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

[Angel Ariel]

I’m not familiar with DLR but it could be operational. And I’m not aware of parade or fireworks viewing areas for DAS at WDW. Sometimes a DAS holder is allowed into the wheelchair/ECV seating, but it is limited

Apologies for my lack of clarity - I was referring to mobility seating (which DD qualifies for, stroller as a wheelchair). They do not have mobility seating at DLR for fireworks or parades. VIP seating areas, yes. Mobility seating, no.

 

[mercuryvenus]

I called the UK number and was told it was likely I’d still be eligible for DAS and that they’d speak internally to get my email answered. However, the CM that told me that (through no fault of their own) probably has no idea who would and who wouldn’t qualify going forwards. I did say I would be cancelling my holiday otherwise.

If you don’t mind, can you share what your condition is? I’m trying to get a sense of whether my husband might still be eligible.

 

[SueM in MN]

I've been out a while and had quoted a few things to respond to. I think there are about 10 more pages since I last looked

Just yesterday I read an article about this change and in it, mentions someone overhearing a parent bragging that they said their child had autism and now they don't have to wait in lines. This is infuriating to me, but how do you prove it, and now with this being the only diagnosis they accept as ok, how many more will be "saying" this to get the pass. Heartbreaking to those of us that really need it and aren't allowed to prove it.

The whole getting out of line and then you can get back in? The thought of saying "excuse me" to a hundred or more people to get out and then the same thing to get back in, to try to remember where you were and annoy a whole lot of people who are hungry, tired, hot, etc? yeah, that sounds like a blast.

I looked on the DAS site this morning and it says for arrival now through May 19, DAS will be available for 30 days. After that it will be good for 120 days. We arrive on the 18th so I am curious how this will work for us. Anxious to do my chat next week when we are 30 days out. And not gonna lie, really stressed about it.

Autism is NOT the only diagnosis they will accept. The website says 'developmental disabilities' and gives autism as an example. I believe this was strategic on Disney's part. When they changed from Guest Assistance Card to DAS in 2013, 'autism influencers' started posting that DAS would not work for them and started planning their lawsuit BEFORE DAS even went into effect. A number of them purposely went on the first day DAS went into effect and live-streamed, hoping to show chaos.
And diagnosis does not necessarily equal need for accommodation. Disney is not going to say, 'Ok. You have autism. Here's your DAS'. There will continue to be an application process.

It's good to remember that the vast majority of guests are honest people who would never consider faking a disability / diagnosis in order to get DAS. The very few who would do this are not the majority. We are doing a lot of extrapolating based on stories read online about that one person who abuses it.

Even the "80% of those in the LL are using DAS" being circulated as fact - when it's a bogus rumor. Anyone who has used DAS knows that almost no one scanning in around them in the LL is also using DAS. Most are G+ or Ride swap users. It's easy to tell the difference at scan in. And it's not 80%.

I agree the "80% of those in the LL are using DAS" is bogus. But, people tend to repeat those things as fact. My family personally has only seen anyone scanning in to use DAS a few times in multiple trips.
There are still lots of people saying wheelchair users go in all attractions thru the exit without waiting. That hasn't been the case for many, many years.

But the ADA tempers that with accommodations that significantly impact operations and/or other guests are not required. I do believe the issue Disney is trying to correct is the vast number of people in the LL queue. I don’t have the answer and wish Disney had shared more about how the “leave the line” pass will work. How/where do folks rejoin? Whole party or individual (or individual w/helper)? When? Those all need to be known before one can say “ it doesn’t work.”

Agree

I would buy Genie+ if I could not get DAS, but what concerns me is the hour window. Part of what made DAS so usable for me personally was getting a return time and then if I needed more time to get to the ride for reasons related to my disability, it was no problem. If they want me to buy Genie+ instead of DAS, OK, but I don't see how they address the hour window. And if I'm in the LL for a Genie return time and I have to leave it, can I come back even if I've already scanned in? If I miss the return window altogether, can I get another return time for the same ride or am I just out of luck because of the cap on how many times you can use Genie for attractions? So many questions. While I feel marginally better about things today and am hopeful about more info to come, all this uncertainty for my June trip is not a good time.

There are a lot of unknowns, but there have been posts about Disney trying out various things for 'return to line' issues.
I know the last few times I applied for DAS registration for my daughter, they were asking pointed questions about what might cause us to need to leave the line, whether we'd be likely to be able to come back after leaving and, if so, how long. So, I think they have been gathering data for quite a while.

