Walt Disney World. Often hyped as a magical place where guests can escape reality. But let’s face it, life happens, even within the confines of Disney property. Weather is unpredictable. People get sick. Kids lose things. Your waiter messes up your bill. In fact, each of these “not-so-magical” things happened to us while on vacation just last month.
Cue the Cast Members!
Walt Disney knew that he could have built the most wonderful theme park in all the land, but if his employees (called Cast Members because they are an important part of the show) were not top-notch then his dream would flop. Cast Members create what is called the “Disney Difference!”
I was fortunate enough to take the Keys to the Kingdom tour last fall. This tour is an in-depth tour behind the scenes of the Magic Kingdom. Emphasized throughout the entire tour were Disney’s Four Keys. Everything, from designing a new attraction to interacting with guests, is done with these four keys in mind. The four keys to a great Guest experience are:
- Safety
- Courtesy
- Show
- Efficiency
Here are a few of the not-so-magical experiences we encountered on our recent trip and how the Disney Cast Members utilized Disney’s Four Keys, creating the Disney Difference for us!
#1 – It’s Florida. It’s summertime. There will be afternoon thunderstorms!
On our arrival day we decided to grab lunch from Capt. Cooks and eat on the patio overlooking the pool at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort. (On a side note, and this bears mentioning: the pulled pork nachos were SO GOOD!) Anyway, the wind had picked up some, not a drop of rain in sight, but out of the blue lightning struck. Well, when I say immediately I mean immediately the lifeguards blew their whistles and those guests were out of that pool. The whistles were blown before I even heard the thunder. So what if it rained on our lunch, it was amazing to watch how quickly the lifeguards secured the pool area.
And while I’m bragging on the lifeguards I’ll recount one other instance I witnessed. I was in the pool waiting on my daughter to come down the slide when, again, out of nowhere, I heard a whistle. I spun around and saw something dark on the bottom of the pool. My Momma-self started to go after it, but the lifeguard was already in the water. She came up with a weighted bag! It was a part of a training exercise! Come to find out, another lifeguard had come down the slide with the bag and dropped it under the water. I was so impressed with how quickly the lifeguard was in the water, retrieved the bag, got out of the water, grabbed a towel, and was back at her post all in under a minute. That’s the Disney Difference.
#2 – Daddy got a boo-boo. A pretty bad one, actually.
So, I promise I’m not laughing. Okay, maybe a little bit, but he’s fine now. My husband, Kelly, ran into the corner of a door frame during the middle of the night, leaving a pretty deep gash in his forehead. I ran to the front desk to see if they had a steri-strip or at least a band-aid. The Cast Member knew exactly what to do. He grabbed a first aid kit from under the counter and opened it up for me to look through. Of course, it was 4:00 AM, and I’m standing there in my PJ’s, half asleep, just staring down at this massive first aid kit…..I finally said, “Can you find a band-aid for me? I’m struggling here.” I’m sure he had a good laugh after I ran out.
The band-aids helped, but y’all, this was a pretty deep gash, and we were concerned he needed stitches. Once we arrived at EPCOT we made our way to the First Aid center. The staff took him right on back while the rest of us waited in the lobby (read – air conditioning). The nurses cleaned up Kelly’s boo-boo and gave us plenty of band-aids to take with us. Kelly did not need stitches BUT if he had we would have been referred to a local Urgent Care clinic just offsite. Also, please note that services in the park were complimentary. However, if further offsite assistance were needed we would have been required to pay for those. But all was good, and Daddy was able to enjoy the rest of his trip!
I’d also like to note that the Cast Members in the First Aid center went out of their way to interact with my daughter and give her stickers to commemorate her Daddy’s visit to the clinic. That’s the Disney Difference.
#3 – We lost a MagicBand. Not just any MagicBand, it was Lainey Kate’s…
Well, it actually launched right off her arm while rocketing through Space Mountain. Granted, we could have lost a more valuable item like a purse or a shopping bag full of souvenirs, but to a seven year old little girl it was priceless and losing it meant the end of the world. Bless her heart, she was heartbroken, and I think she mostly thought she was in trouble. But alas, in stepped another wonderful Cast Member. We were directed to Guest Relations in City Hall where Lainey Kate was treated like royalty and presented with a card to use for the remainder of the day. The sweet Cast Member could tell that Lainey Kate was upset and went out of her way to find a purple marker to write her name. Had we lost an item which we had needed to retrieve we were given a telephone number and instructions for contacting the Lost and Found. That night Lainey Kate picked out a new MagicBand at the front desk of our resort. That’s the Disney Difference.
#4 – We didn’t realize we were overcharged for dinner. As in $187.00 worth of overcharge…
Since I had an 11 hour car ride home I decided to sort through our receipts, review our online bank account, and organize all of our charges from the trip. Well, the first thing I noticed was a receipt for a meal we did not eat. Hmmmm, that’s interesting…. Maybe we were just given the wrong receipt? So as I investigated further I discovered that not only had we paid for our meal at Whispering Canyon but we apparently paid for a family of seven as well. I hope they enjoyed their burgers and rib platters! All kidding aside, it is important to remember that Cast Members are human too and our Pioneer made an honest mistake.
Although it was a Sunday afternoon I was able to reach a Cast Member with Disney Dining. I provided her with some basic information, and she promised follow up with me soon. Within an hour she had returned my call to notify me that the charges would be returned to my bank account within two business days. She also gave me the direct phone number to the Billing Department if I had even further issues. That’s the Disney Difference.
So, as you can see, we didn’t have any life-shattering bad experiences. In fact, I even welcomed these little “non-magical” mishaps so that I could have firsthand knowledge to share with my clients so they may know what to expect. (Of course, it wasn’t my head that smashed into the door frame, though. Sorry, honey! Way to take one for the team!)
When the not-so-magical happens at Walt Disney World look for a Cast Member. They will show you the Disney Difference. And that is why I keep going back. That is why I have such a passion for sharing Disney with others. Because of the Disney Difference. They do it, and they do it so well.
A Disney Life for Me 