Aggressive DVC Housekeeping Checkout Day

[RoseGold]

Just got back from a a DVC split stay, VGF1 and Poly, and my old nemesis, the aggressive housekeepers were back.

In VGF, they entered the room at 8:55AM. At Poly, they knocked and knocked and knocked at 10AM for several minutes until I actually got my butt out of bed and asked if there was some kind of emergency. Ridiculous. Next time maybe I'll call the desk and ask if there is some kind of emergency bring my alarmed door stop. Or make a sign that says I know check out is 11AM.

You can check out on the app now, a slider pops up to tell them you have actually left, which DVC never had before. I would totally use that if I were on an early flight. I get they have to round up overstays, but check out time is 11AM. Why are they still harassing people this early? I've never seen this at any other hotel, and I've been to a lot. Especially for "deluxe," this is embarrassing. I wanted that half hour of sleep after staying for the late hours. It leaves a gross, aggressive, pushy taste to end your vacation. Do better Bill.

Or heck, let us pay $30 to check out at 1PM (subject to availability). You'd get a lot of takers.

 

[SLThomas318]

This happened to us at Poly. We were moving to Boardwalk so this was our sleep-in day and they started knocking around 8am. I was groggy and rolled over (ignoring the knock) and then I heard them open the door. So frustrating! Between genie+ and housekeeping I guess Disney doesn’t think people want to sleep on vacation…

 

[BeachClub2014]

This does tend to be an annoying habit and it drives me nuts. I presume that the housekeeper is just trying to find a vacated room to start the process of cleaning for the room turnover. That's understandable, especially given all the flack they take if all the rooms aren't available right at 4:00 PM, but there has to be a better way of doing it.

 

[dioxide45]

Trust me, this isn't unique to DVC. We own and stay in Marriott and Sheraton timeshares in Orlando where checkout is 10am. They are often stalking the room by 9am or blocking the hallway waiting as I try to navigate a luggage cart around them.

 

[RoseGold]

We own and stay in Marriott and Sheraton timeshares in Orlando where checkout is 10am.

Pre-Covid I had Marriott status and never saw this once at any Marriott property. I guess the Marriott timeshares aren't necessarily run by Marriott.

 

[DLgal]

Is this just a DVC thing? This has literally NEVER happened to me at any other Disney resort. And I've had a LOT of stays.

 

[Smugpugmug]

This isn't just a DVC thing. Last November I stayed at All Star Music where on my checkout day I was woken up at 8 am to housekeeping repeatedly knocking on my door. I already know checkout is at 11 - I don't need to be reminded 3 hours before I have to be out of the room. I never had this happen at any other hotel I've stayed at.

 

[Pens Fan]

Last month we were at BLT. Between 9 and 10 we received 2 phone calls (no one on the line, they just hung up) and a knock on the door from housekeeping. We had never experienced this before, though we usually stay at CCV. When we did leave around 10:30 I went to the app to check us out only to find we'd already been checked out! I was not amused. I know they want to get in and turn over the room, but that room is ours until 11 AM unless we decide to leave earlier. Thankfully we did not leave the room for breakfast, as we wondered if we would have been able to even get back in the room. Since someone had wrongly checked us out, I don't know if our magic bands would even open the door at that point.

When I got my post trip survey I let them have it on the early check out / aggressive housekeeping issue. It's a shame, as it was our first time staying at BLT and we really enjoyed it, but our last impression was not good. Well actually our first and last impressions weren't great. Our room wasn't ready for check in until around 5:00 PM. They definitely have housekeeping issues.

 

[jo-jo]

You know it sounds very immature, but if I had someone knocking at our door every 20 mins, I'd sit in that room until 10:59 even though I was packed up to leave at 9:30.

Quite often our last day we don't go to parks and have a flight late afternoon, so we'd rather sit in our room rather than sit in lobby any longer than we need to.

