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

[lovethattink]

Hi everyone. Some quick questions for you all please:

We went to WDW in 2022 and 2023. We have another trip in 2025.
Party of 6. 2 parents, 2 grandparents and 2 children. One of our children has ASD, ADHD, Dyspraxia etc etc. He was previously granted DAS for the last two years. I’m reasonably confident it will be granted again for him but my questions are:

- Will they grant the DAS for all 6 of us?
I’ve read above that stuff like this is a case by case basis? We are all direct family and it would be very disappointing to be constantly separated. The grandparents are Deaf and Sign language is their first language if that helps.

- Will my son have to be questioned or can I speak on his behalf? He gets very anxious and embarrassed about this kind of thing. I would also like to avoid labelling situations such as “meltdowns” in front of him for obvious reasons.
I know he will need to come on to have his picture taken.

- Am I right in thinking DAS normally lasts 120 days so I can do the application 120 days before the last day of our trip?

Many thanks in advance

You can speak on son’s behalf, but he’ll need to be present for the photo.

My youngest son was approved for 4 people. So when my other son and his wife go with us, we were told that we can choose which 4 ride. My oldest son only likes Epcot and only goes for the food booths. So he is the one we will leave behind when the 5 of us go.

 

[PinkPixel]

I've moved this post to the discussion thread:

DAS changed this past summer. It is very limited now; many who received it in the past do not qualify any longer. You can do the explaining while your son is off camera.

They have been very strict with the max of 4 guests (DAS-holder plus 3). Likely they will allow all of you to be linked but not all can do any given attraction with the DAS. You may want to look into LLMP for some or all of your party, and try to align return times with the DAS.

DAS is valid for length of ticket or 240 days, whichever is shorter. You can only apply within 30 days of your first visit.

For the grandparents, be sure to look into the schedule of ASL interpreters and/or the captioning devices.

Does anyone know if the DAS is retained if the DAS holder upgrades to an annual pass after being approved? We currently have only purchased party tickets and of course unsure if my dd still would be approved.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

Does anyone know if the DAS is retained if the DAS holder upgrades to an annual pass after being approved? We currently have only purchased party tickets and of course unsure if my dd still would be approved.

It has been reported that it would not be

 

[lanejudy]

Does anyone know if the DAS is retained if the DAS holder upgrades to an annual pass after being approved? We currently have only purchased party tickets and of course unsure if my dd still would be approved.

Is the party ticket the one you'll upgrade to an AP? If so, DAS may carry forward. I base this on reports that APs renewed in the middle of a 120 (or 240) days approval does not need a new DAS for the renewed AP. But I won't guarantee because party tickets are often handled different than various types of "regular" park tickets.

If you get DAS approval on just the party ticket, and then buy another regular park ticket to upgrade to AP, you may need to reconnect with the disability team to get DAS connected to the regular ticket and/or AP.

 

[SueM in MN]

Does anyone know if the DAS is retained if the DAS holder upgrades to an annual pass after being approved? We currently have only purchased party tickets and of course unsure if my dd still would be approved.

I would guess no if you are not an AP holder at the time of approval. People have reported asking and that they were told the amount of time given at the time of approval could not be extended.
When my DD was approved, the CM verified that she had an AP and said, "since she has an AP, I can approve it for 240 days".
But, I've also seen posts where people without AP were approved for 240 days

 

[PinkPixel]

I would guess no if you are not an AP holder at the time of approval. People have reported asking and that they were told the amount of time given at the time of approval could not be extended.
When my DD was approved, the CM verified that she had an AP and said, "since she has an AP, I can approve it for 240 days".
But, I've also seen posts where people without AP were approved for 240 days

Ok interesting. I do want to buy 2 park tickets as well for the days after the party, I guess I should have added that. I just haven't decided on single park or park hopper. I would be upgrading those tickets, sorry spaced on that. We do have a loose trip planned in April, but if she's denied I might reconsider length of trip, see how this one goes etc...wheras if she was approved, it would make sense to possibly upgrade and ensure she qualified for both.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

We can. She doesn't want to. We'll see. He did give her (and so me also) 3 LL a day.
We do early entry and will take advantage of that too.

