DAS Approval/Denial with New DAS Guidelines START 5/20 WDW & 6/18 DL

[Evita_W]

I wonder how many disabled guests they have compared to Disney. Like the percentage. I know a lot of other parks have more thrill type rides that many with disabilities can’t do. It makes me wonder if Disney has more guests that visit with disabilities overall.

Actually, many of them have similar percentages, some even higher. Not saying all of them, but a lot of them. The ones that are higher are the ones that actually have very robust accessibility programs. Of course all systems have their pros and cons, but is is quite possible to make the systems work for most, something Disney has lost sight of.

 

[nalababybear]

Datapoint. DLR DAS and renewed in December easily for duration of annual pass.

Wdw DaS call today. They tried looking up but couldn't find even with ticket# and username. Ended.up copying old chat over and they matched entier valid time to September. We do have a lot of nonexpiring tickets on our mde so guess that may have caused the issue of length of approval determine so they went with matching dlr time

Non questions on qualifications.

 

[eticketplease]

Took 1 hour today to get approved for DS @ DL so not too bad. Wish the systems talked together so that they could see we are already approved at WDW for DS.

 

[Angel Ariel]

Took 1 hour today to get approved for DS @ DL so not too bad. Wish the systems talked together so that they could see we are already approved at WDW for DS.

My understanding is that it's not about the systems talking to each other, it's more that the parks are different in their accessibility for queues and so it will likely always be different conversations.

 

[eticketplease]

My understanding is that it's not about the systems talking to each other, it's more that the parks are different in their accessibility for queues and so it will likely always be different conversations.

No there tech is not the same. LL is still based on MaxPass in DL where it is different in WDW. DL only works with MagicBand+ where WDW continues to work with all versions.

Once you get approved they are booked the same way with the MDE (WDW) or DL app but yes do to space DL you may need to go to the exit instead since it may not have a LL entrance.

 

[Angel Ariel]

No there tech is not the same. LL is still based on MaxPass in DL where it is different in WDW. DL only works with MagicBand+ where WDW continues to work with all versions.

Once you get approved they are booked the same way with the MDE (WDW) or DL app but yes do to space DL you may need to go to the exit instead since it may not have a LL entrance.

I wasn't saying the tech is the same. I'm simply saying I don't think the fact that the hardware tech is different is why we have to have DAS conversations for each park.

 

[EasinEpcot]

My 15 year-old daughter with autism was approved for DAS for our trip last week. I approached the call by asking whether my daughter might be eligible due to her autism-related anxiety and stimming behaviors. The cast member was very nice; both my daughter and I were on the call. I thought he asked good questions, wanted to know how we handle my daughter's anxiety/stress in our daily lives, what her behaviors are etc. My daughter also described what waiting in line is like for her. Honestly, I wasn't sure she would be approved as she does have a lot of coping strategies.

She was approved and allowed to include 4 people with her for each reservation though they did allow her to choose from all 6 members of our party, if that makes sense. She mostly wanted to go on rides with her sisters or me, so it worked out really well for her. She got to do everything she wanted to and was able to try some new experiences which was amazing.

Her issue is that long waits for something new or a little scary lead to her anxiety ramping up to the point that she doesn't want to ride any more, or if she does, she can't enjoy it since she's so stressed. DAS allowed her to ride Everest, Slinky Dog, Toy Story Mania, 7 Dwarves and she found she really liked them. And it allowed her to ride some of the rides for a second time knowing what to expect which made them even more enjoyable. If you have a kid on the spectrum you know what I mean.

It was a huge step forward for her to be able to ride with her sisters and not feel that she was different from other kids her age. DAS completely changed her experience this past trip.

 

[BlueGreen5]

Her issue is that long waits for something new or a little scary lead to her anxiety ramping up to the point that she doesn't want to ride any more, or if she does, she can't enjoy it since she's so stressed. DAS allowed her to ride Everest, Slinky Dog, Toy Story Mania, 7 Dwarves and she found she really liked them. And it allowed her to ride some of the rides for a second time knowing what to expect which made them even more enjoyable. If you have a kid on the spectrum you know what I mean.

