GAC & Parade Seating

[3inthefamily]

My 4 year old will be getting a GAC for his Autism when we go to WDW in October. I know he would LOVE the parade but would never be able to sit for a long time waiting for it to start. Is there some sort of reserved area that is available so we don't have to stake out a spot for a long wait before the parade starts?

Thanks for your help!

 

[ducklite]

Even the reserved areas fill up early, and it's first come, first served.

Anne

 

[alizesmom]

Maybe one parent can stake out the area while the other keeps the little one occupied. Karen

 

[daisyduck123]

I would not worry too much, most 4 year olds have a tough time with long waits for anything...so you're not alone.

 

[freckles and boo]

We skip parades, sadly, for this reason. If you don't mind dragging a lot of distractions with you, that might be an option. Our daughter loves her MagnaDoodle but it certainly doesn't work for an hour. Dirty looks from others are pretty much the norm if one of you stakes out a spot and the other brings the kids back just before the parade. People always assume you are just trying to scam a spot instead of keeping your child from melting down and ruining everyone's day. Hopefully by going in October you might find the crowds are low enough you won't have to wait too long.

 

[mickeymom1]

yes, there are "handicapped" viewing areas that you can use if you have a gac or wheelchair. i believe that they are marked along the parade route on the park map and yes they do sometimes fill up fast.

by all means don't be afraid to have one person stay while you entertain your child with something else. you do what is right for your child and don't worry about any "looks"!! the past few trips i have noticed that there was a lot more entertainment in the street (hula hoops, hopscotch, big blocks, jump rope, etc.) during the pre parade wait to keep the kids busy. one more thing that we use as a distraction, is getting a special snack (popcorn, icecream, etc.) to pass the time.

hope this helps & have a good trip!!

 

[livndisney]

yes, there are "handicapped" viewing areas that you can use if you have a gac or wheelchair. i believe that they are marked along the parade route on the park map and yes they do sometimes fill up fast.

by all means don't be afraid to have one person stay while you entertain your child with something else. you do what is right for your child and don't worry about any "looks"!! the past few trips i have noticed that there was a lot more entertainment in the street (hula hoops, hopscotch, big blocks, jump rope, etc.) during the pre parade wait to keep the kids busy. one more thing that we use as a distraction, is getting a special snack (popcorn, icecream, etc.) to pass the time.

hope this helps & have a good trip!!

I was always under the impression the special viewing areas were for people in wheelchairs not people with GAC's who are not in a wheelchair. Was I wrong?

 

[PammyPoppins]

I was always under the impression the special viewing areas were for people in wheelchairs not people with GAC's who are not in a wheelchair. Was I wrong?

No, you are not wrong! We have gone to Disney every Fall for the past 5 years and our daughter had uncontrolled seizures from viral encephalitis. She also had a make-a-wish trip to Disney. We always get a GAC and her doctor writes a letter. The past few years we have NOT been allowed to view the parade from the Handicapped section because C.M. have told me you MUST be in a wheelchair or scooter and then the whole party can view form the handicapped section. This has Burned me up because we have a child with a life threatening seizure disorder and a GAC and we have been turned away. My daughter does not like getting in a wheel chair because she tells me "they are for sick people", and she seems to be in denial at times but does not want to get in a wheelchair unless she is stumbling. I even explained to a cast member the depth of her illness one time and she said "I am sorry but I was told only wheel chairs or scooters". This has been the past few years before that we used the GAC many times to view from the handicapped section but the past few years we have been turned away every time. Also, on the make-a-wish trip they did allow us but it took me showing the make-a-wish pin and the green make a wisg GAC pass before they allowed us to.
PammyPoppins

 

[Forevryoung]

I panic in crowds so parades aren't the best places for me (hmm well neither is Disney but I love it too much to let that stop me )

People say to get to a parade way before to stake out a spot but I have gotten rather lucky getting later spots for certain parades and night shows- Not always the "best" spot though Make a list of three places to check and go from there.

 

[ducklite]

No, you are not wrong! We have gone to Disney every Fall for the past 5 years and our daughter had uncontrolled seizures from viral encephalitis. She also had a make-a-wish trip to Disney. We always get a GAC and her doctor writes a letter. The past few years we have NOT been allowed to view the parade from the Handicapped section because C.M. have told me you MUST be in a wheelchair or scooter and then the whole party can view form the handicapped section. This has Burned me up because we have a child with a life threatening seizure disorder and a GAC and we have been turned away. My daughter does not like getting in a wheel chair because she tells me "they are for sick people", and she seems to be in denial at times but does not want to get in a wheelchair unless she is stumbling. I even explained to a cast member the depth of her illness one time and she said "I am sorry but I was told only wheel chairs or scooters". This has been the past few years before that we used the GAC many times to view from the handicapped section but the past few years we have been turned away every time. Also, on the make-a-wish trip they did allow us but it took me showing the make-a-wish pin and the green make a wisg GAC pass before they allowed us to.
PammyPoppins

Just to clarify, those in wheelchairs and ECV's aren't allowed to have their entire party with them. Generally it's limited to the disabled guest and one other person. They make an exception if the party is the disabled person of any age, a child and an adult.