Now DH's turn. We leave 12-1. He's not even sure he wants to try. He's had DAS for years for breathing problems. We are prepared to buy LLMP for a few of the days.
Being older, we don't ride a lot of things.

Moving this to the other chat so @lanejudy doesn’t get mad at me...

This may be an unpopular opinion but handing out LLs like this is effectively giving away LLMP for free, and that’s fundamentally unfair. If someone qualifies for DAS, great. If they don’t and they take advantage of other options, great. But if this becomes common practice to give away what others are having to pay for it’s going to go back down the slippery slope that got users into this mess in the first place.

I’m at Disney now and with few exceptions (I’m looking at you Alien Swirling Saucers) the LLs have been empty even though the parks are crowded. I think that’s as good a testament as any as to how much old DAS was impacting park operations and why things needed to change.

 

[PrincessV]

Just popping in to say that I’ve needed to change members of my DAS party twice since approval (I was approved for a party of 4, but my first day I was solo, so I’ve twice needed to add someone from my F&F list since then), and it was VERY easy: just request a DAS chat as if needing to start from scratch and at some point it asks if you need to modify your party. Shortly after saying yes, a CM entered the chat, I asked to add the person and within seconds the CM came back saying it was done. For those approved for a party of 4 but traveling with more than 4, barring any technical issues, you could easily do this on the fly to adjust your DAS party during the trip, or even during a park day.

 

[jennab]

Moving this to the other chat so @lanejudy doesn’t get mad at me...

This may be an unpopular opinion but handing out LLs like this is effectively giving away LLMP for free, and that’s fundamentally unfair. If someone qualifies for DAS, great. If they don’t and they take advantage of other options, great. But if this becomes common practice to give away what others are having to pay for it’s going to go back down the slippery slope that got users into this mess in the first place.

I’m at Disney now and with few exceptions (I’m looking at you Alien Swirling Saucers) the LLs have been empty even though the parks are crowded. I think that’s as good a testament as any as to how much old DAS was impacting park operations and why things needed to change.

I agree. It’s not a good idea as once word gets out they are handing out free LLs to people denied, then everyone will call in just to see if they can get some free ones too….

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I agree. It’s not a good idea as once word gets out they are handing out free LLs to people denied, then everyone will call in just to see if they can get some free ones too….

That but I also think it defeats the purpose of approving or denying someone for whatever program you've got and likely causes confusion in the end and resentment over time (especially those who did not get that offer). That whole handing out FP+s for things is what got Disney into a huge mess over guest expectations. It would be disappointing to see Disney go down that road they only got off a few years ago.

 

[lanejudy]

I agree. It’s not a good idea as once word gets out they are handing out free LLs to people denied, then everyone will call in just to see if they can get some free ones too….

I’m surprised. This is the first report I’ve seen of LLs given out since back in the summer. I think many who were denied specifically requested LLs and were further denied that as well.

 

[LilyWDW]

I am thinking of applying for my trip next December (yes, I know, too early to really be thinking about it). On previous trips I have traveled with my friend and that helps a lot with the issues I have in lines. This trip will be solo so I won't have the same tips and trick available that help me deal with lines. We will see. Because even the idea of doing it is anxiety inducing.

 

[DopeyRN]

I tried to go through this but 520 pages is overwhelming. Are there any disability passes for physical disabilities? Specifically, one family member has a fused ankle which led to foot deformity, needs a knee replacement but can’t have it due to vessel issues. So we can walk slowly for short distances. There’s 8 of us, so we exceed the number anyway. So should he apply or will they just assist him with the scooter?

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

I tried to go through this but 520 pages is overwhelming. Are there any disability passes for physical disabilities? Specifically, one family member has a fused ankle which led to foot deformity, needs a knee replacement but can’t have it due to vessel issues. So we can walk slowly for short distances. There’s 8 of us, so we exceed the number anyway. So should he apply or will they just assist him with the scooter?

He’s highly unlikely to get DAS due to these issues. Best to rent him a scooter, probably from an outside group so you also have it for transportation to/from the hotel as well.

