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View Full Version : Walt Disney World Resort to "Green" All Resort Hotels by Earth Day 2008



Figment!
07-14-2007, 12:34 AM
Disney the Green Standard


TC Palm
July 12, 2007

In Florida, The Walt Disney Co. has taken the lead in greening its hotels. Two of the first four hotels to receive state certification in March 2004 were Disney resorts in Orlando.

Nearly a quarter of all Green Lodging-certified Florida hotels are Disney-owned.

Disney expects to certify all 18 of its Florida hotels by Earth Day 2008.

"The biggest piece we're missing is really making sure that cast members understand what we're doing in case guests ask," said Denise Leeming, who oversees labor and scheduling at the resort. "We need to train our cast members, making sure they can have that conversation. If we can't share the program with our guests, then we've missed half the opportunity."

JPL
07-14-2007, 12:37 AM
Great News :thumbsup: Let's hope some guests take the message home with them :mickey:

snifflesmcg
07-14-2007, 12:42 AM
That's great!!! I just hope that more hotels take after them. I'm glad Disney took the initive.

kaerbear178
07-14-2007, 01:11 AM
Just out of curiousity - what exactly are they doing to make the resorts green?

kakn7294
07-14-2007, 02:49 AM
There are a multitude of things that they can do such as use low-flow bath fixtures, use energy efficient lighting and appliances, reuse towels and linens rather than replacing them daily, recycle and use products made from recycled materials, and install A/C units that shut off when no movement is detected in the room. Many of these things are in place already. I believe that POFQ is one of the Disney resorts that is already certified green.

Remzlightyear
07-14-2007, 10:02 AM
With the governor signing acts to make Florida "greener," our state is becoming more progressive every year. Disney certainly is an example. Now if we could just get those darn property taxes lowered.:beer:

AndrewJackson
07-14-2007, 10:18 AM
Walt Disney was always promoting responsible use of our resources, and protecting the environment.

Good for Walt Disney World to continue to promote this.

GeorgeOfTheJungle
07-14-2007, 10:29 AM
This is fantastic news! Great to hear! :thumbsup:

EvilQueen2006
07-14-2007, 02:59 PM
:clappy::clappy::clappy::clappy::clappy::clappy:


Great news!:thumbsup:

LauraleeH
07-14-2007, 03:42 PM
As hot as Florida is, I am not liking the idea of the A/C turning off!!!

Ian
07-14-2007, 04:41 PM
As hot as Florida is, I am not liking the idea of the A/C turning off!!!Not to be so gauche as to be "un-green", but I agree with you.

Mess with anything, but the AC. They've already put a restriction on how cool you make your room. The LAST thing I want is to come back after a hot, sweaty day in the parks to a hotel room with no AC on.

Lacy
07-14-2007, 06:22 PM
I think it is great that Disney is doing this and helping lead the way.

Maybe next they will focus on making the buses more green! Last time I was there (about a year ago) I was surprised at how many of the buses were still high polluting diesels. Most transit agencies in the country have converted their buses to CNG or hybrid-CNG.

kakn7294
07-14-2007, 09:18 PM
As hot as Florida is, I am not liking the idea of the A/C turning off!!!


Not to be so gauche as to be "un-green", but I agree with you.

Mess with anything, but the AC. They've already put a restriction on how cool you make your room. The LAST thing I want is to come back after a hot, sweaty day in the parks to a hotel room with no AC on.
I don't like that thought either. I don't know that they will install this feature in the A/C units, but the Disney Vero Beach resort does have this feature from what I understand. Even worse than coming into a hot room at the end of a long day is having the unit shut off in the middle of the night because it doesn't detect any movement when everyone is asleep!

LauraleeH
07-14-2007, 09:33 PM
I don't like that thought either. I don't know that they will install this feature in the A/C units, but the Disney Vero Beach resort does have this feature from what I understand. Even worse than coming into a hot room at the end of a long day is having the unit shut off in the middle of the night because it doesn't detect any movement when everyone is asleep!
That's exactly what I was thinking. If it shuts off while I'm sleeping, I wouldn't be able to stay on Disney property :(

Polynesian Dweller
07-14-2007, 09:45 PM
If you ever get a chance to see a program about sleeps studies you will find that people move around a lot when sleeping. Its seems most folks flop around a lot. Its likely not a worry.

Bethanymouse
07-15-2007, 12:29 AM
Not to be so gauche as to be "un-green", but I agree with you.

Mess with anything, but the AC. They've already put a restriction on how cool you make your room. The LAST thing I want is to come back after a hot, sweaty day in the parks to a hotel room with no AC on.

I second that. I am definitely all about helping the environment but the AC can not be messed with. A few hotels we have stayed at already enforce the AC off when no movement is found. Dont forget how awful hot nights can get when you are sleeping.....

Overall, very good thing that disney is doing. Every bit helps, and this is a big bit. hopefully they are paving the way for more big hotel chains to follow:D

psychotekkie
07-15-2007, 01:09 AM
Maybe next they will focus on making the buses more green!

I am sure I read somewhere in another post that Disney was experimenting with some new busses already, on a trial basis. One Intercot poster who stayed at AK Lodge got to ride on one.

FkeyportNJ
07-15-2007, 10:17 AM
All sounds good but the A/C units if you come back to a hot room that could ruin the whole day.:thedolls:

Donalds Duckie
07-15-2007, 10:17 AM
Sorry to sound "un"green but I am not fond of the thought of a/c shutting off while in the parks and while sleeping at night either. Some folks move around more while sleeping than others. I can fold back a side of the bed, get in, wake up in the morning, fold that side of the bed back, and it's made! However, I do suppose one would toss and turn a lot in a hot, humid room.

