Just read the WDW room security check thread and...

[disneyseniors]

OP. I have another take on it.
If you are comfortable telling the manager at your resort that you are the victim of an assault and your fears with room checks, I feel they will go out of their way to accommodate at a time of your choosing. I don't think I am being optimistic. You can write the resort manger before your trip with your concerns which are certainly valid. You shouldn't have to "just go to another hotel/park that doesn't make you feel uncomfortable" when you want to go to WDW just like every one else. Good luck

 

[Disneypro1]

And they didn't come in?

No not at all..We always take advantage of housekeeping so someone is in room everyday. But, In no way do you have to let anyone in..Never have never will. Of i would say 15. nights at WDW since this practice started we have gotten maybe 4 knocks at different times? same thing everytime..yep we are good..they move on.

 

[rdaky]

I am guessing- and this could be way off- that they kind of get a vibe about which rooms need a more thorough check. On the couple of times when they came and we were there, the housekeeping woman walked in with a clipboard, basically did about a 10 second glance at the room, wrote something down, and walked out. She probably had to check our room because all rooms technically have to be checked. At one point my husband asked her what she was looking for, and she told him that she had to make sure all of the light bulbs were working (????) But we didn't have any unusual smells, suspicious activities, or things that would otherwise lead them to believe that we were up to anything criminal. I know that is stereotyping guests, but I wouldn't be surprised if they are only difficult with people who are showing signs of being up to something.

 

[rdaky]

OP. I have another take on it.
If you are comfortable telling the manager at your resort that you are the victim of an assault and your fears with room checks, I feel they will go out of their way to accommodate at a time of your choosing. I don't think I am being optimistic. You can write the resort manger before your trip with your concerns which are certainly valid. You shouldn't have to "just go to another hotel/park that doesn't make you feel uncomfortable" when you want to go to WDW just like every one else. Good luck

Yes, I agree with this. Or just telling you are uncomfortable with a man coming to your room. I was very nervous about what to expect before we experienced the room checks, and I found them to be very reasonable and courteous (like calling in advance and asking us for a convenient time, or coming back later because we told them we were getting dressed for the pool)

 

[AngiTN]

I am guessing- and this could be way off- that they kind of get a vibe about which rooms need a more thorough check. On the couple of times when they came and we were there, the housekeeping woman walked in with a clipboard, basically did about a 10 second glance at the room, wrote something down, and walked out. She probably had to check our room because all rooms technically have to be checked. At one point my husband asked her what she was looking for, and she told him that she had to make sure all of the light bulbs were working (????) But we didn't have any unusual smells, suspicious activities, or things that would otherwise lead them to believe that we were up to anything criminal. I know that is stereotyping guests, but I wouldn't be surprised if they are only difficult with people who are showing signs of being up to something.

If you've ever read or learned about techniques for Human Trafficking, they teach hoteliers what to watch/look for.
As for the light bulb comment, I was watching the Disney schedule channel yesterday (we love the music in the background) and noticed on it there was a notice about room checks and they called them maintenance/security checks. They really did mention the maintenance angle. This may be one of the speals they've given the staff to explain why they need to look around

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

DS hotels are not Disney owned so they have their own procedures.
If you are getting daily housekeeping then they will not do security checks.
My sister and I opted out of housekeeping and the odd thing was that at check in when I opted out the CM made sure to say "you understand that this means no one will enter your room right?". Um if that was the case then how come I got a security check?
I think its based on how long you are in your room for because we entered at night and were not exiting until about noon the next day and what do you know as we were getting ready and were only half dressed they came.
It was a very short lady who asked if she could come in and I said we are half naked so no. She said ok I'll come back later.
Who knows if she did since we were gone.
Its really more of an annoyance than anything else.

 

[fla4fun]

Which resort were you considering? When staying at a value or moderate resort I open the curtains completely when I leave the room for the day so they can see from outside the room that nothing is going on. Between that and housekeeping I have not had any issues with extra security checks (and I was very concerned about this issue). I would guess I have stayed about 80 nights since the policy was put in place.

