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

[KrzyKtty101]

Is it true that you don't even have an opportunity to know if you will be approved until after the date you can cancel with no penalty?

 

[voxparse]

Very true, especially with regards to this discussion. Many folks on this very thread would not have been able to enjoy attractions back then. Despite current challenges, we really have come a long way.

I likely wouldn’t have lived past 30 back then much less be able to access a theme park!

 

[Justrose]

With so many posts on this thread already, I hate to add on, but I just want to say how sad I am about this. We were hoping to do a trip in Dec 2025, but I don't know if WDW will give me DAS this time, and it may mean we don't go. And honestly I can't wait until the 60 day mark to decide if we have to cancel. I was confident in DAS before, but with these changes, they may be doing much more than driving out "fakers." They may be driving away people with disabilities. I'll wait and see for a while, and I plan to write WDW to explain this. I was horribly anxious for a few days, reading all the posts--but now I'm just sad. Thanks for listening.

I understand. My daughter and I have a short August trip planned, and a longer "13th Birthday Extravaganza" trip planned for December. If she no longer qualifies for DAS, and the options given by Disney do not work for us during the August trip, we will be cancelling the December birthday trip we have been planning for eons. It IS really sad. I get it. I am scared of Universal because it overwhelms me because I know literally nothing, but we will be trying it out in December instead if WDW isn't an option for us.

 

[Rivergirl2005]

Hey everyone,

So we were supposed to leave for our trip on Monday but we had a family emergency and hospitalization. The past few days have been hectic. We were able to reschedule for end of July hopefully. I signed up for das before all the changes in may. Now that we have rescheduled will I need to re apply? Things have been very hectic. Should I reach out via email or try to talk to someone on the chat? I'm just at a loss and my travel agent couldn't get any answers. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you

 

[lanejudy]

Is it true that you don't even have an opportunity to know if you will be approved until after the date you can cancel with no penalty?

That somewhat depends on how you book. Packages are PIF at 30 days prior to arrival, and 30 days prior to 1st park date is the earliest one can register for DAS. Room-only bookings aren't due until arrival with penalties not kicking in until 7 days prior, but you must buy tickets separately then. Some authorized resellers offer a ticket refund minus a fee, or WDW will carry a ticket credit forward to use towards new tickets in the future. Offsite stays may or may not have tighter rules on cancellations. I believe DVC cannot be cancelled within the 30-day window.

Until 2021, nobody "pre-registered" for DAS -- it was all done in-person at the parks. And while I understand a lot of folks simply assumed they would have no problem obtaining DAS, it was never a given even for a "renewal" if one was had in the past. I think folks were just complacent and assumed they'd be accommodated. Accommodations still exist, it just may not be the preferred accommodation.

I should add that there have been several reports of WDW refunding without penalty within the past few weeks.

 

[lanejudy]

Hey everyone,

So we were supposed to leave for our trip on Monday but we had a family emergency and hospitalization. The past few days have been hectic. We were able to reschedule for end of July hopefully. I signed up for das before all the changes in may. Now that we have rescheduled will I need to re apply? Things have been very hectic. Should I reach out via email or try to talk to someone on the chat? I'm just at a loss and my travel agent couldn't get any answers. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you

Sorry to hear that! I hope everyone is OK.

I suggest that once your new dates are within the 30-day window that you reconnect to the video chat and ask if the DAS is still tied to the tickets with the date change. I suppose you could ask now but that's one thing you could set aside to deal with other more immediate needs at this time.

 

[starlite_]

No. NO denial yet. However, the fact that I need to plan before I know is very unfortunate.

How did you handle that pre 2021 when you couldn't apply online? Maybe past shannnsavage has tips you can use?

 

[AUBDis]

My husband and I are childfree so it's only the 2 of us who go. I just don't like the idea of him having to wait by himself for long periods of time. Yes, we're middle aged adults who can handle being by ourselves, but it's not how we want to vacation. Our trip isn't until September so I haven't yet applied, but I'm mentally and emotionally preparing for the outcome.

 

[shannnsavage]

How did you handle that pre 2021 when you couldn't apply online? Maybe past shannnsavage has tips you can use?

We went twice in 2014 and 2015. Since the has a chromosomal developmental disability, and our party was immediate family and grandparents, I always assumed we would be approved (which we were). Once we were approved the first time, I never worried about it after until recently

 

[Rivergirl2005]

Sorry to hear that! I hope everyone is OK.

I suggest that once your new dates are within the 30-day window that you reconnect to the video chat and ask if the DAS is still tied to the tickets with the date change. I suppose you could ask now but that's one thing you could set aside to deal with other more immediate needs at this time.

Thank you, that's a great suggestion. It would be helpful to have one less thing to worry about but waiting may be the best option. I really appreciate it!