Then, after a nice, hot, humid, night's sleep, or lack of, you get to take a shower with water pressure so low you can barely wash the shampoo out of your hair.:mickey:

It is good for DisneyWorld to go green as large as it is and with as many guests as they have staying on property year around. I just won't be able to BE one of those guests, and that's okay too.

Disdude
07-15-2007, 11:45 AM
Many of the things that Disney used to qualify for the certification are things they have been doing for some time. AC motion sensors are not new and I don't think I have ever seen one that actually turns off the unit. They usually lower the set temperature.

Even when it is turned down it has never taken long to cool the room. If my math is correct, most rooms are under 4,000 cubic feet in volume. Unless it's an old or super inefficient AC, I can't imagine it would take long to cool.

I am overly sensitive to heat and humidity as I suffer from hyperhydrosis. I used to sweat outdoors in the middle of winter when I lived in Maine. I have never had a problem with Disney hotel rooms and the temperature.

PirateLover
07-15-2007, 12:33 PM
Please Please Please tell me some of these things are already in place... our shower water pressure has been terrible on our last two trips and we did have problems with the AC turning itself off for a bit in the middle of the night and waking up sweaty etc. or the room not being at the right temp when we came back. It wasn't completely unbearable but I would hope that it doesn't get worse. I wish they would let you put a timer on the AC. I use this at my house when I know I'll be out for 6 hours so I can come back to a cool room. As for towels we do reuse ours already and we would recycle if a can was provided.

ilvdisney
07-15-2007, 01:52 PM
We stayed at the Contemporary last August and I remember the AC turning on the minute we walked in the room so I'm pretty sure it was off when we were out. The AC also turned off the minute we opened the balcony door so I think the Contemporary has already implemented the changes mentioned. We were never hot at night there or when we got back from the parks. I do agree that the low powered showers are awful - especially if you have long hair!!

Red Randal
07-15-2007, 05:43 PM
Awesome! I love coming back to a hot hotel room and then not being able to take a decent shower.

Seriously, though, last time the ceiling fan in our room at the Beach Club worked so well that we hardly even used the a/c, and it was in the 80's every day.

I have to think, though, that the a/c in hotel rooms uses a lot less power than all the rides and attractions. They should work on making THEM more eco-friendly if they really want to "go green."

EeyoresBestFriend
07-16-2007, 12:32 AM
I'm all for green but. . ..well, I have to admit I'm with the A/C panicked crowd. I don't relish the idea of having to do jumping jacks, at midnite, in a hot room to keep it running so it'll cool down, after being in the parks all day. Especially, if I am paying moderate prices to be there. :cry:
May be they can look into timers on the A/C so if you know you'll be back at the end of the night - you can just set the A/C to turn on a half hour before you get in and off again in the morning. Kinda like the ones you have at home, just with a daily set program??:thumbsup:

What cha think, Renovationeers???:plot:

Red Randal
07-16-2007, 02:06 AM
I'm not too worried about waking up hot in the middle of the night because I usually get really cold when I'm sleeping and end up turning the a/c off anyway. I'm more concerned with the temperature when I get back from the parks.

I could understand them turning the a/c DOWN when there is no motion sensed. I don't need the room constantly at 60 when I'm not even in it. But maybe they can set it to make sure the temperature never gets above, say, 74 (unless, of course, you set it to) when there is no motion sensed. It won't take that long to cool off a room at that temperature.

I like the idea of the timers. Maybe they can deactivate the sensors between, say, 11pm and 7am when they assume people are going to be in the room.

SurferStitch
07-16-2007, 06:29 AM
I also agree with the AC crowd. I absolutely hate coming back to a stuffy room.

But, more than that, I hate low flow shower heads. Having long hair, and using conditioner, it takes a long time to get it rinsed out. I end up taking a lot more time in a low flow shower, essentially killing the whole reason to have low flow. WDW had flow that was slow enough....I'd hate to see it slower.

I'm for helping the environment, but there are some things (just basic comforts) that I still would like to have. AC and a good shower are two of them.

disneyjo-91
07-16-2007, 09:03 AM
I think it is great that disney hotels are going green HOWEVER, I do not like the automatic A/C.... Years ago when they 1st remodeled Port Orleans... they had the a/c that automatically turned off... at night when we were sleeping the a/c would turn off... so an answer to that is to put a balloon in the room.. to "trick" the a/c .. that worked for us...

otherwise YAY DISNEY FOR GOING GREEN!! :party:

lockedoutlogic
07-16-2007, 09:40 AM
With the governor signing acts to make Florida "greener," our state is becoming more progressive every year. Disney certainly is an example. Now if we could just get those darn property taxes lowered.:beer:


I hate to tell you...but since I own a home in the north and one in Orange County, Fla....I can tell you that your property taxes are neither high....nor are ever to be lowered.

Think of it as the price you pay for living in the wealthiest, most advanced society in the history of Earth.

Memebership has it's privileges....and annual fees.

Though the our prop taxes in florida have expanded at a disturbingly large rate over the past several years...

But it's good to see that Fla is taken more enviro-friendly approaches....everyone will have too in the near future...might as well get ahead of the wave (literally)

lockedoutlogic
07-16-2007, 09:45 AM
The AC is an incovenience...but usually by the time people go to bed it's 62 degrees in the room at night anyway....