This blurb on WDW's 'Accessing Attraction Queues' page corroborates your hypothesis. It seems as though Autism/ADHD/etc. won't be guaranteed in any capacity to be eligible for DAS:

Here are a few tips and techniques to manage waiting in queues:

• Encourage other members of your party to help create space around you in line to make it more comfortable.
• In a theme park environment that requires additional walking or standing, bring a mobility device such as a wheelchair, ECV, walker with a seat or a cane chair.
• Bring a sensory toy or a calming item—such as a stress ball, favorite device or activity like a tablet, video game, comic book or another item that may be calming or distracting while waiting in a queue.
• Grab a snack or drink to enjoy while waiting in a queue. Just be sure to finish it before boarding the attraction.
• Break up your day with other offerings at the Resort that don’t require waiting in a queue, such as entertainment.
• Don’t forget other items to keep yourself comfortable.Some items to consider bringing include sweater or jacket, sun protection or hat.

That information was actually been part of a Guide for Guests with Cognitive Disabilities that was on the website since 2013 when DAS rolled out. It was several clicks in, so many people didn't see it. The current location just made it more 'front and center'. And, although it might seem to be obvious to many people. I've shared the link to the article with many people over the years who found I helpful because they had not been to a place similar to WDW before.

Insulin is a medication. Very different.

Disney has to provide reasonable accommodation. That could involve a variety of things. He’d be happy with a cooling vest, but I’m not sure how that would work, given that Disney isn’t requiring documentation. So what’s stopping people without MS from claiming they need one? What happens if we get there and there aren’t any left?

There ARE differences in the ADA regarding worksite accommodations and how they work for public accommodations like theme parks. They are covered by different parts of the ADA.
Workplaces are required to provide tools/equipment required to do their job. In his case, the cooling vest was apparently considered one of the tools he needs to do his job. Schools are covered by a different set of laws/requirements.
Public accommodations are not required to provide things like wheelchairs, headphones or equipment the person could provide for themselves. They do have to provide equipment like closed caption or audio description devices because there is not a way a consumer could bring things to support those things.
You may want to look into a program from the MS Society that that has a program to provide cooling equipment for people with MS.

I know someone who gets a DAS for herself and her immediate family but always goes to disney with her sister and sister's family and her mother goes as well. They all have fallen under her DAS pass and get the accommodations that come with her pass (hidden disability). Will all the rest of her family members now not be able to use her DAS anymore?

We don't know exactly how this will work out or how exceptions will work.
I've seen some guesses that exceptions to the total number of 4 will be limited to family members. If it's friends, it would be limited to 4.
I know Disney watches social media and has seen some of the same things I've read:
- 'influencers' bringing in a revolving cast of friends and other influencers
- people posting they were able to get 11-14 people linked to DAS because they couldn't leave out any of their extended family
- people who posted 4 members of their family would be approved for DAS and they were wondering how to work it so all 24 members of their group could get the same DAS Return Time (often plus asking how to get more than a total of 6 for several people so they could get their whole group 'covered'

They should have just switched to Universal’s system. Requiring documentation and a medical process would have really cut down on abuse.

I am very happy personally that they didn't. I would not want my daughter's medical information on a Marketing organization website.
I've not seen any evidence that any 'medical process' is being used by IBCCES to evaluate who is disabled. It appears to be a clerical person matching things to a checklist of what they will accept as proof of disability. Many of the things they have approved, like handicapped parking permit, National Park Access pass, letter from a doctor that just says 'John Doe is disabled' don't say anything about need for accommodation in a park.

I didn’t read through every response so apologies if someone already said this but maybe they just need to remove the conditions of the DAS pass that takes away the possibility to strategize getting the most number of rides.

1) Don’t allow DAS holders to preselect two rides.

2) Don’t allow DAS holders to ride other rides while they are waiting. So for example if they tap for Space Mountain and it is a 50 minute wait then they can come back in 50 minutes but they can’t use the time to do other rides. You can shop, eat, rest but then you take away the advantage of being able to wait and ride more rides at the same time

Those were the 2 things that were apparently new on the website this morning.
I've seen posts on Social Media where people reported being at MK from early opening to closing and doing 47 attractions at MK. Those kinds of reports usually come up when someone is asking "Do I need Genie+ if I'm using DAS?" There is no way the average guest could expect to do that many without DAS (even with Genie+)
And, they often mentioned the strategy of getting a new DAS Return Time as soon as they tapped into the first one. They often mentioned that after finishing ride 1, they could go directly to ride 2 without waiting.
The 'wait 10 minutes after logging in' does a lot to equalize the wait for the same attraction to what other guests are waiting.

