Checking in to resort

[wdwgirl21]

We will be staying at the Poly from the sunday after thanksgiving into the first week of december, and have stayed there many times. That being said, we have stayed in quite a few of the longhouses, and prefer Tuvalu and Fiji. We also like a balcony, which we have noted on our ressie. When checking-in ,if they assign us a room and we aren't crazy about the location, would it be terribe for us to ask if they have anything available in our preferred longhouses? I don't want to make them angry or be rude, has anyone asked something similiar to this? Any thoughts?

[Polynesian Dweller]

Absolutely ask. You aren't asking for an upgrade so nobody will have a problem with that. If they have availability they will likely do so. We have done that and sometimes they were able to do it and sometimes not. But sure, ask. There's no issue there and its definitely not rude to ask.

[dream6]

I don't think it would be rude to inquire about preferences for a room. We had a similar situation when I went with my family a few years ago - my parents love a specific block of rooms at the Yacht Club. Sometimes it works out, and sometimes not. But I don't think you will make anyone angry. As long as the request is made politely and the customer understands they may hear the word "no," it never hurts to ask! :mickey:

[kemps@wdw]

As my momma used to say..."you don't know til you ask". We ALWAYS inquire as to our room preferences. As I understand it, (correct me if I'm wrong fellow Intercoters), your ressies do not arrive @ your resort til 5 days out. When you call to onfirm, you can again reiterate your preferences. And when you check in, do so as early as possible and, again, ask for what you want. You may just get lucky...we usually do!:mickey:

[CleveRocks]

Here was my experience on Sat. 2/7/09:

We checked-in at 9:45 a.m. We reserved and paid for a theme park view room. I'd requested a 3rd floor room in the Tahiti longhouse (I requested Tahiti because all of the 2nd and 3rd floor MK-view rooms have balconies, the rooms there have 2 bathroom sinks, the rooms there are about 30 or 40 sq. ft. bigger than the MK-view rooms in the other 2 buildings, and it is the closest MK-view room longhouse to the TTC). By far the biggest priority in this request was that we have a balcony.

So anyway, I checked-in at 9:45 a.m. Our assigned room was ready for us. I nicely asked if any of my requests were met, and I learned that none were met ... we were assigned a 2nd floor room in the Aotearoa longhouse. Because I'd done my homework, I knew that: the 2nd floor rooms in that longhouse do not have balconies; the building is fairly far set back from the lagoon, and because of other buildings in your field of vision you have almost a "tunnel" view of Cinderella Castle rather than an unobstructed panoramic view of MK as well as of the other resorts on the monorail; the MK-view rooms in that building are right on the main path that people walk to get to and from the Luau (noisy!); and it is the furthest building from the TTC. In other words, I was very unhappy with my room assignment.

I very nicely asked the CM if it was possible for us to be assigned a room in Tahiti on the 3rd floor. She immediately got on the phone and I imagine it was the Housekeeping department that she was calling. She told me we could get our request but that it wouldn't be ready until the afternoon, and I happily took the offer. Remember, this was not an upgrade in any way, just a building preference. As it turned out, our room wasn't ready until 5:15 p.m. Special request or not, I found that unacceptable, but it hardly put a damper on our trip.

I didn't feel the least bit funny or pushy or rude asking for a different room assignment. I did it in a pleasant manner ... I didn't act like G-d himself entitled me to the room I want. I don't mean to be so dramatic, but I think you know what I mean ... I think we've all seen and heard rude guests who demand to be treated better than everyone else, probably because they think they are better and more important than everybody else. The CM responded to my pleasant request by trying to grant that request for me. She made arrangements to do it, and I gave her a big mahalo. The fact that it took way too long to fulfill the request was a Housekeeping matter and not a front desk matter.

I realize this was a long post, but I wanted to give you some insight into how it worked for me, and how I approached the situation. I strongly encourage you to politely speak up to help yourself get the room you want (as long as you paid for it, of course!).

[tikiman]

I have asked many times and Always been moved. It is actually the best way to get what you want if they are not full when you check in.

[TheRustyScupper]

1) In most cases, you can change the room.
2) If you check-in early, the better your chances.
3) Thus, if you check-in later, your odds go down considerably.