Hello, there! My name is Molly and I had the pleasure of being a Guest Relations Hostess, Tour Guide, and Trainer for several years at Walt Disney World — primarily at Magic Kingdom and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Guest Relations is the place to go for Information, Guests with Disabilities Services, International Guest Services, Reservations, Advice about the Parks, Planning Tips, and, of course, Complaining.
Who could possibly complain at Disney World?! Well, unfortunately, lots of people. I heard all kinds of concerns during my tenure “in the plaid vest.” Some weren’t very valid, like “Can you make it stop raining!?” or “Why are there no women in the Hall of Presidents?” (True story.)
However, some issues absolutely warranted compensation or documentation, such as IT issues with MagicBands when they first rolled out, an extremely rude cast member, or a lengthy attraction breakdown.
Disney World isn’t exempt from mistakes, and as hard as they try, sometimes the guest experience can be less than magical. So what’s the best way to voice your concerns?
If you don’t read any further on this post, just remember these two words: “Be. Nice.”
Every Guest Relations Cast Member wants to ensure that you have a wonderful vacation, and if Disney messes up they will absolutely attempt to fix the situation. But your tone, wording, and demeanor can affect whether or not that Cast Member goes above and beyond.
Whether the issue is something completely out of your control (such as the weather or an attraction closing) or something that was completely in your control (for example, you didn’t realize there were block-out dates on your ticket), remember the Cast Member in front of you had nothing to do with the cause of your problem.
But they can fix it. Guest Relations Cast Members have the ability to make an awful lot of magic and fix a lot of situations — no matter who’s at fault. But just because they can, doesn’t mean they have to.
Think about it this way: Guest Relations Cast Members were hired to help you — why would you yell at the person trying to help you? And let me be clear, you have every right to be upset and frustrated if something goes wrong on the vacation you spent a lot of money on! What I am talking about is yelling, screaming, and cursing — which unfortunately happens more than you’d expect in a family theme park. This is coming from someone who has been called every name and curse word in the book — in several languages.
So the moral of this story is simply to be nice. Remember, the Cast Member in front of you is there to listen, to help, and to restore the magic if at all possible.
We all have goofy moments when we forget things. A trip to Walt Disney World requires a lot of research, planning, and knowledge, and it’s very possible something will slip your mind. But don’t worry — Guest Relations Cast Members are literally paid to be WDW experts.
If you’re headed to Guest Relations for a concern that you could’ve prevented, don’t sweat it! But do admit you made a boo-boo. A simple, “I didn’t realize this when booking our tickets…” or “I forgot to link my son’s ticket…” can go a long way!
Guest Relations Cast Members want to assist no matter what — and for me personally, having a Guest kindly admit they needed help to correct a blunder was a surefire way to get me to go above and beyond.
Before you head to Guest Relations, think about your concern and if the Cast Member you’re going to speak with can really fix it. I’m talking about things like demanding The Black Cauldron characters get their own meet-and-greet or insisting The ExtraTerrorestrial Alien Encounter returns or that you liked the old Pirates of the Caribbean better and you want Jack Sparrow removed. (These are all real-life examples, believe it or not.)
If the Cast Member in front of you won’t be able to fix it right then and there, do you really want to waste your precious vacation time going to complain?
Disney does want your feedback, though! For concerns of this nature, I would always recommend emailing or writing Disney Communications. Believe it or not, they really do read every single message they receive and make some decisions about the parks based on Guest feedback.
This one piggybacks off of #3. Even if Guest Relations could possibly fix the issue, do you really want to waste your precious vacation time complaining if you don’t have to?
This one is tricky, because everyone’s threshold for an issue is different. For some people, rain is an absolute disaster, while for others they grab some ponchos and go! (This is just an example. Guest Relations cannot, I repeat, cannot fix the weather.)
If the issue really is important enough for you to trudge all the way over to Guest Relations, by all means go for it! Fixing concerns is literally Guest Relations’ job. But if it’s just a little blip, then keep having fun and save your feedback (good and bad) for a letter later.
Also keep in mind that in some cases Guest Relations may not even be necessary. You won’t believe the amount of times people came to me with issues about a dining experience (for example). Instead of talking to a Cast Member at the restaurant, they waited until the end of the day to talk to me. As much as I would have loved to help, the manager at that restaurant could likely have fixed the situation on the spot. Don’t forget that all Disney Cast Members are trained to be superstars in Guest Service, so ask in the area you’re in! If they direct you to Guest Relations or you’re still upset, then head that way. But ideally the issue will be fixed quickly on-site, and you can enjoy the rest of your magical day.
I know it sounds like I am being more repetitive than “it’s a small world,” but really, just BE NICE!
Take it from someone who spent several years on the other side of the counter — Guest Relations Cast Members simply want to help. Feel free to express your concerns, especially if the fault lies on Disney. A trip to the Most Magical Place on Earth is expensive, and if something goes wrong, you deserve to have it fixed. But there’s no need to be rude to the person who can help you.
One of my dear Plaid friends used to always remind me of a quote from Cinderella that sums this post up perfectly:
“Where there is kindness, there is goodness, and where there is goodness, there is magic.” – Cinderella
What has your experience been with Guest Relations at Walt Disney World? Let us know in the comments!
Molly is a lifelong Disney enthusiast, and former Walt Disney World Guest Relations Cast Member and tour guide. Her Walt Disney World favorites include Festival of the Lion King, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Fantasmic!, Mickey-shaped pretzels and rice krispie treats, and anything with Buzz Lightyear! She lives in Orlando with her husband (who she met in Guest Relations) and their two rescue dogs, Kronk and Cruella de Vil (Ella for short!)
When Disney first rolled out the old metal detectors, I had a disaster of a time getting through security.
Let me first say that I visit Disney multiple times each year, so I wasn’t a newbie. However, this time I was visiting the park after attending a Disney Institute week.
Metal detectors had been installed only earlier that week, so they were still learning their system and flow. One afternoon, we left our Institute class to enjoy the rest of the evening in Epcot. The weather was nice, it was later in the evening, so I didn’t bother changing clothes before going to the park. I had a few full Pandora bracelets on, a few rings, earrings, and my Apple Watch. As I started to walk through the detector, the security man told me, “You ain’t getting through with all of that jewelry on. You need to take it off and hurry up because you’re holding up the line.” I quickly started taking my jewelry off and placing it in a bowl to be passed around the detector. As I was taking it all off (including my Apple Watch that he said I had to take off), he jerked the bowl away, dropped it, and my bracelets, with all their charms went one way, and my Apple Watch went another way, cracking the screen.