We are a family of 5 and just reading about the new DAS changes. So now half our party doesn’t get to go with the already limited rides our 4 year old qualifies for? This past trip we did the least amount of rides due to multiple issues with her (we lost sight of her as she sneaked off, sudden elopement etc). The biggest challenge with the chat was getting her to sit still and keep clothes on and look up for the picture. Someone mentioned they took a picture of a napping child. It was not the case for us last trip (Oct 2023).

Can anyone verify that immediate family is allowed

We don't know how big of a party over 4 total will be allowed, but in the past, they allowed more than 6 when it was parents and children.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

A lot TMI on this thread

I think for many it's needed as that's helpful for informational purposes.

In one way sharing what someone does may give someone else an idea to try what they did or inquiry about it (if it's a medical item), in another way it helps others understand the process.

Many things on the DIS are known because people shared. No two persons will have the same exact experience with or without DAS so that should always be the caveat but the topic is going to be quite appropriate for people to discuss (to whatever level of detail they are comfortable with) conditions.

 

[ryang25]

If you don’t mind, can you share what your condition is? I’m trying to get a sense of whether my husband might still be eligible.

Yes of course, I have ulcerative colitis, type 1 diabetes and hidradenitis suppurativa (the latter complicates the other two).

 

[koszmok]

Just another thought... I know we don`t have enough info yet and probably freaking out straight away is not a good thing (for me it`s already causing extra bathroom breaks)...BUT!
As for now from Europe the DAS preregistration via online chat is not available. The local disneyworld (disneyworld.co.uk) websites don`t have DAS pages. And there is no possibility to change to the US version!
If you try to go from a google link they take you back to the UK version. The only way to do preregistration is to buy/install a VPN and pray that the video quality is good enough to have a video chat.

So for now people who live in Europe (probably anywhere in the world but US/Canada) and don`t have VPN they have NO WAY to even try to get DAS. I hope Disney will fix it. It seems quite discriminatory that only those who live there can get any chance at all to have DAS!

And I thought Disney is all about equality! LOL

 

[koszmok]

Yes of course, I have ulcerative colitis, type 1 diabetes and hidradenitis suppurativa (the latter complicates the other two).

I feel you

 

[lauritagoddess]

This is so frustrating. The last couple of trips I got the DAS for me for a couple of medical conditions that make waiting in lines very difficult. My son also has autism and could have qualified for a DAS or a GAC before that, but with FastPass we both were able to manage. He did request DAS once in person at the park and thankfully we got a super nice and understanding CM, but it was so hard for him and he said he’d never do it again. I got the DAS the next couple of time when we went because it was easier for me to explain my need than it was to get my son to try again. If it’s just developmental disabilities, then he’ll have to be the one requesting it and that’s going to be a fiasco. I just see this is as a way to get more people to pay for Genie +, nothing else.

 

[audrey2580]

No replies for me yet, they usually reply within a week - but I am sure they are getting overwhelmed right now with questions, so it might take even longer.

Has anyone tried calling them?

I tried calling and they had zero information and asked me to email,

 

[audrey2580]

There are a few very rude posts on here making generalizations about other people's disabilities and deciding what, if anything, they should qualify for. As a mom of a child with a chronic illness it makes me very sad. I just want to say for anyone reading these hurtful and cruel comments, there is also a huge group of us here who have your back and stand with you! Sending you all hugs!!

 

[johnsgrl]

This is very important for folks to understand. Accommodations are not about recreating some ideal version of access where a disabled person has an equivalent experience to a theoretical non disabled person. Accommodations are designed to improve accessibility. It is up to each individual to determine how and when to make use of qualified

This is very important for folks to understand. Accommodations are not about recreating some ideal version of access where a disabled person has an equivalent experience to a theoretical non disabled person. Accommodations are designed to improve accessibility. It is up to each individual to determine how and when to make use of qualified accommodations.

Yes, and no. Subpart B under Title 3 states full and equal enjoyment, so accommodations are to provide the equivalent access to a theoretical non disabled person. But there is no requirement that a person receive their preferred accommodation, just one that effectively provides equivalent access

 

[2tinkerbell]

I don’t think that requiring documentation is going to solve the abuse problem. Those that want to “cheat” are going to find away around it.

