After Spending Tens of Thousands on Disney World Resort, Family Left Injured Without Any Assistance
A Disney Vacation Club member’s decade-long loyalty to Walt Disney World Resort is hanging by a thread after staff at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge allegedly refused to provide basic assistance when their wife suffered a foot injury from broken glass left in their hotel room.
The family’s experience—detailed in a Reddit post complete with photographic evidence—paints a troubling picture of a Deluxe Resort hotel seemingly indifferent to guest safety and unwilling to address hazards created by its own operational failures.
A Relaxing Evening Turns Dangerous
The incident unfolded during what was meant to be a pleasant family vacation at one of Walt Disney World’s premium resort properties. Reddit user u/pissedoffguest, a DVC member for approximately ten years, shared their story alongside an image of glass fragments littering their balcony.
What happened
According to their account, the injury occurred after the couple had put their children to bed.
“I joined DVC about a decade ago as they seemed to care about guest experience,” the Walt Disney World Resort guest explained. “I brought my family to Animal Kingdom Lodge for the week for a nice family trip.”
The peaceful moment quickly turned painful:
“Last night after getting the kids in bed my wife and I were enjoying a couple drinks on the balcony when broken glass, not from us, punctuated her foot. We struggled to get it out so we went to bed and figured Disney could help us in the morning.”
The broken glass appeared to be left over from a previous guest, suggesting that housekeeping failed to properly inspect and clean the balcony before the family’s arrival.
Disney Resort Staff Offers Cleaning Supplies Instead of Help
The family approached the situation reasonably, expecting Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge to handle both the medical problem and the remaining safety hazard. What transpired instead left them stunned.
The guest made clear their intentions weren’t financial:
“We are not the type to try and make easy money. This morning when we called the front desk they told us we could call 911 but we are responsible for it. When my wife asked about the glass getting cleaned up they had house cleaning drop off a vacuum for us to clean up, again, a mess left behind from I am assuming previous tenants but not us.”
Rather than sending housekeeping to remove the dangerous debris they’d overlooked initially, staff apparently expected the injured guest and her family to handle the cleanup themselves. When the family objected to this approach, the resort’s second response proved even more inadequate.
“When I called and said that wasn’t acceptable, they had house cleaning come again with a microfiber rag and nothing else. For broken glass on a balcony,” the Disney Park guest wrote. “And again, handed it to us to clean up. I am at a complete loss in the lack of giving a sh*t by Disney that I’m ready to never go again.”
Housekeeping delivered a single microfiber cloth for the family to clean broken glass—a task that poses obvious injury risks, particularly given that one family member was already hurt.
The DVC Investment in Question
Disney Vacation Club membership is a substantial financial commitment. Initial purchases can range from tens of thousands to over $100,000, depending on point allocation, resort preferences, and contract terms. Members also pay annual dues that increase over time.
This particular family invested in DVC specifically because of Disney’s reputation for exceptional guest care. A decade of membership suggests they’ve spent considerable sums on both the initial purchase and annual fees, not to mention the costs of flights, park tickets, dining, and other vacation expenses across multiple trips.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge is listed as a Deluxe Resort hotel…with pricing to match. Even using DVC points carries an opportunity cost, as those points could be used at any DVC property or traded through exchange programs. Cash reservations at Animal Kingdom Lodge typically run several hundred dollars per night, positioning it among Walt Disney World Resort’s most expensive accommodation options.
Silence From Disney
Walt Disney World Resort hasn’t publicly addressed the guest’s allegations. The Reddit user mentioned plans to visit the front desk to discuss their experience directly with management, but hasn’t provided updates on whether that conversation occurred or yielded any different outcome.
Have you had a negative experience at a Walt Disney World Resort hotel? Share your story with Disney Dining in the comments.
Please note that the story outlined here is based on an individual Walt Disney World Resort guest’s experience. No two guest experiences are the same, and this article does not necessarily align with Disney Dining’s personal views on Disney Resort operations.
They plan to address it with management?!? Why wasn’t that done originally? They could best handle the situation from the beginning. I feel like something is missing in the details.
I wish we had more info. How do know they weren’t the ones who broke a glass on balcony? Why didn’t someone go down to front desk whenever happened. Trust me management would of got a cab and sent them to ER. Also I personally wouldn’t walk out on them barefoot as they aren’t clean and dirt on them.
Disney is not good about addressing problems if you are members they have already got your money!!!
Disney staff is not responsible for medical care. They are not trained or qualified to perform glass removing surgury. Expecting them to do so is unreasonable. It obviously was not too bad or they would not have kept drinking and waiting until morning to deal with it.