I was upset, but figured I just had to deal with it. My husband insisted we march straight over to Guest Relations. As I was explaining what had happened, the security guard burst through, called me a liar, told me that taking off jewelry was not their policy, and told me to deal with it. Honestly, the lady at guest relations was taken aback by that reaction. To make a long story short, they had to go back, review the security footage, where they saw me heading through security, being stopped, being rushed, and them dropping my stuff, thus proving me NOT a liar. They knew that we were attending with the Disney Institute. The next day, our guest speaker was the VP of AK. Somehow she knew what had happened, called me out of the class to talk privately. She apologized profusely and told me there would be something waiting for me when I got back to my room that night.
When we returned to our room later that evening, a brand new Apple Watch and a basket of goodies was waiting on me.
Even though that happened at Epcot, and she was the VP of Animal Kingdom, she knew what had happened and wanted to make it right. I was so impressed with the experience I had.
A BAD BREAKUP I just returned from what may be my last WDW trip for a long time or possibly ever and I am heartbroken.
I am (was) a confirmed Disney Addict.
But it has changed. The parks are dirty, even when it’s not busy it “feels” busy, and only about half of the cast members stay in Character. The straw (brick) that broke the camels back was this last Saturday we were at AK. It was a special trip because it was my daughter’s first trip back after two years of severe health problems. We were in line for FOP and people kept cutting in line. We politely tell them that no they cannot pass us and that they should go find a CM and that the CM will help them find their family. We have done this in the past and people around us thank us for saying something and the CMs (when available) have supported us and the other guests. So this time we ended up with these four girls behind us that refused to seek the help of CMs and just stayed behind us very angry at us. When we reached a CM in line, we asked that he explain the rules to the guest (like every time before) and he instead let them move up the line and shook his head at us and was very rude to us. For the next half hour we went back and forth in line and because of the switchbacks we had to keep passing these girls and they were taunting us and laughing at us.
We did our best to ignore them and had wonderful conversations with the people around us. When we reached the front of the line, we asked to speak with the manager (Samantha). She seemed exhausted when she approached us. We explained to her what had happen and she was dismissive and said she probably would have done the same thing that the CM did. I was stunned. I asked her who she reports to and she said “I’m the manager.” I push and said but who do you report to. She again said “I’m the manager.” My daughter looked at her and said “So you’re the manager of all of Disney World?” To that she answered very flippantly “Well, I guess you can go to Customer Relations.” I did go to Customer Relations and there was a very lovely girl who wrote down our complaint and was very understanding. We had reservations in Disney Springs the next day that we no longer wanted and she cancelled them for us and made it so we wouldn’t be charged anything. Every one can have a bad day. Everyone can make mistakes. Had we been talked to in a reasonable manor with the intention of seeking resolutions, I wouldn’t be on social media talking negatively about Disney. But what happened left me feeling very degraded and like I really didn’t matter and that is just not how I have EVER felt at WDW before. I miss the park where all the CMs were in character and telling people “Happy Birthday Princess.” And “Have a great day!” where everything felt magical. Not dirty and crabby and ….real. What it ultimately comes down to is I save my money and go to WDW to escape reality. Now that that seems gone, it’s just not worth it anymore. But the girl at Customer Relations was very understanding, nice and helpful.
I just came back from WDW last week and felt a lot of CM weren’t up to Disney standards. I don’t know if they’re new hires because of the pandemic, or what… but nobody went above and beyond; I inquired about purchasing something from a window display & the girl I spoke with would not help. When I asked for a manager, she “called” someone who backed her up and wouldn’t let me purchase the item. Additionally nobody said “have a magical day,” and absurdly, as a DVC member since 1997, I was asked if it was my “first time” staying at the Boardwalk when checking in. What?? It was my birthday and I wanted a bday pin… but I didn’t bother asking after the odd interaction. I dunno. It was a really strange vacation.
Patty Hostelka says:We took our granddaughter to Disney World one year. She was about 6 years old. Believe me she has been taught and normally uses very good manners. However I don’t know what got into her that day. But when we approached one Princess my adorable granddaughter says to her “you are ugly”. I about died right there.
Anne B says:During my 50th birthday trip, I was handling all items trip related for 15 people. This was during a time when the website was updated. Need I say more. From missing room reservations, missing park tickets, missing FP it was a mess. I spent no less than 3 to 4 hours a day with a CM trying to unravel this mess. We calculated that I had spent over 25 hours dealing with all of this mess. Did I mention it was my birthday trip? In addition to the unbelievable IT issues we had to give permission for our beloved cat to be put to sleep in the middle of attending a DVC member magic which my DW and I had to leave because we were so upset. Needless to say the trip was the most trying one I have ever experienced. Throughout this mess the CM and guest services were awesome. While I had not asked for any special treatment I was always treated well and they gave me their full attention. I had points returned, free park tickets given to me, fast passes made and food and merchandise credits given to me. Every time a CM saw it was my birthday and realized how much of my trip I was spending doing this instead of being with my family they acted quickly and with compassion. The two things I will remember most. We were facetiming with the vets office so we could be with our precious Bailey in her last moments and we were sitting at a table in Baseline in HS. The CM kept bringing us something to drink and sat with us while we all cried after Bailey was gone. They did not have to do that but it gave my DW and I some comfort. The only time I specifically asked for something was the next day. We missed everything at HS the night before and never got to ride anything. I asked for a fastpass for Slinky Dog well the cast member went above and beyond and got them for all the Toystoryland ones and 6 other passes to use on the other rides. It was amazing. At no point throughout any of my encounters was I rude to any CM and I only asked for compensation once in the form of a single fastpass. EVERY single time they went above and beyond to make things right. I did not have to beg or threaten or be rude to them. They recognized a screw up on their end and tirelessly worked to fix it. They made what could have been a very bad trip a pretty awesome one. And yes I did send emails praising the CM. I am forever grateful for the kindness I recieved on this trip from the Cast Members. They were truly outstanding.