Anne

 

[dclfun]

If the w/c viewing areas aren't crowded you are allowed to have your family with you. Before my children grew up we needed space for 6 people and were almost always able to accomodate us- part of the fun of viewing the parade is to share it with your family. Also I have personally seen a young woman and an autistic child be able to be seated with us right before a parade. I think this should be policy as that child's needs were just as great as mine to have a safe and secure place to sit as well as within the time constraints he could tolerate. When you get his GAC, be sure to explain his needs to the CM at Guest Relations and ask if his GAC will allow him to sit in the accessible area if space is available.---Kathy

 

[SueM in MN]

If the w/c viewing areas aren't crowded you are allowed to have your family with you. Before my children grew up we needed space for 6 people and were almost always able to accomodate us- part of the fun of viewing the parade is to share it with your family. Also I have personally seen a young woman and an autistic child be able to be seated with us right before a parade. I think this should be policy as that child's needs were just as great as mine to have a safe and secure place to sit as well as within the time constraints he could tolerate. When you get his GAC, be sure to explain his needs to the CM at Guest Relations and ask if his GAC will allow him to sit in the accessible area if space is available.---Kathy

This is what we have found. We have sometimes been allowed to have only one or 2 people with her and sometimes our whole party. It depends on how busy it is at the time.
We have seen people without wheelchairs in the handicapped viewing area. In fact, last year when we watched the Christmas parade from the 2nd floor porch of the Railroad station, we had a good view of the handicapped viewing area in front of City Hall. None of the people using that viewing area were using wheelchairs. We could watch them presenting GACs to the CM at the entrance. Interestingly, people using wheelchairs were in another area on the other side of the square (that was not a handicapped viewing area).
Our DD uses a wheelchair and has other needs that make being in one spot and being crowded with lots of people difficult. For this reason, we don't usually use the handicapped viewing areas. They are often quite crowded and you often need to get there at least an hour early. If it is busy, the wheelchairs will be parked with wheels touching, which is hard for my DD. The people we have seen who did not have wheelchairs, were standing pretty much as close to the people next to them as they would be just standing out on the curb. The difference was that no one will be pushing from behind you.

Things we have done that would work well for someone who can't use the handicapped viewing area are:
- the porch of the Exhibition Hall (the building that Tony's Restaurant is in). The area is not big, but it has some benches and rocking chairs that you can move to the porch rail. You would need one or 2 members of your party to 'hold' the area, but someone else would be able to walk around with your child and bring him soon before the parade starts. No one can get in front of you and because of the benches and rocking chairs, no one will be close behind. That is our 'area of choice' for watching the MK parades.
You will not be right on the curb, but because you are in a raised area you will have a good view.

- the 2nd floor porch of the Train Station. There are chairs that you can pull to the rail. Kind of the same thing as the other porch.

- check with the CMs at the Information Area at the park (they are outside and are marked on the park maps). They should be able to direct you to a handicapped viewing area that is usually less busy and would be able to accomodate people without wheelchairs. I know the one by the castle hub is probably the most busy.

 

[PammyPoppins]

Just to clarify, those in wheelchairs and ECV's aren't allowed to have their entire party with them. Generally it's limited to the disabled guest and one other person. They make an exception if the party is the disabled person of any age, a child and an adult.

Anne

Then they were making ALOT of exceptions for allowing the entire party with hte disabled person everytime I was there the past few years but did NOT make any exceptions anytime we asked the last few years with a GAC pass.
PammyPoppins

 

[Joanna71985]

It seems to me that the castle hub spot is the busiest, with Town Square coming in second. Out of all of them, I believe the Liberty Square one is usually the least crowded.

 

[Talking Hands]

Just a reminder that the end nearest the bell at Liberty Square is used for sign languagw interpretation for the deaf and hard of hearing on Monday and Thursday 3pm parade. Depending on the number of deaf people and their families the area for the w/c will be somewhat reduced.

 

[tinkandpan]

Just a thought here- but unless you are totally set on doing the MK parade, I would suggest the MGM one. We were able to get a good spot very soon before the parade started (no staking out an hour beforehand). I think we got a good spot about 10 minutes beforehand. There are also little areas off the street with some benches that would allow breathing space.

 

[3inthefamily]

That sounds like a good idea. Is it the same characters at MGM, or do they have more movie stuff like Nemo, Toy Story, etc? I'm sure my DS would love that too.

Thanks so much!

 

[Joanna71985]

That sounds like a good idea. Is it the same characters at MGM, or do they have more movie stuff like Nemo, Toy Story, etc? I'm sure my DS would love that too.

Thanks so much!

There are a few different characters in the MGM. Mainly they are the Toy Story characters (and this includes Green Army Men and Bo Peep), Ratatouille characters, Mulan, Playhouse Disney characters, Muppet characters, and Power Rangers. It is a cute parade, but will be changing Spring 2008 to the Block Party Bash.

 

[winniethepoohsmom]

We don't usually see the parades because we leave for a mid-day break and come back after dinner, but we had a ressie in MGM once and went into the park early and caught the parade starting and I was surprised we had gotten a good view of it. Maybe it's not as popular as the MK one but we thought it was very cute. October is'nt very crowded so you may be able to catch a view of the parade in MK without a long wait, we did stay in the park later on one trip and on our way out not long before the parade started we found some spots near the entrance, we hung out for a few minutes and thought about staying for the parade but it was a very hot day and we wanted to get in the pool. Linda

 

[TamTab]

Just to clarify, those in wheelchairs and ECV's aren't allowed to have their entire party with them. Generally it's limited to the disabled guest and one other person. They make an exception if the party is the disabled person of any age, a child and an adult.

Anne

This isn't completely true. We've gone to Disney for the past 5 years with my brother who is 27 and in a wheelchair. Everytime we have gone we have had 5 people in our party (including my brother) and they have let all of us sit in the handicapped area with him. We usually just sit on the ground in front of his chair. We have never had a problem with the CM's not letting our entire party sit in the handicapped area nor have I ever seen any other family have this problem. There are always entire families sitting together in the handicapped area.