I hope that Disney also follows my suggestion:
confiscate all H3, Escalade, Navigator, Expedition, and Yukons and melt them into scrap for toaster parts....
They could put a pavilion in EPCOT showing the cars being melted down...Edu-tainment!!!

jedigrrrl
07-16-2007, 10:06 AM
Think of it as the price you pay for living in the wealthiest, most advanced society in the history of Earth.

Have you been to Hialeah?!? :rotfl: Agua, Fango, y Factoria. La ciudad que progresa.

Seriously, though, the AC thing totally worries me!! We sleep with the AC on 60 degrees(or whatever is the lowest setting, I just hold down the DOWN button til it stops.) The minute it turns off, it gets unbearably hot in the room. Since I HAVE TO sleep with a fan on at home and they do not have fans, then I need the AC to run all night. Maybe they could put fans in all the rooms. We can't sleep if it's not cold. It would be uncomfortable to arrive into a stuffy room, but they tend to cool down pretty quickly, so I am not so worried about that or the other things.

Momof2boys
07-16-2007, 10:39 AM
At most hotels the maids will turn off the AC when they clean the room so I don't know if this is much different. My husband will be sure to get up & move around if he gets too hot . . . I think I'll leave this piece a secret & see if he notices :secret:

Terra
07-16-2007, 10:43 AM
There are a multitude of things that they can do such as use low-flow bath fixtures, use energy efficient lighting and appliances, reuse towels and linens rather than replacing them daily, recycle and use products made from recycled materials, and install A/C units that shut off when no movement is detected in the room. Many of these things are in place already. I believe that POFQ is one of the Disney resorts that is already certified green.


I totally agree!!!!!
And they can always use organically made linens/towels and even uniforms.
I wonder as well if that means they will or already do use organic/biodegradable cleaning supplies as well and energy efficent washers/dryers?

Aurora
07-16-2007, 12:50 PM
I feel I am about to get flamed....

For full disclosure, I am a "green" person. We recycle all plastics, cans, bottles, etc. We have one A/C unit in our home (not central air), which we turn off when we're not home. Lights go off when we're not in a room. My 11-year-old DD is well-trained for this. :) We take public transportation. We have only one bathroom in our home and it has a water-saver showerhead. I wash clothes in cold water. And our hot-water heater is at a medium setting.

HOWEVER....

When I am on a WDW vacation that I have saved every penny for, and paying lots of pennies for a luxury room, I want my luxury.

I want an air-conditioned room when I walk in. I want clean, dry towels every day. And above all, I WANT A GOOD SHOWER WITH LOTS OF WATER!

This is my vacation. I sacrifice all year. Can I just have one week where I don't have to sacrifice these things?

jedigrrrl
07-16-2007, 05:14 PM
I feel I am about to get flamed....

For full disclosure, I am a "green" person. We recycle all plastics, cans, bottles, etc. We have one A/C unit in our home (not central air), which we turn off when we're not home. Lights go off when we're not in a room. My 11-year-old DD is well-trained for this. :) We take public transportation. We have only one bathroom in our home and it has a water-saver showerhead. I wash clothes in cold water. And our hot-water heater is at a medium setting.

HOWEVER....

When I am on a WDW vacation that I have saved every penny for, and paying lots of pennies for a luxury room, I want my luxury.

I want an air-conditioned room when I walk in. I want clean, dry towels every day. And above all, I WANT A GOOD SHOWER WITH LOTS OF WATER!

This is my vacation. I sacrifice all year. Can I just have one week where I don't have to sacrifice these things?


I completely agree with you. Especially if you are paying deluxe prices. If I was at the Contemporary and had to endure heat, low-pressure water, and still-wet towels, I'd demand a refund. I stay in the value resorts and wouldn't put up with that stuff.

Going Green is one thing. Not being comfortable on vacation is another.

FireMickey
07-16-2007, 05:41 PM
Thinking about the AC thing, I say we just bring a "toy" that moves every now and then. Keep it going during the day. :) Hello bouncing Tigger...

Ed
07-16-2007, 06:23 PM
Our experience has been that the A/C does not turn OFF when it does not detect movement, but it does shift to a higher room temp than you have it set for. In all of the resorts, however, the unit will turn completely off if you open a balcony/patio door and leave it open for more than a few minutes. To me, that is reasonable; WDW certainly does not want to try to air condition the entire State of Florida.

We've never come back to an uncomfortably-warm room, and we've stayed in quite a few different resorts. And the nighttime temp shift has not been enough to cause us any discomfort. We're usually totally zonked out from a full day in the parks!

We've heard stories of folks tying a balloon to a ceiling fan (if the room has one) to trick the sensors into detecting movement, but somehow I suspect that would not work. Plus, who wants to listen to a balloon bouncing off fan blades all night? :confused:

Dracula766
07-16-2007, 07:41 PM
I am sure I read somewhere in another post that Disney was experimenting with some new busses already, on a trial basis. One Intercot poster who stayed at AK Lodge got to ride on one.

I actually got to ride one of the hybrid buses on my June trip. The driver mentioned that i was the last week of testing and that it was going back to GM.

It was a really smooth ride and very quiet. We didn't have to yell to have a conversation.:thumbsup:

2Epcot
07-16-2007, 08:13 PM
There are a multitude of things that they can do such as install A/C units that shut off when no movement is detected in the room.


