Autism at Universal Studios?

[Blanche_Neige]

Do we get the same type of GAC that we get at Disney?

We are planning on going next year for 2-3 days the first week of March, we cannot afford to stay onsite. My kids have trouble waiting for extended period in a crowded line. One of my sons cannot wait in line if it's very dark (ex. pirates of the C, Little murmaid...) at Disney we used a GAC...

 

[debbiecarr98]

Do we get the same type of GAC that we get at Disney?

We are planning on going next year for 2-3 days the first week of March, we cannot afford to stay onsite. My kids have trouble waiting for extended period in a crowded line. One of my sons cannot wait in line if it's very dark (ex. pirates of the C, Little murmaid...) at Disney we were given an alternate entrance...

I cant remember the exact details, but we got a card for the lines, it worked a bit differently than the Disney one, but was still very helpful.

 

[SueM in MN]

If you follow the link in my signature to the disABILITIES FAQs thread, one of the posts is about Universal and includes information about their version of a Guest Assistance Card.

 

[Blanche_Neige]

If you follow the link in my signature to the disABILITIES FAQs thread, one of the posts is about Universal and includes information about their version of a Guest Assistance Card.

Thank you I didn't think of checking there

Found it post #9

 

[SueM in MN]

That’s what I’m here for.

 

[sharadoc]

Our experience was a little rough. When we got there, US Guest Services only offered us the family room card, which would have been horrific, so we refused. I insisted that we were told we could get a fastpass/front of the line pass and eventually (grudgingly) got the fastpass.

Those lines are not timed, and are available to everyone who stays at a Universal Resort, or who buys the fastpass, so they are more crowded than a typical Disney fastpass line, and take much longer than what you're used to in a fastpass line at Disney.

Just be prepared that the experience will not be exactly the same as Disney. We've decided we prefer Disney and probably won't go back to Universal. Many people have had wonderful experiences with the Universal GAP, so all the best!!!!

 

[Blanche_Neige]

Our experience was a little rough. When we got there, US Guest Services only offered us the family room card, which would have been horrific, so we refused. I insisted that we were told we could get a fastpass/front of the line pass and eventually (grudgingly) got the fastpass.

Those lines are not timed, and are available to everyone who stays at a Universal Resort, or who buys the fastpass, so they are more crowded than a typical Disney fastpass line, and take much longer than what you're used to in a fastpass line at Disney.

Just be prepared that the experience will not be exactly the same as Disney. We've decided we prefer Disney and probably won't go back to Universal. Many people have had wonderful experiences with the Universal GAP, so all the best!!!!

I'll keep that in mind. I'm thinking of going with only my 9y old DS on a recon mission before taking the rest of the family. Makes it easier for me as I would know in advance what to expect...

BTW what time of the year did you go? and were you staying onsite? I'm still debating on where to stay. I don't think we can afford to stay onsite... At Disney we stay at the Value and we are very happy.

 

[Brightsy]

When I went to Universal in Feb. of 2007 we had a great time! They gave us a universal fastpass thing. We were able to use the fast line for all events. Although, being Feb. we didn't really need the card most of the time.

There is one ride in the kiddie playground area that the pass can't be used on. It's a kind of giant swing/hanglider kids ride, it looked like fun, but the line was super long and as I said, they don't allow the pass to be used there.

 

[sharadoc]

I'll keep that in mind. I'm thinking of going with only my 9y old DS on a recon mission before taking the rest of the family. Makes it easier for me as I would know in advance what to expect...

BTW what time of the year did you go? and were you staying onsite? I'm still debating on where to stay. I don't think we can afford to stay onsite... At Disney we stay at the Value and we are very happy.

Hi. We were there in August 2009, just last summer. We stayed at Disney and drove over to Universal for the day. We actually had 7 day tickets from a promo last summer ($99 for 7 days) but my kids didn't want to go back after that first day.

