1st Time Question

[DisneyMomx7]

We are planning a Magical Family Gathering in July.

One of my older ds's lost his leg to cancer and wears a prosthesis. Another of my older ds's has Asperger's syndrome. When the ds who has the prosthesis went to WDW on Spring Break a few years back he had a GAC so he wouldn't have to do as much standing and waiting around.

Now our group will be splitting up, and most likely the three oldest boys will be spending a lot of time together. If both ds's have GAC cards will the other ds be allowed to stay with them? Also will the GAC be able to be used for Fantasmic? We've always done the Fantasmic Dinner Plan but I've heard stories of waiting in long lines without it for Fantasmic. Thank you for any help or advice you may have.

 

[OneLittleSpark]

I'm afraid I've never used a GAC, so won't be much help, but I do know that a GAC can acomadate the holder and up to 5 others, so your three sons wouldn't have any problems staying together.

If he has a problem standing or walking for long periods, might your son consider using a wheelchair for at least parts of the trip? It may seem like a daunting prospect, but they can really help preserve energy and keep pain at bay, to allow more time to play and enjoy the holiday.

Hope this helps a little and have a wonderful trip!

 

[SueM in MN]

There is a section of the disABILITIES FAQs thread all about Guest Assistance Cards. In general, WDW considers not being able to stand to be an "Endurance Concern" and they recommend renting a wheelchair or ECV for people with those types of concerns. The reason is that a trip to WDW includes a lot of walking, standing and waiting; the time spent in lines is only a small part of the time in the parks.

The GAC is meant to provide assistance for needs and may not shorten the wait in line. How it is handled depends on the attraction and what accomodations are available at that time at that attraction. The GAC is usually issued for up to 6 people (5 plus the person with a disability), so your sons would all be able to stay together in most cases.

For your questions about Fantasmic, we have never done the Fantasmic dinner package and have also never waited in line for long. We have gone during busy times like Spring break, summer and between New Years and Christmas. When there is one show, the CMs start letting people into the amphitheater about 1 to 1.5 hours ahead of time. We have walked by and seen people standing in line as early as 2 to 3 hours ahead of time. Since the gates won't open to let anyone in that early, those people will be standing in line for 2 to 3 hours. Once the gates open, those waiting people are ushered in and the line goes down. Most of the people who get in line after the line starts moving won't stand in line to wait at all. They will just be part of a group slowly walking in. I would still plan to get there 45 to 60 minutes ahead of time.
Another thing to keep in mind is that people will say that they got in line 1.5 hours before the show started. It may sound like they were standing in line for 1.5 hours, but really they walked right in and were seated waiting for the show for most of that time.

If there are 2 shows, the people for the second show are not able to get in until the first show is over and the amphitheater is empty. So, people for the second show may be waiting in line. Buy, from everything that I have read, the second show doesn't usually fill up.