It is no secret that Cast Members are part of the reason why Disney World is known as The Most Magical Place on Earth!
Cast Members at 1900 Park Fare
There are so many different roles that a Cast Member could receive, and one of them is working on the resort side. Disney World has over 25 resorts, which means there are a ton of hotel Cast Members to help assist you throughout your stay. Although Cast Members are always happy to help, hotel Cast Members wish they could tell you these five things, but they won’t because they are too nice.
Let’s get into it!
Your Resort Reservation Does Not Equal a Dining Reservation
Although being a guest of a Disney World resort grants you many perks, such as free transportation, Early Theme Park Entry, a complimentary water park visit on your check-in day, and advance Lightning Lane booking, it does not give you an all-access pass to the resort.
‘Ohana
In order to dine at your hotel’s restaurants, you should still plan on making Advance Dining Reservations. Some hotels have super popular dining experiences like character meals, and walk-ups can not always be accommodated. Although Cast Members want you to be able to enjoy all parts of your stay at your hotel, it is ultimately up to you to make sure you make your dining reservations.
Chef Mickey’s
Not Every Cast Member Can Check You into Your Room
Although Cast Members are trained to help you answer questions about your stay, not every Cast Member is able to help you with every aspect of your stay. For example, one of our former Cast Members on our team shared that guests would often walk up to the host stand of the hotel restaurant and ask to be checked into their room.
Port Orleans — French Quarter
Just because a Cast Member is standing near a computer, it does not mean that the computer or Cast Member has access to check you into your room. Regardless, they will be more than happy to walk you and direct you to the nearest Cast Member who can help.
Room number
Resort Cast Members Rarely Communicate with Park Cast Members
It can be frustrating to leave the parks to go to a dining reservation when bad weather closes attractions. It may be tempting to ask a resort Cast Member when attractions, transportation, or even entertainment will be up and running again.
Rainy Day in Magic Kingdom
In all honesty, resort Cast Members rarely get the latest updates on what is happening in the parks. However, they will try to give you the best answer; they are pretty much in the dark, just like the person asking the question.
EPCOT Cast Members
Asking for a Magical Moment Will Not Get You a Magical Moment
From time to time, Cast Members have the opportunity to grant a Magical Moment. This could be something small like giving you an extra treat with your Mobile Order or even sending a gift to your room.
Cast Members love to celebrate YOU!
Cast Members at resorts have an opportunity to make quite a few Magical Moments as they have a greater chance to complete a Magical Moment as a guest returns to their resort every night. In contrast, a Cast Member in the parks may only have a few moments with a guest. A former Cast Member on our team shared that she got to celebrate guests’ engagements and birthdays by going to the resort gift shop and getting them a gift.
While it is fun for Cast Members to create magic like this, asking for a Magical Moment takes away the fun. Plus, a Cast Member needs to run a Magical Moment by leadership first, so it is not always up to the actual Cast Member to decide whether they can purchase something or not.
Moana Mercantile
They Don’t Know When Your Luggage Will Arrive
Checking your luggage at bell services before check-in or after check-out is a great way to explore the parks without having to worry about your luggage. Oftentimes, bell services can get backed up when rooms start to be ready, as many people want their belongings delivered at the same time.
Bell Services at Disney’s Polynesian Resort
The only Cast Members who really know the delivery order are bell services Cast Members, so unfortunately, asking a merchandise or restaurant Cast Member when you can expect your luggage is not going to get you the most accurate answer.
©TouringPlans.com
The moral of the story is that just because a Cast Member works at a resort, they do not have the capabilities to do all the jobs at the resort. Regardless, Cast Members will be more than happy to give you the best answer and help direct you to another Cast Member who can assist you better.
Art of Animation lobby
Our Disney Food Blog team is full of former Cast Members who love to give you a behind-the-scenes look at what it was like working at Disney World. For more stories like this one and to stay up to date on all the latest Disney news, continue to follow along with us!
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Yes I did! It was a wonderful surprise. I am a special education teacher and was somehow engaged in a conversation about a non verbal student who loved playing cards to do math. I was gifted a set of Mickey Mouse cards from Magic Kingdom out of the blue and a sincere thank you from the cast member.
