Sunnys Days Of Disney: check in

Showing posts with label check in. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 19, 2016

Ahhhh! Guys, we're actually here! How is this even possible?! I've been dreaming of this for 7+ years and I'm finally here! I am so over the moon and I'm so excited to get to share my experiences with you! First of all I am so sorry that it's been so long. I know I said by Thursday, but life happens. They weren't lying when they said you'll be crazy busy your first few weeks. I have been constantly moving since I got here last Sunday, and my feet are actually killing me. (What good are epsom salts doing sitting on my dresser when I haven't used them...?)

My schedule I received at check in. Please be careful of any information you post online. This document originally had my PERNER on it until I fixed it. That is not information you want to share with anyone.

So, let's start with check-in day! Last Wednesday night I got my 8-9 AM check-in for 1/11. We realized pretty quickly that those of us who had the earliest check in were also the people who would have to go through drug testing. YAY! I got to Vista at 7:30 (I have a time thing, shhhh) and there were already a few people lined up, but not many at all. They didn't let us in right away, but that was fine because there were parking spots across the street from Vista, so we walked from there. By the time two of my other roommates had arrived and we walked over, they were letting people in, only about 15 minutes early. We were able to walk right back and begin checking in. WOO HOO!

We went through the line so crazy quick it was almost a blur. We walked in and went right to get our picture taken for our housing ID's. One of my roommates had a necklace on and they made her take it off for the photo, even though it didn't show. My bangs fell onto my forehead, not in my face, and they made me push it back. It was a lot like taking a picture for your drivers license, only you have to be in the Disney look from the shoulders up. Morale of the story? Be prepared to follow what they want! From there we went and stood in a "line" that lasted less than 5 minutes. I went through first and she told me I had been able to link to my roommates and that we had been placed in the Commons! (Our first choice, but more on that latter!) She did let me know that, if you are able to successfully link with your roommates, you are almost guaranteed to be put together (unless something goes really wrong). We also found out where we would be working, but for all of the lifeguards it just said "To Be Determined". One of my roommates is working Concierge at Animal Kingdom Lodge, one is working Main Entrance Opps at Hollywood Studios, and one is working Attractions in Adventureland/Liberty Square (She found out latter she is going to be a skipper!) Its' a sold mix of locations. The rest of us are all lifeguards though, so we had to wait...

Not the best picture I've ever taken but still excited!

From there we went and picked up our housing ID's and our short term schedule. This schedule had casting, drug test, language test, our housing meeting, and traditions on it. People who had check in yesterday received this schedule in an email before hand, which is super convenient and lovely, so I hope they continue for the rest of you. Then we went to a door where they asked us if we had an tattoos or piercings. Those who did went to the right to fill out some paperwork, those of us who didn't went to the left for the last part of the check in process. We went and spoke with a gentleman who went over the Disney Look with us once again (because come on guys, it's not that hard) and then instructed us on where to go for the casting bus. Two of my roommates and I had casting immediately (8:30AM) while Alexa, my other roommate, didn't have it until the afternoon.

Left to right: Lexie, Elyssa, and I

From there we hoped on a bus to Casting, which was so fun! The girl who was "running' it was super sweet and nice, and we just barely made the bus, which was a relief! Casting was pretty straight forward. We got split into two groups, route A and route B to help the time go faster. I was with route B, so we headed into a hallway where we were emailed our schedule for our first "3" days. As a lifeguard, I was emailed a blanket form that all lifeguards will be getting, saying my test was Wednesday at 6PM, with all sorts of useful information on it (I'll write a post about my test later). From there we went to a room where they went over our schedule and the Disney Look with us again, which was so short, I'm not sure what the point was. Then we headed over to verify and sign off on our background checks! While there, one of the girls in line behind me realized that if you flip the paper over, your work location is on there! For most people, you'll already know, but it's super convenient for lifeguards! So I found out I'm going to be working at Animal Kingdom Lodge and Coronado Spring! I love both of those resorts, and my sister did her CP extension at Coranado, which is cool! I also have a roommate who is guarding at the Contemporary, and one who is at Typhoon Lagoon, deployed to Pop and Art until it opens! We're all so excited, and I'm pretty sure we have the safest apartment in Disney with 3 lifeguards...

Immediately after that we headed to get finger printed. Some people (like me) went through really quickly and were easy to finger print, some people had a harder time. My only suggestion is to just let them move your fingers. Don't try to move your hand where they want, just keep it loose and go with the flow! Then we headed over to the slightly longer line where we waited to talk to someone to really do our I-9. This takes a while longer, because plenty of people mess it up or just flat out don't do it. Once that was done I was home free! My roommate had already been to our apatment and grabbed our bedroom, so I was so excited to unload! Casting took about 2 hours and I had a drug test pretty soon after, so we went home (HOME!) and unloaded ALL of my stuff from my car (you guy saw the massive pile of stuff I brought, right?) I got it unloaded and got a started unpacking and setting up my room!

My roommate Sami is wonderful and lovely, and everything good. She picked our room for us while I was at casting, so we're in the room with the bay window! It's got a slightly smaller closet and bathroom, but we've made it work. Our room is so cute and colorful and bright, I love it! Since we ended up having a smaller closet, so I got a cube thinger magig to hold some of my clothes and such. It was a little bit more than what I had originally wanted to spend, but not significantly so. I'm happy with how our room turned out, even if it took a while to get there! The Commons was our first choice, and it's my favorite complex! That being said, not a lot of people got their first choice of housing this week, so we consider ourselves very lucky! (Thank you Lord for in home laundry...)