As hot as Florida is, I am not liking the idea of the A/C turning off!!!


Mess with anything, but the AC. They've already put a restriction on how cool you make your room. The LAST thing I want is to come back after a hot, sweaty day in the parks to a hotel room with no AC on.


I'm all for green but. . ..well, I have to admit I'm with the A/C panicked crowd. I don't relish the idea of having to do jumping jacks, at midnite, in a hot room to keep it running so it'll cool down

When I was in Asia, several of the hotels used a different method for turning off the A/C instead of a motion dector. Upon entering the room you had to put your room key into a slot that would activate the A/C unit. When you left the room, and took the key, the unit would shut off. It doesn't solve the problem of a hot room when you come back, but it won't shut off when you're there.

Horizon93
07-16-2007, 09:30 PM
Even worse than coming into a hot room at the end of a long day is having the unit shut off in the middle of the night because it doesn't detect any movement when everyone is asleep!

I agree. I have experienced that. It is quite annoying to have to get up and move around to get it back on again.There has to be a way that a sensor could determine that a room is empty and differentiate that from a room with sleeping humans. Imagineering should be able to figure that one out.

Congrats to Disney for being a green leader!

mjstaceyuofm
07-16-2007, 10:20 PM
So I'll start with the positive:


"The biggest piece we're missing is really making sure that cast members understand what we're doing in case guests ask," said Denise Leeming, who oversees labor and scheduling at the resort. "We need to train our cast members, making sure they can have that conversation. If we can't share the program with our guests, then we've missed half the opportunity."
To me, Disney is basically saying that they are going to train their people to engage the general public. They get no benefit to this other than their employees basically talking to their guests. Maybe it's just that they know they will have to train all of their staff to deal with you AC naysayers :drama: but I think this will only benefit WDW. I really view this as a step in the right direction. Any time Disney gears its staff towards engaging the public - I'm OK with it. Even if it is to defend what could be perceived as a guest unfriendly policy.

Trust me, being from MI, I love to sleep in cool conditions just as much as the next guy. I've basically found that after a LONG day in the parks - a 79 degree humidity free room feels just like 70 degrees in MI. I don't mind my room being warm during the day if it keeps costs at WDW down in the long haul. I also think that Disney doesn't mind keeping rooms cooler in the evening for guests. It takes much less energy to get the rooms to 69 degrees when it's 80 degrees outside at night vs. keeping them at 70 in the day when it's 95 out....

Plus - this should not be new to any one that's visited WDW regularly over the past 2 decades.... You used to be able to walk through whatever park and feel a mega cold blast of AC when an attraction let out. That just doesn't happen anymore. Disney has been on this path for a long time.

One last thing: Let me put my political hat on for the moment.... The energy debacle this country is going to find itself in will ultimately drive a number of political and business decisions. If this decision means sleeping in a room that's a few degrees warmer vs. not having the opportunity to have Main Street lit up every night - I'll take the former.

OK - sorry for the rant. Time to make a :marg::marg::marg::marg:

Remzlightyear
07-17-2007, 10:50 AM
Boy, sounds like a lot of you are for saving the planet, as long as it does not inconvinience you. With proper insulation, rooms stay pretty cool during the day. Besides, Disney's A/C units are pretty powerful and cool down rooms in just minutes. I think it's a minor sacrafice that allows Disney to stay ahead of the game in the entertainmenmt industry. I don't suppose some of you turn off the A/C when no one's home?;)

SurferStitch
07-17-2007, 01:45 PM
I feel I am about to get flamed....

For full disclosure, I am a "green" person. We recycle all plastics, cans, bottles, etc. We have one A/C unit in our home (not central air), which we turn off when we're not home. Lights go off when we're not in a room. My 11-year-old DD is well-trained for this. :) We take public transportation. We have only one bathroom in our home and it has a water-saver showerhead. I wash clothes in cold water. And our hot-water heater is at a medium setting.

HOWEVER....

When I am on a WDW vacation that I have saved every penny for, and paying lots of pennies for a luxury room, I want my luxury.

I want an air-conditioned room when I walk in. I want clean, dry towels every day. And above all, I WANT A GOOD SHOWER WITH LOTS OF WATER!

This is my vacation. I sacrifice all year. Can I just have one week where I don't have to sacrifice these things?

Won't get any flaming from me. I totally agree! :thumbsup:

And no....I don't turn off the AC when we're not home. I set it at 75 during the day (if it's not terribly hot out), and set it to 71-73 for when we sleep.

I hate getting up in the middle of the night (especially at WDW) a sweaty mess because the air turned down/off. It's happened before (CBR, GF, POR), and it drives me nuts.

SurferStitch
07-17-2007, 01:50 PM
Plus - this should not be new to any one that's visited WDW regularly over the past 2 decades.... You used to be able to walk through whatever park and feel a mega cold blast of AC when an attraction let out. That just doesn't happen anymore. Disney has been on this path for a long time.

:scratch: Actually, I've noticed the gushing AC for the past 11 years we've been going to WDW. :scratch: Especially the AC coming from the stores that leave their doors open.

GrumpyFan
07-17-2007, 03:28 PM
We've stayed at Pop for the last 3 trips, and they have the sensors on the A/C thermostat. However, the only time I've noticed the temperature change is when we've been out of the room for the day. But, even then, it only takes about 30 minutes or so to get the temp back down to where we're comfortable.

I think Disney is already pretty close to being "green" at most of their hotels. So, it would seem that all they have left is to update the others so they are as well.