I recently had an experience with 2 people and a German Shepherd in a public waiting room. I was trying to get to a seat and a guy had the dog drinking water from the public water fountain and slobbering all over. I had to risk falling (using crutches from a week old total knee replacement) walking in slobber and water on a tile floor just so I could sit down. I did ask, “Is that slobber?” The guy responded with, “It won’t kill you.” To me, fine give your dog some water, but clean up your mess but I didn’t say it. The guy left and the woman came back with the dog, took a cup and walked over to where I was sitting and said to the dog, “Here, you can slobber all you want.” I totally ignored her. Both of them became very obnoxious with the dog and making sure it slobbered everywhere. A gentleman mentioned something to the woman. She responded with, “He is a service dog!” Now, knowing and having been around real and true service dogs, I asked, “Where is his vest?” “He doesn’t need one!” was her response. She further went on, “But I have papers saying he is a service dog.” Because I had seen the dog with both people, I asked, “Oh! What service does your dog provide?” She responded with, “That is against HIPAA!” I said, “You can tell what service the dog provides without disclosing any PHI and HIPAA doesn’t apply in this situation.” They both continued to be very obnoxious with the dog who was clearly not trained at all. They loudly called me a B over 12 times to each other and to others. The manager of the establishment arrived and come to find out it was an “emotional support” dog but not for a particular person in the party. The manager was nice, looked at their “papers” and basically kicked them out. Later the manager came over and apologized to me and the gentleman sitting there. He commented that the “papers” were definitely “produced.” He knew the woman as she “used to work” for them. It angers me when people game the system to basically get what they want.

 

[SarahC97]

I have ulcerative colitis so the return to line option sounds like the accommodation i will probably be given. Here are my concerns observations.
1. I understand that due to the nature of my disease i dont need the DAS all the time. But that same not needing all the time also leads itself it anxiety because i never know when a flare will hit me. That is a fact of life and can be very debilitating.
2. How will I leave the line? How do i notify them i left the line. When i have a flare it is a sudden urget need. I'm going to be running for a bathroom. Fighting back through a long line to get out sounds like a nightmare and an accident waitibg to happen. Yep, wearing a diaper is an option,thankfully one ive not had to employ yet. But chances of it not containing everything is a possibility. I,'m not going to have time to find a CM let alone talk to them.
2. How will i rejoin the line and how will they know where i was when i left? My flares are a mixed bag. Sometimes I'm lucky and a run to the bathroom and I'm good for awhile. Other times it continues to hit me in waves for 20+ min. So what happens if it takes me longer to get back to my group than the remaining time in line. Do they ride without me and then ride again when i can ride. Am i stuck now riding by myself or maybe 1 other person from my family. If I gone longer than my remaining wait in line, how do they know i was even in line and where in line i was if my party has now also completed and left the line.
Will i have to push my way back to my family in line. Will i wait for them to get to loading platform and rejoin them there? If i now wait outside of the line and rejoin when they get to the platform I now face spending a fair amount of extra time away from my family on top of what is needed to deal witb my issues.

I have UC and share the same concerns. Another thing is that DAS allows me to pace myself in a way that meets my needs and allows me to stay in the parks longer with my family. Fatigue is very real as a result of the condition and meds, and that can really impact my experience. I am anxious awaiting to hear the details of the accommodation they will offer people like us.

 

[OurBigTrip]

Just another thought... I know we don`t have enough info yet and probably freaking out straight away is not a good thing (for me it`s already causing extra bathroom breaks)...BUT!
As for now from Europe the DAS preregistration via online chat is not available. The local disneyworld (disneyworld.co.uk) websites don`t have DAS pages. And there is no possibility to change to the US version!
If you try to go from a google link they take you back to the UK version. The only way to do preregistration is to buy/install a VPN and pray that the video quality is good enough to have a video chat.

So for now people who live in Europe (probably anywhere in the world but US/Canada) and don`t have VPN they have NO WAY to even try to get DAS. I hope Disney will fix it. It seems quite discriminatory that only those who live there can get any chance at all to have DAS!

And I thought Disney is all about equality! LOL

You can apply once you get to Disney World.

 

[koszmok]

I don’t think that requiring documentation is going to solve the abuse problem. Those that want to “cheat” are going to find away around it.

