan, that you are sadly not alone in your experience.

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[Angela531]

We do not have the same level of comparison that some have since we have only been to WDW twice. However, between the two visits there was a noticeable difference in service.

Our first visit March 2013 we stayed the entire visit at CBR and had a really wonderful experience. We requested a corner room in Jamaica or Aruba which was exactly what we received (I know these requests are not always possible) and when we checked in the CM was extremely friendly and welcoming and excitedly presented us with our first visit buttons, asked if we needed assistance to our room (we declined since we had driven and had our car) everything went how we expected based on hearing information here on the boards. A wonderful visit.

This past visit in December 2015 we did a split stay starting at POR then moving to GF. When we arrived at POR the CM began telling us what room we had been assigned and we were shocked that we were in the mansion section as we had booked a Garden View on the bayou side. Now we booked the room specifically because of all the raves the POR resort has received and because we really wanted to have the extra pull down bed for our younger daughter to use and I expressed that to the CM. The CM promptly told us "well this is considered an upgrade" when I still was not impressed and explained we would prefer to have what we booked she then stated "well those pull down beds are really only meant for those under nine years old she's really too big for it" (DD had recently turned 12, was 4'10" and 90-95 lbs). Not once did she apologize or offer to see if there was something else. Now we did fly in late, it was about 1:30 am, so I did not push the issue since we were tired and just wanted to go to sleep and we were only booked two nights there before we moved (thank God). I am guessing that they did not have the room available for whatever reason, although she never stated that they were full. Then she stated "Oh, let me get a Birthday button" but the tone she used was more like it was one more inconvenience we had caused her. Our DD was turning 17 on the day we would check out of POR and move to GF. She then provided us with a map, never asking if we needed help with our bags or should she call bell services (which we would have gladly used on this visit). I was not about to ask so we just rolled our bags in the dark over to the mansions and found our room. We were not at POR long but we have made a family decision that if we ever stay moderate level again, it will NOT be there as the rest of the visit at this resort did not improve, it was not bad but like the OP stated it was just like any other hotel, not Disney level. GF on the other hand was exactly as expected...wonderful service and a wonderful stay.

We brushed it off as being due to the time of night we arrived, but POR never had a special Disney feeling the entire time there, including at the food area. I really hope that this decline is not the new normal. It will really be terrible if you can now only get the "Disney experience" at the deluxe resorts. The other interactions in the parks, restaurants, and transportation were not bad but were not at the same level as our previous visit either. Enough that we are considering other vacation options and cancelled our bounce back offer. We just feel that we could have just as much fun somewhere else likely for less than we spent on this last visit. We are now considering a late summer trip to Cape Cod or a winter trip to the FL Keys. Disney may not happen again until Avatar area is opened in 2017 or later.

[Bman]

"I really hope that this decline is not the new normal. It will really be terrible if you can now only get the "Disney experience" at the deluxe resorts"

Well, the Beach Club is a deluxe resort and it had virtually none of the special Disney feeling from the CM's that we've experienced at POR, CB and Contemporary.

[ripkensnana]

DH and I haven't been to WDW since 2012. We were in DLParis in 2014, and many of the CMs there were what I'd consider "not up to the WDW norm", and I couldn't help but compare the two. It sounds as if WDWs CMs are behaving much like their European counterparts. I will say that if we mentioned that this was our first (and possibly only) visit there, they did warm up considerably and were much nicer. I don't really know why this should have made a difference.

[saibot0001]

We have been to Disney 7 times in the last 9 years. On our last trip in Nov. of 2014, we were surprised to see some of the "magic" that we had been accustom to seeing/getting to be missing, especially with the CM's....enough so that it was very noticeable. I did mention some of our experiences in the survey that was sent to us after our trip (2 experiences were so bad that I actually remembered the CM's names because I was taken aback by how "unDisney" like they were, but I never heard anything back. Some of the experiences were not even directed toward our family, but we overheard them while in line etc., or at a restaurant. We heard several CM's being out right rude to guest, when it wasn't called for (I have worked in customer service during my college years, so I do know guest can be hard to deal with, but in the circumstances we saw, that was not the case...maybe the CM was just having a bad day, I don't know). We were also told by two different CM's when we started up conversation with them at two different parks that they pretty much hate their jobs, that Disney is a horrible company to work for, they pay is horrible, but not many other options in Orlando. Even if it were true, why would you tell that to a guest?? It was very awkward on both occasions. After these two experiences, early in our trip, we stopped trying to initiate conversation with the CM's---something we had always enjoyed doing in the past. We also had a bad experience with a CM at AK when my daughter got thrown up on her leg and shoes by a little boy standing behind us in the holding area for "It's Tough to Be A Bug", but that story is way too long to type up here. We too had some great customer service by a few CM's, and we still enjoyed our trip (I don't want to paint it all bad either), but we did see a difference in this last trip that we had not seen before.
We love Disney. The great customer service and friendliness of the CM's is one of the things we find endearing about Disney, and has made us want to come back and truly made our visits magical and special. I'm hoping our next trip will take us back to what we are use to, and not repeats of what we saw on our last trip, but this post is making me start to wonder. I hope it's just a fluke...and not becoming the norm.

[Bman]

And just to piggyback onto something that saibot mentioned above: I don't want to give the impression that all of the CM's at WDW were bad. We had some encounters with some great CM's who really brought the Disney Magic. I included those CM's by name in my feedback to WDW, soo hopefully those folks will get some recognition.

Oddly enough, most of the CM's who stood out as great were servers at restaurants. I wonder if that was a coincidence, the nature of the job, better hiring/training than in other places or something else?