Gina says:An absolutely amazing guest relations cast member helped us when we realized after getting passes for ROTR, our party of 5 was not linked together. So 3 of us had different boarding times than the other 2. We found her under an umbrella right outside of Galaxy’s Edge. She got our party linked together and helped us all get the same boarding group.
Just an awesome person! (Did not have the correct name tag so I don’t know who she was. But it was on May 13, 2021, at about 2:30pm.)
In 2002 we took our 5 year old daughter and 2 year old son to Disney World. These were the days before meet and greets were what they have evolved into nowadays,and to top it off there was a character strike going on. My daughter loved Princess Aurora and only wanted to see her in a parade or anywhere,just wanting a view. After a week there, it was our last day we went to Magic Kingdom hoping to see her. When I asked at Town Hall where we could find her I was told she isn’t around since her castle is at Disneyland. We were so disappointed. When we were waiting in line to see Mickey my husband mentioned to a cast member how sad our daughter was to miss her, we were told to wait a minute while they checked. A few minutes later we were told when and where to find Sleeping Beauty. We are almost certain that magically Cinderella let Princess Aurora take her place. Our trip ended with so much magic. Fast forward to fall 2019 and our same little girl found herself as a shopkeeper at Hollywood Studios making magic for others.
Natalie says:These photos made my day Molly! Thank you for sharing. I’d love you hear more of your days working for WDW or when you were in the CP.
Rebecca Pogers says:As a former CM of 20 years I couldn’t agree more with these!! Magic CAN and most likely WILL happen if you are calm and attempt to work with the CM not against. That’s the reason most of us get into the biz is to make people happy and crate magic! To keep with the Cinderella theme as Fairy Godmother says “even miracles take a little time”.
Stephen Pennington says:We went in December shortly after RoR opened and while we made the decision to not be at the park at 3am, we did get there early. Unfortunately, there were already signs up saying RoR was full for the day. I halfway expected it so I wasn’t upset. We were able to do some rides and then spotted a GR cast member. Out of curiosity I asked what time they stopped adding boarding passes just so I could plan better next time. Turns out it was almost 45 min after we had arrived. She was so nice and apologized for the mix up. She checked our magic bands against the system, saw what time we arrived, and noted when RoR was full. She obviously couldn’t do anything for RoR, but was very sweet and offered to add two FP at Epcot since we were heading there for dinner. (Next trip was after park reservations and the 10am deal, which we got!) Love the energy that the cast members have!
Lindsay says:Several years ago we had our highly planned out Disney trip cancelled due to Hurricane Irma. We were able to reschedule for a few weeks later, due to our amazing travel agent, but we lost our highly coveted fast passes for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. On our last night there I went to guest relations, told them our story and she secured 6 fast passes for us for that night! We were so happy and so very thankful!
Matt says: Ok but are you absolutely certain guest relations can’t fix the weather? 🤣🤦♀️ Rodney A. says:My family are all season pass holders. We have been going to Animal Kingdom for many years and we always look forward to the Kilimanjaro Safari. We have been on that attraction dozens of times, and have always enjoyed it. Today, however, we did not have a good experience. Our tour guide, Renee, was extremely negative and discussed poaching 95% of the time. She went further to say that we are a cause of it since we buy jewelry and cell phones. While I know every tour guide discusses poaching at some points of the tour, and agree it is important to educate the guests on, particularly with the elephants and rhinos, the guide normally includes some other animal facts along the way. This time the focus was a lecture to the guests. The guests did not leave with a good impression or uplifting experience. It felt like a 20 minute lecture instead of an enlightening adventure it normally is.
John Hartman says:This is more of a comment than a complaint. I don’t think I’ve ever had a complaint about my experiences at Disney World. My wife and I visited Disney World for our 25th anniversary in 2014. We had dinner reservations at Cat Cora’s restaurant but changed our minds at the last minute, on the same day as the reservation. We wanted to dine at Paradiso 37 instead. We went to Guest Relations at the Magic Kingdom and spoke to one of the hosts. He gladly changed our reservation and even waived the $50 fee for the last minute change. Needless to say, we were very appreciative.
Pam says:Back on March 13, 2019 MK Guest Relations, I had a world of problems with my magic band and tickets, and old tickets, and used tickets and non-expiring tickets.. It was a mess, mostly my fault not knowing the magic band uses the next available ticket, not the ticket last purchased. This poor girl at guest relations was probably 10 minutes away from a much needed and deserved break, when she took on my case. We were there for about an hour and were running close to our meet and greet with Tinkerbell. She fixed all my ticketing issues, gave us a confirmation# to use at a later date, and noticed we had a fast pass we didn’t use, so she booked us for my favorite, Splash Mountain, and gave us an additional fast pass in case we missed Tinkerbell. We talked about her being on the college program and interning and seven years later she was finally in the position she went to college for and was doing an excellent job doing it. Wish I could remember her name. She was amazing. I also try and send #castcompliments whenever I encounter a special cast member. I found out about them, after this encounter. Cast Members are incredible.
Ricky Kinney says:Sounds like good, common sense advice Molly. Why would you want to snap at the hand someone is reaching out with to help you?
Troy Williams says:Nicely done Molly! I was in Epcot GR for three years following my 12 years in characters at MK and the Studios. The best part was seeing a guest’s reaction when you could do MORE for them than what they were actually expecting. The worst part was when someone had a legitimate complaint and you could do absolutely nothing to help them other than throw comp tix at them, which in many cases they would be insulted by. Like when I had a guest who was a single father with a baby who was furious about the fact that the baby changing stations were located only in the women’s restrooms (this was 1994…) – all I could say was “you are absolutely right that that is a terrible oversight and should be corrected, and I’ll pass it along to the appropriate department…”
Rebecca Mullens says:We have had many wonderful Disney magic moments over the years and the Disney employee is correct in saying if people would be polite it goes a long way with wanting to help and if you don’t have an expectation of getting something in return. My two recent examples in 2019 we had a horrible dining experience at a very expensive WDW resort restaurant. I wrote the manager a letter and he not only emailed me a response but called me to thank me for useful critique. They wanted to give us a free meal and I said well we live in Texas so we can’t just hop over there so he gave us a Disney gift card for the value of the meal to shop online! This year we stayed at CB in August and it had just opened that week. After a long day of traveling we get into our room and find it has no hot water. The plumbers had to come and fix it and it took another hour before we could have our room to ourselves. A few days later we got a generic email from the mgmt asking how our stay was going and let them know if we needed anything. I told them about the incident but otherwise said we loved the resort and the skyliner. Well the GM called me and comped that first night for our troubles. Again we didn’t expect it but it was a wonderful gift of Disney magic.
