Bag search issue

[ThreeBeans]

Security guards. The law enforcement officers are the deputies in the dark, green polyester sweat suit/uniform.

Later,
Dan

Poor things

 

[clanmcculloch]

I thought that not sticking their hands into the bags that they couldn't see into was for the safety of the security guard. If they can't see in, they can't tell if there's something sharp that could hurt them. They should be asking guests to remove items rather than sticking their hands in for their own protection.

 

[W.E.D.]

While we were there they were digging through lots of bags, even having people take things out and lay them on the table.

It is not window dressing, you are being watched while your bag is searched.

Correct. I work with LE, and they do know what they're doing. Bag check is really to weed out the nervous looking folks, and can (sometimes) change someone's mind who was thinking about entering the park and starting trouble.

If it was heavy that day, they may also have received a warning that something might happen, which logically makes them up there sweep of people's stuff.

 

[AndyFL]

I imagine the main thing they try to keep from getting in the parks is glass bottles of any kind....with all those flip-flopped feet walking around a broken bottle could pose a real problem.

 

[ccgirl]

And, at AK, it is also for the safety of the animals. I have had straws taken away from me. I had that happen at SeaWorld as well. They do not want glass containers in the park either. They are not just looking for weapons/contraband.

 

[The_Alice]

Yes. This.

I usually have a phone, camera, small bottle of water and a few other things in the deep pockets of my cargo shorts... and I can just walk right through the no-bag line. Who knows what other people have in their pockets.

It's pure window dressing.

Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner. There are MANY more complicated measures Disney uses to keep Guests safe while on property. This is security theatre, pure and simple. I have had some guards simply look in one pouch only, and another take their flashlight and shine it in every crevice of the bag including the front, side and back pouches.

 

[KatieCollette]

This is why next time I'm gonna try to go to WDW bagless. Don't even know if thats possible for me, but I'm sure gonna try! With that being said, it's impossible to go bagless with a baby. I suggest clear plastic bags to stick all the stuff in you don't want to get touched. Even if the person uses a flashlight or stick to move it around, those sticks have touched god knows what in other peoples bags!

 

[going/again]

My suggestion, anything that goes in the baby's mouth put in a clear zip lock bag. That way the security guard can see it and not touch it. I would rather have them go "nuts" when searching instead of being lax and someone bringing a weapon in the parks.

Its worries me no person gets searched, so if they wanted to take a weapon in they would just put in their pocket. dont actually get the point of the bag search, I suspect its only for booze.

 

[2binak]

Last Fall at AK, we got in the line of the guard who was very thoroughly searching each and every bag. We were 6 people back when we got in line and it took us close to 10 mins to get through the line. He had everyone remove every single bag from within their bags. One woman had a make-up pouch, a change purse, a wallet, a pouch with meds in it, a camera bag and a few other small pouches in her bag. He made her open every single one of them and he searched through them all. I can understand being safe & thorough, but he was the only one being so thorough

 

[aripantaloon]

I wouldn't have a problem with it. If I had anything like a paci that I didn't want others' hands to touch, I would put it in a protective container.

Honestly, I don't get why you wouldn't have something like a pacifier in a baggie or other binkie holder since you won't even use a diaper if it hits the ground. Even if someone else's hands don't reach in your bag, yours do and I can bet that they aren't freshly washed each time.

 

[revdon64]

Last Fall at AK, we got in the line of the guard who was very thoroughly searching each and every bag. We were 6 people back when we got in line and it took us close to 10 mins to get through the line. He had everyone remove every single bag from within their bags. One woman had a make-up pouch, a change purse, a wallet, a pouch with meds in it, a camera bag and a few other small pouches in her bag. He made her open every single one of them and he searched through them all. I can understand being safe & thorough, but he was the only one being so thorough

This post got me thinking, after reading the whole thread, that there's a reason that some bag checkers are more thorough than others. IF someone were trying to bring in something that weren't allowed and happened to get in that person's line, they'd likely expose themselves as potentially problematic by switching lines or generall acting suspicious. I'm sure there are others simply watching the patrons in line and how they behave. If you've nothing to hide then you're likely seeing bag check as a minor annoyance at worst.

As to my experience - it resonates with a lot of what's been said already. When we were at the World in early May I carried a camera bag into the parks every day. Sometimes the bag checker glanced at the tightly packed bag and waved me by. But one time entering EPCOT the bag check guy had me open every zippered compartment and take almost everything out of the bag. I had no problem doing what he asked, but I didn't move from the table until I put everything back in the bag. I'm not about to drop and/or destroy any of my delicate electronics trying to hurry out of the way.

 

[larryz]

What I find funny is I have seen people freak out about someone touching a pacifier but will pick up same pacifier of the ground and stick right in the baby's mouth...trust me I have see it happen...MY SIL for one

Totally understandable!

