Animal Kingdom Resorts Secrets

Well, it's time to look behind the curtain at some of the goings on at the Animal Kingdom Resorts. This includes the All Star Resorts, Coronado Springs, and the Animal Kingdom Lodge.

Let's start with the rough ones. The All Star Resorts.

Now, these are value resorts which means they cost less to stay there. I have to say of all the resorts I worked at, these resorts contained the best and the worst guests ever. I have a theory on why people at these resorts act this way and it's for the exact same reason.

See, Disney is an expensive experience. I'll admit it. So, I think many of the people that stay at the All Stars can only afford these resorts or they won't be able to stay on property. Because of this, we get a gap. Many of these people have saved up all year, maybe even for years, and finally get a Disney vacation.

So, on the one hand they expect everything to be perfect and everyone to cater to their every needs. After all, they saved up forever to get this and it IS Disney after all. And when things do go exactly as planned (a late bus, a full bus, maybe a long line) they get mad. They don't understand that things happen. There is still traffic, unexpected delays of all kinds, and masses of people. Some also realize that they are the budget resort and automatically assume they are getting budget service. In everything I know and everything I saw shows that the All Star Resorts are treated the same as any other resort. Perhaps even better because often the supervisor for the buses in that area would actually sit in one of the All Star parking lots to personally observe the going-ons. This includes DAKL and Coronado, both are more expensive than the All Stars.

I never worked at Pop Century (no one was ever stationed there), but I know the supervisor for their area would often sit there as well. In fact, there would often be a spare bus in the empty load zone with a blank marquee specifically to respond to issues and late buses at the Pop only. There was another bus staging area between Sports and Music as well as at the Animal Kingdom.

Okay, so some of the guests thought they were getting lousy service. But some, like I said, scrempted and saved and finally got that Disney vacation and they were just so happy to be going to the parks, it didn't matter the buses were a little late. Again, we worked equally as hard to accomidate guests at each resort regardless of the cost. The only possible exception was Grand Floridian which always ALWAYS had a bus greeter. And, in the even of bus or monorail problems, cast members from the resort would actually drive guests to parks and other resorts in a van.

Going back to the rough guests at the All Stars for a second. Music was the worst All Star because it offered the least shelter from guests. See, the way the letter font was on the huge ALL STAR (whatever) out front by the buses was different at the different resorts. The "A" in All Star was a perfect area to sorta stay back and observe the whole bus stop while not having to interact with guests. I won't stay there long, but occassionally you just need to get away for a few minutes and rest your voice or get out of a potentially hostile situation. The "A's" at Sports and Movies were large enough to hide behind, use the crossbar as a sort of table for papers, and still see all of the bus stops. Again, not all the time but just when it was getting rough. Or raining.

Behind the scenes, there is basically no difference in the cafeterias at the individual All Star Resorts. It was pretty basic. We always joked that we were going to stop for breakfast at the McDonalds that is just at the entrance to the All Stars, but that never happened.

Actually, let me get back to the bad crowds at All Stars. There is one week where you should not be at the All Stars and that is during the Pop Warner week. It is terrible. It's a cheerleader/football competition held every year of all these high school teams from around the country. It is essentially the Super Bowl for teams in this league.

The noise is loud at night. Horseplay occassionally becomes violent. Fights break out at times. Additional security and police are brought in to respond, monitor, and deter the teens. I think I even heard rumors that riot plans and personnel are on in place and on standby because the coach's have no control (probably by choice) over these groups.

I don't know for sure about the riot situation, but I know without a doubt the stepped up security. It is palpable. Normally, Disney Security blends into the atmosphere and you really only notice it at the gates of the parks or the security booth for the resorts. Sure, you'll see some wandering guards now and again or maybe at the front of the parades, but that's really it. They are always there of course, but you certainly don't notice them. Not at the All Stars during Pop Warner. They are everywhere and meant to be seen. And don't forget, this is during the morning that I see this. I can only imagine what it's like at night.

I talked with some Security Cast Members when I first noticed the influx of personnel and they told me about much of this. I also fielded a number of complaints from guests about the noise and unsupervised youth at night.