Denise ReNy says:My sister loves Daisy Duck, which is a hard character to find. We stood in line at the HOF in MK for over an hour as daisy was going to be there. By the time we got to the front she had left. Here is a 7 year old crying and a cast member saw her and asked what was the matter. She told them and then they pulled us aside and made an exception. We went to guest services and complemented the staff member. They even sent an autograph picture of daisy to the Contemporary for her. We can’t think them enough
Diana Whittles says:I had a cast member go above and beyond with the pixie dust at the GF once. Why? Because I didn’t yell at her. Seriously?! Because I didn’t yell at her. How on earth are the rest of my fellow park goers treating this poor woman if my kindness warranted her feeling I should be rewarded? I have never wanted to hug a cast member quite as badly as I did after this exchange…
M Anderson says:I’ve had amazing guest service in almost every way possible 99% of the time…and sadly, I’ve been a grump a time (our of frustration) or two and apologized…it was only right – not the Guest Services’ fault – they were very kind. That said, I’ve also seen some pretty ridiculous guests…like the guest who had the best suite at the Contemporary and pitched a fit that they couldn’t see the ocean when they requested an ocean view room (probably was ‘lake or water’ view. The ocean is at least 50 miles from the resort. I can’t imagine how hard it must be to not say what you’d really like to say when in plaid. I doubt I could do it without a sarcasm tsunami.
Scott Balthazard says:I never had a bad experience with guest relations. I stay at club level and, in general, every interaction has been magically exceptional. Two experiences stand out.
To our tremendous surprise, we were upgraded to the grand suite (we never wanted to leave the room) at the Grand Floridian for a stay. I wanted to schedule an in-room dining experience (not room service) one night as per a welcome sheet in the room. I went to the club to speak to the concierge. He told me it was room service and there was no special in room dining experience offered. I went back to the room and re-read the sheet and it did state there was an in-room dining experience that could be planned. I called and left a message with the management. I also emailed the provided address. I approached it, as always, not as a complaint, but as a polite FYI and a coaching opportunity (this is revenue potential — not a plea for something free. Within 15 minutes, I received a phone call. The assistant manager at guest services apologized and confirmed that yes, they did offer an in room dining experience. That night, we had a phenomenal dinner while watching fireworks. The manager reviewed the menu, provided us wine and personalized dessert for us. The cast at Victoria and Albert’s paired the wine for us — it was amazing evening and the manager not only was there that evening to ensure we were happy, but followed up the next day and a week after our stay.
The second was at the Gran Destino. It was our second stay there. It’s an amazing resort that I can’t believe isn’t considered deluxe. When I pulled up, I was ignored by the cast. I stood by our vehicle, ready to valet and unload. People walked past. They saw us…but…we waited until much later, when we were finally asked if we were checking in. Inside, we were not greeted by a cast member to bring us to the club level. It took us about 20 minutes plus to have someone greet us. It was not busy. There were many cast members available.
I approached it the same way — I called and emailed. I stated I was not angry, but disappointed and I wanted to inform management so they could coach the team. I stated it was not usual so that’s why I wanted to bring it to management attention.
A short time later, as we approached Morimoto’s for dinner, I received a call from the assistant manager. He apologized and asked when we were returning to the Gran Destino. He met us back at the room with a bottle of bubbly and a few more gifts. I assured him it was not necessary but he insisted. He stated he never wanted a guest to have anything less than a magical experience. He also provided us a $250 dining voucher.
The next evening, he followed up to ensure were were happy. At the end of our stay the resort manager reached out to us and offered his personal contact and asked that we reach out to him to arrange our next stay with him. Unfortunately, the virus killed that stay (I had organized a perfect trip with all the desired fast passes and dining).
Disney World Guest Services is an amazing team and they deserve all the praise. I wish all businesses had such quality individuals.
We stayed at a moderate resort for a long weekend. I’m a former CP now DVC and AP, so get to go often and know the level of service that’s expected. We had a few, okay several minor issues that started to impact our stay at this resort. On our way home my husband said, if I were the GM of the resort I would want to know these problems. We sent an email to the GM saying we didn’t want or need anything, but thought you would like to know these things that happened to us so you can determine if you have a pattern going on that need to be addressed or if these were just unfortunate outliers. Well he called me and we talked over the issues and possible solutions if things like this happened to others. He appreciated my comments and suggested and gave us an opportunity for a nice long vacation on his dime. It paid to be nice and appreciative!!
Jordan Scherpe-Lencioni says:We had a great experience with Guest Relations at Hollywood Studios on New Years Eve last year. For some reason my ticket was not registering at the gate but the rest of my family’s tickets were. A cast member helped us get passes for Rise and then ushered us to the GR kiosk for a closer look on the ticket issue. In there, a different cast member assisted us and after about 20 mins found my ticket in the abyss that is Disney and fixed the reservation. Because we were patient and kind to the cast member on a very busy, hectic day, he surprised us and bumped up our reservation for Rise from #160 in the que to #30.
Steve Kiray says:Many many years ago, when our daughter was still a “stroller kid”, we left our stroller with camcorder outside Minnie’s House in MK only to discover that someone took the stroller. We were devastated as there were 8mm tapes of my daughter the day she was born in the camcorder bag. We found and notified a security guard and he brought us to guest relations at the front of MK. They did place a radio alert out to security, but common sense dictated that we would never see that stroller or precious memories again. Upon returning home my wife contacted Disney Customer Relations and a few days later received a lovely letter with a voucher for 1 years annual passes for the 3 of us and a personal apology. That simple gesture meant a lot to us!
Julie says:Years ago I went to Disney with 2 girlfriends. One of the girls had a rollerblading accident before our stay at the Disney resort which had become terribly infected during our stay. After the resort doctor came to our room one evening and determined that she should go to the hospital, An employee at our resort drove my friend to the ER, stayed with her while she got an IV, drove her back to the hotel, then the next morning drove her again to the ER for a second IV, then to the pharmacy then to the hotel. Disney went above and beyond for a sick guest just so she wouldn’t have to be admitted to the hospital. I’ll always remember how the staff was so caring for a sick guest.