A little dirt is good for you, but you just don't know where those fingers have been!

 

[ThreeBeans]

When we entered Animal Kingdom the guy behind us was pushing a baby in a stroller. The security guard asked the guy, "Did you come in a car?"

And the guy nods in the affirmative.


And the security guard reached under the stroller, pulled out a six-pack and said, "Great. You can put THIS in it now."

 

[bytheblood]

Disney security is not always this thorough. Sometimes they barely look and sometimes they are just shy of strip-searching you (okay, not really). Like everything else with Disney, they are inconsistent.

Going forward, put it in a clear baggie. That will make it easier for everybody.

 

[bytheblood]

Its worries me no person gets searched, so if they wanted to take a weapon in they would just put in their pocket. dont actually get the point of the bag search, I suspect its only for booze.

The security at the gate is somewhat of a facade. It is to give you that sense of security when going into the park. The real security is inside. Most security in the parks is not obvious as they are in plain clothes.

 

[Quin]

When we entered Animal Kingdom the guy behind us was pushing a baby in a stroller. The security guard asked the guy, "Did you come in a car?"

And the guy nods in the affirmative.


And the security guard reached under the stroller, pulled out a six-pack and said, "Great. You can put THIS in it now."

LOVE it!

About 3 weeks ago we were going into MK before RD and I had a big canvas tote bag full of swim gear. As soon as we got in I stuffed it all in a locker because immediately after lunch we were going to a water park and did not want to take the time to go back to our resort. Anyhow, the security guard was fumbling with the bag a bit. Turns out he was a trainee; supervisor came over and spent a little time with him explaining how when he put his hand down in the bag and there was something he could feel but not see (2 bottles of sunscreen that were under our big beach towels) he needed to lay the bag on 1 side, then on the other side, so he could spread the stuff out. Took him quite some time but we were pretty early so I didn't mind, and obviously once he got the knack of it it would go really quickly - when the supervisor demonstrated it took her no time at all and yet it exposed everything in the bag.

No six-packs, though.

 

[Sammie]

Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner. There are MANY more complicated measures Disney uses to keep Guests safe while on property. This is security theatre, pure and simple. I have had some guards simply look in one pouch only, and another take their flashlight and shine it in every crevice of the bag including the front, side and back pouches.

Ding! Ding! Ding! Wrong!

Do you work in security, have friends that do, know anything about what "really" is going on during those searches you label window dressing.

If not then go back and read the comments from people that do.

 

[nytimez]

Ding! Ding! Ding! Wrong!

Do you work in security, have friends that do, know anything about what "really" is going on during those searches you label window dressing.

If not then go back and read the comments from people that do.

It is window dressing. It is theater. It is neither the "real" security nor will those bag checks end/stop/limit a threat. Nor will they slow anyone down to let the "undercover agent in the Goofy hat" stop such a threat.

Disney has some terrific security measures -- including many of those undercover security guards.

But the bag check is not one of them, and anyone who truly knows anything about security will acknowledge that.

 

[Scrooge Jr]

So on Wednesday we went to the MK for the first time in almost a year. Something awesome did happen - guest services changed the expiration date on our passes from December to June because we hadn't used them at all since renewal due to my pregnancy complications. So that was really cool.

Anyway, so we took our 2 month old baby for the first time and needless to say, we had a stroller and diaper bag. So we went through the bag check and the security guard went kind of nuts digging through my diaper bag. I took out the blankets and bulky items so she could see inside, but she stuck her hands all up in there including all the pockets and ended up touching my baby's pacifiers, bottles, burp cloths, etc. I then started thinking about how she had just had her hands in who knows how many other bags since she last washed her hands and it really bothered me that she touched so much of my baby's stuff, especially things that go in/near her mouth. I can't remember any time in the past that I've actually had a guard dig through my belongings but we rarely ever went through the bag check line until now. Is this level of search routine now or did we just pick the wrong line to go through? Is there way to get through the line without someone touching my stuff in the future?

We had a good search once, it too the young guy about 5 minutes to go through all my sections and zippers now I open everything and just smile.

If I want to get "it" in the park I'd just put it in my pocket.

 

[a pirate's mama]

OP, I can see how someone you don't know putting their hands on your baby's things would upset you.
I do like the idea of the plastic baggies, although, I know one of our diaper bags had the sections specifically for pacis and bottles.

We have lots of fun in the bag check line. We carry an AED (automated external defibrillator) for my 5 y/o DS who has a heart condition. We have been asked why we need a breadmaker in the park, among other guesses as to what we might be carrying. Truly, though, most of the CMs are very accomodating even if it does take a few extra moments.