I recently had an experience with 2 people and a German Shepherd in a public waiting room. I was trying to get to a seat and a guy had the dog drinking water from the public water fountain and slobbering all over. I had to risk falling (using crutches from a week old total knee replacement) walking in slobber and water on a tile floor just so I could sit down. I did ask, “Is that slobber?” The guy responded with, “It won’t kill you.” To me, fine give your dog some water, but clean up your mess but I didn’t say it. The guy left and the woman came back with the dog, took a cup and walked over to where I was sitting and said to the dog, “Here, you can slobber all you want.” I totally ignored her. Both of them became very obnoxious with the dog and making sure it slobbered everywhere. A gentleman mentioned something to the woman. She responded with, “He is a service dog!” Now, knowing and having been around real and true service dogs, I asked, “Where is his vest?” “He doesn’t need one!” was her response. She further went on, “But I have papers saying he is a service dog.” Because I had seen the dog with both people, I asked, “Oh! What service does your dog provide?” She responded with, “That is against HIPAA!” I said, “You can tell what service the dog provides without disclosing any PHI and HIPAA doesn’t apply in this situation.” They both continued to be very obnoxious with the dog who was clearly not trained at all. They loudly called me a B over 12 times to each other and to others. The manager of the establishment arrived and come to find out it was an “emotional support” dog but not for a particular person in the party. The manager was nice, looked at their “papers” and basically kicked them out. Later the manager came over and apologized to me and the gentleman sitting there. He commented that the “papers” were definitely “produced.” He knew the woman as she “used to work” for them. It angers me when people game the system to basically get what they want.

I couple of years ago I witnessed a dog mauling a lady in front of the Mexico pyramid in EPCOT. I almost got a panic attack witnessing it. I`ve been told there is no licence/training required to a dog be called a service dog so basically they have to let in every dog to the park with up to date vaccination. I`m no expert but I would think a trained service dog wouldn`t maul someone. But again I`m not an expert... it was awful!

 

[koszmok]

You can apply once you get to Disney World.

No you can`t starting 20th of May. You can only do it online in advance during preregistration.

 

[Becky Mouse]

There are a few very rude posts on here making generalizations about other people's disabilities and deciding what, if anything, they should qualify for.

I don't think it's rude. I have IBS, and, already, Universal has said that conditions like IBS and Crohn's won't qualify for line skippers there. Now Disney is basically saying the same thing, stating that only developmental disabilities, including autism, will qualify for DAS. However, they will be providing other accommodations for people with different medical conditions.

So many people are coming on here saying that they have a different medical condition that is NOT a developmental disability and are trying to say they should get DAS. I'm not sure why they are arguing for that when Disney has clearly said that is not how it's going to work. There will be other accommodations they will provide, but not DAS.

People are frustrated and taking out that frustration on people like me who are basically just restating what Disney has already said: DAS is for a small percentage of people who have severe developmental disabilities and autism. If you have a different medical condition, Disney will accommodate you in a DIFFERENT way, but not with DAS. Some people are responding by saying they just can't wait in long lines due reasons A, B, and C. OK, sure, but those people can still buy Genie+ if they can't wait in long lines and if they aren't happy with the other accommodations Disney provides.

 

[disneyfan123]

I really hate the 4 person rule and think they should leave it at 6. We travel with people outside of our immediate family, and this rule makes it impossible to do rides together. The DAS system was so good and a real benefit and I'm not happy at all with these changes. Fortunately, our son still qualifies but I feel for all those with non "developmental" disabilities that are losing out now.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I'm sure someone has mentioned it and forgive my ignorance here but I'm just checking out the guest services page for WDW and seeing how it's broken up. I haven't visited their page much for guest services so I have no idea if it's newly designed or not. It caught my eye more so because they make clear buckets.





I know people took issue with the information on a different page that was shared with how they worded it (this page https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/guest-services/accessing-attractions-queues/ ) but I don't think Disney is trying to offend here. Disney parks, especially WDW, is quite unlike many places even other theme parks. And everyone was new to a Disney park at some point.

However, I like the way they input the information in this link better (https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/guest-services/guests-with-disabilities/). I think for someone new to Disney parks, new to a diagnosis or an adjustment in issues, etc it can be very helpful.

For example under Neurodivergent and scrolling down to Take a Break they list suggested locations throughout the parks for where this could be possible. That could be very helpful to someone new to the parks.

Just a snippet screenshot


I learned a lot more about the devices for deaf and hearing loss than I knew before Some of the people in my family if they toured with us would benefit with some of those things including the captioning devices.


Again I have no idea if they've redesigned this page with the content I'm making specific notation to or if it existed before. They have obviously update the information at least with the new verbiage regarding DAS. I just wanted to offer that I do think Disney is/has been trying to do more helpful hints at least with some of information. Not everyone has been to Disney before nor has used DAS before so some may read some information Disney is giving as pointless it may be helpful to someone.

 

[tarak]

A bit of an aside, but I wonder if Disney has considered whether the increase in DAS usage corresponds to the end of Fastpass? It's entirely possible that some folks who needed an accommodation were able to make things work with Fastpass.