Hotels are a special part of Disney World!

Staying at a Disney hotel can mean lots of perks, special benefits for the theme parks, and tasty Disney food right at your fingertips. While we might love staying on Disney property, we can’t deny that we have experienced the worst-case scenarios here too — and here’s how we handled them.

There are a lot of different “worst case” scenarios when staying at your Disney World hotel, so let’s break down some of them. Starting off with one of our least “worst cases”, let’s talk about noisy neighbors.

Too Much Noise

Not every Disney resort is created equal. While there are some beautiful and peaceful resorts on Disney property, there are resorts that tend to have more guests staying there. Those resorts tend to be the value resorts like Pop Century, The All-Star Resorts, and Art of Animation.

These value resorts have some major perks (especially when it comes to pricing) but they also tend to host large sports teams, cheerleading competitions, and other school groups.

This can lead to lots of noise in the early mornings and late at night, which can interrupt your sleeping time and your kiddos’ nap times. We have personally dealt with this several times, and it can definitely put a damper on your Disney vacation.

In our experience, purchasing earplugs and using white noise sounds on our phones has been a tremendous help. Many of the Disney resorts sell earplugs in the stores around the resort, and apps like Spotify have playlists for different white noises to help drown out noises outside of your hotel room.

The next worst-case scenario? Having some extra roommates you didn’t know about!

Learn More About The Worst Part of Value Resorts Here

Bed Bugs

While this worst-case doesn’t happen very often, it has happened before! Getting bed bugs in Disney World is rare but possible. Luckily we haven’t experienced this personally but we do know that Disney World housekeeping Cast Members are trained to identify these bugs, as well as identify what cleaning needs to take place.

So what do you do if you notice you have some unwanted roommates? First things first, call the front desk immediately to explain the situation and request a new room. From there, inspect your luggage carefully and begin to wash all clothing in hot water and dry on high heat.

Consider vacuuming your luggage and any other items that might have come in contact with the bugs, and from there you should be able to enjoy the rest of your vacation. Luckily this is a worst case that you can physically get away from, this next one you’re stuck with.

Learn More About The Most Annoying Disney World Guests (That Aren’t Human)

Food Poisoning

Now this is one we wish we could say we haven’t experienced, but that just isn’t true. Our team has experienced our share of illnesses while on Disney World vacations, and they have been some tough situations. Getting food poisoning at Disney World was not on our perfect plan list, but we were able to handle it. 

So what’s the first thing to do? Consider hanging back at your hotel for a day or two. Now this isn’t our favorite advice to give, but even if you aren’t contagious, heading to the parks isn’t fun while you’re sick and it might just make your vacation worse. If you start to feel sick while you’re in the theme parks, head straight to First Aid. There are nurses there equipped to help monitor you, and you can even get free over-the-counter medicine for minor ailments.

If you’re sick at your resort, you can grab over-the-counter medication from your hotel’s gift shop. If you make it back to your Disney World resort late at night after the gift shop has closed and you need some medicine, contact the front desk, and a Cast Member will usually be able to sell you what you need.

Disney has also partnered with Advent Health to offer several different medical services that include non-urgent healthcare visits and prescription delivery. So while no one wants to be sick on their Disney World trip, there are several ways to handle it if the unexpected occurs.

Learn More About The NEW Emergency Room Opening Near Disney World SOON! 

Leaving Your Things Behind

While the unexpected can happen on your Disney World trip, this worst-case scenario can actually happen once you’re headed home! Once you’ve made it to the airport, or even made it home, you might realize you left things in your resort. There have been times when we definitely overslept and packed to go home in a rush.

So what do you do when you’re sitting at MCO and you realize you’ve left things behind? First, if you’re still at the resort, go straight to the front desk. They will contact housekeeping and try to have the item returned to you while you’re there. If you’ve already left Disney World, try calling the resort to describe the item and the room you were in. They will do what they can but there is no guarantee they will be able to find it quickly.

If it’s been a while since you left your Disney resort, this is where you’ll turn to Disney’s lost and found program. You’ll need to go to DisneyWorld.com/lostandfound  to report your missing item. Disney will do their best to retrieve the lost item and get it back to you quickly.

Read About The 5 Biggest Mistakes Guests Make When Checking In and Out Of Their Disney Resort

Overall, it’s entirely possible that something will go wrong on your Disney vacation. While it’s not what anyone wants to plan for, Disney has tons of ways to help handle your worst-case scenarios so they can help solve any issues on your trip. Don’t forget to keep following DFB for all of your Disney vacation tips and tricks!

Read About How Our Family Got Sick In Disney World — And What Happened Next HERE 

Have you ever had a Disney disaster? Tell us in the comments!