Diabilities Pass for the parks?

[sbelyo]

Hello...

I have a permanent disability ( CP ) I have been going to WDW since I was 6 and last year was the first time that I needed to get a disability pass for the rides. back in the day I used to go in the exits and a cast member would notice that I had a disability and then put me in line to get on a ride right before it would enter the regular line spots. I think it's still the same way but I noticed that I had to go to town hall on mainstreet and get a pass first.

My question is do I have to obtain one for each park, or is the one that I get from mainstreet valid everywhere?

 

[Cheshire Figment]

The Guest Assistance Card (GAC) is issued at Guest Services at all the parks. It is good at all four parks and valid for the length of your stay.

If you are in a wheelchair, and mobility is your only problem, then you don't need a GAC. Most attractions the queue is mainstreamed which will allow a person in a wheelchair or ECV use the regular line. If it not mainstreamed, then you will be directed to the disabled entrance, which is usually the exit.

 

[sbelyo]

Ahh ha that's the answer I was looking for. Thanks

 

[SueM in MN]

MK and Epcot were built before accessibility was being thought of for things like Theme Parks. Most of the standby (regular waiting) lines at those parks and pretty much all of the fastpass lines have been switched to Mainstream Access. This means they got rid of the things that made them in-accessible (like stairs). There are some things that could not be made accessible, so there are still a few rides that are accessed by people with disabilities at the exit (Spaceship Earth in Epcot is an example).

AK and the Studio were built with accessiblity in mind so almost everything is Mainstream access without special entrances at those 2 parks.

As Cheshire Figment mentioned, if you have a wheelchair, you don't need a GAC. If you don't have a wheelchair, but need to use the accessible entrance to avoid stairs or need extra time for boarding, then a GAC would be helpful.
This thread about ride boarding might be useful.

 

[mnmom22]

I ran into a problem at MGM last year. As a single mom I rarely travel with another adult and usually have 2 kids(7yo) with. I use an ECV and at RnR the CM was insistant that I transfer into a manual wheelchair and my kids push me. They were not big enough to push the wheelchair up a ramp and I tried to tell the CM that but... Thankfully there was a very kind gentleman behind us in line that pushed me all the way through. The kids wanted to do the ride again but I couln't take a chance on a stranger's kindness. Loading at the exit would have been much easier.

 

[SueM in MN]

I haven't been on RnR (I don't do well on those types of coasters), but my best guess is that it is one of the rides where it is not possible to get on at the exit.
Examples of rides like that are:
Pirates: the exit is far removed from the entrance and just after you exit the boats, they travel up a ramp and thru a place with the ceiling just high enough for the boats to clear.
Maelstrom: you board in one area and the exit is somewhere else entirely, leaving you out in front of a theater.
Goofy's Barnstormer:you board one one side of the track and exit at the other side. A manual wheelchair can be lifted across the track to be on the correct side when you get out.

An obvious advantage to boarding at the exit is the wheelchair is waiting for you when you get off without a CM having to physically move it to the exit for you.
RnR sounds like a minimally accessible ride from the description in the Guidebook for Guests with Disabilities. It says you have to be able to board in a 30 second timeframe. Pretty difficult for many people.

 

[mnmom22]

Sorry-- I should have added that on another trip we were loaded on at the exit. You miss the staging but it is very easy to get to and get on the ride.

 

[dizzyintx]

When I went 3 weeks ago, RnR was one of those rides where you go through the regular line. You get to see the preshow and then your sent to the exit. They have a special car, that the door opens for easier transfer. I'm sure we took longer than 30 sec but no one hurried us along like Peter Pan. Left the powerchair right there. They let us go twice and boy was it a hoot! I think we rode it 6 times in all.

 

[SueM in MN]

That's interesting. The special car was probably added for the ride, but not in the Guidebook. The most current version I have says you only get 30 seconds to board and doesn't say anything about a special car (although it does say there is a stationary "practice car" you can look at and try.) Since it's a newer ride that always surprised me that they didn't have a safer way to load - that's a lot of pressure to someone to tell them they MUST be on in 30 seconds.

Peter Pan, on the other hand is a ride they can't stop for boarding. We have asked a couple times and it does say it can't be stopped in the Guidebook. From what I've been told, it has something to do with the change the ride car makes from being on the ground to being in the air and how high the cars are suspended (they are worried some guests may try to get out if it stops) . We can't really go on that anymore because my DH can't get DD lifted and in/out fast enough to make it safely.

 

[LvsTnk]

We have used the special car at RRC and definately taken more than 30sec. to load.