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

[starearedkid]

If only the Genie+ Lightning Lane didn’t expire or could still be used after the expiration period. That is a difficult issue for my family as we often have to leave the park for breaks, only to return later in the day. For some members of the disabled community, it is difficult to predict just how the day is going to unfurl. We have to just roll with it and pivot depending on our needs.

This is why the DAS worked with my cancer kid--we haven't gone since she had a bone marrow transplant, but in the past when we went and she was under treatment sometimes we just couldn't return on time---If the Genie + didn't expire with a time frame, then we wouldn't need to utilize the DAS.

 

[Liquidice]

Thank you for all this info!

As to the NFC, how do you turn it on on your (i)phone? Is it a system setting or a Disney app setting (it didn’t see NFC specifically for the Disney app in Settings). Thanx for any help!

NFC should be turned off all the time unless you are close to a scanning point at least for tracking purposes. If you want to disable NFC scanning, you can try to install an app like this: https://apps.apple.com/nl/app/travel-ticket/id1667579189 which is used for disabling NFC background scanning while presenting a QR code for travel purposes, but it would also disable NFC background scanning in general. The other way is to turn on airplane mode. This is for iPhones. On Android I believe there is a way to turn it off.

This is why the DAS worked with my cancer kid--we haven't gone since she had a bone marrow transplant, but in the past when we went and she was under treatment sometimes we just couldn't return on time---If the Genie + didn't expire with a time frame, then we wouldn't need to utilize the DAS.

I would definitely look into how you can modify an existing Lightning Lane reservation if you're interested in using Genie+. It isn't the perfect solution because it depends on there being availability for the ride, but if you're trying to ride some of the less popular rides, there is usually availability to modify the time and you can push out to something later and then push it again if the new time doesn't work for you. You can modify the lightning lane up until it expires, so even if you're in your window to ride you can still modify it.

 

[PrincessV]

I know that everyone in my travel party carries a UV umbrella and we only go to the parks in the morning and evening.

I’ve used regular black umbrellas for years to carry my own personal shade around, but recently upgraded to a UV umbrella… HOLY COW, what a difference! I’m also a big fan of hitting the parks in the evenings in summer.

 

[Disneychick75]

I’ve used regular black umbrellas for years to carry my own personal shade around, but recently upgraded to a UV umbrella… HOLY COW, what a difference! I’m also a big fan of hitting the parks in the evenings in summer.

Are these sold in the parks?

 

[BingoJoe]

Pretty much every person here knows the system was overused and needed fixing.

I think the issue is that people can react emotionally and can’t see that their own use has actually fallen well within “overuse”. People often have a blind spot for their own antisocial behaviour and a hyper awareness of others.

Of all the stories of rejected DAS I have read on here and other forums I have seen only a handful where I can’t readily see how things could have looked from the point of view of the CMs and medical advisors.

 

[BingoJoe]

Are these sold in the parks?

They really should be! You can get little folding ones from Amazon that work a treat though.

 

[PrincessV]

Are these sold in the parks?

Sadly, no. I bought mine from Amazon. But the regular, non-UV umbrellas Disney does sell in the parks are a good option, too - I’ve had one in regular use (and I’m a Floridian, so it gets a LOT of use!) for about a decade! Just not as good as a UV one for sun protection.

 

[Disneychick75]

Thanks y'all but we leave tomorrow. Target near AKL shows some in stock so we might stop there on the way from the airport.

 

[PrincessV]

Oh my - Blog Mickey did some in depth asking about AQR and got this information:

During a recent Disney World visit, we asked several Cast Members how this process works, and as Disney noted, we received a different answer at every attraction location.

At one attraction, the Cast Member told us that if you do not have DAS and you are with a guest unable to wait in line, the CM would instruct the majority of the guest’s party to enter the standby line, while the other guest(s) would stay behind near the front entrance.

Once their party reached the point in line where the standby line merges with the Lightning Lane, the party would need to contact a Cast Member in line who would then contact the Cast Member at the front of the attraction and escort the waiting guest(s) to the rest of their party.

At another attraction, the Cast Member reiterated that as long as the majority of your party remains in the line, they will do their best to escort the guest(s) who had to leave the queue back to their party in line.

