BAD Disney Experience...

[rachellm]

I can understand where you're coming from and understand your disappointment.

We read all these stories here about the "magical" moments and wonderful CM interactions, but I would guess that many of us have never experianced that. We're nice people we don't complain, we're friendly and chat with CMs, but we've never had an above and beyond moment.

I had a similar disappointment this summer in Epcot. My 2 yo got her picture with Marie and as she was running away she tripped on the bricks and face-planted. There was blood and lots and lots of screaming. There were 3 CM with Marie (mostly chit-chatting) and no one really did anything. No one asked if she was okay, if we needed to go to first aid for bandaids, etc. I was disappointed and expected more. Honestly, I've received better customer service in a similar situation in Target! Everyone was staring, whispering, expressing sympathy a few other moms came over to ask if we needed help but no response from the CMs.

Also. I can understand a 3 yo being upset and wanting to go home. That does not mean she's a spoiled brat or needs to be beaten or whatever else people are suggesting

 

[Magalex]

At that very moment I would of been disappointed for my child. We have been taking our DS (now 11) to WDW since he was 4. We had a few CMs who were not the most "magical". But now after 4 trips, * one coming up in June. We think of them as very funny vacation moments & just how long did they stayed employed by WDW. Your child is only 3 there will be many more highlights & disappointments.

 

[Goofy4WDW1964]

Perhaps it was a teaching opportunity for Mom. "So sorry you're upset but Snow White isn't feeling well and is resting. You do want her to feel better don't you? She will come out later". (as soon as casting can find a replacement).

Yea, this would have been a great start! Much better than a shrug of the shoulders.


(when she has tantrums elsewhere will you say "Bad Walmart experience". Come on... Don't blame the (normal-- it happens) behavior of a 3yo on Disney. And let's face it, if your 3yo did not have the breakdown, this thread would never have been posted.

First of all, I do hold Disney to a higher standard than Wal-Mart because I pay higher prices for that higher standard. And let me say that I am happy to do so.

It doesn't take a lot of training or effort to take the time to talk to a child.

 

[PSUGuy]

Also. I can understand a 3 yo being upset and wanting to go home. That does not mean she's a spoiled brat or needs to be beaten or whatever else people are suggesting

Foo the huck said anything about a beating?

Bill From PA

 

[rachellm]

Foo the huck said anything about a beating?

Bill From PA

I was being a bit sarcastic and exagerrating, but a prior poster implied in that direction with the whole "if I ever pulled that my parents would have ..." post.

 

[MickeyMaz]

First of all, you have to be careful about posting negatives out here on this board. You are going to get responses of 'what did you expect them to do, provide you service when it isn't their fault and they don't have to?'

There were several things the cast member could have done and none of them involve dragging a hurling Snow White back out into World Showcase. Perhaps getting the child a balloon with a sincere explanation and apology. Perhaps maybe getting the child an autograph book or pen and explain that it is for her to get Snow White's autograph later. Perhaps getting the child a small treat from one of the World Showcase stands.

It's called customer service. Look it up on Wikipedia. It's also called 'Magic' which Disney keeps telling us is their business.

Several years ago on our first trip after Test Track opened, we got to Epcot in the afternoon and the line for Test Track was a 90 minute wait. Because of our schedule, we were not going to be able to wait that long and we were not going to be able to come back the rest of our trip. Our son was disappointed but handled it well. The cast member that was working the end of that line struck up a converstation with my son. After talking with him, he took us to the front of the line for the ride. He didn't have to do that and our trip would not have been ruined had he not. But we remember that to this day and it didn't cost Disney one dime.

On our very first trip, we had reservations for breakfast for 8am at Crystal Palace. We left early but only one monorail was running that early and when we got to the station, we were really worried we were not going to make our reservation. We were the only one's waiting for the monorail. The cast members working the platform saw the concerns on our face and asked us what was wrong. We explained our situation. Without any request from us, he left and then came back and told us that he called the Crystal Palace and told them we were on our way and to not give away our reservation. Again, we remember that to this day and it didn't cost Disney one dime.

I have witnessed countless times where a child lost a balloon, dropped an ice cream bar, spilled a drink and a cast member replaced whatever was lost, dropped or spilled.

So, if you want to know, 'what did you expect them to do', the answer is 'respond with Disney service'. And no, that doesn't mean pay for my entire trip because Snow White had to leave and not come back. There were plenty of options available that wouldn't have cost much of anything but would have left a positive impression.

Thank you

 

[mb187143]

It doesn't take a lot of training or effort to take the time to talk to a child.