Horizon93
07-17-2007, 10:21 PM
I don't suppose some of you turn off the A/C when no one's home?;)


Actually, we have a programmable thermostat that is programmed to increase the temperature significantly when we are not at home.

I completely support Disney in this case. I was only suggesting that the motion sensor method may not be the best. Green is the way to go.

mttafire
07-18-2007, 12:39 AM
Green or not, All i care about is a cool room!:thumbsup: As for the enviornment...I do my part but at times i think the whole "green" thing is just a fad. BUT...Im willing to participate if it actually does help.

GrumpySue
07-18-2007, 09:13 AM
I feel I am about to get flamed....

For full disclosure, I am a "green" person. We recycle all plastics, cans, bottles, etc. We have one A/C unit in our home (not central air), which we turn off when we're not home. Lights go off when we're not in a room. My 11-year-old DD is well-trained for this. :) We take public transportation. We have only one bathroom in our home and it has a water-saver showerhead. I wash clothes in cold water. And our hot-water heater is at a medium setting.

HOWEVER....

When I am on a WDW vacation that I have saved every penny for, and paying lots of pennies for a luxury room, I want my luxury.

I want an air-conditioned room when I walk in. I want clean, dry towels every day. And above all, I WANT A GOOD SHOWER WITH LOTS OF WATER!

This is my vacation. I sacrifice all year. Can I just have one week where I don't have to sacrifice these things?


I agree 100%....I always reuse towels, recycle everything, take public transportation and do my part the other 50 weeks of the year. When I am paying $300-$400 a night for a vacation, I want a fresh towel EVERY DAY and a cool room. Sorry. The only GREEN thing here is the amount of money in Disney's pockets :mickey:

crazypoohbear
07-18-2007, 10:41 AM
I don't mind the a/c being off while I'm away. I do NEED my a/c on when I'm sleeping. Being large and perimenopausal and in Fla in August. I need to be really cool.

I only keep the heat on in my house at 64during the winter. Ask my sister, she usually wears a big sweater when she visits.:)

I also wake up when the a/c goes off at night, need the white noise.

too bad the couldn't make it programmable.
turn it off when you leave and set a time for it to kick back on
say 11:00pm when you know you'll be back to the room by 11;30.

tltcats
07-18-2007, 02:26 PM
I'm all for "Green-ness" - but I agree with many of you about the A/C. The Swan has these kinds of units and (even though I love the Swan) - it's hot and sticky to come back to that room at the end of the day. They do turn off at night as well - we usually have to physically get out of bed and stand up to get the A/C to kick back on....I assume that's because of the location of the sensor - but just typical moving around in bed has never been enough movement to activate the sensor in my experience.

tony2979
07-18-2007, 03:00 PM
It's always hard to take issue when a company is part of a program to save the earth isn't it?

The unfortunate truth is that while most of the things that are done do, to some effect, help the environment, the end result usually is green hotel=inconvience for the guests.

Another poster mentioned something to the effect of "everyone wants to save the earth until it causes a problem for them". In this case, I agree. While the trip is worth every penny, we scrimp all year to make sure that we are able to have a absolute blast for the week that we are at WDW. I simply do not accept that after paying quite a bit of money for a vacation, that I am forced to conserve energy, reuse towels, etc. I do that at home the other 51 weeks a year.

I did just call and found out that the resort we are staying in has not yet converted to the "Disney is pleased to select your room temp" thermostats, which I thought was great. I did tell her that if that change was made next year that we would heavily consider staying offsite. I was suprised that she was actually happy to get the feedback. She said that Disney is really trying to find the line between going green and guest satisfaction.

So anywho.....Plant trees, run the buses on ethanol, build solar panels.....just don't mess with my comfort and convience while I am paying a lot of money to be on vacation. Just my two cents.

Quasimodo
07-18-2007, 04:05 PM
Green or not, All i care about is a cool room!:thumbsup: As for the enviornment...I do my part but at times i think the whole "green" thing is just a fad. BUT...Im willing to participate if it actually does help.

I agree. I believe the green/global warming movement is a popular fad for most. But a true religion for others. Regardless of how you feel politically (and I in no way want to start a political debate about this), the changes Disney is making to "green" its hotels are so insignificant that they couldn't possibly have much of an impact on the environment. The power plants will still be there, producing millions of kilowatts of electricity every day. The water treatment facilities will still be treating millions of gallons of waste water, and the landfills will still be taking in thousands of tons of solid waste. It would take a huge, huge reduction in electrical and waste production to have a positive environmental impact. The amount of electricity and fuel consumed by WDW is so great, and the waste produced so vast, that the reduction from these changes will only be a drop in the bucket. Think of it this way: If I were going to pour a 55 gallon drum of crude oil into your backyard swimming pool, do you think it would make much of a difference if I agreed to reduced the amount I poured in by 15 gallons? Of course not. 40 gallons of oil would still pollute the pool. And thats more than a 25% reduction. However, it would save me the cost of 15 gallons of oil. At $70 a barrel, thats a $19 dollar savings! I suspect that is what this is truly all about. Its a cost cutting measure. Disney is utilizing what would otherwise be unpopular methods to cut the operating costs of its hotels. They couched these methods in the ever popular green movement so as to gain PC points with the public, but primarily to deflect the wrath of guests upset that their hotel rooms are hot and there are no clean towels when they return from a day in the parks. Hence this statement, "The biggest piece we're missing is really making sure that cast members understand what we're doing in case guests ask." Translation: "We want to be sure our cast members tell our guests that the reason their room is hot and there are no clean towels is because we are trying to protect the environment. Not because we are trying to cut costs at the expense of their comfort."