I hate talking bad about my beloved Walt Disney World, but everything I learned about Pop Warner from personal observation and talking with guests or other cast members makes it safety nightmare which impacts the otherwise great experience for others. The teams don't appear to directly harm other guests outside of noise and massive crowds at the resort, but still it's a disruption nonetheless. It is not the normal Disney experience with the pleathera of security details and excess roudiness.

I heard that this is the last year of the contract and I would certainly hope Disney does not continue the relationship. If you have to break with the Disney mantra of creating another world free of real world problems to host this event, it is not worth it because it destroys what Walt Disney World is all about. They cannot allow this to continue and it is impossible to control rowdy teens in large groups with limited interest from superior chaperones. Like I said, the experience is tangible and not in the fantasy, awesome feeling like walking down Main Street U.S.A. but an uncomfortable feeling of tension building to an unwanted climax.

Pop Warner is happening December 4 - December 11 2010.

Moving on, let's look at Coronado Springs. Just give me a minute to move my soap box out of the way I was just standing on.

Okay, Coronado Springs.

First of all, a lot of cast members at Coronado speak Spanish as their primary language. This is very apparent while on break because it was the only resort where Telemundo or some other Spanish TV was on every television.

Speaking of breaks, there is a difference between a break room and a cafeteria. Cafeterias have a place to buy food and a large eating area. Many had the cafeteria: Grand Flo, All Stars, Animal Kingdom Lodge, Beach Club, ect. Some only had a break room with a little area set aside. If you were lucky, there was a vending machine and a microwave. Now, every resort had a cafeteria, but some are so large that they have break rooms as well. Cast Members at the huge resorts got longer breaks because of the travel time. We were only given the same amount of time (30 minutes) so we had to use whatever was closest. For example, working at Saratoga meant using a break room at the Carriage House because the cafeteria was way WAY far away and we don't have access to their golf carts.

An interesting resort was Caribbean Beach. Again, they had two different types. The cafeteria was in the back and the break room was in the Customs House up front. If you were at the Barbados bus stop, you had to walk to the Customs House. No cafeteria for you. But Trinidad South was across the way from the cast building. Still a hike and you had to know how to get there, but it was amazing food. Still the only resort where I would buy the food even if I brough my lunch with me because it was so good. Occassionally, if you had a nice supervisor, they would offer to give you a ride to the cafeteria at this resort and maybe the internal resort shuttle to get back.

Now, why do I say all of this break room versus cafeteria stuff?

Well, when I was training, we knew where the break room was but didn't know where the cafeteria was. Many had tried to find it, but could not. Apparently it was well hidden in the main building where one checks in. So, my trainer told me while we were training that we were going to find the cafeteria. And 30 minutes later, we did. It was in the Conference Center. We spread the word and soon we were all enjoying breaks in the cafeteria. I don't even know where the break room is.

What a find! Again, Spanish television, but very good food. I would occasssionally purchase from here as well. Especially the pastries! See, there is a cafe (Rix) inside the Coronado Springs resort and they would make fresh pastries every morning for guests. Some of if not the best ones on the entire property. Any left overs would be sent to the cafeteria and sold to cast members for very little money. We're talking less than a dollar, maybe even just a quarter. Many times, the person at Coronado would direct connect (we used Nextels) other bus greeters to take their pastry order and we would enjoy them on the van ride back to the TTC.

You know what? I don't think I ever discribed a day in the life of a cast member working for the buses. Let me break it down real quick as best I can remember.

