One person's "unacceptable" is another person's "great solution"

If the resort and room were comparable, that would be fine with me. If it was a resort we had never stayed at, I might even think it was an adventure being forced to try something new. Being offered something for the inconvenience would be a bonus as far as I am concerned.

I don't understand all the hysterics and moaning and groaning. Would they rather stay in the destroyed room? We just returned from a short getaway, and our hotel (Marriott) had a water main issue for about 6 hours or so. I felt so sorry for the front desk people - the threats, bitching and complaining we heard was mind-boggling! They sent up free cases of bottled water to every room (yikes - the poor guys toting all that!), and promised that if it wasn't fixed by morning, we would be offered comparable rooms at a nearby (more upscale even) Marriott. It was fixed overnight, no big deal. But to hear some of the other guests, they should have had their entire stay comped, etc. I think people are just looking to try and wrangle free stuff from companies, whether it's appropriate or not.

I would be really upset at having to change resorts, I choose my resort carefully so unless it was an upgrade I'd be pretty miffed. That being said I would be happy with a meal on disney as way of an apology. I had a bad bus experience last year and spoke to the hotel manager at AKL, I didn't expect anything other than something to be done about the driver, his manager spoken to and some retraining. It might have been nice for her to send some strawberries or something but instead she credited our room with $200! We were very, very shocked. The bus thing was bad to be fair, but at no point did I ask or even hint to her that I expected something. I wouldn't expect free dining for having to be moved to another resort but I think I would expect some sort of a buffer, to lessen the pain of having to change if it was an upgrade though I wouldn't expect anything. The same thing happened to my friend last summer when they arrived at CS they were upgraded to the Poly in a water view room! They were very happy.

There are always people who are looking for freebies no matter what the situation. In this instance as long as the room is comparable/upgraded I wouldn't have a problem with it. UNLESS for instance I was staying in a monorail or Epcot area resort and was moved somewhere where I couldn't have the easy access to the parks. But I think when they say comparable it would mean you would have the same perks as the original hotel.

Disney is really great at handling guest complaints and this family obviously just wanted to milk it for all its worth. Sadly, in any kind of service industry you see the worst of these people, how they can be miserable in Disney, is out of my realm of understanding.

That is interesting. For me I would first be upset as I look very carefully into where I want to stay and even the building that I want but if they were giving me that was equal to that I would be ok with it. And Disney was doing all the move all I had to do was get on whatever to bring me there I would be ok.
As Disney can't control what happened to that room. Shame on the people who did that and I hope they are charged accordingly.

I worked in the hospitality management for many years and have several certifications in the field, as well as management experience with both Marriott and Radission. Over-booking and unexpected maintenance issues taking rooms out of service are not unknown in the hotel business. There were may times in my duties that I had to "walk" a guest with a valid reservation to another resort because we didn't have a room available. Compensation, other than finding the guest equal accommodations at another hotel, was rarely given. When guests were extremely put out, we would cover about $50 in guest credit at the hotel that we had walked them to. I would say that Disney's solution was appropriate to the industry standard.

Many people put intense hopes and expectations on their Disney vacations, often unrealistic ones. They expect the experience to be truly magical, seamlessly orchestrated to the smallest degree. They dream and plan, and scrimp and save for years to make every detail perfect. Sometimes when all of that doesn't come off the way that it's supposed to people come unhinged.

LOL Since we are awaiting news on refurbs for CSR, this may very well be the case for us in Sept, and since we already have free dining, it would be interesting to see what they offer (we don't want business class as there is a large convention the week we are there). But for me, they/Disney can't plan on previous customers doing something to make the room unusable, so they are doing the best they can.

Alice? How did you score the cooler with treats? (not that I would ask Disney for it) but ours is ripped and that would be cool! LOL

A family member of mine worked in guest services at one of the disney hotels for many years, she told me that when you arrive at the hotel, on your way from the room to the park you should mention that you are unhappy with the room even if you aren't and disney will get you a better one. I don't know how moral this is but.... When you pay thousands of pounds for a room I expect the best room my money can buy..... If disney are happy to upgrade at no cost just cause I'm unhappy then it makes me thing disney are giving guest a low standard to begin with, in the hope that no one will complain.