Happy to hear about such a positive outcome for your DD! We totally resonate with your story, especially the quoted portion -- over the years, there have been so many abrupt queue exits for us for this exact reason. ASD and GAD are one tough combo and once they get going there is no slowing down that train (or at least no good strategy we have ever found). And you hate to be mad at them for "wasting" an hour in line for nothing, but we're all human and of course you're silently frustrated and that's just not fair to them at all so then you feel horrible about your own shortcomings and overcompensate in other ways. Love DAS for this.

 

[jphilhower]

We had our DAS approve for our son. He is intellectually disable. I didn't think it would be approved since he is older. He gets nervous and fidgety if he has to wait.. If I understand it will appera in his APP once we are in the park. Is this right?

 

[EasinEpcot]

We had our DAS approve for our son. He is intellectually disable. I didn't think it would be approved since he is older. He gets nervous and fidgety if he has to wait.. If I understand it will appera in his APP once we are in the park. Is this right?

Yes, it pops up as a new button as soon as you enter the park. If it's early entry and only some rides are open, they will be the only ones that show up until the main park opens.

 

[connie254]

Has anyone who has been approved under the latest update had to do another interview? My son was approved for last September's trip and we are going again later this year.

 

[lanejudy]

Yes, you'll need to do another interview for your next visit. DAS is valid for the length of ticket or 240 days for APs. The 240 days is a change from 120 which it was back last summer/fall.

 

[Disturbia]

Yes. We were approved for our trip in Dec (called in Nov) but we didn’t have tickets for April booked yet so had to call again for DAS in Feb (rule had just changed from 30 days to 60 days).

If you have multiple trips booked in a year, you can call 60 days in advance (as long as you have tickets for the next trip) and they can activate it for 240 days from the first day of your trip. So when I called for our April trip our DAS got activated until the end of our tickets (end of Nov) up to 240 days. We were told our DAS expires Dec 5. If our trip extends beyond that we would have to call again. We are not passholders/DVC and had a Bounceback booked from Dec.

Now if we only had April tickets then we would have had to call again for Nov from what I understand.

 

[Kerr84]

We've done 3 interviews since the changes. The latest was two weeks ago and we have been approved each time.

 

[VAtink]

Today we applied for DAS again, we’ve been getting it for years, and this was the second time we’ve applied since the changes on who qualifies started. We got it the first time after the changes, but this time we did not. I was honestly surprised the first time we got it since I had read so many stories of people being denied who seemed to fall under the new criteria, but this time we foolishly thought that since we qualified already with the new criteria, we had a decent chance to get it again. Oops! Should know better than to make assumptions!

The CM asked the same kind of questions as last time, wanting more details on real world experiences, and we gave the same examples as last time. The only difference is the last time part way through giving an example the CM stopped us and said no need to describe anymore, we clearly qualified for DAS. This time the CM just said that if we don’t have an official autism diagnosis, we won’t qualify. This definitely rubbed me the wrong way since I didn’t think they were supposed to (or allowed to?) ask for an actual diagnosis. Plus, this is for my mom who is in her 70s, it’s rare for older adults to have been officially diagnosed, let alone someone in their 70s!

We’ll try the suggestion she gave for this trip, which was to ask at each ride what we can do, and if we have issues we’ll just try to apply again for our next trip! I really wish that Disney would be more consistent with what they will accept though, it’s frustrating that it really seems to depend on the day and the CM you end up with.

 

[Evita_W]

Today we applied for DAS again, we’ve been getting it for years, and this was the second time we’ve applied since the changes on who qualifies started. We got it the first time after the changes, but this time we did not. I was honestly surprised the first time we got it since I had read so many stories of people being denied who seemed to fall under the new criteria, but this time we foolishly thought that since we qualified already with the new criteria, we had a decent chance to get it again. Oops! Should know better than to make assumptions!

