T-minus One Month...

I have one month left of my program. I don’t like reading those words because this program was the greatest decision I have made for myself. However, I am going to finish school and I will get my butt back down here as quickly as humanly possible! So for this update I’m going to talk about extensions, my new position, and any other things that are on my mind at the moment!

            Extensions!!! Oh, extensions… once these come out during the last 6 weeks of your program you will probably see three different types of people: those who apply, those who want to but won’t/can’t, and those who basically think the DCP is hell on earth. Let’s start off with those unhappy DCPers, shall we? Basically, they hate the program and Disney. They met some great people but they hate their job, hate the hours, don’t go to the parks and take advantage of the perks, and just want to get back home. There’s nothing wrong with these people, just that they didn’t have the experience they thought they would and they’re over it. If you don’t let them bother you then you won’t even notice them! :- ) Then we have the kids who would like to apply to extend – or at least like the idea of it – but they won’t or can’t. At the moment that is me and several of my friends. We are either need to finish school, have to go back home, or have different plans for our futures. Then we have the kids who will apply for extensions. You apply, then you get an email saying okay thanks we’ll let you know later, and then you wait. And the waiting sucks, and basically all you can think about is whether you were approved to extend or not. Then you get an email saying yay or nay and your plans will basically be made for the next few months!

            On to my position at All Star! There are sooo many cast members within the Front Desk role alone, but luckily I have been getting to know everyone a little more and feeling more comfortable in my position. I love being a runner; I can move around all day, walk outside, converse with CM’s and guests and face some fun challenges along the way. I’m probably at the actual front desk once or twice a week and runner 3-4 times a week. This isn’t common, but I believe the managers and scheduling knows that I like being a runner and they always see me as one so my schedule has kind of shifted towards that role. Front desk is definitely interesting, I like the ability to converse with CM’s near you and that you are one of the first people guests will see when arriving. There is a lot of responsibility such as making sure guests rooms are clean and ready, finding their reservation and ensuring everything is correct, fixing any issues a guest may have whether it was at the parks or in the resort, and making sure your bank is even. I don’t mind the bank until I pull cash (so when someone pays with cash) then it becomes a bit of a hassle. Usually, it’s just a few extra steps and then you are done; however, for me something always goes wrong! The machine will break, I can’t figure out why the computer is saying my bank isn’t even when I have counted it 30 times and I can guarantee it is. It’s just stupid things that make my day a little more difficult, but everything works out! I also just had my first curbside shift which I liked! Basically we walk around the lobby with an iPad and greet guests getting off the Magical Express, or answer any questions they may have, and try to contain the line by getting as much information as possible so that the cashier (a.k.a front desk) doesn’t have to ask. It is fun and easy, and I get to talk to a lot of people which is great for me!

            Other than work and extensions, Disney has been swell! I am trying to get everything that I want to do into my last month here, so wish me luck on that! I am also trying to hang out with everyone who is leaving or lives here before I leave, I hate goodbyes and I have to do them again! But this program has been wonderful and I cannot wait to return to Florida, I just have to get that degree and then I’m golden! :- ) 

Hospitality Training and All Star

So I thought I would share a little bit about my new position with y’all!

I now work Hospitality at Disney’s All Star Resorts, I work two positions: front desk and runner. Front Desk is pretty self-explanatory; I check people in and out, give them directions, explain dining plans, extra magic hours, keys, etc. And the runner is an interesting position. Basically you drive around the All Star property for your shift, helping guests who were locked out of their rooms, delivering packages they had ordered, surprising them with floral arrangements, sometimes driving them to their room or possibly to a park or other location on and off property.

I finished my training for Front Desk on Saturday. It was four 8 hour days of training at Disney University. These days consisted of learning Lilo (the reservation system, also the name of my dog!), how to do check-ins, check-outs, exchange foreign currency, paid outs, refunds, room changes, and all that jazz. It was a little overwhelming because there is so much information you need to know, but by the fourth day I felt a little more comfortable about what I was doing. I will say that the way Disney University trains you is very cool. They have an actual little lobby set up like the check-in desks, so you do different scenarios with your ‘guests’ and that helps you get more hands-on training. Once I was done with my four days at Disney University I started my All Star training.

It’s actually funny because out of all of the Disney resorts on property, All Star is the only one that I had never visited before. So I knew the least about it, but after our property orientation I had a better feel of the resort. The nice thing is all three resorts—sports, music, and movies—basically have the same set up, so it isn’t too confusing when you switch resorts constantly because everything is in the same general area. After my property orientation, I received my costume, which is all blue. Blue pants, blue top, blue bag… everything is blue, I look like a mail man. And then I had my first day of training on the desk!

I was lucky enough to have the same trainer, Edward, for all 5 days. Edward was very nice and extremely helpful! He knew exactly what he was doing and wasn’t afraid to ask managers if I had a question he could not answer. He definitely better prepared me for the desk, which I am very thankful for. Throughout my training I got a little bit of everything; I received cash, paid outs, refunds, foreign guests (thank goodness for the language bank!), cancelled reservations, groups, etc. Basically what Disney University told me might happen during my time in hospitality; I got in my first week. The interesting thing is All Star is the largest resort on property (when you put the three themes together) and they have hundreds of check-ins in one day. But, it’s a lot calmer than Magic Kingdom. Unlike MK you have downtime, and I don’t really know what to do with myself. The managers don’t really care if you talk with your fellow cast members as long as you are there to help a guest should they need it. One suggestion during down times is to blow up balloons; they even have a whole helium tank and a balloon animal guide. It’s just a very different setting than Magic Kingdom, which I will have to get used to.

My homeroom managers seem awesome, and the FSA’s are great as well! That is definitely something I like about my resort, I have actually met my managers, where in Fantasyland I didn’t know half of them by May. All Star is extremely different from Magic Kingdom and I’m assuming the other theme parks, you have guests there 24/7, so you are basically always on call. But you also have those down times, and from what I’ve been told when people are deployed from another resort to All Star, they are always surprised at how busy it is. However, I would like to try to cover shifts at other resorts, because once you are front desk trained you can pick up shifts at any resort on property which I believe could be fun!

Alright I believe I covered everything in this little post for y’all. But if anyone has any questions about hospitality, All Star, my extension, or the College Program feel free to ask! Have a philharmagical day everyone!