 

[Fatherof2boys]

My family and I live in tha Midwest but have been fortunate to enjoy both Walt Disney World (5xs) and Universal Studios Orlando (3xs). The guest assistance accommodations provided on previous trips to both WDW and US were more than efficient to allow my entire family, including my son with Autism to have a good time. However on our most recent trip in June 2011 we discovered Univ Studios has changed their guest assistance card policy. The new policy does not allow access to the alternate express pass line if the wait in the regular line is over 30 minutes. For example, if the wait time for the Simpson's ride is 60 minutes your card is marked and you are told to return 60 minutes later and you are then allowed to enter the express pass line and proceed to wait in that line. If you do find a regular line that is less than 30 minutes wait time you cannot use the guest assistance card unless the previously provided return time is voided. So if the Men-in-Black ride is only 20 minutes you must use the regular line or you have to wait and do nothing else or use the express line and then lose your spot for the Simpson's ride - This does very little to accommodate a child with autism. It would be a wonderful thing if ASD were so accommodating to allow for such ,but for most of us it is not -- the short lines can sometimes be tolerated it is the long wait that is the problem. Trying to convince my son that staying reasonably close to the selected ride without actually riding it is difficult to say the least. To effectively deal with the issues associated with ASD our objective with theme parks has been to get in and get out to avoid all of the possible things that will cause the eventual melt-down. WDW is still accommodating and does a fabulous job but Universal Studios is not. We will not be back to Univ Studios and I would not recommend it to parents with a child with Autism unless you plan to spend the additional $40-55 per person per day (in addition to regular admission) to add the express pass. We will skip Universal Studios and enjoy more time at the more accommodating WDW.

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

Agreed, the express pass is really the best way to handle a child with autism at Universal, IMO, but it does cost extra. Their current policy is a bit of a mess and I don't think my son would be able to handle it even though he is very high-functioning. We decided just to eat the cost of the express pass and it made things considerably smoother, but I can understand why some would find doing that unreasonable.

 

[kylmac]

We had the same experience at Universal-for Men in Black we were given 15 minutes off the wait time-we had to wait right outside the ride because if we had left we would have lost our return time. Needless to say, our son was melting down right there and it was not fun. We were not told about paying for the "fastpass" so we were not too happy. Disney has this completely down packed and has a great system. We booked a trip for Christmas staying onsite in order to get the "front of the line" pass at Universal but have decided against it. Maybe we will do a day trip and pay for the front of the line but now that I have read that those lines can be just as long I am leary of that as well. Oh well...
Regards-Elizabeth

 

[EvangelineG]

Hmmm, sounds like we are going to be better off buying the express pass, although I hate the idea of the extra cost!

How does the GAP work with rides that don't offer express pass?

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

As far as I know, all the rides in both parks have express pass access except those in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter (though that may change at any time). No clue how the GAP works there, unfortunately, since the last time I went was just before it had opened.

 

[buzz for boys]

My family and I live in tha Midwest but have been fortunate to enjoy both Walt Disney World (5xs) and Universal Studios Orlando (3xs). The guest assistance accommodations provided on previous trips to both WDW and US were more than efficient to allow my entire family, including my son with Autism to have a good time. However on our most recent trip in June 2011 we discovered Univ Studios has changed their guest assistance card policy. The new policy does not allow access to the alternate express pass line if the wait in the regular line is over 30 minutes. For example, if the wait time for the Simpson's ride is 60 minutes your card is marked and you are told to return 60 minutes later and you are then allowed to enter the express pass line and proceed to wait in that line. If you do find a regular line that is less than 30 minutes wait time you cannot use the guest assistance card unless the previously provided return time is voided. So if the Men-in-Black ride is only 20 minutes you must use the regular line or you have to wait and do nothing else or use the express line and then lose your spot for the Simpson's ride - This does very little to accommodate a child with autism. It would be a wonderful thing if ASD were so accommodating to allow for such ,but for most of us it is not -- the short lines can sometimes be tolerated it is the long wait that is the problem. Trying to convince my son that staying reasonably close to the selected ride without actually riding it is difficult to say the least. To effectively deal with the issues associated with ASD our objective with theme parks has been to get in and get out to avoid all of the possible things that will cause the eventual melt-down. WDW is still accommodating and does a fabulous job but Universal Studios is not. We will not be back to Univ Studios and I would not recommend it to parents with a child with Autism unless you plan to spend the additional $40-55 per person per day (in addition to regular admission) to add the express pass. We will skip Universal Studios and enjoy more time at the more accommodating WDW.

This was NOT our experience of the US GAP. We joined the express line after our time frame was up not the normal line!! Also if wait time was less than 20 minutes we joined the express line straight away we NEVER went into the normal line at all!!
Also if the wait time posted was 60 mins our return time was half the time posted so we had to return in 30 minutes!! I am shocked to read that our experience was so different to yours. We were also offered to options the GAP which worked for every ride or a complimentary express pass which only worked for some of the rides - we went with the GAP and it worked really well for us but I do accept that every ASD child is different !!

Our trip was November 2010.