 

[SueM in MN]

I tried to go through this but 520 pages is overwhelming. Are there any disability passes for physical disabilities? Specifically, one family member has a fused ankle which led to foot deformity, needs a knee replacement but can’t have it due to vessel issues. So we can walk slowly for short distances. There’s 8 of us, so we exceed the number anyway. So should he apply or will they just assist him with the scooter?

A mobility device (wheelchair, ECV, rollator, etc) would be Disney's recommendation for issues like this. All lines are wheelchair accessible and most are also ECV accessible.
DAS is not given for mobility disabilities - even if it was, it would not be particularly helpful for someone with the disabilities you mentioned.
Using Soarin' for example, the walk from the entrance to where you actually board the ride is over 1/4 mile (and an equal distance from the time you get off until exiting the attraction. Because it loads in 'batches', guests are standing still, then move up before standing still again. Once you get to the area where you are assigned to a row, you will stand about 7 minutes (the length of the movie) before being led into the ride area.
Many attractions load in batches and have similar experiences

 

[Grim Grinning Ghostie]

Wait time report: We went this weekend, not knowing that it was the weekend they were going to be taping the Christmas specials. We avoided Magic Kingdom on Saturday and Sunday, so I cannot speak as to wait times in that park on those dates.

However, even with Veterans Day Weekend crowds at Epcot, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios, LL/DAS waits were no longer than 5-10 minutes for absolutely everything.

We did go to Magic Kingdom in the morning on Monday (yesterday), and it was pretty empty. We again waited a maximum of 5 minutes for both Tron and Pirates. It allowed us to get our rides out of the way so we could escape the park before the crowds poured in and enjoy the rest of the day walking the trails in the much emptier, much more shaded Animal Kingdom.

The DAS changes have proven to be an incredible improvement for QoL inside the parks. I only had 1 meltdown this trip despite the crowds.

 

[Philsfan77]

Wait time report: We went this weekend, not knowing that it was the weekend they were going to be taping the Christmas specials. We avoided Magic Kingdom on Saturday and Sunday, so I cannot speak as to wait times in that park on those dates.

However, even with Veterans Day Weekend crowds at Epcot, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios, LL/DAS waits were no longer than 5-10 minutes for absolutely everything.

We did go to Magic Kingdom in the morning on Monday (yesterday), and it was pretty empty. We again waited a maximum of 5 minutes for both Tron and Pirates. It allowed us to get our rides out of the way so we could escape the park before the crowds poured in and enjoy the rest of the day walking the trails in the much emptier, much more shaded Animal Kingdom.

The DAS changes have proven to be an incredible improvement for QoL inside the parks. I only had 1 meltdown this trip despite the crowds.

Had friends at MK on Saturday and they said it really wasn't too bad for rides. They said it seemed like a lot of people just camped out on main street all day, so that area was wild, and chaos (they were like 30 deep easy from the picture they sent me at parade time). However, ride wait times for very manageable as it didn't seem like people were there for the rides, but rather for the filming and celebrity watching.

 

[Lsdolphin]

I’m surprised. This is the first report I’ve seen of LLs given out since back in the summer. I think many who were denied specifically requested LLs and were further denied that as well.

On my last trip I was by myself and purchased the LLMP. I can only stay in park a short time due to a lung/breathing problem and I used an ECV. I can walk short distances but standing too long causes other issues. The LLMP actually worked fine for most of the time when I could get times close together for the few rides I can do. However they don’t allow the ECV in the line for PP and I couldn’t get a time using LL. I can’t walk the distance of the standby line. I did go to one of the blue umbrella stations and explained my situation they saw that I did have the LLMP and they did give me an LL for PP. When I asked CM at PP if I could get a return time they said no.

 

[jphilhower]

We are going in May. When do we need to apply for DAS pass for our son who is mentally disabled?

 

[jennab]

We are going in May. When do we need to apply for DAS pass for our son who is mentally disabled?

30 days before your first park day.

ETA - you don’t NEED to apply then that is just the earliest you can. You can apply anytime within the 30 day window of your first park day.