At 1 PM I had a drug test, as did three of my other roommates. We headed back to Vista, but got a bit confused at first. Drug testing is done in one of the apartments in the building before the welcome pavilion instead of in there. They were very strict on not letting us in early, even though they were in there and let the groups after us in early. It was all a little sketchy, but we got in and out quickly enough. None of us were actually worried (unlike other people standing in line with us...) and we assume we all passed since we didn't get a call telling us to come back!

After that we spent the day figuring out what we needed to do in the apartment, what we needed, and making it start to look like home! Trips to Aldi, WalMart, Sam's Club, and goodness knows where else have been made multiple times this week! Life has been crazy busy, but we're finally starting to settle into a routine! I have today (Tuesday) off, so I'm going to try and get a few posts written before I head to the Parks so I can schedule them over the next week or so! I broke my toe earlier this week (more on that latter) so I'm going to try and rest as much as possible today! I hope everyone who checked in with me or yesterday is having a magical time!As for the rest of you. I'll see ya real soon!

Thursday, January 7, 2016

Before we begin, I want to start by saying I have not yet check in, this is not account of my check in, that will come in the future. This is just a 'what can we expect' post. Okay? Okay. Now that we have that sorted out:

CHECK IN IS IN 4 DAYS!!!

Which means at this point everyone is probably freaking out, finishing packing, and are possible even on their way! In case you haven't been able to figure it out, I'm pretty stinkin' excited. 4 days from now I will be all checked in and probably in my new apartment with my amazing roomies and that's the coolest thing of all! I have 6 absolutely amazing girls that I plan on living with, and a few days from now we'll be on the adventure of a lifetime together. But before I can start that I have a lot to get through first!

So if you haven't been crazily obsessing about the DCP for the last 7-8 years like I have, you might be a bit in the dark about what is going to be happening over the next few days. SO here are a few things you need to know:

You MUST be within the Disney look from the shoulders up for check in. This means no bare shoulders, no over the top makeup, and no multicolored hair. Take out your piercings, cover your tattoos, and be prepared to be checked for the Disney Look. Make sure you show up during your designated arrival time. The world isn't going to end if you're a bit early (though security might not let you in) but things could get complicated if you're late!

So as you're getting ready to go on your way, there are a few things you need to bring with you:

Proof that you are eligible to work in the US. If you are a US citizen that means your drivers license or state issued ID card AND your social security card for birth certificate. If you have a passport, that is all you need as proof.
Boarding Pass. Make sure you print the email Disney sent you with the barcode so they can gain access to your information at check in.
Vehicle Registration. This doesn't mean your actual registration, this means the registration Disney had you fill out during DORMS registration. If you're bringing your car to stay in Florida, you need to fill out this form so that your car can be parked inside housing. When you print this form, it will print your boarding pass with it, so save paper and just print it once.
Car insurance. Bring your insurance card and make sure it is in YOUR NAME. It cannot be in your parent's name. If you parent's pay for your insurance great, good for you, but the card must have your name on it, or you will not be able to register your car.

If you happen to forget your social security card or birth certificate, don't panic. It happens more often than you think. Disney will put you on a bus to the Social Security office with approximately five hundred million other people to obtain a copy. This will push your Traditions/Training schedule back a bit, but it you will be able to start eventually! Your best bet is to place these documents in a folder with a flap that closes before you leave home. Not only are you carrying important documents you don't want anyone else getting their hands on, you are also going to be receiving a bunch of paperwork that you don't want to loose. Which brings us to the next part: what are you going to be finding out during check in?

Housing! During check in you'll be finding you where you are going to be living for the next 5+ months! It will be given to you on a sticker attached to your program guide, along with your personnel id number and other information.
Work location! In years past, you would find out your work location during casting, but more recently they've been giving that information out during check in. Unless you're a lifeguard, you will find out your exact location at check in! Lifeguards don't find out their location until they have passed their swim test.
Schedule. You will be given your schedule for the first week during check in up to Traditions. You'll find out when your swim test, drug test, and language tests are if applicable. You'll find out when your housing meeting is, when you have casting, and when your Traditions is. Make sure you hold on to these papers, as I'm not sure how you would go about securing a replacement if they were lost!

There will also be a lot of other information given to you, but somethings are better left a surprise, don't you think? And that's check in! Just know, the earlier in the day your check in is, the more crowded it's likely to be. If applicable, drug tests and swimming tests will be given the first day, while language tests are generally the next day. If you have the first time slot, you probably have a drug/swim test. Everyone will also go through casting, where they will be finger printed and put into Disney's system. If you have to do a drug test, make sure you drink enough water that you can go to the bathroom, but not so much that it's going to dilute the test. Some positions, such as lifeguards, have to pass a vision test before they can work. If you have glasses or contacts you may wear them, but if your are life guarding be sure it's contacts, as you'll need to wear them during your swim test. If you don't pass the vision test or the swim test, they will reassign your role, they won't just send you home. And that's that! In just a few more days we'll be in the happiest place on Earth, working for the mouse. I can't wait to meet you all. See ya real soon!