Won't be doing the Frozen Ever After dessert party again

without getting into why it was such an emotional thing for her... she showed up a half hour early and was told to sit and wait. Kept checking in every 10 minutes, told nope still wait. At the time it was supposed to be checked in - sorry, running late. After 2 more checkins and a half hour past the time it was supposed to have started, the person said "oh! It started a half hour ago!" She asked for a partial refund since she had missed the first half hour of it and the person said "can't do that, I can seat you now or you'll be charged as a no-show anyway." Asked to speak to the manager and the manager said the same... can't do anything for you, we can seat you now but you will be charged either way so you might as well just go in and do the rest of it. At this point she started to cry (please don't judge, she has a typically very hard life and had really been looking forward to this) and the manager told her that she couldn't join the group like that so she'd just be charged as a no-show. She left the restaurant crying and composed herself enough to go to guest services at the front where they basically shrugged and said "it was your choice not to join the group, you're a no-show, nothing I can do." She went back to her resort had to ask the front desk person something unrelated - the person asked her if she was ok and had been crying and she started crying again. The front desk CM gave her a voucher for a meal and a few fastpasses because it was all she could do. It was a nice gesture and it did make her feel better that the CM made that gesture to her but she didn't even want to use the meal voucher.

She contacted through email and a CM called her, showed some kindness, apologized for what had happened, gave her a refund and her direct contact and helped her to score a last minute reservation for the next time she traveled. Apparently it is very very hard to get a reservation last minute but she worked some magic for her. Because of her situation at home she doesn't know what her plans will be 6 months out and a couple of nights at WDW 1-2 times a year is her only break from it.

But I could not honestly believe how she was treated in the moment. She was there early, someone messed up and didn't seat her, and she was treated like a criminal when she asked for a partial refund based on missing part of it through no fault of her own, and then the manager was basically cold to her and waved her off when she got upset. I still can't believe it happened at Disney but it did. She is a huge fan of Disney and realizes she just had a bad run with a couple of bad eggs but honestly, dealing with those CMs did way more to ruin her vacation than what happened initially and that is one of the reasons I won't deal with stuff in person on my vacation... because if it goes poorly it will just waste precious vacation time. If I'm bothered enough by it I will email when I get back because I have also had an amazing and above and beyond experience with the CMs at the other end of that email myself.


WOW!!! I am shocked!

I agree that there are times when later is better. I had a run of issues one resort stay and while I am normally easy going buy the end of that trip I was fed up. As much as I appreciate recompense for an issue, I expect it to be resolved, and do not liek to have it repeated like an ongoing Groundhog Day, so once I returned home and had calmed down, I addressed it over the phone. A lovely guest services person intervened to make a correction, and to this day we are still in communication. I think that the best outcome of that mess was that I made a new friend, and who knew how small the World was? She was from my hometown.
 
I am not sure that any attraction has a $30 value, however I also do nto think it hurts to ask, because to the OP, there is a value tha she cannot get back from that evening.

I do think an anytime FP for FEA is a reasonable alternative because the family is going to return to WDW. I am not sure how families who have no intentions to return would be compensated if the alternatives offered could not be used.

Last year my family vacationed in Aruba and for the very first time my DH agreed to a massage. I booked an expensive package for the two of us, and a signature massage for my DDIL. Over $650 in services that needed to be paid for in advance. It was a disaster of epic proportions. I could not address it that day because the owner/manager was not there, and apparently she had never showed the staff how to read the computer, so no one had any idea what was ordered, and it went downhill from there. Between that and a language barrier, no one could fix this while it was in process, and since I refuse to take out frustration on people who are not empowered to make a correction, I tipped the staff 10%, (1/2 of what I normally tip) smiled and got the heck out.

The owner was back the next day, coached the poor girl and at first offered to refund my money, btu quickly backed away and asked me to retun the next day. No can do buckeroo....it is departure day. I only wanted a refund for the services not provided, and while what we recieved was a mess, I was still willing to pay for it. SHe basically told me to pound sand. That was the first time in my life I was called a liar, and from someone who was not there at the time, so all she did was reinforce that I was going to make a correction. That was the first time in over 40 years I ever disputed a charge on my card as it was my only recourse at the time. It was a process that took months, and some explaining why I was not asking for the entire amount back, however I did prevail eventually. My DH on the other hand will never agree to a massage again.
 
