Do you think the resorts have gotten worse?

[Crow]

Just wondering what everyones opinion on the resorts is over the last few yrs. Housekeeping, upkeep etc
Ive stayed at mainly WDW resorts most of my trips and some in the area to save money. and I know some are outsourcing.
Im also considering trying some in the Universal area
I know I love the theming at WDWresorts.
hate the coffee, but like that i can use refillable mug for icees at POP
did notice at Allstars few trips ago room was needing refurb. I know a lot of the resorts are getting it though & they were working there.

[SBETigg]

I can't answer for the values or the mods, but we've always had amazing service and housekeeping at the deluxes. Our past two trips were Poly and GF. We had the same housekeeper for most the stay at both places (not the same one at both, but the same one for length of stay). We tipped daily with an added large tip on the last day we saw both housekeepers because we were so pleased with the service and upkeep. And they were so grateful for the tips that we got the impression it is usually a very thankless job.

Our rooms at both were in good condition, minimal wear and tear if any. We also got wonderful service from the lobby concierge and desk staff, particularly at the GF. I realize this may not always be the case and people complain about service at every level. But we have no complaints. I'm still impressed with WDW resorts.

[iceicebritney]

i think over all the "customer service" aspect of disney has been the thing that has really gone down hill. the fact that you can't even ask someone at a cash register or counter a question is ridiculous. disney used to go really above and beyond with their customer service, no a days it seems as if there really isn't much of anything.

[Tinkerfreak]

I really think that housekeeping has gone down hill. We had bad housekeeping on our last trip and we stayed at 2 resorts and both had bad housekeeping. At the Poly there was actually a dirty washcloth hanging over the shower curtain when we checked in and you could tell the floor had not been mopped at all. At the AKL the carpet had not been vaccumed in quite some time and there was a ton of stuff under the bed. Luggage tags from the airport, food etc. We do tip housekeeping generously. I don't think having a dirty room upon arrival is at all acceptable. There is absolutely no excuse for the dirty washcloth. I was so freaked out that I cleaned the tub and shower myselft and wiped the floor down. Thank goodness I had brought some Clorox wipes with me.
I also didn't feel like we received the same level of service from concierge on our past couple of trips. No more extra little touches that used to be so nice. Almost like they are all too swamped to do the same kind of job they used to.

[Gator]

I've never had any issues with any of my rooms being dirty. The grounds have always been quite clean and immaculate as usual. Just stay at any other local hotel in any city and it'll help you appreciate WDW more.

[KineGirl]

Ive never stayed at a value or mod so I cant speak for them but the deluxes are always great! The only problem I ever had was the one time we rented a studio at OKW it was musty due to a leaky fridge - I told front desk and they switched me immediately. The rooms have always been immaculate where Ive stayed. I think Mousekeeping does a fantastic job - not only do they keep the place in tip top shape but they always do clever things with the washcloths, plushes, etc.. :mickey:

[#1donaldfan]

I can surely rest your mind with POR....we only have ever stayed there and we've NEVER had any issues with mousekeeping, grounds, or anything related to the resort itself. We always come back to a nice clean, cool room....with most of the times a towel animal or "staged" stuffed animal design.....

...... I keep hoping that the, seldom, reports we get are isolated or "magnified" accounts of an encountered problem......:confused::cool:

[Polynesian Dweller]

Can only speak to the deluxes and there is only one thing I think has gone down and that's the bell services. They were outsourced (last year I think) and the new people are not the same as the Disney CMs. They are less polite, seem to not know much about the place, and unwilling to answer questions. Not that they are terrible, they aren't but they are not quite the same quality IMHO.

[JerseyDad]

Can only speak to the deluxes and there is only one thing I think has gone down and that's the bell services. They were outsourced (last year I think) and the new people are not the same as the Disney CMs. They are less polite, seem to not know much about the place, and unwilling to answer questions. Not that they are terrible, they aren't but they are not quite the same quality IMHO.


.....this is the ONE thing that I've also noticed. We always stay at POP....and it's not as if we're asking for bell service to take our bags to our room. But when I go to the bell service counter to get a luggage cart....I've noticed less smiles....and a more curt and methodical way that the bell service people spoke to me the last two times at POP. As I said...I'm not looking for anyone to strap my bags to their back...and tap dance to my room...but a smile.....would be welcome.