We had a unique adventure two years ago when a ridiculous number of rides broke down WHILE WE WERE ON THEM. I am talking about sitting in the back area of ToT in the dark with the message: "Please remain seated" and the seat buckles locked down. And to finish off the week Splash Mountain stopped as we were on the first incline and kept repeating the same line. My DS2 yelled, "Where would we go?" When it did start the rest of the ride was "off" and there was no water canon.

I sent an email to Disney just letting them know that EVERYDAY at least one ride broke down while we were on the ride (we even broke Winnie the Pooh....sniff) and they returned with the offer of one free day ticket, which is basically useless since tickets are cheaper the more days you stay and only those close enough can use it for one day. I guess what I'm saying is that yes, you should tell them if things are not good, but it doesn't always do much good.

I disagree. To me, what you describe sounds a little like someone trying to work the system and get something for nothing. I have no problem working the best deal you can get on the front end, but to falsely complain on the back end just to see if you can get upgraded is dishonest IMHO.

I think Disney understands that it is much cheaper to attempt to go above and beyond in rectifying a negative situation for a single guest than to spend extra marketing dollars to try and overcome a bad reputation.

As for the original question - sometimes you just have to remember: at some point this experience will make a good story. It sounds like the original poster's whole vacation was ruined because they weren't happy that something unexpected happened. I believe that's called 'life'. If you can shrug your shoulders and say 'oh well,' you're going to end up with much better memories. It just reminds me of all those people behaving badly on just about every reality show I scan past on cable.

But I can also see where Disney vacations can sometimes have no 'equal room'. Moving from one All-Star resort to another is one thing, but a Savannah View at AKL to a Lake View at WL might not be as easy to swallow.

Some people are never, ever happy with anything. Ever. Their glass is always half empty, even at WDW. I completely understand being upset about the situation, because I wouldn't be happy about my plans being changed for me either. But being unhappy about a situation doesn't mean you have to be awful about it. As long as we got a new resort equal to the other one, I'd be fine with that. But a free meal would be a nice compensation for the inconvenience. I think expecting free dining for your entire trip for your entire family, is WAY out of proportion to their "pain and suffering" of having to switch resorts.

I actually think the fact that Disney is willing to give someone an upgraded room, based on a completely false complaint, proves that their standards of customer service is infinitely higher than you will find anywhere else. What other 4 or 5 star resort would give you an upgrade with no proof of any problem, which means for no good reason at all? No resort I've ever heard of but Disney.

I am usually not inclined to complain unless something has truly gone off the rails. If I found bedbugs in my room for example I would want it dealt with immediately. I've read on several travel forums people's freaking out over the littlest petty thing. Rating a hotel one star because of noise made by another guest for example. Vacations are for fun!

I had to think about this one for a while. . .

When there is a complication, I think some sort of recompense for the inconvenience makes for great customer service. I also understand about the careful planning and high expectations that can be ruined - it is annoying and disappointing. AND I know that there are times when you have to stand up for yourself and insist on fair treatment for inconveniences. . . But having to be moved to another room or resort due to complications, getting a room as good as originally booked and maybe better along with a meal voucher or something similar is extremely fair. And is much better service than you get for delayed or cancelled flights. . . Something that REALLY ruins a trip fast. If I am treated fairly and humanely, I may still be disappointed, but will feel much better about the unexpected turn.

It also angers me that so many would look to turn a situation like this into a chance to get more - much more - than is fair and appropriate. I've seen full blown hissy-spit fits over missing soaps, towels, and shampoo. I watched one gentleman create such a scene at the front desk over a delay at check-in that I was embarrassed for him. In this last case, the demand went immediately to free nights or deluxe upgrades . . . And from what I could tell, the desk manager was being very polite and so very accommodating. The outcome was complimentary parking and a $50 voucher to the in house lounge/restaurant. For a 45 minute delay at check in.

The thing that really struck me about the situation shared in this thread and made me sort of cringe was(is) the ease that social media gives to 'flaming' sort of voices. Voicing disappointment and frustration is great - we've all felt it and it feels good to get the validation. . . but when lots of other voices pile on and on and on. . . It begins to sound more like comments after an article on CNN or Fox websites and I get disappointed that reasonable discussion and conversation is lost yet again.

