DAS changes coming WDW May 20/ DL June 18, 2024

[Philsfan77]

I booked as a package. I’m hoping to do everything on day 30, but I wasn’t sure if they’re flexible at all about it.

Package penalty is usually $200 (initial deposit) between days 2-29. 30 or more is a full refund.

 

[dizneedoll]

I wanted to post this on the approval/denial thread but for some reason it is all wonky when I try to look at it all the letters are vertical and look weird, it was messed up a few days ago then it was ok and now its messed up again.

Anyways, I just did my DAS chat. Had a super nice and kind CM. I expained my issues, she asked the follow up question on how I deal with lines in everyday life, I expained about that and then she approved me. It was pretty quick and painless. I had no wait at all for the chat to start either. I don’t have an AP but we have two trips coming up, one later this month and another in December. I got approved for 240 days. I was surprised about that. I thought that was only for AP’s and that I would need to call again for the December trip. Im very grateful and relieved I won’t have to do that.

For reference Im an adult female with developmental disability.

 

[Angel Ariel]

I saw it brought up in a recent post in the approval thread - the topic of family sticking together on vacation and the return to queue making that a challenge.

I got a survey from Disney last week for our day at MK, and it specifically had questions about how much we stayed together (not splitting up) and how important it was to us to not split up. It was just the 3 of us, and we don't split to ride different attractions - we both need to be present to support DD's various needs. It didn't ask me to ID whether we had DAS or a disability in the party (it did ask later in the demographics if we had LGBTQIA+, for ex). It offered the option for me to connect the results to the personal information that they have stored for us, though. I declined, but for those who don't they could get das info that way.

I just found it interesting that that is a piece Disney is surveying about. There was more to the survey than that, but that piqued my curiosity given the conversations here and elsewhere post-DAS changes. Clearly Disney is taking stock of how important it is to families to not split up.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

I get very frustrated when people (not necessarily @Angel Ariel but it keeps coming up) make such a big deal about their inability to split up their party. I just got back and literally every single day our group split up for some reason or another. Kids wanted different foods, someone got tired, someone didn’t want to do a specific ride. If anything it was extremely helpful to be able to do that.

Also I have been going to Disney for years and can’t remember the last time the LLs were so empty, even on crowded days. Granted, some is the new ridiculous tiering system but there has been a massive decrease in usage. We walked up to almost every merge point.

 

[Angel Ariel]

I know you're not referring to me personally - just reiterating that I only brought it back up because I found it interesting that Disney is actively surveying about that specific piece.

I absolutely appreciate the experience you share of your family constantly splitting up. When it is just DH, DD and I, splitting up doesn't really happen. It's not a preference thing - it's logistical, due to her disabilities. She is getting to be about my size. There are situations I legitimately struggle to be the one to provide the physical help she needs. It really can be an actual need for some of us to keep our party together.

When she was younger we did things like rider swap more so we could ride the thrill rides ourselves, but we could both handle the physical aspects of assisting her then. Now that she can ride most everything, and her size makes my physically caring for her more challenging, things have changed. There's a few rides that either we or she don't feel comfortable with her riding for various reasons (RnRC, Space, Mission:Space mainly), so we just don't ride them - DH and I don't feel the need to ride them ourselves at this point.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

I know you're not referring to me personally - just reiterating that I only brought it back up because I found it interesting that Disney is actively surveying about that specific piece.

I absolutely appreciate the experience you share of your family constantly splitting up. When it is just DH, DD and I, splitting up doesn't really happen. It's not a preference thing - it's logistical, due to her disabilities. She is getting to be about my size. There are situations I legitimately struggle to be the one to provide the physical help she needs. It really can be an actual need for some of us to keep our party together.

Survey was interesting for sure!

And as a family of 3 where 2 are needed to help I totally get why splitting up is not ideal. Fortunately you probably don’t have a lot of competing interests so you can really focus on catering to your daughter’s needs. I would hope that Disney could understand and accommodate that.

 

[Disneyhanna]

I travel with my mom who has issues with dizziness/vertigo, and she can't really stand in line longer than 15 minutes. And if we have to wait that long she usually can't do another line that long the same day. Luckily we travel in lower crowd times and we've never had to wait long for lightning lanes (plus she doesn't do the headliners which are the ones with longer lightning lanes). Some of the queues themselves bother her as it doesn't take much for her to get off balance in the dark.