At a different attraction, a Cast Member told us that guests who needed to leave the line were generally being issued Lightning Lane return times based on how long they were waiting and how far they made it in line.

Another attraction Cast Member emphasized that only a minority of your group will be allowed to leave the line to use this new policy.

For example, if you are in a group of six, four group members would not be allowed to leave. The majority of your party must remain in line.

If you’re a solo traveler, you may be wondering how this works without a party involved.

A Cast Member at one attraction said that if you are alone and do not have DAS and need to leave the line for a bathroom issue or a disability-related reason, they will do their best to accommodate you by holding your place in line.

At another attraction that offered a Single Rider line option, the Cast Member encouraged solo travelers to use that line and also informed us that if we had to leave the Single Rider line for whatever reason, we would need to return to the back of the line.

https://mickeyblog.com/2024/05/24/how-disneys-new-return-to-queue-feature-works/

So, um, how do they plan to “hold your place in line” for solo visitors?! That’s absolutely bizarre. You’d need to leave the line to find a CM, so there wouldn’t be a “place” to hold anymore.

As for Single Rider, which rides even offer that? EE is the only one I can think of (and it is usually quick).

 

[shaqfor3]

As for Single Rider, which rides even offer that? EE is the only one I can think of (and it is usually quick).

Test Track, Millennium Falcoln, RnRC

Space Mountain kinda have one (it's on the middle of the stand by queue)

 

[PrincessV]

Test Track, Millennium Falcoln, RnRC

Space Mountain kinda have one (it's on the middle of the stand by queue)

Thanks, I forgot about Falcon and RnRc! Space has one?! I’ve never noticed and I’m solo there all the time! I need to look for it next time. I haven’t been on Test Track in about a decade, and that was with my son, so I had no idea.

 

[luv2cheer92]

Thanks, I forgot about Falcon and RnRc! Space has one?! I’ve never noticed and I’m solo there all the time! I need to look for it next time. I haven’t been on Test Track in about a decade, and that was with my son, so I had no idea.

It's not a separate entrance like the other rides. When you get to where the line splits to the two sides, there are
signs that say to tell the CM if you are a single rider, and they will direct you to a different line. That then moves very fast (nearly immediate in my experience)

 

[Maryrachel713]

California residents who make privacy requests to Disney (allegedly) have been given reams of data showing everywhere their MB was in very frequent intervals (not just when scanning!) around the parks going back years…I don’t know if Disney has actual run the data, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they looked at MBs of people who said they needed DAS because of [xyz issues] and then decided to check and see if park usage indicated it was being used as a true accommodation or people going on 15-20 attractions a day. It is unfortunate that abusers/fakers might have led to some groups being excluded going forward, if certain groups were identified as consuming a disproportionate share of DAS returns. I do think if someone sues going forward claiming to need DAS and that AQR is unworkable, Disney’s litigators will absolutely pull prior MB data to defend the reasonability of the accommodation, why they switched, and the operational impact that granting it in the past created.

I absolutely believe there are many people with GI (and other physical) conditions who need an alternative option to waiting in longer lines…but I think plaintiffs lawyers are going to have a hard time establishing that Disney needs to offer the full DAS service for anyone who has a history of using 10+ LLs a day with DAS— it wouldn’t surprise me if we later learn that Disney was trying to protect the program for the families who can only get in a few rides a day, even with DAS.

Conversely, I wonder if (after trying the offered accommodation), someone could escalate and say “look at my MB history, I spent 3-6 hours a day in bathrooms on average, I need a better accommodation than try to “hold it” and leaving the line when it doesn’t work.”

I don't know how many attractions we go on in a day, but my daughter's struggles are with waiting in line, not being on rides. I don't think you're coming at people who don't need the ability to leave the line (but instead reduce time in it) but just because someone can be in a line without needing to leave it doesn't mean it doesn't impact their visit.

 

[HyperspaceMountainPilot]

I don't know how many attractions we go on in a day, but my daughter's struggles are with waiting in line, not being on rides. I don't think you're coming at people who don't need the ability to leave the line (but instead reduce time in it) but just because someone can be in a line without needing to leave it doesn't mean it doesn't impact their visit.

