Autism and Disneyland

[duckmama]

I am new to the forum but have read the FAQ on disabilities. I have a few questions I am hoping someone can answer. We will be traveling to disneyland in August with our almost 6 year old with Autism and 11 month old. I've read how to get a GAC.
-Can I expect to get them to allow us to swap parents for wait time or is this hard to get? She really cannot wait in a line more than a few minutes. I understand we do not get to go to the front of the line.
-We will be requesting to use her stroller as a wheelchair which will help a lot but what do I do with my other child? Will they allow me to use a double as wheel chair or do I keep her in a separate stroller and only one parent can wheel up to the ramp and we carry the other child?
-Will they allow us to bring in her sippy cup? This is the only way she will drink. I don't have a problem showing them it is empty. Will they allow me to bring in food just for her or can I easily buy food such as goldfish and fruit there? She does not have allergies but is very restrictive in what she will eat. We will be skipping all restaurants that are not very quick.
-Will they allow her to remain in her stroller on the tram for parking as though it is a wheelchair?
-She typically carries a small stuffed animal with her as a means of regulation. Will they allow this? If not is there going to be somewhere close in where I can buy one. She will be sobbing the entire time if not.

 

[Mama Who]

I don't understand "swap parents for wait time." There are accommodations not to wait in the main queue but not to not wait in line. If there are no other people using the alternate entrance, you might be waiting alone, but she'll still have to wait.

A double stroller will be very hard to get into some of the alternate entrances, especially if it is a double wide.

You can bring in a sippy cup and any food that you want. Yes, there are some restrictions on food being brought in in general, but if you explain that the need for it is medical/disability related, they will allow it. (Except for the cooler rules.)

I don't know about the tram. The issue there could involve the tie downs for a wheelchair not effectively securing a stroller.

She can absolutely carry a stuffed animal. If you're going on anything wild, practice with her putting it away for the duration of the ride- for things like Soarin or Star Tours there are places to stow loose items so they don't go flying.

 

[KPeveler]

I can answer tram question-- though they may allow you to use the ramp designated for guests with disabilities, you will be required to take all children out of strollers. There is no safe way to tie down the stroller. There is only one tram stop on each end, and the trip is brief. You can tell the Cast Member working the attraction that you are using the stroller as a wheelchair, but the best that will do for you is may be not require you to fold the stroller as well is remove the child. Large strollers are either accommodated in the very front or the very rear of the tram.

many families find it easier to walk rather than take the tram -- it is a fairly short walk, and nothing compared to how much walking you'll be doing in the Park.

You can take the double stroller as a wheelchair, at least in Florida. I believe that Disneyland is the same.

In Disneyland Park almost all attractions have a separate wheelchair entrance due to their age. Sometimes this wheelchair line is a worse option than the mainstream queue, so you'll have to judge each ride as you come to it.

There is no way to take the stroller on any of the ride vehicles, so you will be removing your child from the stroller out of the ride.

I am not sure what you meant by swapping parents, but unless the ride has baby swap (generally only rides with height requirements) your entire party will be waiting together. You can almost never see where the ride loads or even most of the queue from the outside, so there is no way for someone to hold a spot for the rest of the family.

 

[cmjaffe]

We've been to WDW using GAC twice and in March ventured to Disneyland Resort... having been there several times not needing the GAC (times have changed w/DD). Depending on the attraction the GAC can work as a fast pass of sorts (TSM) or get you an actual fast pass (Cars), but you still will have to wait in line. Those other attractions where there sin't a FP you will go in wheelchair access and in some cases this area is a bit longer line and waits vary (quite long on Peter Pan). BTW found Peter at Disneyland very dark and jarring, not a good "fit" for DD w/anxiety who LOVES it at WDW.
Good luck.

 

[duckmama]

Thank you for the responses. Sorry my question about swapping wasn't clearer. I would like for one of us to wait in line while the other pushes her around. She does best when not waiting, and either for just her and one parent to enter if that is how they allow it meaning one parent and the baby would stand in line, so I would be swapping her sister and a parent for her and the other parent so 2 people waited in line and 2 people get on or if they would allow one of us and the baby to stand in line and when it is our turn to ride to let her and the other parent back on so 2 people stand in line and 4 people get to ride. We do plan on going to things only when they will be least busy but if she gets hysterical about the wait time I'd like her to be able to have an alternative to waiting herself.

 

[crashbb]

Thank you for the responses. Sorry my question about swapping wasn't clearer. I would like for one of us to wait in line while the other pushes her around. She does best when not waiting, and either for just her and one parent to enter if that is how they allow it meaning one parent and the baby would stand in line, so I would be swapping her sister and a parent for her and the other parent so 2 people waited in line and 2 people get on or if they would allow one of us and the baby to stand in line and when it is our turn to ride to let her and the other parent back on so 2 people stand in line and 4 people get to ride. We do plan on going to things only when they will be least busy but if she gets hysterical about the wait time I'd like her to be able to have an alternative to waiting herself.

Very, very few ride queues are set up to allow this to happen

 

[minkydog]

Thank you for the responses. Sorry my question about swapping wasn't clearer. I would like for one of us to wait in line while the other pushes her around. She does best when not waiting, and either for just her and one parent to enter if that is how they allow it meaning one parent and the baby would stand in line, so I would be swapping her sister and a parent for her and the other parent so 2 people waited in line and 2 people get on or if they would allow one of us and the baby to stand in line and when it is our turn to ride to let her and the other parent back on so 2 people stand in line and 4 people get to ride. We do plan on going to things only when they will be least busy but if she gets hysterical about the wait time I'd like her to be able to have an alternative to waiting herself.

I'm pretty sure if you tried that World War III would break out. You know why you're doing it and we know why you're doing it, but people who are all standing there in line are not going to take it well when it appears that you are letting family members break in line.

I do sympathize with you. I have an 18yo son who has severe autism. We took his large stroller on every trip and never had anyone question it. He also used a sippy cup until a few years ago, so the sippy cup went with us. Christian can eat a lot of different foods, but for him it's all about texture--if it's not right, DISASTER. So I always pack him a bag of snacks, fruit ,and a PBJ sandwich just in case we need it. I've never had anyone ANYWHERE question me or refuse to allow it.

Good luck with your trip. I know it will be stressful but I'll bet you'll be able to find some things that work for you.

 

[ireland_nicole]

I have gotten a double stroller through every line in WDW I think- with the citimini it was no problem, with the classic it was possible but require some serious maneuvering. You will need to fold up the stroller for the tram or bus- unless it is a special needs stroller that is transport rated and has special tie down locations which is somewhat rare. The trams don't have capacity for w/c so you'll just fold yours like everyone else. The soppy cup won't be a problem, neither will the stuffed animal- my dd still brings hers everywhere and she's 13. Your queue idea won't work, the lines are really tight. I have found a number of strategies to be successful, but you know what works for you. iPad, iPod, small flashlight pointed at the ground, snacks, a blanket over the stroller to create a nest, ear protectors, sunglasses and big hat, fidgets. DVD player, etc. we have found a good touring plan to be invaluable, as well as sticking to routine in terms of bedtime, medtime( ESP for seizure meds) eating times etc. we also make a printed schedule and before they could read they were simple visual schedules. Also did social stories about waiting in line among other things( like flyin on a plane). We watched YouTube videos before hand so they knew what to expect( not necessary now because they know the parks like the bak of their hands
HTH