I’ve had several magical moments from Disney cast members. The ones that stand out were some time ago. The first one was in 2004 when we were on a Disney cruise. We had gotten on an elevator where someone(probably a child, but you never know) had dropped an ice cream sundae on the floor and left it. I instinctively bent down to clean it up. I had to. It could’ve caused someone to slip. The elevator opened on the next floor and a cast member said to me. Oh Miss, please don’t trouble yourself with that! I told her it was left by somone but I didnt want someone to get hurt. She then asked our name and stateroom number. Later that day when we came back to our room there was a beautiful cheese and crackers and hordourve tray with fruit and a bottle of bubbly and sweets and a nice thank you note from the ship. So nice! Second memory was that same cruise. My husband had left a small bag with very important items in it, at the Wilderness Lodge resort where we had came from and Disney had it flown to the ship when we were docked at the port of the Bahamas. That was amazing! Then, we were waiting for checking in at Disnèys Saratoga Springs Resort about maybe 7 years ago and we were ahead of this couple. We had waited quite a while but the couple said curtly that they were next, but they weren’t. When they went before us they had given us a rude look. I just smiled and said “Sure, go ahead.” I wasn’t going to freak out about it. They were very rude though. The woman looked down on us, it seemed. They appeared to be very well to do and were dressed to the nines. My husband makes a great living as well but we had traveled a long distance and we aren’t showy people. We were dressed nice, but comfortable. When we were called next, the castmemeber said. “Ma’am. I just want to thank you for being so kind and being the best part of Disney. We watched you the whole time. You were so gracious to that couple who clearly cut in front of you. You never mad a face other than a kind smile. We would like to give you and your family guest passes for a special event tonight at the Magic Kingdom, invite only for DVC members.” I am DVC but hadn’t reserved us a spot because it had already filled up before I found out about it. That was so kind and we did make it to the event. They also had balloons sent to our room. Lastly, we had booked a one bedroom at the Contempory tower but when we went to check in, the castmemeber said your 3 bedroom Magic Kingdom view villa was ready. I tried to correct her that we had booked a one bedroom lake view villa, but she said “No ma’am. You have a 3 bedroom.” I assumed they must have needed our one bedroom to rent to someone. It was such a cool villa and Magic Kingdom fireworks right out our window was pretty cool! Sorry for the book. In writing this, I realized all of these things happened before the takeover. ? Please bring back the old Disney that we all knew and loved!
Hello. It’s me again. As I was reminiscing about our Disney experiences, my mind was flooded with memories. A few more I would like to share. I feel that it was just so magical and why we had chose to buy ownership with them in the first place. This was a great memory as well. We used to always eat at Boma at the Animal Kingdom lodge. I don’t even know why but the chef on two separate stays brought out a fried oreo tower he had constructed for our family. Everyone was looking at us like…what is that?! And why did WE get that? We wondered that as well. It happened again the next year too. He said he remembered us that time. Such a cool thing to do. One time at Beach Club Villas we were given a 2 bedroom instead of a one bedroom. Our daughter so appreciated that. She needed the privacy on that trip. Thank you to all the Disney castmembers who care about making the guests feel special.
Thank you for letting some of the disney first timers in on the goings on of disney world. Most of us experts (and yes I have been going to disney since 1971) know these things. If you have to ask for a special moment it’s no longer special. The last time I went to wdw during my birthday a pop century cashier sang happy birthday to me and I tell you that was one of the most special unexpected things to happen to me in all these years. That included a room upgrade at riviera resort from a studio to a one bedroom because it was done by the person I could give a thank you to.
Magical moments don’t have to be big like a hotel room upgrade or evrnt tickets. I had my own small magical moment a couple of years ago at Disneyland. One of my favorite things to do is buy Disney pins in bulk and hand them out to kids, or sometimes Disney adults, during my park visits just to give them a little extra magic. One time a cast member saw me give one out to a child, and bought me a churro, thanking me for helping add to the magic. It was one of my most favorite memories ever.
My magical moment was being at MK. I was wearing an anniversary button and went to purchase a bottle of water. When I was about to pay, the cast member said no need to pay, Mickey Mouse took care of it. Yes, it may have only been a bottle of water, but it was an unexpected, and much appreciated, moment.