There is nothing wrong with expecting to have a certain degree of privacy in a hotel.

 

[maxiesmom]

... as a victim of assault, I am feeling very leery of staying onsite now. Does Disney Springs hotels do this too? I just don't like that people are coming into my room 2X a day. Housekeeping seems invasive enough when you are in your room, but to have someone else....it just feels icky... like having an unknown security camera watching.

As others have said, housekeeping is your check. And they only come once a day, not twice.

My plan is to throw the latch (which I always do), and if they knock at least they can't come right in. But I also don't plan on skipping housekeeping. Unless you are in your room a ton odds are you won't even notice the room check/housekeeping.

 

[Happy Artist]

Yes, I agree with this. Or just telling you are uncomfortable with a man coming to your room. I was very nervous about what to expect before we experienced the room checks, and I found them to be very reasonable and courteous (like calling in advance and asking us for a convenient time, or coming back later because we told them we were getting dressed for the pool)

This just doesn't make sense. If they are calling you before they check, how can that be secure? If I told my students I was going to walk in their restroom at 1PM to make sure they aren't vaping, do you think they would hide it? lol I am not sure how this procedure is going to help if you let those who are doing wrong that you are on the way to check their room....

 

[Disneylover99]

No not at all..We always take advantage of housekeeping so someone is in room everyday. But, In no way do you have to let anyone in..Never have never will. Of i would say 15. nights at WDW since this practice started we have gotten maybe 4 knocks at different times? same thing everytime..yep we are good..they move on.

We opt out of housekeeping at values and moderates and we often tour the parks in the late afternoon/evening. So we've had lots of security checks. You can definitely ask them to come back later if it is inconvenient, but they will keep coming back, so for us it's just easier to let them in. They always walk right to the back of our room and look at random things.....lights, behind the tv, look in the washroom, etc....

 

[Disneylover99]

This just doesn't make sense. If they are calling you before they check, how can that be secure? If I told my students I was going to walk in their restroom at 1PM to make sure they aren't vaping, do you think they would hide it? lol I am not sure how this procedure is going to help if you let those who are doing wrong that you are on the way to check their room....

Yeah, I find that part dumb. But I really don't think they want to find anything anyways. They want to give you an out. I think their goal is to deter you so you'll abort your evil plans.

 

[Disneylover99]

I am guessing- and this could be way off- that they kind of get a vibe about which rooms need a more thorough check. On the couple of times when they came and we were there, the housekeeping woman walked in with a clipboard, basically did about a 10 second glance at the room, wrote something down, and walked out. She probably had to check our room because all rooms technically have to be checked. At one point my husband asked her what she was looking for, and she told him that she had to make sure all of the light bulbs were working (????) But we didn't have any unusual smells, suspicious activities, or things that would otherwise lead them to believe that we were up to anything criminal. I know that is stereotyping guests, but I wouldn't be surprised if they are only difficult with people who are showing signs of being up to something.

If that's the case, we must send out a suspicious vibe.
The pattern for us, seems to be, no check for 4 or 5 days, then once they check, they come every day for the rest of our two week stay.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

This just doesn't make sense. If they are calling you before they check, how can that be secure? If I told my students I was going to walk in their restroom at 1PM to make sure they aren't vaping, do you think they would hide it? lol I am not sure how this procedure is going to help if you let those who are doing wrong that you are on the way to check their room....

Hey people are just giving you helpful suggestions like discuss it with a CM and ask for set times so no one scares you and gives you unnecessary trauma.
Not sure what you want at this point. You'd surprise students by going into the bathroom at school so I guess you should just suck it up and deal with it yourself at a hotel when they knock on your door.

 

[ellbell]

This just doesn't make sense. If they are calling you before they check, how can that be secure? If I told my students I was going to walk in their restroom at 1PM to make sure they aren't vaping, do you think they would hide it? lol I am not sure how this procedure is going to help if you let those who are doing wrong that you are on the way to check their room....