We have never considered DAS in the past even though she did get accommodations while she was still working, as FP+ always made it possible for us to tour the parks. And then when Genie+ happened we bought that, as even though I myself have no issues waiting in lines, I have zero desire to do so. I do miss being able to re-ride things with passes, since in AK for example she pretty much can only do Navi and Safari, it would be nice to be able to re-ride with how much it costs.

Obviously we are limited in terms of rides we can do together as she doesn't do any simulators or coasters. I usually will do a couple those per day when we are together and she waits for me outside the ride on a bench. We have zero problem splitting up. Sometimes we split up for food, or she goes to the hotel early to rest, or I go to the parks early and she joins me after I do a few headliners.

At Oogie Boogie Bash we went through the treat trail for Oogie Boogie and the room made her so sick that she had to leave the party almost immediately after. The motion of the slot machines and floating cards projects on the walls was too much for her, something I never even considered. That was a bummer.

I sort of forgot where I was going with this honestly but all that to say, we don't use any Disney accommodations and we do what we can to make the trip enjoyable. Some day she may need a wheelchair/ECV but mobility wise we are nowhere near that yet, so it's not something that we do now. But I understand why someone like her wouldn't qualify for DAS since it technically would probably work as an accommodation in most situations. Some of the alternate accommodations are interesting. I would be willing to wait in a queue that was like 20-30 minutes, and have her sit outside and rejoin me once it was time to go. I wonder if she would have to go through the queue a few minutes and then exit to make that work though? But it would be nice to do that for things like Safari that were a short wait in the morning but still too long for her to risk trying standby, so we could ride twice in one day.

She can't do happily ever after because it is too long for her to stand unassisted, so lately we have been doing the dessert party so she can sit on the ground before it starts and then usually lean against the railing during the show. Maybe we should consider a wheelchair for just the show in the future, I will have to look into that, the parties are sure getting expensive!

 

[Lsdolphin]

Hope that crowds are not too bad when I go 12/6-12/12…spent week in early Sept and crowds weren’t bad and I bought the Multi-pass everyday but it didn’t work that well for me. I was solo and could only stay in parks about 2 hrs before having to return to resort. I did get an ECV this time and thought I’d be fine since you can take an ECV thru most lines. But I was unable to go on either Peter Pan or Pirates of Caribbean because you could not take an ECV they say you must use a wheel chair and since I was by myself I couldn’t walk far enough to push an empty wheel chair thru the line. Trying to get advance LL selections I was unable to get times that would work for me for the few rides I can do. Using DAS in the past I was able to get return times once I actually reached the park and I could ride one of the few rides I can do more than once. After reading all the information regarding the DAS changes I had thought I would be fine with the ability to select 3 rides ahead of time by purchasing the LL. Even with DAS I was only able to 2 rides before having to leave the parks. But couldn’t get LL times when I tried making my initial 3 selections as the morning times would not be available for PP or TSM even days ahead of time.
For my upcoming trip I am planning on trying rope drop at HS and hoping to ride TSM a few times before line gets too long. That’s the only ride I can do at HS but shows are accessible without needing a LL or DAS. At MK I guess when I’m by myself I will just have to skip PP which is my favorite ride. So really with an ECV the only ride I really want to go on that I can’t access because of long line is PP. I can walk short distances using my cane but my legs get numb and I fall with no warning if I try to stand too long or walk too far. Also have breathing issues that cause me to have to leave park.

 

[jennab]

I travel with my mom who has issues with dizziness/vertigo, and she can't really stand in line longer than 15 minutes. And if we have to wait that long she usually can't do another line that long the same day. Luckily we travel in lower crowd times and we've never had to wait long for lightning lanes (plus she doesn't do the headliners which are the ones with longer lightning lanes). Some of the queues themselves bother her as it doesn't take much for her to get off balance in the dark.

We have never considered DAS in the past even though she did get accommodations while she was still working, as FP+ always made it possible for us to tour the parks. And then when Genie+ happened we bought that, as even though I myself have no issues waiting in lines, I have zero desire to do so. I do miss being able to re-ride things with passes, since in AK for example she pretty much can only do Navi and Safari, it would be nice to be able to re-ride with how much it costs.