[KAT1811]

We have always had wonderful service at WDW. I did have a problem with a CM mistaking my room request for a cancelation (for the life of me I cannot imagine how that happened), luckily we fixed that prior to my Grand Gatherings arrival. I think that it all depends on who you get and what type of day that CM is having, they are human I suppose. Although I would love it if Disney could brainwash all of its employees into customer service machines, serving our every need. All kidding aside I think that WDW is still miles ahead of the competition and we always have a wonderful time while on vacation there.

[Tink#64]

I've never had any issues with any of my rooms being dirty. The grounds have always been quite clean and immaculate as usual. Just stay at any other local hotel in any city and it'll help you appreciate WDW more.


:yes: I completely agree! We decided on a last minute trip during Spring Break & couldn't get a room anywhere on Disney property for our arrival! First time ever, we stayed off property for our first couple of nights & we couldn't wait to get checked into Pop! It felt like our Disney vacation didn't really begin until we moved on site! The difference is amazing! Everything seems so clean & bright & cheerful compared to off property! The hotel we stayed at off site was clean & decent with indoor pool & a hottub, which of course they don't have at Pop, but the grounds, no comparison! Maybe I'm wearing the rose colored glasses, but I think Dinsey does a spectacular job with keeping their property neat & clean! Mousekeeping is a different story. I've gotten so that I hang the do not disturb sign regardless of where we are, I clean up & make the beds & don't have to be disappointed anymore! Other than that, I have no complaints of any CM's, cleanliness, or the magic! It's still very magical for us! :magic:

[Von-Drake]

Never had a bad stay at any Disney related resort: Deluxe, Value, or Shades of Green. All the housekeeping has always been great.

[Seasonscraps]

I think some of the resorts are showing there wear but aside from that are maintained pretty well. There's the occasional something that seems out of place but nothing that really stands out.

[Ian]

I don't know if I would necessarily say they've gotten "worse" ... but I would definitely say they've gotten more inconsistent.

20 years ago you'd never find a sole who said anything was less than perfect. Now there are a couple people just in the few responses to this post that have had issues. I've had issues ... not specifically with Housekeeping (although I've had a few rooms that were certainly less than immaculately cleaned), but definitely with overall service.

Bottom line is Disney's resorts are good, not great. If you talk to any frequent business traveller or someone in the high-end travel industry they'll tell you that Disney's deluxe resorts aren't much above average in the grand scheme of things. You're paying for location, basically.

[Young@Heart]

I've never had a bad experience at a WDW resort, and IMO, the service at the resorts and the condition of the resorts is just as good as always.

Could it be that some people just expect more than they did years ago? Not saying previous posters, just people in general. We've always enjoyed our room and our resort as much, if not more, than other hotel stays-and we have many to compare with.

[Ian]

I've never had a bad experience at a WDW resort, and IMO, the service at the resorts and the condition of the resorts is just as good as always.

Could it be that some people just expect more than they did years ago? Not saying previous posters, just people in general. We've always enjoyed our room and our resort as much, if not more, than other hotel stays-and we have many to compare with.Just curious ... when did you first visit WDW?

I have a feeling this has more to do with it than anything else. If you didn't visit until the 90's or later, you probably have different expectations than people who started visiting shortly after WDW opened.

[Sean Riley Taylor's Mom]

We have stayed onsite since 1996 in Value's, Mods and DVC resorts.
With the exception of one time, we have always had very clean rooms and great stays.
Our one issue was at All Star Movies. We were in a non smoking room (this was a few years ago) and when we checked in you could really smell smoke. I went back to the front desk and told them that my kids and I all had asthma and we needed another room. We were moved immediately and the new room was perfect.
Of course, the fact that someone smoked in a non smoking room was not Disney's fault. But, they handled it without issue at all.

[Diz-Knee]

I stayed at the GF and BCV last month. GF there was absolutely no problems with mousekeeping. At BCV I didn't really have any major issues but I just noticed the lack of detail to the cleaning. For example I found a almond on floor next to the table, an M&M on the floor under the vanity sink, a long hair in the bathtub before it was used, and a cheerio by the sliding glass doors. There was syrup and diet coke left in the fridge and also coke can rings in the door of the fridge. I thought all of this to be a bit excessive - I am easy going and typically overlook minor things. Last year at POFQ we found an old baby bottle under the dust ruffle that had spoiled milk in it that was overlooked.

That said, most of my other stays have been exceptional with mousekeeping. We had outstanding customer service and I felt the cast members went out of their way to help us.

[joonyer]

Maybe we have just been lucky, but in our personal experience, we havn't noticed any change in the quality of service or cleanliness in any of our resorts since we began staying on-property in 2002.