mttafire
07-18-2007, 07:20 PM
I agree. I believe the green/global warming movement is a popular fad for most. But a true religion for others. Regardless of how you feel politically (and I in no way want to start a political debate about this), the changes Disney is making to "green" its hotels are so insignificant that they couldn't possibly have much of an impact on the environment. The power plants will still be there, producing millions of kilowatts of electricity every day. The water treatment facilities will still be treating millions of gallons of waste water, and the landfills will still be taking in thousands of tons of solid waste. It would take a huge, huge reduction in electrical and waste production to have a positive environmental impact. The amount of electricity and fuel consumed by WDW is so great, and the waste produced so vast, that the reduction from these changes will only be a drop in the bucket. Think of it this way: If I were going to pour a 55 gallon drum of crude oil into your backyard swimming pool, do you think it would make much of a difference if I agreed to reduced the amount I poured in by 15 gallons? Of course not. 40 gallons of oil would still pollute the pool. And thats more than a 25% reduction. However, it would save me the cost of 15 gallons of oil. At $70 a barrel, thats a $19 dollar savings! I suspect that is what this is truly all about. Its a cost cutting measure. Disney is utilizing what would otherwise be unpopular methods to cut the operating costs of its hotels. They couched these methods in the ever popular green movement so as to gain PC points with the public, but primarily to deflect the wrath of guests upset that their hotel rooms are hot and there are no clean towels when they return from a day in the parks. Hence this statement, "The biggest piece we're missing is really making sure that cast members understand what we're doing in case guests ask." Translation: "We want to be sure our cast members tell our guests that the reason their room is hot and there are no clean towels is because we are trying to protect the environment. Not because we are trying to cut costs at the expense of their comfort."

100% agreed. Sometimes if something makes you "feel good" then it must be worth while. In reality, It doesnt make a bit of difference.

Remzlightyear
07-18-2007, 09:51 PM
It's a collective effort. We are talking about more than one "swimming pool" here. Diesney has thousands and thousands of rooms. Maybe their ulterior motive is money, but at least it's for the good. In the end, Disney will bow down to guest pressure. But ask yourself this- Would you really stay off site and deal with the parking and driving back tired after a day at the park, or stay at a Disney resort, not have to worry about driving, and take a bus back to your resort whenever you want? Cold showers or a dip in the pool sounds good to me.

Horizon93
07-18-2007, 11:07 PM
I think that we have strayed a bit off topic. The original post does not specifically address AC. It is mentioned as part of a list of great ideas here:

There are a multitude of things that they can do such as use low-flow bath fixtures, use energy efficient lighting and appliances, reuse towels and linens rather than replacing them daily, recycle and use products made from recycled materials, and install A/C units that shut off when no movement is detected in the room. Many of these things are in place already.

I think an overall effort on many fronts would indeed have an impact. As has been said, we are talking about thousands of rooms. The Swan has the AC sensors, and if it wasn't that I joined DVC I would still be staying there, and I love my AC.

I guess we DVC members are a little green with the towel situation.

jedigrrrl
07-19-2007, 12:26 AM
When I was in Asia, several of the hotels used a different method for turning off the A/C instead of a motion dector. Upon entering the room you had to put your room key into a slot that would activate the A/C unit. When you left the room, and took the key, the unit would shut off. It doesn't solve the problem of a hot room when you come back, but it won't shut off when you're there.

LOL!! The 3 hotels i stayed in while I was in France and Spain a few years ago had that and if we had 2 keys, we'd leave one in all day or we stuck another type of card into the slot to keep the room cool while we were out in the sweltering summer weather.

disguy
07-19-2007, 02:45 PM
I think it is great that disney hotels are going green HOWEVER, I do not like the automatic A/C.... Years ago when they 1st remodeled Port Orleans... they had the a/c that automatically turned off... at night when we were sleeping the a/c would turn off... so an answer to that is to put a balloon in the room.. to "trick" the a/c .. that worked for us...

otherwise YAY DISNEY FOR GOING GREEN!! :party:

HEY! I remember that trip. Sleep - wake up - wave your arms around until the unit goes on - sleep - repeat. Ugh!

:(

Butterbean
07-19-2007, 10:20 PM
Long time reader, first time poster. I have to agree with a number of folks above. Going green is a noble endeavor, but in this case, it is not Disney that is actually going green, it is forcing it's guests to. These are all cost saves for Disney either by requiring less staff for mousekeeping or saving on utility costs, this is no win for the customer, but is a P.R. win for Disney. As an aside, it is almost a given that Disney will raise prices next year, so in effect, they decrease expenses and raise profits! It is a win-win for Disney with a feel good press spin on it. If they were truly going to be a "green" organization, they would do things that didn't impact the customer, but would truly save energy. For example, with the unused land around the parks, they could build a solar array or wind farm system to generate alternative power for the various electrical needs of the kingdom, but that would cost a lot of money with additional back up generators needed for no wind/no sun days. I am not knocking Disney for the P.R. move, I just don't agree with some of the posters that think this is a great idea and will help save the environment, when it is really just a move by Disney to wring extra cost out of the system using the current "Green Movement"

lockedoutlogic
07-19-2007, 11:04 PM
While technically accurate...the sentiment of "it's really a PR move and won't make that much of a difference"....
pretty much sums up the problem with man's relationship with the environment.

