Disney Paris: Appalling Child Security Processes

Saturday, July 03, 2010
Paris, Ile-de-France, France
By now most people know that I have done quite a few things "Disney" in my life. While I am not one of those "Disney fanatic" people with perpetual smiles and glassy eyes, I generally rank them right up there for family entertainment. But I now I really have a bone to pick with Disneyland Paris.   I KNOW that France is not known for its operational efficiency but there are some areas where you HAVE to do this right. If something is in the arena of your key competency, you HAVE to do it right. No choice. No excuses.   Disney knows this. So, for Disney, child security measures should be so tight and sharp that you can cut glass with them.   Today, Disneyland Paris failed in that regard.

Before I detail the actual event that is leading me to eviscerate a corporation that I usually hold in high regard, let me detail a bit of the day.   I had decided to purchase annual passes to Disneyland Paris (which I will now shorten to DLRP). Like many things in France, this process was not as easy as it would have been in other places. While I purchased this on line, I had to go to the park within a certain period of time to get the actual passes, or it would expire. To make this yet further convoluted (although I didn't know it at the time) , I had also purchased a ticket for our nanny which entitled her to be able to get into the park for 2 days rather than one.    So, I decided that we would go today, get the passes and make a day of it.

When we left the apartment this morning, it was pouring...I mean pouring. By the time we made it to the Park, it was still pouring. So what I really wanted was to get into the park and find somewhere dry...and perhaps to buy some rainproof garment as my one rainproof coat died and went to coat heaven as a result of this downpour.   When we got to the gate with our tickets we found out that 1) the annual ticket had to be taken to a particular office across the park to exchange for the "real" tickets and 2) that the ticket we bought for our nanny was a "voucher" which required that I get back into the ungodly line to get the "ticket".   So, by the time we finally entered the park we were all wet, cranky and wondering why we came.   When we got to the passport annual office, there was a sign saying that they didn't open until 11....but of course. So we headed to Buzz Lightyear, where I broke my rule and waiting in a line without getting a fastpass...never again. We did have a lovely lunch at Cafe Mickey, which is not as great as Auberge de Cendrillion but much better than the Lucky Nugget Saloon. After lunch we headed to Walt Disney Studios. This is where things went to hell in the proverbial hand basket.

Lucas, god bless him, is a smart and often impulsive little guy. He is one of those children that you have to watch like a hawk because he is fast and quick to act.   And, his little brain tends to interpret things in a creative way that you may not be able to predict. So, as we were entering Walt Disney Studios, he was so thrilled that it wasn't raining anymore that he just took off. Unfortunately, this was right at the dark entrance to an area of shops, eating establishments and arcades. I wasn't 25 feet behind him but by the time I ran into the building he was GONE. Just gone. Disappeared into the crowd. Now, for you moms out there who have had this experience, you know how your throat just closes up and your heart stops. The nanny and I went to opposite ends of the building and started canvassing the area but we didn't see him. So, I did the rational thing and went and told one of the cast members at a store.   You see, I had this experience just once before...but it was at Disneyland in California. Lucas had been 18 months old and was with his father in a store, and darted away before Julien could catch him. When I found out, I told a woman at the store. She asked me to describe him, picked up her walkie talkie and radioed to someone. In any case, we found him in a few more minutes but apparently everyone had been alerted. It took less than 2 minutes for her to get my information from me. So this is what I was expecting. But was I wrong.

So there I was, in panic, and this woman says "wait here" and disappears for 5 minutes. 5 minutes when your kid is missing is a lifetime.   Then she comes back and tells me, get this, that I need to walk with her to some office to report him missing. Let me repeat. She wants me to walk away from the area where my child was LAST SEEN...to fill out some form...in some office.   Quite honestly, if the Erin had not been there also looking for him, I probably would not have gone but as it was, I thought it was the prudent thing to do. At least it wasn't too far away. But it was in an office where I could not see or be seen so Lucas couldn't see me if he was looking. She then starts asking me the basic questions like what he looks like, what he was wearing, etc. I answered these, and saw that she was going down a list of questions on the form but only halfway through. So once she started asking me things that were largely irrelevant, I skipped down the form and said "don't you mainly need my phone number now". She said "yes" and then, before I left, started telling me that although I was panicked, they had never lost anyone. While this was a reassuring piece of information, I would have liked it better if I could have received it while I was out in full view where I could see and been seen.   So, I left.

Luckily, when I came out to the courtyard area, I called "Lucas" again, really loud. And I heard this tiny little voice from a distance say "Mommy". And, thank god, I saw his back as he was walking into a store. Some man was with him, who was trying to help him find me.   Mind you, the man was a another guest and not a Disney cast member. The man was really nice and concerned but this was a stranger and I won't even go into the list of concerns I have with that one.   But let me repeat it, just to nail the point. My crying child was being lead around, not by a Disney cast member, but by a complete stranger. Lucas was totally shaken.  I will admit that I teared up when I saw him. Thank god. That is the worst feeling! The one positive that I hope will come of this is that he won't be as likely to take off like that again.

So back to DLPR, and their response. I might not have been as annoyed about this if I did not KNOW that they can and do do it better in California. I had that experience. But to leave the security of peoples kids relying upon manual and outmoded processes, or the kindness of random strangers, is NOT acceptable. This may be France but this is Disney and kids are their core competency. Consequently, child security should be beyond reproach.  

So, my note to DLRP is simple. Fix this. If you don't know how, call Disneyland California. And if they don't answer, you can call me. Because if you don't know the 5000 worries that run through a mothers mind at that moment then how can you mitigate against them. You must do better here. Your brand depends on it.



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