You are right that I’m not trying to imply anything negative about people whose conditions make lines excruciating for one reason or another and use DAS efficiently to get 10+ returns each trip — my point is that, as more and more Americans are disabled in a way that prevents us from handling long waits in queues but also does not prevent us from enjoying theme park attractions, Disney may have reasonably decided to keep DAS limited to guests with conditions that prevent them from getting more rides than the median park guest even using DAS and moved the majority of us in categories disproportionately populated by DAS super users into AQR.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

Yknow, I think that’s fair, yeah. I don’t have a license so it might not be an option for me, personally. I’m just thinking about maneuverability too with that. I think a roller or whatever it’s called (the walker + seat) would actually be good, definitely more lightweight, and smaller so I should be able to do corners better. Does Disney do rentals of those, or is that an outside company? I know the EVCs are done usually by an outside company, and that Disney I think does have standard wheelchairs for rent.

My only issue with the roller would be that I’d have to talk to my family and see if that was feasible, I don’t think it would be worth it to buy ahead (we don’t go that often, especially now that everyone’s working, hard to coordinate schedules and time off) but I’d be happy to put down money for a rental or at least try it out for a day and see how much of a difference it can make. I think also what would help is just seeing more younger people using it, if that makes sense? I want to figure out something that works, but I’m also not a fan of the pity stares or the “what’s wrong with you” looks that it might bring me. I don’t look outwardly disabled so much, and I don’t exactly want a whole 50 question deal every place I go in Disney because people just have to know or whatever.

If you go with the roller make sure you get one with the larger wheels as they are easier to use outside than the small wheels. We found one very responsible at Walmart. Check out on line. Make sure you adjust for your height

 

[Unity]

An interesting update on how solo/one person with a minor may look for those with disabilities that have to exit the line.

Not sure if this is reported. I am only posting the screenshot as it also includes the photo they took in their app.

 

[Karin1984]

I assume they gave the poster & kid a return time based on the 60 minutes of the current line, as there was no way to determine how long they had been in the line. They say they had been in line for 25 minutes, but it could have been 5. So the most objective thing to do is to use the current wait time.

And that would also reduce chances of this being used as a way to cheat the system.

 

[starearedkid]

NFC should be turned off all the time unless you are close to a scanning point at least for tracking purposes. If you want to disable NFC scanning, you can try to install an app like this: https://apps.apple.com/nl/app/travel-ticket/id1667579189 which is used for disabling NFC background scanning while presenting a QR code for travel purposes, but it would also disable NFC background scanning in general. The other way is to turn on airplane mode. This is for iPhones. On Android I believe there is a way to turn it off.



I would definitely look into how you can modify an existing Lightning Lane reservation if you're interested in using Genie+. It isn't the perfect solution because it depends on there being availability for the ride, but if you're trying to ride some of the less popular rides, there is usually availability to modify the time and you can push out to something later and then push it again if the new time doesn't work for you. You can modify the lightning lane up until it expires, so even if you're in your window to ride you can still modify it.

We haven’t gone yet but of course my DD is 13 and loves all the popular rides-mine train, Peter Pan, Soarin, slinky dog.

If she was five or six that definitely would have been a work around fix because at that time she was definitely more easily appeased with the less popular rides.

It is just frustrating. Because genie plus could work for us. But won’t work as well because of the expiration time where DAS was a perfect fit. And we used it maybe only twice a day for the more popular rides. And did standby for the rides that had less of a wait time.

 

[jlundeen]

An interesting update on how solo/one person with a minor may look for those with disabilities that have to exit the line.

Not sure if this is reported. I am only posting the screenshot as it also includes the photo they took in their app.

Still interested in how they would handle this if solo guest was using a scooter or electric wheelchair and attempting to tell a CM they need to leave the line...

 

[Philsfan77]

An interesting update on how solo/one person with a minor may look for those with disabilities that have to exit the line.

Not sure if this is reported. I am only posting the screenshot as it also includes the photo they took in their app.

Kind of like a DAS lite...attempt to use the queue for rides...if you reach a point where you can't, you can then essentially use DAS as you previously would (at least in this persons case).