The alternative is to give everyone a DAS, which isn’t sustainable. Not everyone needs to wait outside the line the entire time. It’s very likely that many, if not most, of the people who had DAS for “just in case” would have been fine waiting in line and leaving if necessary.
DAS Advance video registration began in October 2021 for WDW and December 2021 for Disneyland.
DAS was never needed to use a mobility device in lines/attractions, even in the 1980s when lines were not all accessible. That was true as well for GAC (Guest Assistance Card) which was the disability program before DAS.
Not exactly. It's up to the guest to explain their need/concerns related to waiting in the line. The CMs are using criteria to look at which needs prevent waiting in the line and which could possibly be met in other ways. So, trying to sort out which is which.
The video portion is being done on Zoom. You don't need a laptop, you can download the Zoom app on a smartphone or tablet.
The "bodies" being counted are not the bodies in the line but the bodies on the ride. So putting fewer bodies in LL will allow the SB line to move more quickly. If people are waiting virtually, their bodies might not be in line, but they are on the ride.
How would you propose that needs are determined? There needs to be a process to gatekeep something so desirable (as shown by the overuse that led to this mess in the first place), and it has already been discussed at length why doctor notes, diagnoses, and self attestation won’t work.
I believe the current approach is the most specific way to identify a request for reasonable accommodations for the queue by asking the important question of : why can't you remain in a standard queue.
I believe this is what Disney's ultimate goal is to reach and maintain. -- a minimal wait in the LL until.merge point is reached AND a queue that's < 10 minutes from that point to ride.load.... that will serve all stakeholders well.
This was what our experience was like on our last trip- it was the week that straddles April/May - we basically spent two days per park, and the LL's were being given extra priority so in most cases the LL line was EMPTY, even if there was a line to scan in to it. They were just stopping standby completely if anyone came in that line. That happening is why I've been commenting about it being a huge issue for the standby, because people trickling in meant we had standby situations where we would stand still for 5 minutes, move 2-3 parties, and stand for 5 minutes all the way through. We timed it at 7Dwarves because my son was getting mad. Most of ride capacity was being used exclusively for the LL and it was consistent throughout the day. A standby HM line length that would have been 15-20 minute on past trips took us over an hour. It was the first ride of the trip and made for a rude awakening as we watched them fill the space by the graveyard 4 times from LL as we were next, and had been stopped about 5 parties back to watch the same thing just before.
That's the intent of the LL upsell -- at least that would be the primary incentive for those in the SB queue to do exactly that after watching before the merge line what the LL is and for those <10minutes post merge to contemplate -- man, that LL really is worth it, isn't it? -- and buying the upsell experience.
They were saying DAS or no DAS doesn't make a difference in difficulty leaving the line or post merge or pre-show, etc physically speaking. They were discussing the actual logistical aspect of doing so which presents itself in either line or during things leading up to the actual ride like a pre-show. This is for any individual or group. Their point was giving DAS as a "just in case" someone needs to the leave the line due to a difficulty was negated due to that.
I don't think they intended it to be nearly as dramatic as what we lived through. I mean "look at how cool that advantage is!" Yes. "OMG I literally can't do anything at all without that pass!" No. We saw a large amount of DAS usage taking up that LL, and yes I know blue isn't always DAS, but when it's group after group reorganizing so little Betsy scans first, they all look at the CM waiting, then all scan in green, it's not subtle if you know. My teenager asked why so many groups of kids traveling for the most boring sport ever (dance/cheer) all had one kid with a disability pass.
So the difference between LL and standby pre-merge had its intended effect -- push one to buy the upsell. Disney business operations person's POV -- mission accomplished. If it was too dramatic to point where SB party says 'I'm not coming back to Disney -- and mean it. -- then it's a business loss in capacity sell standpoint, All those are business decisions (including the LL: SB line ratio to throttle).
I was trying to pick a name that wasn't common to get a point across. I have an aunt named Betsy and haven't ever met another in person.
That's the priority of LL. DAS holders in that situation still have to wait the SB line time virtually. They are virtually in the same parking lot. Post revamp, they are again in the same SB line.
Are we really still at the point of discussing this like it's the same experience to book a ride while you are 15 minutes away in another line, ride something else/eat/shop/whatever and return when you're ready vs being in a standstill line? This only even starts to work as a vaguely similar scenario when people had to go to the line entrance to get a return time, and then would still only be something like the same if activities during that wait were restricted. I know Disney does not restrict them, but a wait with a DAS is not the same as a wait in the line, hence DAS being appealing or useful to anyone. It might be "virtually" the same, but it is factually and wear and tear on a person's body and nerves not the same.
Of course, with the number of people entering the LL decreased, they wouldn't have to hold the standby line. My whole point was the number of people who had been filing in were creating an issue, a lower number of people filing through solves both the "holding the standby" and the "LL is too long" at the same time. The capacity ratio isn't going to be the same when you don't have half the people on any ride using LL.
That's not wait times by definition. I believe @PrincessV is more true than not -- inflate standby times for two specific purposes: DAS virtual waits are extended and incentive to push G+ upsells.