 

[Fatherof2boys]

This was NOT our experience of the US GAP. We joined the express line after our time frame was up not the normal line!! Also if wait time was less than 20 minutes we joined the express line straight away we NEVER went into the normal line at all!!
Also if the wait time posted was 60 mins our return time was half the time posted so we had to return in 30 minutes!! I am shocked to read that our experience was so different to yours. We were also offered to options the GAP which worked for every ride or a complimentary express pass which only worked for some of the rides - we went with the GAP and it worked really well for us but I do accept that every ASD child is different !!

Our trip was November 2010.

I'm glad your trip was enjoyable - our previous trips were as well. The policy I described is new as of this June. We were apparently among the first to experience it. When we asked about the complimentary express pass option which had been available on previous trips we were told it was no longer available.

Buying the express pass does now appear to be the best option -- if you have budgeted for it. We had already purchased the 2 day park pass for our family of 4 which based upon our previous experience would have worked well for us - unfortunately an additional $200+ each day was not in our budget. As a result of this new policy, our 2 trips to Universal made those days our least enjoyable during our stay in Orlando.

It is disheartening parents of children with ASD are being forced to pay an additional hefty fee for a truly workable accommodation so the entire family can have an enjoyable experience.

As I said, WDW knows how to make it work. We will be limiting our trips to those places that truly accommodate our ASD needs and at this point Universal does not.

 

[lilwhiterabbit]

I apparently skimmed over that you'd joined the regular queue? We also joined the express queue when our time had come, since our trip was almost two years ago, but the weird timeframe/wait system was so odd and complicated, that it was hard for my son to deal with. We just found having the express pass to be easier, and I expect we probably would be if we went again.

I may be in the minority in that I don't mind paying for the express pass, since it helps us immensely in touring. I do wish Universal would make the express pass free like Disney makes the fastpasses, but I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon.

 

[livndisney]

I'm glad your trip was enjoyable - our previous trips were as well. The policy I described is new as of this June. We were apparently among the first to experience it. When we asked about the complimentary express pass option which had been available on previous trips we were told it was no longer available.

Buying the express pass does now appear to be the best option -- if you have budgeted for it. We had already purchased the 2 day park pass for our family of 4 which based upon our previous experience would have worked well for us - unfortunately an additional $200+ each day was not in our budget. As a result of this new policy, our 2 trips to Universal made those days our least enjoyable during our stay in Orlando.

It is disheartening parents of children with ASD are being forced to pay an additional hefty fee for a truly workable accommodation so the entire family can have an enjoyable experience.

As I said, WDW knows how to make it work. We will be limiting our trips to those places that truly accommodate our ASD needs and at this point Universal does not.

Perhaps that is what went "wrong". Universal does provide a GAP to those with disabilities. It is not a "complimentary express pass option". The intent behind the GAC/GAP is in following the ADA to provide "equal" access. Providing something for free that others pay for would not be "equal".

 

[Fatherof2boys]

I apparently skimmed over that you'd joined the regular queue? We also joined the express queue when our time had come, since our trip was almost two years ago, but the weird timeframe/wait system was so odd and complicated, that it was hard for my son to deal with. We just found having the express pass to be easier, and I expect we probably would be if we went again.

I may be in the minority in that I don't mind paying for the express pass, since it helps us immensely in touring. I do wish Universal would make the express pass free like Disney makes the fastpasses, but I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon.

I apologize if I've created some confusion -- we were not required to join the regular line once the wait time was over we were allowed to join the expess line - however as others have correctly pointed out the express line waiting time can vary. The regular line was however the only option if you did not want to have your return time voided for the other ride.

 

[Fatherof2boys]

Perhaps that is what went "wrong". Universal does provide a GAP to those with disabilities. It is not a "complimentary express pass option". The intent behind the GAC/GAP is in following the ADA to provide "equal" access. Providing something for free that others pay for would not be "equal".

You may be correct - the ADA may not require this particular level of accommodation. But maybe it should - as a comparison consider that establishments are prohibited under the ADA from charging additional fees for service animals but they are permitted to charge members of the general public fees to bring their pets, e.g. airlines, hotels, etc... Why - because the use of a service animal is not a luxury but a necessity to allow them equal access. This same argument could be made here as it relates to ASD.

But I don't want to turn this into an ADA debate or a whine fest about $.

My post was and is intended to share my experience with families who deal with tht impact of ASD on a daily basis and allow them to factor it into their vacation plans -- however they see fit.