Paul Hanagriff says:On the very first day of our trip and our very first time to ride Space Mountain, I had all of my food vouchers in my pocket, well naturally they flew out somewhere on the ride. Of course I took full responsibility and some grief from the Mrs. we went to guest service to purchase replacements and told them what happened. They asked to see my wife’s vouchers. The person then generated new vouchers and kindly said “No Charge”. I was flabbergasted. That was my magic moment for sure. Thanks again.
Linda Miller says:We have been DVC members since 1994 – been to Disney World and Disneyland at least once (sometimes twice a year), and trips with Adventures by Disney – and NEVER had to go to Guest Relations!
Ed Popielarczyk says:I have had more than one occasion when I goofed and staff were very eager to help. I usually visit guest relations to commend a cast member who went above and beyond. I find that folks go there to complain so it is nice to hear good comments as well!
Crystal says:Hey Molly! You may not know if you’re not at WDW still. We have a concern and every time we call we get different responses. We have reservations at Beach Club Resort through DVC and have had the reservation scheduled since last Christmas. We have been unable to get tickets, any idea if this is going to be possible to get tickets for this September? Thanks for all your help!
Dawn Harris says:The only time I had ever contacted guest relations happened right after we got home. I had bought one of those water bottles with the fans on top to keep you cool. This was back in 2000. It wasn’t super expensive, but what made it special is that was my last vacation with my Dad. He passed later on that year. Jump ahead a few years and I brought this with on a trip to Disneyland to help keep me cool. I left it in my room on the couple cool days we had. When we got home I realized that my bottle with 2000 printed boldly on the front had been replaced with one from California Adventure with bear mountain on it. I was devastated! I emailed guest relations. Now, I worked in the hotel industry for a few years and cleaned rooms. I also know that steps can easily be traced. The only thing they did for me was to send me out a new California adventure bottle as there was no way to get a 2000 bottle. That’s it. All the memories I had tied to that and poof, gone and it seemed nobody wanted to look into it. I found a 2000 bottle a few years ago on eBay and bought it. Still get a little angry that nobody wanted to help.
Angie says:Hi Molly! My family loves your YouTube blogs! My daughter would love to get an autographed photo from you, he is a super fan of your vlogs
Michelle D says:I have had many amazing Guest Relation experiences. One that really stands out is from Animal Kingdom. I’m a pass holder, but I don’t usually push myself to park hop as I chose to one day. I went from Hollywood Studios to get a boarding group for Rise of the Resistance to Animal Kingdom since I had a Fast Pass at 8:30 am for Flight of Passage and then when I got off, I got called for my boarding group, so back to Hollywood Studios. By the time I got off the ride, I was within half an hour of my lunch reservation at Animal Kingdom. Now, here is where I should just have changed it, but I continued on to Tusker House, towards the back of the park. By the time I was seated, I was exhausted. I ate and nearly fell asleep at the table. I still had two more fast passes but realized I needed sleep. I went to the Guest Relations at the front of the park and explained I overestimated my ability to park hop 4 times in 5 hours and just requested that the last two fast passes be removed since I was needing to go back to the resort and sleep. I didn’t know which park I would be heading back to, but I knew it wouldn’t be Animal Kingdom, so I just wanted those cleared. The CM asked me for my magic band and saw I wasn’t lying and stated he was amazed I had actually done all that in one morning. I thought he was removing the fast passes….he ended up replacing them – with Guest Relation magical passes. So I ended up with two fast passes to anything in all four parks except Frozen Ever After, Rise of the Resistance and Flight of Passage! Four hours later I went to Magic Kingdom to ride the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, then decided that I did three parks, why not one more? So I took the monorail over to EPCOT and rode Spaceship Earth, then stood in line for Frozen Ever After and by then, it was time for park close…but the most magical ride day ever. I wish I had gotten the name of that cast member. He truly made my day magical after I had made it incredibly tiring.
Marisa says:So many great experiences with guest services over the years. One issue (my fault and how I booked tickets) they corrected my errors, credited my account for my overbooking and then allowed us into the park (complimentary) for fireworks on our last evening – priceless. Another issue on a different trip our alarms kept going off in the early hours – they fixed the issue but still happened, they apologized, fixed it again and offered a gift card for our troubles – were able to get a few extra treasured souvenirs. Finally not an issue at all but on my daughter’s 8th Birthday (our first family visit) she was all “princessed” up and a cast member saw us sharing a dole whip – took the birthday girl and treated her to her own – so special, above and beyond!
Kara says:The CM’s thatcwork at Guest Relations are the best! As an AP I have had to see them for several issues, lost wallet (recovered in less than 45 minutes at EPCOT with nothing missing), lost MB, replaced for free and they gave my son Disney $$’s to decorate the band, MaxPass App not working in DisneyLand..They have always gone above and beyond to keep the Magic alive!
Cynthia says:Being nice us so true. Years ago during a day parade (first and only day parade) they were taking kinds from the side of the street to be in the parade. My daughter tried to go, I think she was about 6 or 7. The cast member in the parade hurriedly but gently guided our daughter back to the side of the street. She started bawling and the cast member was just a little rude. We went to guest relations, only to give some feedback, we weren’t trying to get anything or looking for special treatment. We just wanted someone to talk to the cast member about how to handle the situation better. We politely told our story and turned around to leave. A manager came out and told us that he just received a phone call from Goofy or Pluo, don’t remember who, but he took us down main Street to the pin store and told her she could have any pin she wanted. Of all the expensive pins she just chose an 8-9 dollar pin. Of course she was young, so she really had no clue what she was allowed to do. All she cared about was they tried to make it better. We were very happy. They didn’t have to do anything but say Thank you for the information and let us go. One of my most favorite memories. They really tried and it showed.
Darren says:I read this with interest as I have been very vocal about the recent apparent changes in attitude within WDW, I write as an AP, multi year visit guest from the mid ‘80s, and a previous shareholder in EuroDisney. My take is that Guest Relations staff do still appear to care, but unfortunately their bosses in the background and a significant number of other guest facing position holders (store employees, front gate operators, food and beverage staff etc) … and certainly this new position as “Guest Experience” really don’t any more. It’s just a job! It used to be that everyone employed by the company wanted to be there to share their guests pleasure….now they just want a days wage!