In truth....global conservation should be something that is brought into the daily discussion...and to do so...must become part of our daily discourse.

So while disney's efforts are by and large for show....that type of for show policy may lead to more of them...and maybe even a general movement.

All of our scientists and world leaders have failed to address this issue properly...in 99% of the cases....

And that isn't politics...it is kinda a general realization that seems to becoming more apparent. Many of the things that signal a climate shift can be proven with fact at this point...thanks in part due to technologies like satellite and thermal imagery. We have also seen severe shifts in our global weather patterns...nowhere more prevalent than the recent years in the south pacific and western atlantic regions.....

So it may not be much...but at least disney is willing to make an attempt...and no matter what their motivations...it's difficult to find significant fault with the effort.

Butterbean
07-19-2007, 11:24 PM
Good points, lockedout.
However, this policy is not really their effort, it is being forced on guests with very little inconvience to Disney, but potentially a good bit of inconvience to the guest. I personally agree with the poster above that discussed saving up for a vacation and then having it not be what you expected. My point was that if Disney was really serious about being green, they would find other ways that did not impact the guest. Sure every little bit of conservation helps the environment, but I think it should be a personal choice. I choose to keep my air conditioning programmed at 78 degrees in the Summer and the heat at 68 degrees in the Winter. I also take public transportation rather than drive every day, but both of these are personal choices driven more by financial considerations (can't stand a $300 gas/electric bill or $3.00 a gallon gas) than it is for "green" reasons, but if Disney wants to conserve, there are many other ways to do it rather than force the guests to do it for them.

merlinmagic4
07-20-2007, 06:19 AM
Is the AC that big a deal? We stay in a 2 bedroom timeshare when we go and I turn the AC OFF (!!) when we leave for the day. It takes very little time to cool down a 1200 square foot condo. I would think a hotel room would be even quicker.

ImagiAsh
07-23-2007, 11:22 AM
Certainly great news!:mickey:

Rmacmouz
07-24-2007, 10:33 PM
I just want to know how they're going to know the difference between me not being in my room (to turn off the AC) and me sleeping? Hmmmm? Besides it takes as much, if not more energy to cool down a room after the AC's been left off for 7 hours, than it does to let the AC unit work on LOW for the same period.

BrownEyedGrrl
07-25-2007, 07:38 AM
We've stayed at Pop for the last 3 trips, and they have the sensors on the A/C thermostat. However, the only time I've noticed the temperature change is when we've been out of the room for the day. But, even then, it only takes about 30 minutes or so to get the temp back down to where we're comfortable.


We stayed at ASM last September/October, and we noticed that happening too. I'm glad to see there was a reason behind it, and not just a faulty unit or annoying housekeeper! ;) It definitely never got too stuffy and was quite comfortable at night. Our boys are used to sleeping in a really cool room and so are we, but after spending all day in the parks, we were zonked from the minute our heads hit the pillow no matter the room temp! :D

micminnieapolis
07-27-2007, 09:22 PM
I like the idea of going green. As a DVC member, we have adjusted very nicely to the linen rotation and the recycling. However, the thermostats are a different story. A man without a menopausal wife must have thought of the system in use at BCV! Maybe it was a young man who was not bothered with night sweats! That system is one of the worst things they thought of! We dread staying at that resort even though it is one of our favorites. We have read and tried overrides to no avail. The most successful we got was calling and having an override done on the system -- but even that CM warned us that it may not work! Fortunately, it worked well enough to get husband through a bout of flu with a fever in July's heat. The next trip we requested an adjustment and the CM who came up gave us the spiel about not knowing that there was a way to overide the system but he heard that if you use balloons, it works pretty well. They sent us 2 regular balloons with no way to attach them! ( This could be a new gimic to get us to buy really big expensive balloons!) The balloons did not work! Now mind you, it's not so bad to come into a sweltering room in July and know that in 30 minutes it will be down to 72. However, at night when it shuts off because there is no movement in the room, that is another story! There are some of us who need cool rooms when we sleep. There are those of us who do not go on vacation to wake up every hour to activate the system. On that last trip I put up with 5 sleepless nights before I called and asked for a supervisor. He was very apologetic and said that there was a way to override the system and he was sorry that the CM who answered our call did not know how. He said that he would track him down and let him know about his dissatisfaction. He also said that he would be sure that all his people were trained in how to do this. I wish I had been staying a lot more days because I probably could have gotten a lot of special stuff! Now the question is -- If they put in those same stupid thermostats, are they going to employ a lot of people who know how to override them? Are they going to give the occupants more leeway in temperatures? Are they going to tell us the correct way to override them? How about user-friendly systems like many of us have in our homes with 24 hour programming and let each occupant set their own? There must be other places to cut down on usage! The housekeepers could set the rooms warmer/cooler until new occupants come in.

I won't even mention the lights at OKW that over the tables in the studio. You certainly can't read by them! However, I can carry lightbulbs with me! AC units? No way!

Micminnieapolis :confused::sick::thedolls:

Catwillow
07-28-2007, 11:44 AM
As my best friend is a DVC member and I am usually her partner in fun on the trips I know our next few trips will be bedroom units, which means we will have a washer & dryer in the room. I can say that when you have several people using a room (wether a suite or just a regular room) there is NO way a used towel is going to dry effectively to be used multiple times due to drying space. We WILL do towels every day. I have to wonder how energy efficient that is. Also, can you imagine a family of 4 (lets say a small room) all take showers EVERY DAY after a hot muggy day before bed, then ALL their towels (washcloths, hand towels) are moist and hanging about to dry (because we have to reuse) and while they are out the air shuts off ... yep ... love that smell!!!!

