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

[sprem96]

Does DAS let you book rides with waits that are essentially past park closing? Say Rise has a posted 120 minute wait time and there's only 90 minutes until park close, are you allowed to even book a DAS return time?

You wouldn't be able to book DAS, but you can wait in the physical standby if you choose to

DAS only gives you return times for rides that can be entered before closing time
Example ToT has a 40 min wait, and park closes in 50 min, you will be able to select it and go at 10 min before closing

I learned that last year when a ride had only a 30 min wait, but park closed in 20 min, I wasn't able to select it

 

[gottalovepluto]

As someone who's just been quietly lurking from day one I can't understand why the Disabilities area of the forum is now filled with folks that don't need accommodations and are here to just play armchair experts. It makes following along for actual info and updates really hard.

The topic was highlighted in DIS News & Updates today, you can see it on the bottom here. Not a coincidence that today we've ended up with an onslaught of armchair experts. I almost bailed this morning seeing the mess that was raging here but I'm too interested in the topic we were discussing before the crazy rolled in. So, I'm making liberal use of the ignore feature currently to tone down the armchair expert/OT posts.

 

[SueM in MN]

Enough of the
- 'DAS police'
- calls for guests to report people they think are 'cheating'
- how to catch people
- calls for Disney to catch people
- calls for what Disney should do to catch or punish guests

@lanejudy and I are trying very hard to moderate and keep this thread civil.

This is my youngest daughter. I blocked her face for privacy. She's sitting in her $10,000 custom manual wheelchair enjoying WDW.
EDITED TO ADD: her wheelchair is to accommodate her physical disabilities. She has received DAS for her multiple invisible disability/cognitive related issues that impact waiting in line.
We've experienced people saying loudly enough for her and us to hear things like:
- she doesn't look disabled to me
- I hate it when people just rent a wheelchair so they can pretend to be disabled
- she can't really need that wheelchair; she's sitting on a bench
- I don't think people like that should be allowed to ride Rise of the Resistance



People make judgements based on what they think disabled people should look like, act, do or be able to do.
People who say things like that in real life and in this thread hurt real people.
Trust me, people with disabilities don't all come conveniently marked with their disabilities. Some look the way someone thinks a disabled person should look. Some don't .

YOU can't tell who is disabled or 'disabled enough'.
Stop judging or calling on other judge or report

 

[figmentfan423]

So your son will hurt someone if he has to stay in a 20 minute line. But is fine ina dark boat for 7 minutes, or a high speed coaster in the dark?

It intrigues me how so many people are like that, where a quiet line is horrific, but a jerky ride is fine.

I don’t see how someone can even visit any part of WDW if a 20 minute wait is a deal breaker.

Some with autism crave stimulation and actually improve for lack of a better word after a fast, jerky or loud ride. I still don't understand it but live with somebody who does live with it

 

[nalababybear]

Here's a "make it make sense" real life example. My son....

He looks normal but I promise you his psychiatrist would absolutely disagree that he is normal.

seems our son cut from the same clothe.

 

[audrey2580]

If you weren't asking to leave the queue, it's highly possible the CM simply didn't give you the info you sought. My understanding is that the Attraction Queue Re-entry procedure can vary based on where in the queue was the guest when they had to leave. So there may not 1 answer to give, as well as it may depend on the situation at the attraction at the time the need arises.

maybe. But after speaking with the blue umbrella CM and hearing their uncertainties I don’t think that’s the case. I was very clear that I currently had das and I knew it had changed and I was curious how it would work today. She was very clear in her answer.

 

[jlundeen]

The topic was highlighted in DIS News & Updates today, you can see it on the bottom here. Not a coincidence that today we've ended up with an onslaught of armchair experts. I almost bailed this morning seeing that mess that was raging here but I'm too interested in the topic were discussing before the crazy rolled in. So, I'm making liberal use of the ignore feature currently to tone down the armchair expert/OT posts.

Thanks for this... I have been away part of the day, and when I sat down to catch up on recent news (), lo and behold, the same old tired arguments that were originally posted in the early days of this thread had reared their heads again and the mud was flying.

Most of us who have been follwing this since day one are here to get facts about how the new system works... we don't need to trudge through that garbage again.