Hoping things turn out ok but right now it's a day by day scenario.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

Because I am her primary caretaker and the one who she responds to best. If I wasn't with her, she would be sending me messages every 5 minutes asking me how much longer until she sees me. However, I do like to idea of not just waiting, but exploring things around us. I most definitely will do that!

That sounds so exhausting! I remember as a young mom feeling like I could never get a break when my kids completely dependent on me, but at least I knew that was fleeting and my husband was (and still is) an amazing dad.

Sending you lots of good Disney vibes.

 

[Disneychick75]

I would argue nobody is excluded by Disney. Our disabilities may exclude us from being able to wait in line but Disney is actually trying hard to let families ride together, even if one or two or three members of the party would normally be unable to access by long queues or paying for LL.

Families that want to stay together the whole time absolutely can— they can ride shorter queues or purchase LL access, the accommodation is inclusive allowing people who can’t wait in line the option (but not necessity) to rejoin their party.

This is exclusion.
How many families go to WDW or DLR to ride People Mover and Teacups? Some have to actually save money to pay for a Disney trip. A family of 4 may not have the extra $200+/day to pay for Genie+ and ILLs. I'm guessing families that enjoy thrillers and cannot afford the extra bucks will say, "No thanks, Disney".

 

[mistysue]

This is exclusion.
How many families go to WDW or DLR to ride People Mover and Teacups? Some have to actually save money to pay for a Disney trip. A family of 4 may not have the extra $200+/day to pay for Genie+ and ILLs. I'm guessing families that enjoy thrillers and cannot afford the extra bucks will say, "No thanks, Disney".

But this is no different between families with disabilities and those without. So unless you want to say EVERYONE is being excluded, it's not exclusion to say everyone has to use the same rules. They are working on a middle ground so everyone is able to access the parks, which includes not giving people starting at a disadvantage so much accommodation they have an advantage, which is definitely complicated.

 

[lanejudy]

This is exclusion.
How many families go to WDW or DLR to ride People Mover and Teacups? Some have to actually save money to pay for a Disney trip. A family of 4 may not have the extra $200+/day to pay for Genie+ and ILLs. I'm guessing families that enjoy thrillers and cannot afford the extra bucks will say, "No thanks, Disney".

Sorry you lost me. Are you suggesting families of disabled individuals "deserve" DAS so they don't have to pay for G+ or ILL$? Every family saves money for a Disney vacation, all make the decisions about buying G+ and/or ILL$. That should in no way be a factor about disability accommodations or whether a family opts to split up or stay together. G+ and ILL$ are options available to everybody who wants to keep their group together with short queues.

 

[SteveMouse]

This is exclusion.
How many families go to WDW or DLR to ride People Mover and Teacups? Some have to actually save money to pay for a Disney trip. A family of 4 may not have the extra $200+/day to pay for Genie+ and ILLs. I'm guessing families that enjoy thrillers and cannot afford the extra bucks will say, "No thanks, Disney".

Disney excludes those of us who can’t easily transfer from wheelchairs on many, many rides. They could have very easily built a “mission. observation room” in FoP to enable people who don’t fit the ride equipment to at least see the video. Run a walkthrough of RoR to enable wheels users to experience at least some of the attraction. The list goes on. I’m stuck asking my friends and family about their experience with no shared knowledge basis. It’s pretty aggravating and mentally upsetting.

 

[HyperspaceMountainPilot]

This is exclusion.
How many families go to WDW or DLR to ride People Mover and Teacups? Some have to actually save money to pay for a Disney trip. A family of 4 may not have the extra $200+/day to pay for Genie+ and ILLs. I'm guessing families that enjoy thrillers and cannot afford the extra bucks will say, "No thanks, Disney".

Did you read my post? The exclusion is not by Disney, Disney is including those of us who cannot wait in line by allowing us to merge with our families towards the end of the line (reports seem to suggest LL are already working better than they did a month ago, so those of us with difficulties in line are all better accommodated—we now just can’t let our entire families/friend groups do other stuff with us during the wait period). It’s simply not giving people an expected entitlement to allow able bodied family members to do other things while waiting also.

 

[Disneychick75]

So it's okay for those with DAS to buy Genie+ and ILLs? I thought that was looked at as DAS abuse?

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

So it's okay for those with DAS to buy Genie+ and ILLs? I thought that was looked at as DAS abuse?

Is this a real question? Of course it is ok.

 

[Disneychick75]

Is this a real question? Of course it is ok.

Posters have stated here and on other forums that this is DAS abuse.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

Posters have stated here and on other forums that this is DAS abuse.

There are many forms that DAS abuse can take. This really isn’t one of them.

People may be implying that SOME das ABUSERS may stack both DAS and Genie+ as a way to stack a ton of rides in a short period of time.

But that doesn’t mean that DAS users can’t (shouldn’t) use the paid service as well to give themselves the best chance at meeting their needs.