The CM asked the same kind of questions as last time, wanting more details on real world experiences, and we gave the same examples as last time. The only difference is the last time part way through giving an example the CM stopped us and said no need to describe anymore, we clearly qualified for DAS. This time the CM just said that if we don’t have an official autism diagnosis, we won’t qualify. This definitely rubbed me the wrong way since I didn’t think they were supposed to (or allowed to?) ask for an actual diagnosis. Plus, this is for my mom who is in her 70s, it’s rare for older adults to have been officially diagnosed, let alone someone in their 70s!

We’ll try the suggestion she gave for this trip, which was to ask at each ride what we can do, and if we have issues we’ll just try to apply again for our next trip! I really wish that Disney would be more consistent with what they will accept though, it’s frustrating that it really seems to depend on the day and the CM you end up with.

I would suggest that if it isn't working for you, to talk with them again while on this trip. But this is why DH feels the amount of Disney trips are going to be very limited, there are many other theme parks and experiences across the country that are far easier to navigate with disabilities now than Disney is. That isn't to say Disney can't be made to work, but the effort it takes compared to many other places now just makes it less worth it, especially when you start to factor in the insane price increases compared to other venues. Yes, other venues have price increases, but nothing to the extend Disney has done. And honestly, it is very sad for both of us to have come to this conclusion, but it is what it is. Again, it doesn't mean we won't go to Disney, it is just going to be far less often than it used to be and witht he price increases, we will end up doing all we can to reduce spending once in the parks by brining our own food, etc. as the prices are getting out of hand and we have to account for that somehow.

 

[jennab]

Today we applied for DAS again, we’ve been getting it for years, and this was the second time we’ve applied since the changes on who qualifies started. We got it the first time after the changes, but this time we did not. I was honestly surprised the first time we got it since I had read so many stories of people being denied who seemed to fall under the new criteria, but this time we foolishly thought that since we qualified already with the new criteria, we had a decent chance to get it again. Oops! Should know better than to make assumptions!

The CM asked the same kind of questions as last time, wanting more details on real world experiences, and we gave the same examples as last time. The only difference is the last time part way through giving an example the CM stopped us and said no need to describe anymore, we clearly qualified for DAS. This time the CM just said that if we don’t have an official autism diagnosis, we won’t qualify. This definitely rubbed me the wrong way since I didn’t think they were supposed to (or allowed to?) ask for an actual diagnosis. Plus, this is for my mom who is in her 70s, it’s rare for older adults to have been officially diagnosed, let alone someone in their 70s!

We’ll try the suggestion she gave for this trip, which was to ask at each ride what we can do, and if we have issues we’ll just try to apply again for our next trip! I really wish that Disney would be more consistent with what they will accept though, it’s frustrating that it really seems to depend on the day and the CM you end up with.

That’s odd. I never gave a diagnosis for my son nor did they ask for one.

 

[VAtink]

That’s odd. I never gave a diagnosis for my son nor did they ask for one.

Right? We've never given or been asked for one before either. I feel like the CM we got was in need of more training.

 

[Mrs.Reese]

We just completed our third interview for DAS. We were approved. We were definitely asked more in-depth than in the past. I was getting nervous that we would be denied. Just be prepared to be very specific on how you accommodate for waits in the real world.

 

[Evita_W]

We just completed our third interview for DAS. We were approved. We were definitely asked more in-depth than in the past. I was getting nervous that we would be denied. Just be prepared to be very specific on how you accommodate for waits in the real world.

Here is the problem with that, the way we accommodate in the real world doesn't work at Disney. Basically if there is too long of a wait, we just go to a different business that can staff appropriately or order online if that doesn't work. But it is very rare for anywhere we go to have more than a 5 minute wait anyway, with the exception of the doctor's office, but they simply text us when it is our turn, so even there no special accommodations are needed, everyone is treated the same.