[Disney_Barbie]

We've had many GREAT experiences with Deluxe resorts and one VERY bad one... with a very dirty room at a value resort.
We vowed to NEVER stay in a value again, even if it meant taking half as many disney trips :(
We assumed staying at a value would mean compromising luxury... not sanitary conditions, it was a real shame.
We of course, let guest relations know the whole situation and not only got monetary compensation but was also reassured that the proper people would be informed. But even a FULL reimbursement would not have made up for the bad memories of the room. We tryed not to let it spoil our trip too much.

[KAT1811]

We vowed to NEVER stay in a value again, even if it meant taking half as many disney trips :(
We assumed staying at a value would mean compromising luxury... not sanitary conditions, it was a real shame.


I have stayed many times at the value resorts (as well as mods and deluxe) and can assure you that your unfortunate mishap is not because you stayed in a value resort. Every time we have been there the service and cleanliness has been equal to that of the deluxes. I would urge you to not write off an entire resort category based on one bad experience.

[JMTStone]

I travel a lot for work and spend plenty of time in strange cities in hotels. WDW Mousekeeping is better in every way.:vacuum::mop:

[PetefromRI]

I remember my 1st trip in 1975 to the Poly.I'll never forget the look on Dad's face when the bellhop unlocked the door only to find a whole family getting settled in to their new room.I remember my father being pretty ticked off and not tipping the poor bellhop when he put us in another room.Our 1st room was right along the pool where the Haiwii building is and we ended up in the backside facing a parking lot.So maybe it wasn't always perfect but,yeah,I deffinately have seen changes over the years.Maybe when we're younger we just overlooked alot more,now that sounds like a new concept,go to Disney and pretend we're 10 years old.I bet we wouldn't find anything wrong then!

[Crow]

nice to get so many responses
now Im wondering if anyone notices differences depending on category?
ive stayed at all levels except the higher deluxes & concierges.
(of course if anyone would like to sponsor me I will be happy to study them)
havent had any really bad experiences.
i guess there was a time of a curt CM at checkin at AKL or some little things found under a bed or a cobweb. Im sure the rooms arent always cleaned completly w so many to do.
I wonder how many room each person has to clean?

[Coach48]

99.9 % great service all around except for housekeeping.Last 2 trips at Poly there were several occasions where we needed to return to our room during the day(kids naps,change clothes)and the room still had not been cleaned by 4pm.That is unacceptable for the price you pay at the deluxe resorts.Most of our dinner plans are around 5-6pm so you need to start getting ready around 4-430.

[TheRustyScupper]

1) I don't think the resort are "going downhill".
2) Sure, there is some housekeeping inconsistency.
3) But, that is due to a lack of housekeepers.
4) Other than that, the resorts remain of good quality.

[Mousemates]

We've had fairly consistent housekeeping at our stays regardless of the "level of resort." While, I ttend to think I may have gotten a little bit better check-in service at the deluxes...it might have actually just been the fact that the ambiance of the lobby area is a little more upscale and less hectic feeling, thus making the CMs I dealt with seem nicer.

[Kerry823]

This year at POP we noticed our room appeared to be suffering from all of the use and looked worn. The walls in our room were filthy need to be washed down and repainted badly!

On a past trip to Caribbean Beach, upon check in, I had to clean the bathroom myself. The back of the bathroom door actually had mold growing on it. I was not impressed!

That being said, I would still stay at a Disney resort versus off-property. The theming and level of service I have experienced keep me going back.

[JerseyDad]

....a quick observation:

....perhaps...just..perhaps...that in our "younger" years' visits to WDW....we were SO taken by the Disney experience that we overlooked "stuff".....because even with the "stuff"...WDW was a far better place to vacation (in our minds) than anywhere else? But I will say that as I've gotten (I hate to say it) older....my expectations have risen because I really do know the value of my hard earned dollar...and expect to get every penny's worth of it's value when I'm laying out A LOT of it on my one...yearly...vacation.

....that said...I've never really had any problems with our rooms....or dirty bathrooms...or issues like that. I probably overlook "wear" related issues...because I am fully aware that they cannot replace carpets or paint rooms between guests. We stayed at POP...only 4 months after it had opened....and it was new...and sparkly....and all it needed was some "new car smell" to complete the picture! But after 4 years....I can see subtle wear related issues...and I'm sure they will be taken care of before they become too much of an eyesore.

.....but I still luv the place...and hope to be there again this coming November.

[bruin1344]

never had a bad experience in past, all the resorts are cleaner than non-disney hotels

[BelleLovesTheBeast]

I don't think they are going downhill. I sure hope not.