First of all, I would wake up every morning at around 5:15. A quick shower, a clean shave, and then get dressed. I would eat my breakfast and put my lunch in my bag. On cold mornings, I would prepare some hot chocolate and put it in a travel mug. All of this was done very quietly. My roommate won't get in until maybe 3:30 4:00 in the morning, so we didn't really see each other that much. Then, a drive to work. The total trip time was about 15 minutes. I was three traffic signals away from work. I'd come in every morning and pass EPCOT and I could see Spaceship Earth, if the lights were on. Sometimes they were, sometimes not. A quick turn and I was following the monorail tracks. Then I'd pass through the Magic Kingdom Toll Plaza (often before anyone was there) and hang a right. Through the security gate an into the Chip and Dale employee parking at the TTC. I'd get out, walk across the street underneath the monorail and enter the building right next to the Polynesian Resort. I'd go into the lockerrooms and change into my costume or put my spare clothes in the locker. It was rare that I didn't have normal clothes because I'd so often go to the parks after work and, of course, didn't want to wear my costume! Anyway, if I was too early to clock in (6:30), I'd sit down and watch either ESPN or the news in the cafeteria there. After clocking in, I'd walk across TTC and into our small little office behind the bus information booth. A quick double check of the schedule and I'd grab my radio, stock up on goodies, and maybe grab a bean bag toss, but only if it was a resort that required one, such as Coronado, DAKL, Beach, Wilderness Lodge, or Boardwalk. Everyone else did the same. We had a quick meeting and got into our vehicles. Most of us rode with a bus greeter supervisor, but some would go with the bus supervisor. We'd be at the resort all day, come in for lunch and fax sheets into bus operations around 12:30 or so, go back to the load zone for the remainder of the shift. That would very much depend on which resort you were at. The Animal Kingdom resorts were most often last. Epcot was middle, the others were normally first. Grand Floridian was the exception and that greeter just used the monorail to get to and from their location. At 2:00, we were done. I'd go clock out (which you knew you had done it right in the computer if Mickey appears), change and go play! Afterwards, I'd come home, eat dinner, and prepare everything for the next day. I'd lay out my clothes, my bag materials, and fix my lunch. Off to bed by 8:30, 9:00 with some ear plugs and my iPod playing recordings of SNL Jeopardy skits.

That was my life for a few months.

Anyway, let's get back to the Animal Kingdom resorts with the infamous Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, or DAKL for short. -Pronounced Dack-Al.

First of all, on crowded days, a cast member from the resort would come out there with some sort of animal bone or jaw to educate guests. That was always extremely helpful because it kept guests entertained and not complaining about buses.

Now, the most interesting thing about DAKL is the tunnels under much of the resort. It makes sense. Boma is on the same level as the cast area, so it's not really under ground. But it is below most guests rooms. The cafeteria for DAKL was pretty far away from the bus area and there was a great debate on the easiest way to get there. Some would use the stairs but the giant window next to the fire pit. Others (like me) would go down the hall of guests rooms and use the elevator. Either way, one you were down in the cast member only area, it was a little bit of a trek to get to the food.

But one note of interest is a giant map on the wall. This map shows the planning phase for the Animal Kingdom Lodge and surrounding areas. According to the map, there was suppose to be a walkway from the Animal Kingdom Lodge to the Animal Kingdom Park for guests. More specifically, it was suppose to go to the Beastly Kingdom. It does not show what was suppose to be in Beastly Kingdom, but it clearly defines the area currently called Camp Minnie Mickey as the Beastly Kingdom. Actually, if memory serves true, Beastly Kingdom was suppose to be larger.

An overhead look at Camp Minnie Mickey shows a lot of unused space so it is very possible for future expansion without disturbing current cast only area. In fact, it almost doesn't make sense how far out of the way some of the areas are for cast members because there is unused space between guest areas and cast areas. It just seems to be a further walk.

Now I haven't heard about any expansion or refurbishment in Animal Kingdom, but there is certainly room for it.

Speaking of new theme parks, there was a great joke that was played on new cast members. We would often pass by a construction area. The front had massive walls and an impressive gate with a long driveway lined with palm trees leading to an interor structure and a mansion behind it. It was told to new folks that this was the newest theme park and that was Dr. Xavier's School For Gifted Youngsters.

This seemed somewhat plausable. After all, it was just after we acquired Marvel and it really did look like that type of set up. In reality, it was a new resort hotel I believe. A Four Seasons perhaps. There was another clearing happening just to the right of the Magic Kingdom Toll Plaza when I left. I never found out what that was for.

If Disney did by chance have plans in the works for a new park, those plans would only be referred to as Park X. Maybe...

TTFN

On Deck: Beauty and the Beast (and a few Fantasmic shots)

In The Hole: The final picture installment, an Epcot Country. Can you guess which one? It's the only one not featured so far. Any guesses?

Sitting On The Bench: Final Round of Secrets and Stories