That’s fine in a short term strategy, but it doesn’t engender a love for a “place”….or a loyalty. Those other employees just say “go see Guest Relations” rather than addressing issues themselves. This post mentions many situations where guests could have had redress at an earlier stage, as someone who really doesn’t want to walk back to the front of a park to complain I can tell you this, the majority of those colleagues of yours just push the problems to you.
These days fast passes are used as a currency to “buy off” complaints rather than to understand them and try to minimise the issues reoccurring. Many of the responses below are “we got this….we got that” after a complaint, rather than giving things away why not address the actual faults and problems.
Case in point, right from the very start of Boarding Groups for Rise, it’s been apparent that the park wifi becomes very unreliable a couple of minutes before release, but WDW still insist on using that system. Yes, we can complain to Guest Relations about it, and they can engineer a personal solution, but why not fix the system? Then we don’t have to get annoyed in the first place?
I remember being at Epcot when my period hit unexpectedly! Disney had supplies in the bathrooms – for a quarter. All I had was my magic band for expenditures, not my card, so I couldn’t use an ATM. A cast member at the gift shop nearby was horrified when I asked if she’d spot me a quarter or let me buy something for 25 cents more than it cost and thus give me a quarter. She directed me and my 2year old to a nursing/hospitality center far away to buy supplies. I tried but I could not find it. Asked many cast members for directions. You can understand how desperate I was getting. Finally, a cast member closed her booth and walked me to it! And…they had no supplies. The cast member at the hospitality room just shrugged. (They sell formula, diapers, etc. “Well we usually have pads…I think…”) But a fellow mother had pity on me and gave me the damn quarter. The whole thing took two hours. I’ll never go to Disney without my wallet again! It was great to enjoy the magic band until then! And it really showed me how little cast members will actually solve problems. They’re no different from workers anywhere else. Which is fine! I just bought the hype, as described above – about them all being trained to be masters at customer service.
Bridget Root says:We were very excited to get an ADR to BOG without realizing it was during the MVMCP to which we didn’t have tickets. When we realized, we went to Customer Relations hoping we could change our dinner reservation. Instead, they gave all 5 of us tickets to the MVMCP so we not only made it to dinner but we got to stay for the festivities! Above and beyond! It was totally our fault. We were so excited to get the dinner reservations, we missed the warning about the special event.
WAYNE says:Absolutely dead on advice and thank the Baby Yoda that I have you right behind me as a Park Greeter or I would’ve never taken that job. Guest Relations personnel are Guardian Angels. Thank you.
Stephanie says:I had your job in the early 2000.. And absolutely loved it.. But my “favorite complaint “ That people wanted a refund over, Was when it rained that they thought Disney world had a dome built over it. Somehow the rain ruined their whole trip😉
Dorothy Keesler says:I accidentally left my watch in the safe in my room. I had checked out and was on to another resort when I realized my mistake. I went back to the resort and spoke with the cast member. The room had already been occupied by a new guest. The cast member did everything she could to find someone that could enter the room to see if my watch was still there, but without the new guest being in the room at the time, there wasn’t much they could do. Long story short… my watch arrived home in less than 10 days. I was amazed and very happy at the perseverance of the staff to assist.
Ellen Iacopucci says:I was unaware of the magic these attendants have. We were having an awful time in the most magical place. We scheduled on week 10 when it is usually less crowed and not so warm. However I was informed by the attendant that it was an unusually busy and an unusually hot week ! Everyone was so cranky. Nothing seemed to go as planned. AJ and Laura my team in plaid put everything to ease. They were amazing. They managed to put our vacation back on the right track and restored the magic . So thankful !
Donald Wright says:Guest Relations has always been understanding and helpful whenever we needed them…annual passholders for 17 years!!
Debby says:Prices are too high and all you do is wait in line. Too many people are left into the parks so we don’t go anymore.
Christine Cappello says:Amazing. They saved a vacation for us on our last trip when a local Orlando hotel really left us in a lerch! They were phenonemal and saved our vacation. I am so thankful for our cast member who helped us!
Timothy L Potts says:A friend of mine was at WDW did a walk up to dining location.The guest in front of was demanding they seat them the CM told them they couldn ‘t . My friend walked up and asked nicely, the CM said he’d see what he could do ,he got a resv. at another place .Being nice helps
Kim says:When my sons were little my husband and I took them to Disney after we finalized our adoption. We bought them milkshakes and my one done wasn’t finished by time we had to get on line for a ride. So instead of it turning out to be a meltdown a Disney member gave us a coupon to get a brand new shake when we got off the ride. It is one memory that will stick out from our multiple trips to Disney. They also do the baby swap the best I have ever experienced.
Brian holme says:Several years ago we were booked into a smoking room by mistake,we were moved to a non smoking the day after but they forgot to move our luggage so when we arrived at our new room our luggage was still in the old room.it took them ten minutes to sort this then we got a call from guest relations to say dinner was on Disney for us,or we could have sixty dollars.all for being ten minutes late ,brilliant.
Theresa bulanda says:I’ve had my fair share of issues at Disney, but I have never had them nor do everything in their power to fix them. We go frequently and even had our daughter’s wedding there. Here’s an example of how much they want to make things right. We had used dvc points on a Grand Villa for the wedding and stayed 5 nights. Our magic bands would not work for the room. Everyone someone came back to the room; rehearsals, dinner, wedding, etc., we were stuck outside. Finally mommy of the bride couldn’t take it and I just burst out crying. Night before the wedding, emotions were running high and I was exhausted. Front desk contacted someone and finally fixed the problem after many trips back and forth to the front to get let in our room. (At least 15 times; it was bad as there were 14 of us). Well, without us knowing she called dvc and told them the problem. Upon check out they told us that dvc has been made aware of all the issues and were giving us back half the points for the stay! That’s a lot of points. They also gave the new couple a dessert party of choice for a wedding gift. It was the sweetest gesture ever. So advice; be nice. If Disney can’t make you happy, then you are just not a happy person.