I'm all for doing what ever I can for re-cycle / re-use and energy saving appliances -- and I do my part at home--it saves me money and in a very very insignificant way helps to do my part. So I have to truly wonder what the overall motive of this is.

primrose50
07-28-2007, 05:18 PM
Previous Visits

Feb 98 - Off site
Sep 98 - Off site
Jun 99 - Off site
May 00 - Off site
Jun 06 - Off site

I think going green is a good idea. My only problem with it is that I have to have my clean towels every morning.

Clotho
07-28-2007, 05:27 PM
When I am on a WDW vacation that I have saved every penny for, and paying lots of pennies for a luxury room, I want my luxury.

I want an air-conditioned room when I walk in. I want clean, dry towels every day. And above all, I WANT A GOOD SHOWER WITH LOTS OF WATER!

This is my vacation. I sacrifice all year. Can I just have one week where I don't have to sacrifice these things?

This is entirely my sentiment! At home, we reuse towels and sheets to their limits. We have one AC unit, only for evenings on the hottest summer days (which is not many in Seattle, maybe 2 weeks total). I sleep with a fan year round and can't stand a warm or stuffy room.

So when I am on vacation, it is a luxury to be able to have fresh sheets and towels, to have the room be cool and dry every night...we also try to get a King Bed, which we don't have at home, for further luxury! I don't want to give that up, when we give up so much at home.

I am always surprised at how few hotels have recycling! I hope they add a recycling bin to the rooms. We are highly conditioned in our house for recycling--separate bins for cans/paper and glass. We recycle more than we throw out most weeks. So having that available at the hotels would be wonderful.

And for those worried about water pressure, you might be surprised what kind of low-flow shower heads are on the market today. I think Holiday Inn is the one who went all low-flow heads a few years back, and I stay with them a lot when I travel. They have literature in the bathroom talking about them, and you can even buy one for your home if you like it. They are NICE! I don't notice the loss in pressure, and they feel great! So there is hope that it won't be an issue for those who are concerned.

jclightchasr
08-04-2007, 01:07 PM
This is hard to make an acurate judgement on without someone detailing exactly how the ac unit operates with its motion detection settings. However here are my views:

When you spend $300 plus a night for a room you should be getting a hot shower with good pressure and be able to set the AC to whatever temp you want and have it stay on.

I appreciate environmental concerns but is this really about saving the environment or saving money? Which the latter will definately happen.
The money saved should be then donated to environmental friendly research or similar to really be "green".

A choice to stay in a green room or not should be offered to appease all the tree huggers out there.

For those of us who like to sleep in cool comfort and have good water pressure and who have children who have ecxema (sp?) who are sensitive to heat I will choose the standard room.

There are other ways to be green that aren't so beneficial to the hotels bank account.

IloveDisney71
08-04-2007, 05:52 PM
[quote=kakn7294;1354554]There are a multitude of things that they can do such as use low-flow bath fixtures, use energy efficient lighting and appliances, reuse towels and linens rather than replacing them daily, ...quote]
At home we try to do some things the "green" way. We recycle, I traded my SUV for a compact car, and we reuse towels (this one drives my mom crazy! - Sorry mom). Anyway, every time we are at Disney we leave our towels where they say to leave them if we want to reuse them and EVERY time we come back to new sets of towels. I was just curious if this has happened to anyone else?

TBone
08-05-2007, 01:15 PM
First, this whole thing is grandstanding by Disney. The added benefit is the $$$ for them.

Second - my last two stays at the Polynesian.

Both times I asked for the low pressure shower heads to be changed. I have done this at other hotels and they do it, no questions asked. They all seem to have regular shower heads available for the customers that request them. At the Poly, no luck. Both times, the service guy would come and put another low pressure shower head in. So, it's 25 minutes in the shower instead of 10. My daughter has long thick hair and by the end of a week we've just about had it with Disney over this issue alone.

Also, they have motion sensors in the bathrooms. These devices turn off the bathroom fan after 5 or 10 minutes of not detecting any motion. So, the result is that the combination of low pressure shower head and a fan that turns off while you're taking a longer shower to make up for it, is a totally steamed up bathroom. I actually would call my wife in to walk around the bathroom and trigger the fan (if she wasn't sleeping). For the times that I was alone or when everyone else was sleeping, I devised a technique where I throw a balled up wet washcloth right under the sensor (going thump on the wall) to trigger the fan on. On the last trip, I called for a technician and he changed the fan unit and it still did the same thing. I tried explaining what my issue was but he didn't understand English (apparently). So I gave up.

Towels. I demand clean ones every day. Extra towels too. The thought of reusing a towel grosses me out. Nobody is that clean and everyone loses skin cells when drying off. I usually tip an extra $10 per day just to make sure I have plenty of towels and clean linen, wherever I travel.

Oh yes, the linen. I always ask that it be changed every day. I put a small x in the corner of the sheet so that I can tell if they change them. Disney runs about 75%, most other hotels are closer to 100%.

I don't like what they're doing with the a/c either, but give me a high pressure, hot shower, clean towels and clean bed sheets and I'll deal with the a/c, I guess.

This is just too much aggaravation for a $325/night room, isn't it? Now they're announcing that they are going to make it worse. Ugh.