I actually disagree with this - i think some people do have a hard time interacting with a child. Especially someone who doesn't spend much time with children. Especially if that child is in the middle of what DF and I like to refer to as a "Mickey Meltdown". It happens. She's 3 and she was disappointed. But lets say that handler was filling in for someone that day, and isn't used to interacting so closely with small children. Couple that with a hysterical child. I probably would have been at a loss too, especially if the parents couldn't calm the child down.

OP, in that situation, or any situation where you aren't satisfied with how something was handled, I would reccomend stopping at Guest Relations and just letting them know - they can't fix issues they aren't aware of. Maybe the CM needed re-training, or maybe not, but they have no way of knowing if we don't tell them. Everyone has an off day, and maybe this CM had something going on that had them a little bit distracted.

I hope you enjoyed the rest of your trip, and I'm sorry you felt you had a bad experience, but I wouldn't let that ruin the rest of what I'm sure are some wonderful memories you made as a family.

 

[mrs06chris]

OP...glad to hear your DD got to meet Snow White on your vacation.

 

[Goofy4WDW1964]

Replacing a lost balloon, calling to hold a ressie or bumping someone up in line is hardly the same as producing a pinch hitter for a sickly Snow White. Those things were within the power and authority of a CM. SW wasn't available and a polite cover story was about all that I'd expect. I've never seen anyone flamed here for a negative post that was reasonable. IMHO the OP's gripe was unreasonable.

Bill From PA

Perhaps you should have read my entire post. My suggestions never mentioned finding a pinch hitter for a sickly Snow White. There were several options available, all very minimal and well within the authority of any average CM, that would have provided customer service to this person.

If you haven't witnessed someone getting flamed here for a negative post then you don't spend much time here. Of course, my definition of unreasonable is different. I don't think it is unreasonable to have expected a polite, sincere explanation, something more than a shrug. I can get that at Wal-Mart for $4.95.

 

[mrs06chris]

My kid is very disappointed that several great attractions are closed on our upcoming trip. Should I complain to CM to "Make him happy".




No...change your travel dates

 

[MickeyMaz]

Although it was terrible for your 3yo, what exactly did you want the CM to do? Snow White was ill. Drag her out anyway? Bring your 3yo to the infirmary? Give her a fast pass to something? You wrote "they could have at least done SOMETHING to make her feel better".

If I were the CM I'm not sure I would know what to do either.

My kid is very disappointed that several great attractions are closed on our upcoming trip. Should I complain to CM to "Make him happy".




No...change your travel dates :rotfl

Did he wait on line first?

 

[tiredsigh]

OP, I didn't read into your post that you were expecting something material in exchange for the time you spent.

Your child was so excited to see a character and then was let down after waiting for 40 minutes. It seems like if the CM had come out and said, "I'm sorry Snow White has had to take care of the dwarves. She feels bad that she couldn't meet you! I do know that Belle should be near X at X time. Marie is scheduled to be at X at X time."

Something like that doesn't seem to be a lot to ask. OP, sorry for some of the responses here

 

[mrs06chris]

Did he wait on line first?

That's what I was getting at.

 

[PSUGuy]

Perhaps you should have read my entire post. My suggestions never mentioned finding a pinch hitter for a sickly Snow White. There were several options available, all very minimal and well within the authority of any average CM, that would have provided customer service to this person.

If you haven't witnessed someone getting flamed here for a negative post then you don't spend much time here. Of course, my definition of unreasonable is different. I don't think it is unreasonable to have expected a polite, sincere explanation, something more than a shrug. I can get that at Wal-Mart for $4.95.

I'm waiting with bated breath for you to name the options to which you refer, and telling the child that SW was doing something for/with the dwarfs is certainly better than telling a 3 yr old that her herione is sick.

Bill From PA

 

[Ginny Favers]

Well, thanks everyone for the responses, well, maybe not for the ones that suggest I am a bad, "entitled" mother with a bad child. Those I could have done without.

As I said in my earlier post, something more than indifference was what I was looking for. I agree with those who say that mickey mouse stickers, or a smile, would have made a world of difference. However, I understand that's the world we live in today... you ask for a little compassion and people think you are asking for a free ride. You have every right to be suspicious of my intentions, as you don't know me, and so many people do everything they can to milk the system. I get that.

I suppose when one saves and scrimps for many years to afford a vacation like this, they want to make every moment worthwhile. I'm sorry that some of you feel that I was being unreasonable. Maybe if I had the money to go to Disney ever couple of months, it wouldn't have mattered so much.