 

[Minniesgal]

We stayed at Cooper creek and I have the housekeeper walk in on my at 8am. The resort had checked me out automatically when they charged my card at 7am. I had a few choice words with the front desk

 

[dioxide45]

Pre-Covid I had Marriott status and never saw this once at any Marriott property. I guess the Marriott timeshares aren't necessarily run by Marriott.

Marriott timeshares are managed by Marriott Vacation Club. Checkout time is 10am with very few exceptions. Normal Bonvoy rules don't apply for late checkout and such. We have had plenty of stays where we were not bothered by housekeeping and even left the unit 15 minutes late. Hotels are a different story as the rooms are smaller and quicker to turn over than a full two or three bedroom unit with kitchen and multiple bathrooms.

 

[wiihoo888]

We’ve had the same thing happen on a few stays. This stay was especially irritating. They knocked around 9 and I said I couldn’t come to the door. So….they knocked again I got myself over to the door and they asked if I was going to check out. I let them know that yes indeed I was, but not until 10:30. They knocked again at 10:15. We completely ignored that knock and then they started coming in. Told them 10:30…again. Left the room at 10:30 to find all of the things for doing our room blocking the door. Also went into to the app to check out and found out that we had been kindly checked out some other way. It really would be a wonderful feature if it worked properly thru the app

 

[BillPA]

Next, we will get complaints about room not ready until after 6pm. Can't have it both ways.

 

[RoseGold]

Next, we will get complaints about room not ready until after 6pm. Can't have it both ways.

If rooms are ready at 4PM, they obviously aren't all being cleaned at 9AM. No one needs to enter my room before check out or bang on my door like the building is on fire, when I am not even close to being late. It's rude, it's unprofessional, and it left a really gross taste in my mouth after a nice trip.

Sure, barge on in at 11AM, which is the actual rule.

 

[Unclelude]

This happened to us last Feb at Hilton Head. I don't remember the how early, but it wasn't close to check out time... probably other times too... It really doesn't bug me too much ( housekeeping will be the ones emotionally scarred if they walk in on me indisposed ... Hehe )... Bugs my wife plenty tho... ( Which I guess transitively bugs me... )

Anyway she is now diligent about putting the do not disturb on the door, esp before checkout. I think that generally works as a decent repellent.

Have fun!

 

[Allison]

Next, we will get complaints about room not ready until after 6pm. Can't have it both ways.

Actually, you can.

 

[tjkraz]

I would object to:
- Early morning door knocks. 9am is a reasonable threshold, give or take.
- Housekeepers entering without knocking.
- Repeated knocks after being told plans (e.g. If I say "we should be out around 10:30", don't come back until 10:30.)
- Rude behavior

I do not object to staff simply doing their jobs. Housekeepers start working well before 11am. And a big part of having every single room cleaned by 4pm is being able to start that work as early as possible.

During our recent split stay, we had no knocks at Riviera. At Grand Floridian a housekeeper knocked around 9:30 and we weren't bothered again until we left. She smiled and said "no problem" after we relayed our intentions. Nothing wrong with that.

 

[tjkraz]

Next, we will get complaints about room not ready until after 6pm. Can't have it both ways.

Actually, you can.

Good luck maintaining a high quality staff when the work shift you're offering is 11am - 4pm.

 

[RoseGold]

In the past, after Magical Express was eliminated, there was no way to tell DVC you were leaving for the 6AM flight except actually talking to a human in the lobby. It looks like the app fixed that, as I could actually check out online. If that problem has been fixed, why are they still barging into my room early?

Disney has the cameras of Vegas and their tech strapped to my wrist. It knows where I am all the time and let me know exactly my room status when I got on property in an Uber. And somehow they can't do this in reverse and have to enter my VGF room at 9AM?

 

[RoseGold]

Good luck maintaining a high quality staff when the work shift you're offering is 11am - 4pm.

They don't ALL have to be ready at 4PM. People get in late and hopefully tell them that when they check in.

Every single other hotel I've stayed in has managed to be able to know what rooms they can enter early, except the one that has its tech strapped to me.