On our last trip we stayed at CBR and has a terrible experience. The worst housekeeping I've seen at Disney. My DH travels for a living and stays anywhere from Hyatt/Marriott/Hilton to La Quinta/Holiday Inn/Country Inn and was unhappy. His comment was that we could have stayed at a La Quinta and saved the $110 a night and had a better stay. I'm hopefully that it won't happen again.

However I will never stay at CBR again but I love to stay on Disney property and will continue to do so.

[J.C.&ALI'SMOM]

I don't think that they are "going downhill" but WDW has just about priced me out of staying in the deluxe resorts that we love so much. So the value is just not there anymore. It's a shame. :(

[Stickey]

We have not had any major issues in the last 4 years, other than a check-in debacle at the Poly.

Any customer service concern leads back to the challenge of Disney meeting its staffing demands. The need for increasing numbers of CM's remains an issue as CM standards and training appear to have been reduced in order to meet a growing personnel demand. Thus, WDW old-timers are not likely to experience the same level of personalized attention that may have been more prevelant when WDW consisted of 2 parks and a few resorts.

Overall, I believe that customer service at WDW is very good, and often excellent. I have noticed that the significantly larger crowd levels in September have affected the ability of CM's to go beyond to recognize your special occasion, as there is simply too much volume now.

[KylesMom]

I have noticed that the significantly larger crowd levels in September have affected the ability of CM's to go beyond to recognize your special occasion, as there is simply too much volume now.
While we've noticed that for the most part quality issues have gone up (commensurate with the type of resort we're staying at?), we've noticed this particular item as well we travel in the summer months. When we celebrated our anniversary or my birthday in previous years, there was always "something" special done by restaurants, hotels, etcetera. As time has gone on, that type of personal service has dwindled and for the past several trips we haven't received so much as a card, even though it's been noted on our ADRs and on our ressie. Don't get me wrong, I'd MUCH rather have a clean room, but I think some of the personal touch is gone due to staffing shortages.

[Donalds Duckie]

I don't know if I would necessarily say they've gotten "worse" ... but I would definitely say they've gotten more inconsistent.

20 years ago you'd never find a sole who said anything was less than perfect. Now there are a couple people just in the few responses to this post that have had issues. I've had issues ... not specifically with Housekeeping (although I've had a few rooms that were certainly less than immaculately cleaned), but definitely with overall service.


Bottom line is Disney's resorts are good, not great. If you talk to any frequent business traveller or someone in the high-end travel industry they'll tell you that Disney's deluxe resorts aren't much above average in the grand scheme of things. You're paying for location, basically.

Well said.

I am one that can tell you that I cannot even begin to compare the high level of personal service and ammenities I receive when I stay at Hyatt, Starwood, etc. to a WDW deluxe. And, for less $$$, even without an AARP or AAA discount.

For example, I went to Disneyland last weekend and stayed at the Sheraton on Harbor Blvd. I had a room on the 9th floor with a full balcony and direct view of the parks (watched fireworks from the room), a flat screen TV with full cable (we watched Travel Channel and Food Network!), a beautiful pool and spa area with a poolside bar with food and beverages from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., room service that far exceeds WDW deluxe room service, several restaurants choices in the hotel, a competent and FRIENDLY concierge that immediately took care of anything we needed with a SMILE, a hotel town car that got me back to the airport for less than cost of a cab, etc. within walking distance to the parks. With my AARP discount, I paid $45 less a night than a WDW Moderate in Value season!

Hmm, maybe I'll cancel my WDW package at Pop for Dec. and stay at the Swan or Dolphin or The Hyatt and have a real vacation.:cloud9:

[lightyearfan]

me and dw have been going to WDW since 95, with some time off in between, and at first we've stayed at Mod hotels and the last 3 trips we've been staying at the All Stars, and not once have we encountered a problem with housekeeping, and the grounds are always kept clean.

Victor

[mjstaceyuofm]

My wife and I have noticed some inconsistencies in the cleanliness of DVC units over the past 10 years or so... I'm not sure that qualifies as going downhill or bad service though. Occasionally we've had a room that wasn't uber-clean - like maybe a bit of sand between the floor and the cabinets in the bathroom. It's apparent the floor was swept or mopped, but that little bit was inadvertently left there....

What we have noticed is the general wear and tear that is visible at the resorts and in the rooms. I think that is purely a function of how much there is at WDW and how difficult such a large facility is to maintain.

Things like cracked caulking in the bathroom, toilet paper holders that don't operate like they're new, blinds on doors to balconies that aren't attached at the bottom, etc... are the things that I see. That's what's more bothersome to me.