Please, everyone, our wonderful mods @lanejudy and @SueM in MN have been attempting to help us all calmly face the future of the new rules. Some of those nasty accusitory posts are just not helping. If you are not here for the facts about future accomodations for our various needs, please just move on.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Sounds like some cast members may also be misinterpreting the party size guidelines. From Facebook:

I *thought* there was some prior discussion about age (that's why that story about the 5 yr old got a lot of attention I think with the return to queue option) because minor is going to mean under the age of 18 but that is a just a definition with respects to someone's age. Did they go on to say if they were given any alternative options like a return to queue instead of DAS? Was thinking if they had older individuals but still minors that might lead to a different accommodation depending on the needs of the person requesting DAS. I guess what I'm trying to get at is that may not be definitive proof of misinterpretation.

 

[Unity]

After I was approved, they asked if there was anyone else I would be traveling with frequently and that they could add them. I was able to add 4 people from my family and friend’s list. They are trying to make it so you don’t have to go back to the online chat as often since you can no longer add/remove guests in the park.


This is Disney’s verbiage for clarity (as explained by the CM I talked to today):

Travel Party - An unlimited number of people linked to DAS holder from their family and friends list.

Riding Party - A group up to 4 from the Travel Party.

Sounds like some cast members may also be misinterpreting the party size guidelines. From Facebook:

Interesting differences between these two reports, though one lacks information. This actually calms down some of my worry if either my mom or I get approved for DAS. A riding party of four works [with her specific health problems, my mom can not go on more thrilling rides, and my partner does NOT like roller coasters either lol] , and in the case of five *hopefully* we can use Genie+ to help keep five of us together.

But it is strange this information doesn't seem to be given out in other cases, nor on ways for things with minor children. I understand not wanting to make exceptions except in great circumstances to party size, but when it involves minors it makes my head tilt because that is a case that I feel *should* be an exception.

 

[Madteaparty001]

So your son will hurt someone if he has to stay in a 20 minute line. But is fine ina dark boat for 7 minutes, or a high speed coaster in the dark?

It intrigues me how so many people are like that, where a quiet line is horrific, but a jerky ride is fine.

I don’t see how someone can even visit any part of WDW if a 20 minute wait is a deal breaker.

I'm pretty sure you're trolling but for the sake of science and everyone else questioning why people who have ASD react to some things and not others there's a great research paper you can read:

Arousal and attention re-orienting in autism spectrum disorders: evidence from auditory event-related potentials

 

[lowlight]

There’s a definite need for empathy in this thread, but as to why everyone is smushed together here (speculators, armchair experts, casual interested persons, and those with actual disabilities), it was stated early on that the mods didn’t want a ton of threads about it so this was the all things “DAS” thread.

 

[Evita_W]

You wouldn't be able to book DAS, but you can wait in the physical standby if you choose to

DAS only gives you return times for rides that can be entered before closing time
Example ToT has a 40 min wait, and park closes in 50 min, you will be able to select it and go at 10 min before closing

I learned that last year when a ride had only a 30 min wait, but park closed in 20 min, I wasn't able to select it

Actually, in these instances, you go to the attraction and they will provide an appropriate return time as you are technically still getting in line with the DAS and anyone can do that at that point

 

[lanejudy]

You wouldn't be able to book DAS, but you can wait in the physical standby if you choose to

DAS only gives you return times for rides that can be entered before closing time
Example ToT has a 40 min wait, and park closes in 50 min, you will be able to select it and go at 10 min before closing

I learned that last year when a ride had only a 30 min wait, but park closed in 20 min, I wasn't able to select it

With a 20 minute posted wait, DAS-holders can be directed to use standby. That's a carry-over from before DAS moved to self-service in the app. Now that most DAS Return Times are obtained via the app, it does give a Return Time even with a 15 minute standby. But when you walk up in person, that's the answer.

However, if the wait is posted as 40 minutes and the park closes in 30 minutes, the CM has the discretion to issue a return time of 29 minutes or may allow you to enter the LL right then.

 

[Evita_W]

So your son will hurt someone if he has to stay in a 20 minute line. But is fine ina dark boat for 7 minutes, or a high speed coaster in the dark?