Jayne Haas says:Disney’s customer service has always been exemplary. There have been a few times I have had to go to them. They have always gone above and beyond. The best example I can think of was when we were there with our daughter and three of our grandchildren. We were staying at the French Quarter. For the first time we decided to use the bus transportation system. Spent the day at Magic Kingdom. The kiddos all had the autograph books and had a great time meeting as many characters as possible. After taking the bus back to our hotel and now in our rooms I heard this desperate wail from our youngest granddaughter. She had left her little “Scotty dog” purse on the bus with her autograph book in it. She (6 years old) and I went to the hotel concierge to report the lost item. They were really sweet but warned that it might not be found but would do their best. We went back to our rooms. Half an hour later, a knock on our door. They found her purse with the autograph book and delivered it safe and sound. I will always remember how sweet and obviously efficient they were. A great memory for us.
Adam fraum says:Being nice totally goes a long way. It literally can give you the keys to the kingdom. When your nice they go above and beyond. I have had this happen every time. I have story’s I tell people of the things guest relations has done for me. And I say it’s because I was nice, humble and full of gratitude. Remember they did nothing to me. No need to be nasty. But happy someone is willing to help me.
Lynock says:Several years ago, family/friends from several states, all decided to meet in Florida and all go to The Magic Kingdom for a Not So Scary Mickey Celebration. We all worked together and all bought our tickets for each day and nights gatherings. After all gathering and getting costumed, grandmas, children and grandkids, we arrived at the park. Suddenly, my best friend looks at her tickets and realizes they were for the Friday before. She must have hit the wrong date when booking, as she wouldn’t have even been in Florida the week before. Told her, what’s the worse that’s going to happen (hopefully they weren’t sold out for that night) but we would have to buy more tickets. We went up to the the ticket booth, my friend was almost in tears, but was holding it together, didn’t want the grandbabies, to know anything was wrong. Explained to the young women in the booth, and she stated let me see what I can do. She explained she needed to check the tickets (I’m sure to see if they had been used) but didn’t say anything to us, and hand us brand new tickets for that’s night event. She couldn’t have been nicer and just matter of fact. No worries. Love them
Sharon says:We had a rough day in the parks, son lost camera, then same son left our multiday preseason top of a fastpass machine. I went to guest services, and they were a huge help. Reissued our tickets,and they had found our camera. Girl gave us 2 extra fastpasses. My poor sons run of bad luck continued, he lost his goofy hat on tower of terror, then the nightstick we bought him stopped working(not battery). We got back to Polynesian and the girl at desk greeted us and asked how our day was. I told her, not upset, more or less that my son had bad day. We went out to dinner and when we got back to our room, there was a new lightstick and brand new Goofy hat along with the Goofy hat they retrieved from the pit of the ride. I was overwhelmed by what the girl at the desk did to make an 12 year olds bad day turn into a good day. Things like this are why we love Disney!
Mike Donohue says:400 USD FOR ENTRY IN DECEMBER. You are certainly not catering to children anymore. At least most of them.
Diane says:Coral reef restaurant was the worst. The rug was dirty, the wine definitely watered down, I get this wine all the time so I know, Conundrum. There was hardly anything on the menu. The service was good. OMG
Laura says:Interesting article! Couldn’t agree more about being nice, I’ve worked in hospitality and various customer service roles and know how horrid people can be so I always try to be nice to everyone. I’ve been visiting WDW for 22 years, there’s been the odd hiccup but generally it has always been magical. However, on my last trip in September there were numerous negatives so much so that I don’t foresee me returning. The worst however was insects in the bedroom, I called reception on numerous occasions who sent pest control but they kept returning it was disgusting to say the least and not helped by the fact the beds weren’t changed for the two weeks we were there. The response I’ve received was just “they’re gnats they’re attracted to the animals and they don’t bite”, I believe this isn’t a suitable response and downplays the severity of the issue and I am interested to know what you would have done in your previous post? Thanks
Emily says:We just got back from a trip full of hiccups and I am very disappointed in Disney and Fort Wilderness. Luggage that was at the front desk waiting for our cabin to be cleaned and promised in our room at 1:30 was still not there at 4. I called to locate it and was hung up on. I had to take a bus to the front desk and ask for it, and then it took another 30 minutes to arrive. Our golf cart lights weren’t working after dark (we paid a lot of money to rent one) and I called to ask how to fix them since it was the first time using them, and was hung up on. We had a bus pull up to the stop as we were running up, stop just long enough for 2 people to jump on, and then shut the doors as my husband, 4 little kids and I got to the door. And then the next bus didn’t show up, so waited even longer and missed park opening where the kids were looking forward to seeing the opening ceremony their friends talked about. A lady at the front desk claimed they didn’t have plain balloons for the strollers, and when she was corrected by the man next to her, said she couldn’t tie them so she couldn’t give me one. I contacted the manager because I was worried about our Magical Express reservation (first trip to Disney for our family, so we weren’t sure how ME worked) since everyone said it just happened like magic and that was all the details we had. With all the other issues we had, I was concerned about an error with airport transportation.
He sounded annoyed and said “so this is an FYI you are contacting us with about your experience? you don’t need anything fixed?” before I asked him to check on the Magical Express. He promised me, at 9:45am that he would. At 3 I called Magical Express and he had not contacted them and somehow our flight number was not in the system and we were not assigned a shuttle the next day for our 12pm flight. ME said we would have been left without airport transportation because they opened as we needed to be leaving for the airport. Even more worrisome, we didn’t get any information for Magical Express on our door at all. We did, however, get the shuttle info for the cabin next door, on our golf cart, not on our door. Theirs was missing the flight number, too. I emailed Disney Customer Service about all of these issues so they don’t happen to anyone else and it’s been over a week with nothing but the initial “we are looking into your email” email. My 12 year old was so disgusted by all the disorganization she said she’s never going back to Disney and does not understand what all the hype is about. She even told her preschool and elementary cousins it wasn’t worth it. They could have just looked into my ME reservation like promised and found the issue and we never would have been the wiser and would have been fine. Instead, I spent an hour that I should have been enjoying Epcot with my kids on the phone with Magical Express sorting everything out. I had heard such great things about Disney, but feel like I was robbed to have such an expensive vacation be such a stressful one and to have those bad memories competing with the good ones of seeing my 3 year old so excited to meet Minnie Mouse and the princesses. I spent a bunch of time on the phone or waiting in line at the front desk to fix issues instead of being able to focus on enjoying my family time.