Obviously we are limited in terms of rides we can do together as she doesn't do any simulators or coasters. I usually will do a couple those per day when we are together and she waits for me outside the ride on a bench. We have zero problem splitting up. Sometimes we split up for food, or she goes to the hotel early to rest, or I go to the parks early and she joins me after I do a few headliners.

At Oogie Boogie Bash we went through the treat trail for Oogie Boogie and the room made her so sick that she had to leave the party almost immediately after. The motion of the slot machines and floating cards projects on the walls was too much for her, something I never even considered. That was a bummer.

I sort of forgot where I was going with this honestly but all that to say, we don't use any Disney accommodations and we do what we can to make the trip enjoyable. Some day she may need a wheelchair/ECV but mobility wise we are nowhere near that yet, so it's not something that we do now. But I understand why someone like her wouldn't qualify for DAS since it technically would probably work as an accommodation in most situations. Some of the alternate accommodations are interesting. I would be willing to wait in a queue that was like 20-30 minutes, and have her sit outside and rejoin me once it was time to go. I wonder if she would have to go through the queue a few minutes and then exit to make that work though? But it would be nice to do that for things like Safari that were a short wait in the morning but still too long for her to risk trying standby, so we could ride twice in one day.

She can't do happily ever after because it is too long for her to stand unassisted, so lately we have been doing the dessert party so she can sit on the ground before it starts and then usually lean against the railing during the show. Maybe we should consider a wheelchair for just the show in the future, I will have to look into that, the parties are sure getting expensive!

Can you rent a wheelchair or use ones just for lines? Your mom can push it and only sit when she needs (like after 10min of waiting)? That way she won’t get dizzy. Just another option for you.

 

[Disneyhanna]

Can you rent a wheelchair or use ones just for lines? Your mom can push it and only sit when she needs (like after 10min of waiting)? That way she won’t get dizzy. Just another option for you.

Honestly we will probably just keep shelling out for LLMP or whatever iteration Disney is on. Even if she had no dizziness issues I can’t imagine waiting in long lines all day. If we were local APs it’d be a different story of course, but she only goes once a year or so, so it’s worth the cost. I know a lot of people feel nickel and dimed by it but it really does make WDW a more enjoyable experience, and at least it’s nowhere near the cost of express at universal (not that she can ride much there).

 

[jennab]

Honestly we will probably just keep shelling out for LLMP or whatever iteration Disney is on. Even if she had no dizziness issues I can’t imagine waiting in long lines all day. If we were local APs it’d be a different story of course, but she only goes once a year or so, so it’s worth the cost. I know a lot of people feel nickel and dimed by it but it really does make WDW a more enjoyable experience, and at least it’s nowhere near the cost of express at universal (not that she can ride much there).

I hear ya, we are the same. We don’t go often so even though we’ve gotten DAS, I also bought whatever paid system was available just to make the trip a little easier for us.

 

[jlundeen]

Perhaps this has been answered (probably over and over again) but I'm wondering if you call in for an upcoming trip and are approved, but later need to change the dates of that trip, do you need to call in again to change the date that the DAS would be activated or would you need to requalify all over again? (Pass Holder)

We have decided to try WDW one more time next spring, but haven't totally settled on dates. 30 days ahead of the currently planned trip would place timing for the call in early Feburary. We (DH and I only) currently have a resort reservation, but it could very well change to a couple weeks later. I've qualified for DAS for many years before this latest iteration, but in all likelihood, based on some experieces reported here, I may not qualify any longer. Our plan B would be to reconsider the trip without the DAS, with maybe purchasing whatever daily accomodations would be best for our situation, or cancel plans altogether.

Just need to know what would happen if DAS is somehow approved and then we need to push this trip back a week or so...

Thanks!