At this point I'm not sure if you're looking for helpful suggestions or just a reason to be angry about a Disney policy.

This topic has been rehashed so many times and the way it works now is way better than it was at first. The policy has been in place for over a year now and isn't going anywhere. You can choose to stay at another property but I can assure you the suggestions on this thread are very helpful.

 

[Hopefully]

This just doesn't make sense. If they are calling you before they check, how can that be secure? If I told my students I was going to walk in their restroom at 1PM to make sure they aren't vaping, do you think they would hide it? lol I am not sure how this procedure is going to help if you let those who are doing wrong that you are on the way to check their room....

I agree with PP. What will make you feel better?
I think a non Disney Resort is better for you

 

[rdaky]

I agree with PP. What will make you feel better?
I think a non Disney Resort is better for you

I agree. There is absolutely nothing that you can do about having a room check. But many people, myself included, have experienced that no one is barging in unannounced, and I imagine that if you made them aware of your concerns (you don't even have to tell them you are a victim if you don't want- but just your concern about becoming one in this type of situation) I believe they would be understanding and reasonable and make accommodations so that you won't have a strange man coming into your room. And at the same time, someone is going to check every day and you can't request that they not visit your room. Whether that's housekeeping or someone else. I mentioned earlier that I thought it would be very intrusive, but it really wasn't. A little awkward a couple of times. Slightly annoying when my 2 year old was napping. But they were kind and quiet and in it was a woman from housekeeping, even though she wasn't cleaning anything, in and out in about a minute. AND she left the door cracked open when she stopped by.

If the experiences of everyone here are not enough to make you feel comfortable, then you should probably stay at a non-Disney resort. And I'm not saying that to be snarky or dismissive. But there's really no way to skip the room checks and if it is going to ruin your vacation, it's not worth it.

 

[cinnaminny]

I am okay with security checks. Honestly with some of the nutty people out there, this is just better.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

I am okay with security checks. Honestly with some of the nutty people out there, this is just better.

But it's really just security theater.
A tiny lady who is 4ft10in is really gonna do anything if there actually is a nut in the room?

 

[AngiTN]

This just doesn't make sense. If they are calling you before they check, how can that be secure? If I told my students I was going to walk in their restroom at 1PM to make sure they aren't vaping, do you think they would hide it? lol I am not sure how this procedure is going to help if you let those who are doing wrong that you are on the way to check their room....

They accept a window of time, not an exact appointment. And even then, they may not adhere to the window and may knock other times for any sort of reason. Heck, the other day we were in the room, had forgotten to put the sign out and someone knocked. It wasn't a security check, it was housekeeping supervisors stopping to review the job that had been done. They thought no one was in the room (but a knock first is standard procedures, just in case). We told them we were heading back out shortly and they were fine to stop back to check later.

 

[raraavis]

I always use the chain. Not all security people are outstanding citizens free from corrupt. Even if they were actual police, it still feels icky. And from that thread, there are no rhyme or reason on when they do come in your room and some HAVE when people are in it, and even insisted on coming in. It seems this could be setting people up for crimes to happen, because of the trust factor many have with DIsney. Anyone could come in an knock on your door, and people would believe since they are at DIsney, it would be someone okay.

I am probably in the minority of feeling this way, but I am thinking of changing my reservations to somewhere less intrusive and somewhere that feels safer.

I must be in the minority as well because I almost had a panic attack when I heard about this new policy. We always decline housekeeping at any hotel we stay at; I just don't like anyone going into my room. My DH thinks I am overly paranoid, but majority of men just don't understand the threat women feel on a daily basis (also, my paranoia partly stems from my college degree and my main area of research, which is sexual assault and sexual homicide).

So I totally understand why this is unnerving for you. Unfortunately, I don't have many more suggestions than what previous posters have mentioned. The only thing I can think of that might give you peace of mind is setting up a camera in your room. Not that a recording would help prevent a crime, but it would help with catching the perp if there was a crime.