See, I don't understand if Disney is taking the lemons and giving a lovely glass of lemonade AT THEIR COST. why being in a snit helps the situation. If the room is unavailable, then it is. No ones fault but the previous occupants (who should be heavily charged), but any hotel needs to adapt and it would seem that that is what Disney tried to do.

I don't believe in trying to score more than I paid for, (I won't turn it away), but I guess I am grateful to be able to enjoy this wonderful place and the CMs do try VERY hard to make it work for all.

I guess this is when I quote my sister-in-law, who I admire a lot - "Anger is a waste of emotion, for the most part. It uses up twice as much energy as joy, laughter, happiness, and rarely achieves anything positive." Just not worth going there.

There are a lot of people out there that think throwing a "snit" or complaining to get more, make them look more important. To me, it make them look like an ass.

A cast member that works with guest relations for Disney told us pretty much "If your nice to us, we can be very, very nice to you! If you're not well..........."

I am on that same group on FB and also did not respond to this thread but the only thing I will say is that they were switched from a savannah view at AKL to SSR. I know that it was out of Disney control but that's not a comparable room in my opinion. But the comments on the thread were way over the top

See that would ABSOLUTELY NOT be acceptable to me. The only upgrade from a savanna view for me would be a theme park view at the grand. I wouldn't be happy at all. Not at all.

I agree. Savannah at AKL to SSR doesn't seem comparable... I probably wouldn't make as big a fuss as these people did but I would definitely not be satisfied.

The original post did not indicate they were downgrading an AKL room, just moving a reservation because the room they were "suppose" to get was unavailable. What is Disney to do if that happens? The family could return home, I suppose. But they were offered comparable rooms at another resort. At the deluxe there are some more options available, but just from logic, the moderates are less in number and probably more filled.
Knowing Disney, there were other points not detailed here (ie, which resort would you like that we have available? etc.

I personally think that there is never a need to complain unless it's an extreme problem at the end of the day, you are lucky to be there

For future reference - when Disney offers those they are upgradeable.

I would settle for theme park view at any of the monorail resorts, but I agree that going from savannah view at AKL to anyplace at SSR is not at all comparable. So if that were the best WDW could provide, I would have expected and asked for some kind of discount on the cost of the room. Not a huge discount, but something. But that's still no reason to throw a hissy fit.

If these were DVC rooms "comparable" would be determined by number of points per night that the rooms cost. AKL and SSR were in the same completion window and the cost of points per night is similar. BLT and VGF both cost much more per night - so while my heart agrees the business math is not equal.

Completely agree! On our last trip, we had the "pleasure" of riding a very full bus from the MK to BWV with a family whose patriarch was very vocally complaining the entire trip. Most of the passengers just averted their eyes or snickered or quietly shook their heads...one person sitting close to us said under his breath, "he is literally ruining his own vacation", which I hadn't thought of, but had to agree. But some people think that a day without drama is a wasted day, so I guess maybe on vacation this is even more important to them! Have you ever known someone to talk about their day or their last vacation or their past weekend and they just list all the perceived negatives? Those are not very fun people to be around and I sympathize with the Disney cast members and really anyone in the hospitality industry! It's vacation...unless they are absolutely ruining it or doing something on purpose, go with it

That kind of a room seems like a dream room for some. But if that happened to me and my dream or worse my kids dream had to be changed than I would hope to be asked if we had any other reasonable hopes. I make a point of letting service people Know that I understand they didn't personally make a decision that negatively impacts me and ask them what our options are. I still try and treat others how I want to be treated. I don't think Disney owes anything free in this situation. But giving all the possible options is a great way to try and help. If come December I don't have the room or resort I hoped for I still think disney will attempt to do their best for me.

Thanks Kristen. Our TA knows about the ticket, but the cost difference in a 6 day package (taking one day out for the free day) , made using the package actually cost more. It just seemed silly to use it. We are letting our DS2 and his lovely lady use it as part of their package to happen in the spring.