I have been coming disney world every year since 1971. I am returning in november 2019 for my 49th year. I have never had a bad experience with guest relations. They have always helped our family over the past 49 years with the utmosy patience and ubderstanding. It is true just be nice , it’s that simple.
Dyann says:Hi! This is a very positive comment about one of the best who wore a plaid vest, Miss Claire!! My daughter and I have gone on an annual birthday trip for over 20 years and Claire was one of the sweetest, happy, positive people we’ve ever met!
Yearly on our first day our first thing to do was to stop in to say hello to Miss Claire and get a birthday button for my daughter. My daughter is an adult but she had the power to make her feel magical. This year when we arrived we went into Town Hall but didn’t see her familiar face so we asked when she might be there. We were so saddened by the news that she had been out for awhile and it would be quite awhile until her return!
We would like to say thank you again and tell you we are thinking of you and praying daily in hopes we can maybe bring some magic to you !
Molly, Maybe you’ll remember me, maybe not. We started Guest Relations at the same time. Never got along at work. But I seen this and wanted to thank you. It’s 100% true and is not only limited to Disney but all of the hospitality industry. I hope you got out of the mouse trap that is Disney.
Jeffrey McGinley says:Don’t forget the other side of the coin. On almost every visit we’ve contacted guest relations to compliment a cast member who did something outstanding for us. We even got a phone call from “Cinderella’s boss” after we got home once, thanking us for letting her know how well the princess took care of our daughter when she lost the letter she wrote to Cinderella on the way to the restaurant. Feedback works both ways!
James Pickett says:The concept I always think about when things go wrong is: was the response reflective of the “Disney Way”? Three examples: One year my daughters’ friend joined us for her birthday. After the trip. a cast member called me for a survey.( they no longer do that). She asked about what was done for the birthday girl and I said nothing really, just a button. She sent the girl something in the mail. Another time, at the Beach Club, we arrived after checking in on line. The check in person said: You cancelled your reservation. We have no rooms. I said ” I flew here,took the Magical Express, and ordered groceries after I cancelled the reservation? I was very happy with the response (I am a DVC member). The last example: a friend became a DVC member at my urging. On her 1st trip as a DVC member, her mother was holding her infant on the balcony overlooking the Boardwalk. Cleaners were cleaning the room above and dumped a pail of soapy water which came down on the grandmother and baby. The manager only offered to clean their clothes. I called and said “I urged her to join and this happens. That is NOT the Disney Way”. No yelling or screaming. Just pointing out that making sure the Disney way is what Disney expects of itself. And Disney made things right. The important thing here is people have unlimited options for where to go on vacation and where to spend their money. If Disney tries to cut corners, customer service is one place I would suggest they not do that.
Nicolle says:Although I save up all year to visit and plan things out there are always hiccups. I always try to just grin and bear it however one year I was VERY upset about a special ticketed event that they did at Hollywood studios for a Villain’s party. I was expecting something similar to the Mickeys Not so Scary party but when looking at the lines for character meet and greets I knew we needed to pick our top 2 or 3 and see how the night went. Well Darth Vador was 40 min late from the start of the party so after a 2hr wait we attempted to go meet the next character on our list and all the lines we tried to get into were closed due to the volume. There were also some other smaller issues we encountered that night as well. After spending the money it cost for us to attend I really felt robbed of money and an experience. I emailed my concerns and received a lovely email back refunding our cost of the tickets. Since this was only the second time they had done this party they realized that they over sold the event and could have managed the crowds for meet and greets better. I wasn’t expecting the refund I was more writing to explain what could have been to make it a better experience. Also a very true statement about talking to the people in the area you are having issues. One day while doing laundry at the quiet pool at POR a housekeeper supervisor asked me how my stay was and if everything was up to my standard. I said it was lovely and we were enjoying our stay however I mentioned that there was toothpaste smeared on the shower curtain from a prior guest and I thought that perhaps they should launder them between guests. Not only did she thank me for the comment she added 4 “anytime” fast passes to our bands.
Kristen Kirk says:I’ve had Guest Relations work some pretty serious magic for me when things went wrong. More than I ever imagined they would actually do. While I do feel that it is harder to get the outcome I am looking for today than it was 20 years ago, I also understand how much people try and game the system these days. I’ve always found that the more humble my words are and the less entitled I come across as the more seriously I am taken. A little please, thank you, and just bringing the problem to someone’s attention goes a long way.
Raymond J Baczynski says:Very informative. I live close by and have never had to make a complaint, but if that day ever happens I now know how to present my case. Thank you.
Kathy says:I agree with all you’ve said here. Castmembers are so kind if you just approach them with a good attitude and kindness to them. And always remember to say Thank You to each one. We’ve stopped to chat with even the janitors. They have always been friendly and kind and funny. I always thank them for the job they do keeping the park(s) clean. Not an easy job.
Anna Trentacost says:I have not known one cast member to be rude ever in my years of travel to Disney. They have always helped me or at least done their very best to try. Love you guys!!❤️
Bob B says: You haven’t visited enough. Lol Judy says:20 years ago we were at an All Star Hotel when my 6 year old son was bathing with curtain pulled & I was in the room changing when door mirror came crashing down. I had small cuts on the top of my foot & son was safe with no cuts but curtain was sliced up from small flying pieces of glass Was so grateful that our son was ok once we were able to get him out of the tub. But then waited over an hour for Management & clean up. Mirror was had only Been on the door with adhesive, no bolts. I explained we had reservations for dinner & they said they’d be right there but we’re not. When I asked for copy of report for two days I was strung along. I asked for them to contact restaurant that night about being late for dinner but they did not. To our surprise they didn’t even call to hold our reservation but restaurant manager did get us a table. They were just afraid I was gonna sue. I wasn’t. I just wanted to follow up to make sure these was remedied hotel system wide but no reply. But years later we stayed there again & they were now bolted. So their customer service sucked this time for us but glad they fixed it.
Marie says:We had a disappointing experience with Disney memory maker we had queued for a while to have the Lantern shot our daughter had been to BBB so was so excited when we saw the photos later the photographer was in the photo all 3 that were taken. So disappointing as we couldn’t recreate these photos or moments. We went to customer relations they said sorry but they couldn’t do anything. So we went to our hotel reception they said to go to Disney Springs to the Photo pass section the lady there was able to to photoshop and make it a bit better! Our daughter was so upset it did spoil our experience. Anyone else had this experience?
