Disney's BoardWalk Inn

Omg it was so dirty in the common areas: the little bar had smeared tables and dirty glasses and the bartender said ‘sit anywhere, we’ll get it cleaned in a bit’. Ew. Rugs and floors were stained - and old stained/ with spills. The stairs between floors were so sticky my feet stuck to the floor. Between the third and fourth floor there is an open galley where the private innkeepers club is - they have a restaurant in there and they leave the double doors open so the odors waft: one night we were treated to garlic tomato smells and the next night garlic shrimp. It was hideously pervasive. We complained to a worker at the front and she said ‘oh that is awful’. They promised to call for room ready as we were early - and they didn’t. So at 5:30 we stood in line again to get checked in. All the front desk staff could say was ‘oh yes, we have it listed you’d like us to contact when ready’. We checked our phone number when we pre-checked at 9:30 and again at 5:30. It was right, but they never utilized it. We have stayed at the vast majority of the properties here over the course of 20 years. This was a standout awful experience at $500 a night. While I’ve got you reading this: why does disney still use so much plastic?! And what’s with soaps made in China? If you can’t support green by using dispensers could you at least support local? If you want that New Jersey super-8 feel for 500$ (add in tax and parking) - this is the place.

2019 was a tragic year for my family. My husband was diagnosed with cancer. He lost his mom May 2019 and I lost my mom Sept 2019. I booked a Disney Christmas vacation at a Deluxe Disney Resort. We arrived on Dec 23, 2019. We dropped off our luggage and hit the road running!!! That night while preparing for bed there was a loud noise coming from the ceiling in our room. First thing Tues morning, my husband called down to complain. A cast member on the maintenance crew came up, heard the noise and stated that he would report to the necessary people. We went to sleep Tues night to the same disturbances. Wed, my husband complained again. Another member of the maintenance crew came up, heard the noise, stated that he would report this to his supervisor and put in a work order. Wed night we went to sleep to this noise again. Thurs no one showed up. Once again, we had to go to sleep with said noise. Our departure day was Fri. Before leaving my husband reported this issue to the front desk cast member. On our trip home, he received a call from a staff member, who informed us that the Boardwalk was willing to credit us for our parking fees (which is another issue). It's Jan 7, 2020 and I have yet to receive this credit. She offered us a $150 because of our complaint. I asked my husband if this was a $150 credit for each night? I was credited a $150 TOTAL! I came to Disney, booked with the Boardwalk because I heard such great things and we needed this joy in our lives!

We stayed at the Boardwalk for 8 nights and had a wonderful experience. The proximity to both Hollywood Studios and Epcot allowed us to walk to both parks and get in line ahead of the buses and boats. Our room was quiet and the beds were comfortable. The atmosphere around the Boardwalk makes you feel like you are always a part of the action. Walking around the Boardwalk to the Yacht and Beach Club was also a nice way to start the day when not running off to a park. We enjoyed the bakery and pizza at the Boardwalk. We did encounter an unfortunate incident one evening where we needed to call the front desk. The incident was not related to the hotel or hotel staff and within minutes the appropriate personnel from the hotel were at our door. We had a discussion and everyone left on good terms. Craig (I believe was his name) was very understanding and apologetic and we felt that the situation was handled appropriately. The next day we were walking throught the lobby and a gentleman asked us how we were doing and how our stay was going. We told him things were okay and once he heard that he inquired further as to our hesistation. Once we mentioned to him our incident from the night prior, he quickly rattled off our room number and knew all the details of the incident. Raf, the manager, totally made us feel comfortable, treated us a valued customer and reaffirmed to us his committment to ensure our stay would be great. He phoned us later that evening as a follow up. We wish we could have run into him again to let him know how much we appreciated his kindness toward us. It would be great for training managers to learn from someone like Raf on how to communicate and interact with customers. We are appreciative of the efforts Raf took to ensure we had a great holiday.