I'm getting worried now. We just booked our party for next month and it is purely because I'm a huge Elsa fan, so the themed party/desserts plus the ride are a big deal to me. I think I would cry if the ride was not available and I had not rode it yet.
I did have a FP for FEA but after the dessert party was reserved, we changed it to Test Track. I noticed that multiple times were still available for all 3 top tier rides for Jan. 27th. I'm thinking that because there's still so much availability on ALL of them, I should be able to get FEA in the afternoon when our first 3 FP are done.

Do you think I should risk it in light of this new information about your experience?

If FEA means that much to you, I'd book it as a fp as well.
I think it's ranked in the top 5 rides at DW that go down the most.
 
But, did the Norway attraction go down so frequently before it was redesigned?
I seem to remember Maelstrom going down frequently as well. You just didn't hear about it as much because it wasn't popular in comparison to FEA. I believe they used the same infrastructure in FEA. The ride itself is more or less an overlay with animatronics added and a redesign of entrance/exit queues.
 


I'm a huge Elsa fan, so the themed party/desserts plus the ride are a big deal to me.
Except for the JBJB party, it's arguably the best party on property but not because of how it's themed. It's mainly because of the location, the fact that it has seating, the food & drink offerings and comfortable ambiance. Others may disagree, but for the serious Frozen fan, I don't feel that they took the Frozen theme far enough.
We just booked our party for next month
Just a heads up that they will move the party indoors if it gets cold enough or if there's a chance of rain and that venue is not as nice as the outdoor venue.
Do you think I should risk it in light of this new information about your experience?
The issue with the ride being down is not new, it's been that way since day one. It's not an issue on the majority of party nights though.
 
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I'm getting worried now. We just booked our party for next month and it is purely because I'm a huge Elsa fan, so the themed party/desserts plus the ride are a big deal to me. I think I would cry if the ride was not available and I had not rode it yet.
I did have a FP for FEA but after the dessert party was reserved, we changed it to Test Track. I noticed that multiple times were still available for all 3 top tier rides for Jan. 27th. I'm thinking that because there's still so much availability on ALL of them, I should be able to get FEA in the afternoon when our first 3 FP are done.

Do you think I should risk it in light of this new information about your experience?

I would book the FP you really want and try to get the others at Rope drop or as a 4th FP. I would not leave the most important thing til literally the last minute with no way to recover if you can't do it. If you love Frozen that much, 2x on the ride will be great.
 
WOW!!! I am shocked!

I agree that there are times when later is better. I had a run of issues one resort stay and while I am normally easy going buy the end of that trip I was fed up. As much as I appreciate recompense for an issue, I expect it to be resolved, and do not liek to have it repeated like an ongoing Groundhog Day, so once I returned home and had calmed down, I addressed it over the phone. A lovely guest services person intervened to make a correction, and to this day we are still in communication. I think that the best outcome of that mess was that I made a new friend, and who knew how small the World was? She was from my hometown.
I know, right? I honestly might not have believed her if she hadn't been passing the time while waiting texting me, so I knew she was there early and I was getting the blow by blow. I am the one who suggested she speak to a manager and when she told me later how that went my jaw dropped!

I know when dealing with customer service issues if I have some time to think about how I want to address it the outcome is always better than having to think on my feet. Disney does in general have above average customer service but you never know who are what you're going to get, I like my chances with the filter of email. Not to mention I do not need another line in my life just to complain! Who has time for that on vacation?

I do think that actually it would be better if Disney had an established protocol for this. in fact I think that they should not even be offering people choices of this or that. They should be given the option to ride a substitute tier 1 in the moment AND a fastpass for the missed ride for later. Fastpasses literally cost Disney nothing, I think the only way to handle this is to get ahead of it and make people feel like they are getting a little extra for their inconvenience. This way the OP will be $30 ahead with TWO Tier 1 rides and it literally costs Disney nothing. Best line I've seen on here recently is that FP+ is Disney's "currency of disappointment." It's their first line guest recovery defense. I can't believe they were offering either/or... it should have been both!
 


Heard back from Disney this morning and I am receiving a 50% per person refund to my credit card.
Its more than I requested or expected and I am more than satisfied.

I called that percentage back perfectly.
Disney's typically great customer service when something goes wrong is what makes me more comfortable paying their high prices for services. It's a smart business model in my mind, as long as they keep track of any potential abuse.
 