 

[PrincessV]

Perhaps this has been answered (probably over and over again) but I'm wondering if you call in for an upcoming trip and are approved, but later need to change the dates of that trip, do you need to call in again to change the date that the DAS would be activated or would you need to requalify all over again? (Pass Holder)

We have decided to try WDW one more time next spring, but haven't totally settled on dates. 30 days ahead of the currently planned trip would place timing for the call in early Feburary. We (DH and I only) currently have a resort reservation, but it could very well change to a couple weeks later. I've qualified for DAS for many years before this latest iteration, but in all likelihood, based on some experieces reported here, I may not qualify any longer. Our plan B would be to reconsider the trip without the DAS, with maybe purchasing whatever daily accomodations would be best for our situation, or cancel plans altogether.

Just need to know what would happen if DAS is somehow approved and then we need to push this trip back a week or so...

Thanks!

I had this exact situation and was told you can request changing the DAS start date via chat - they may or may not want to initiate a video call, but it’s not a whole reapproval process, only ironing out the date change.

 

[greeneyedchick]

Can you rent a wheelchair or use ones just for lines? Your mom can push it and only sit when she needs (like after 10min of waiting)? That way she won’t get dizzy. Just another option for you.

You could also try one of those walkers with a seat.

 

[ClaraOswald]

Hi all. There's no way I can wade through over 500 pages of this thread. So hopefully someone can help me out here. We have used DAS for our son on several previous Disneyland visits and just 1 WDW visit so far. None of those occurred after the new rules.

So when I used to do the online registration, I basically just told them my son is autistic and they rarely asked much more about it. I'm assuming now they'll ask more, right? Do I just need to explain why he would struggle in lines or what? I just want to be prepared. Our trip isn't until January but I'm getting nervous.

 

[jennab]

Hi all. There's no way I can wade through over 500 pages of this thread. So hopefully someone can help me out here. We have used DAS for our son on several previous Disneyland visits and just 1 WDW visit so far. None of those occurred after the new rules.

So when I used to do the online registration, I basically just told them my son is autistic and they rarely asked much more about it. I'm assuming now they'll ask more, right? Do I just need to explain why he would struggled in lines or what? I just want to be prepared. Our trip isn't until January but I'm getting nervous.

Yes, you will need to explain in detail what happens in line. I’d be prepared to give more info rather than not enough….

 

[SueM in MN]

Hi all. There's no way I can wade through over 500 pages of this thread. So hopefully someone can help me out here. We have used DAS for our son on several previous Disneyland visits and just 1 WDW visit so far. None of those occurred after the new rules.

So when I used to do the online registration, I basically just told them my son is autistic and they rarely asked much more about it. I'm assuming now they'll ask more, right? Do I just need to explain why he would struggled in lines or what? I just want to be prepared. Our trip isn't until January but I'm getting nervous.

The main question you will be asked is "what are your concerns/issues with waiting in the regular lines?"
Be prepared to answer that, with examples if possible.
They may also ask about accommodations he has in school/work. The ones to discuss would be ones that help with waiting, turn taking, etc.

This thread is where people are discussing the registration process - it's much shorter

 

[ClaraOswald]

The main question you will be asked is "what are your concerns/issues with waiting in the regular lines?"
Be prepared to answer that, with examples if possible.
They may also ask about accommodations he has in school/work. The ones to discuss would be ones that help with waiting, turn taking, etc.

Interesting that they would ask about school. What do they think the correlation between things like turn taking and waiting in a queue would be for them? I feel like there aren't really any school situations that are the same as waiting in a theme park queue.

 

[SueM in MN]

Interesting that they would ask about school. What do they think the correlation between things like turn taking and waiting in a queue would be for them? I feel like there aren't really any school situations that are the same as waiting in a theme park queue.

There are few situations that are the same as waiting in a theme park queue, but there are places where people have to wait - maybe not in a line and not for a huge amount of time, but still waiting.
Accommodations in school may not correlate exactly with theme park experience, but is still helpful information on reaction. I'm not going to write more, other than to say they will very likely ask about accommodations, so be prepared to discuss

 

[ClaraOswald]

I will happily discuss my child's school accommodations if it helps. But will he be denied if he's able to wait in shorter queues? Because over the years, we've come to learn that he's okay waiting in lines in the park when they aren't super long (so we just do standby when able.) I assume they won't think that means he can wait in ALL queues though, right?

I assume I should just give them our real-life examples of what has happened in longer queues, right? Because over the years we've done a lot of trial and errors in the parks so we have a pretty good idea of what he can/can't handle at this point.