Ear Cups on rides especially FJ

[Girlie1]

My son is autistic and has sensory issues especially with loud noises. We are taking our first family trip to US/IOA and I read on the forum about bags needing to go in lockers so things don't fly around, but I was wondering if anyone had any experience with wearing ear cups to reduce the noise on the ride. He loves Harry Potter and I would hate for him to miss out because they would not let him wear the ear cups. In case you are wondering, he won't wear ear plugs so this is really the only option (trust me we tried everything.) Thanks.

 

[wdw4rfam]

I cant imagine that they wouldn't. We go to Disney every year but just made our first visit to IOA this past year with our autistic son. They were very accommodating and gave us a pass similar to the one Disney gives us- so that we didn't have to wait in long lines with him. I remember that ride being pretty wild- so unless it was a safety issue- (like they may fall off), I cant see that he wouldn't be able to wear them.

 

[DrDoofenshmirtz]

I would be amazed if you had any difficulty with your son's ear cups on FJ, or any other attraction. At most, you may have to explain the situation to a TM, but I doubt if even that's necessary.

Now, I'm working on the assumption that your son's ear cups would stay attached without him holding them on, like a pair of headphones or earmuffs. If he needs to hold them on, then you may have a problem.

I'm confident you won't have any trouble.

 

[BrinkofSunshine]

Definitely not a problem!

 

[Girlie1]

Thank you for the responses. They are like headphones and stay on no problem. He does not have to hold them.

wdw4rfam - I was also wondering about the guest assistance pass at Universal. We always get a GAC card at Disney but was unsure about the process at Universal. I am hoping that they will not separate us into a fmaily room because he will not go for that either (thats a whole other issue). How did the pass work for you? I would be fine if when we got in the line and the wait was an hour, they told us to come back in an hour and we could get right on but separating us or waiting in a crowd won't be possible for us.

 

[BrinkofSunshine]

Thank you for the responses. They are like headphones and stay on no problem. He does not have to hold them.

wdw4rfam - I was also wondering about the guest assistance pass at Universal. We always get a GAC card at Disney but was unsure about the process at Universal. I am hoping that they will not separate us into a fmaily room because he will not go for that either (thats a whole other issue). How did the pass work for you? I would be fine if when we got in the line and the wait was an hour, they told us to come back in an hour and we could get right on but separating us or waiting in a crowd won't be possible for us.

If the wait time is longer than 30 minutes, the greeter at the attraction will give you a return time- the wait time minus 15 minutes. You can do whatever you want in this time period as long as you don't fill out another time slot at another ride. Then come back at the time they give you and get right on If the wait time is 30 or less, you get on immediately.

 

[Schmeck]

So wait - they wouldn't let me wear a buckled fanny pack onto the ride, but a pair of headphones is OK? That soooo doesn't make sense to me, safety-wise. That ride tips back and forward pretty swiftly, so I'd make sure the headphones have a safey strap on them to make them secure. Also, have a contingency plan in place for what to do if they do fall off...