It intrigues me how so many people are like that, where a quiet line is horrific, but a jerky ride is fine.

I don’t see how someone can even visit any part of WDW if a 20 minute wait is a deal breaker.

Spoken like someone who has never known people with issues, there is a big difference between being in a massive crowd for 20 to 30 minutes and being one of a handful of people in a dark boat for 7 minutes with your own row and space.

 

[lanejudy]

for example, someone goes to a ride CM and is not given a return to the line time and the guest feels this is not reasonable because of their condition

I get the point of your post. If you feel you've been denied reasonable accommodation, you can make a complaint. Absolutely. However to be taken seriously you should be prepared to share why the offered accommodation (which does not need to be "disability-specific" such as the new Attraction Queue Return) doesn't work, and you may need to show that you at least attempted to make it work. Just saying "nope, not reasonable, I want XYZ instead" may not get traction for the complaint -- except in an obvious case where a blind person is told to drive an ECV. And "return to the line time" isn't a standard option so I don't know why anyone would request it as their accommodation.

 

[lanejudy]

A reminder that there is no need to give disability specific information in this thread, even if asked. It really only serves to help those with less-than-ideal intentions.

 

[lanejudy]

It seems like they might be asking for more specific documentation

No. Documentation is not requested nor will it be accepted if offered. If you need to know more about DAS, please see the website:
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/guest-services/disability-access-service/

 

[Unity]

I get the point of your post. If you feel you've been denied reasonable accommodation, you can make a complaint. Absolutely. However to be taken seriously you should be prepared to share why the offered accommodation (which does not need to be "disability-specific" such as the new Attraction Queue Return) doesn't work, and you may need to show that you at least attempted to make it work. Just saying "nope, not reasonable, I want XYZ instead" may not get traction for the complaint -- except in an obvious case where a blind person is told to drive an ECV. And "return to the line time" isn't a standard option so I don't know why anyone would request it as their accommodation.

100% agree that if one makes a complaint they'd have to explain why other accomodations don't work for them, and showcase reasons why and how they didn't. Everything is up to an individual's patricular needs.

But in the last sentence, I would argue the theme park industry has it for a standard actually for accomodations. Six Flags, Universal, SeaWorld, even Dollywood all have 'return to the line by ____'. A lot of people say DAS goes over and beyond- but it has become an almost standard accomodation for theme parks, even if the systems work in different ways [Six Flags and Universal through that one program and Sea World and Dollywood through going to guest services].

 

[Disneychick75]

I get the point of your post. If you feel you've been denied reasonable accommodation, you can make a complaint. Absolutely. However to be taken seriously you should be prepared to share why the offered accommodation (which does not need to be "disability-specific" such as the new Attraction Queue Return) doesn't work, and you may need to show that you at least attempted to make it work. Just saying "nope, not reasonable, I want XYZ instead" may not get traction for the complaint -- except in an obvious case where a blind person is told to drive an ECV. And "return to the line time" isn't a standard option so I don't know why anyone would request it as their accommodation.

Yes, that's why proof of the disability would be needed when filing a complaint. The person could not just say an accommodation was not reasonable. Their paperwork proving the disability would include why the proposed accommodation was not suitable.
I figured going to the experts might clear up some of the "Disney has to do this" or "Disney cannot do that". confusion of which I have been guilty.

 

[HyperspaceMountainPilot]

100% agree that if one makes a complaint they'd have to explain why other accomodations don't work for them, and showcase reasons why and how they didn't. Everything is up to an individual's patricular needs.

But in the last sentence, I would argue the theme park industry has it for a standard actually for accomodations. Six Flags, Universal, SeaWorld, even Dollywood all have 'return to the line by ____'. A lot of people say DAS goes over and beyond- but it has become an almost standard accomodation for theme parks, even if the systems work in different ways [Six Flags and Universal through that one program and Sea World and Dollywood through going to guest services].

What is a common accommodation and what the ADA actually requires are two totally separate things. The law requires reasonable accommodations that do not unduly impact business operations— so as a higher and higher percentage of American theme park goers cannot tolerate lines over 15-20 minutes, what theme parks will be expected to do for each family that falls into that category will change.

(Edited to remove rogue Quote)