 

[inspire]

I can surely feel your disappointment as a mother and understand your dismay. That this event took place within an hour of arriving at WDW only increases your feelings and I am sorry your trip had to start this way.

I do agree that perhaps a little compassion would have gone a long way in this situation. However, I have seen meet/greet lines with popular characters stretch very long as the time nears for them to appear and I am curious as to how many folks were in this same line right behind you. As you mentioned in your post it was past the given appearance time once you were alerted to the fact that she wouldn't return. Perhaps the handlers and cm's were not trying to be rude but trying to disperse a crowd in the most efficient way.

 

[kristennn]

I worked at Red Lobster for years and years. RL is a far cry from Disneyworld - we don't claim your dinner there will be "magical" etc. but I can tell you in an equivalent situation we would have "made things right"
It's bad luck to go up to a character just as she is leaving to go on break. It's frustrating as a parent especially if you have a young child - who doesn't "get it" but it happens ... it's just the way it is.
However in this case they told the person 15 minutes and then came back significantly later than that to tell them they had been waiting for something that wasn't going to happen. Snow white being sick is beyond their control - they can't un-do the amount of time the parent and child have been waiting.
What they can do is empathize, try and cheer the child up a little bit ... suggest alternatives ... and maybe offer something very small to make up for the time they spent standing there - for *nothing* they could offer a fastpass - after all that time could have been spent in line at an attraction ... or they could offer something small like a mickey bar or whatever. They could have suggested a different princess - and radioed ahead to ask that princess to spend a little more time or do something a little bit special.

They could have done *something* It's just good customer service and in general it's what Disney does right.

 

[Ginny Favers]

Oh, and for those who asked where I met the dwarves, they were at MNSSHP the year we went. We waited an hour, but it was definitely worth it.

 

[Ginny Favers]

I do agree that perhaps a little compassion would have gone a long way in this situation. However, I have seen meet/greet lines with popular characters stretch very long as the time nears for them to appear and I am curious as to how many folks were in this same line right behind you. As you mentioned in your post it was past the given appearance time once you were alerted to the fact that she wouldn't return. Perhaps the handlers and cm's were not trying to be rude but trying to disperse a crowd in the most efficient way.

We were the only ones waiting. It was mid-October, and Epcot was fairly empty of children. Thank you for agreeing about the compassion... I really appreciate it.

 

[bumbershoot]

I think a sticker would have gone over extremely well in this situation! But maybe the CMs didn't have stickers on them that day.

Stickers for that age group can heal all sorts of sadnesses. We were at California Adventure with my then 3 year old son, he was running and playing in a small run and play and get soaked spot in bug's land, and a bigger kid (maybe 12) decided that it was a good idea for him to run and play as well. When the 12 year old slammed into the 3 year old, the 3 year old ended up on the ground. He was very much NOT happy.

Thankfully, a CM had been watching, came right over, and gave DS a sticker and an honorary citizen button, and it was like he'd waved a magic wand. DS was instantly happy. Stickers and buttons are like the arsenal of happiness to little kids... Honestly, I think that all CMs should carry them.

This is 100% against the policy of keeping the magic magical. There is ONLY one Snow White, suggesting another one to visit at X location would have killed that illusion.

How in the world is telling the parents that Snow should be at X location at Y o'clock killing any illusion? CMs do that all the time. The daughter hadn't been told that the character was sick, she was told that she had to help the dwarves, so it wouldn't have been at all strange to find out that she would be out later on.

Your use of those terms puts a picture in my mind of a spoiled brat throwing total fit.

If there was "nothing" you could do, what would you expect a total stranger to be able to do?

I really really dislike it when people use the word "brat" to describe something that's actually pretty normal for that age.

And it's odd that people aren't aware that strangers can OFTEN cheer up a kid when parents are at a loss. Just like kids often behave better for babysitters, etc, than they do for parents. It's just one of the things about kids... It was super-fun when I was the stranger or babysitter or friend of a parent! As a parent, not so much fun, LOL.

...
My first thought was "she was picking the flowers at Epcot?"

Now that is a good point.

I love reading all these threads about magical moments at Disney, and I think I'd read so many of them before my last trip I thought every minute would be like heaven.

You should read my trip reports. I've been writing them since DS was 17 months old (actually, was I writing them for the first two visits? might have started when he was 3) and I'm honest about the ups and downs (and down even furthers) of Disney trips.

I'm sorry you had those expectations; lower them the next time and things will go better.