I'm getting worried now. We just booked our party for next month and it is purely because I'm a huge Elsa fan, so the themed party/desserts plus the ride are a big deal to me. I think I would cry if the ride was not available and I had not rode it yet.
I did have a FP for FEA but after the dessert party was reserved, we changed it to Test Track. I noticed that multiple times were still available for all 3 top tier rides for Jan. 27th. I'm thinking that because there's still so much availability on ALL of them, I should be able to get FEA in the afternoon when our first 3 FP are done.

Do you think I should risk it in light of this new information about your experience?

We have done the dessert party in the past with the ride operating. We enjoyed our experience and would do it again. We also had a FP+ for FEA and managed to get additional FP+ to ride test track. So, if the FEA ride is more important than Test track, I would change FP+ for FEA and try to pick up additional FP+ as 4th, 5th etc for test track. The party was really wonderful and the ride was just a bonus. Enjoy your trip!
 
But, did the Norway attraction go down so frequently before it was redesigned?
I think it gets shut down so often is because the animatronic faces malfunction and look really creepy if they don't have a face. I don't really remember having issues riding the old Norway ride. It was one of my favorites that I went on often.
 
A look behind the curtains.

The FEA ride is notorious for going off line and the parties Leaders biggest concern all night long is will the ride be operating. So much so that there is a party CM who's specific duty is to go to Norway about 30 minutes before the escort to the ride and make contact with the rides manager to find out if the ride is operating.

At about 10 to 15 minutes before the escort, the CM radios the party Leader and either gives them a thumbs up or down. I've been that CM numerous times, but fortunately it was always a go.

However, I've also been there in other positions when it wasn't a go and it was a challenge for the party staff to make everyone happy with alternative offerings. The OP has a legit gripe and is a good example that it's not always possible to satisfy everyone.

I hope the OP gets the $30 refund she's asking for, but I agree with Lisa F that "Since it seems you are going back again I hope they give you an anytime fastpass for Frozen" as I feel that the OPs $30 figure as the ride's value is rather high and I would put the value at between $5 to $10.

Shame on Disney for even including this in their dessert party. They know the ride is unreliable. So much so that it's down to a 15 minute call? Come on. Bad decisions all around on park operations here.
 
I would want a portion of my money back too. It's ridiculous that people are saying "eh, rides go down." You purchased a ticket for an extra experience and they failed to provide a part of the experience that they advertised and you bought. The ride would be a big deal for me. We splurged on EMM last time we went. If SDMT was down for our morning I absolutely would have expected a refund. That's the main reason we did it.
 
If FEA means that much to you, I'd book it as a fp as well.
I think it's ranked in the top 5 rides at DW that go down the most.
Thank you, I agree so I switched my FP back to it :)

Except for the JBJB party, it's arguably the best party on property but not because of how it's themed. It's mainly because of the location, the fact that it has seating, the food & drink offerings and comfortable ambiance. Others may disagree, but for the serious Frozen fan, I don't feel that they took the Frozen theme far enough.
I haven't been to a dessert party, so I can only compare reviews. It's the best to me because it's Frozen themed! I agree from what I've seen though, more Frozen theming would be awesome for someone like me.

Just a heads up that they will move the party indoors if it gets cold enough or if there's a chance of rain and that venue is not as nice as the outdoor venue.
Yes, I understand. Thanks for the heads up. At least I can stuff my face with blue cupcakes!

So, if the FEA ride is more important than Test track, I would change FP+ for FEA and try to pick up additional FP+ as 4th, 5th etc for test track.
It definitely did. Thanks to you and others, I feel much better at the probability of riding the ride at least once while there :)
 
Beer, wine and some mixed drinks were added. Seating was added. The dessert offerings were expanded and a Nitro station was added.

What is a Nitro station? I tried to google it and got pictures of roller coasters?????

To OP, I agree, something should have been done. Unfortunate that you were leaving disney the next day. I would hope at least a couple of FP attached to your account for your next trip, assuming you are coming back. Several years ago, we had a slew of issues and had extra FP for our party for a trip 5 months later.


edit---saw you got the partial refund, even better.
 
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Pretty sure Nitro is a way of brewing coffee - infused with nitrogen.

In this case Disney uses liquid nitrogen to freeze foods to add a level of fanciness to several of their add on parties.

frozen-ever-after-dessert-party-nitro-popcorn-337x600.jpg
 

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