GAC question

madisonmouse

Earning My Ears
Joined
Oct 24, 2005
Messages
17
Hello everyone,

I was wondering if the Guest Assistance Card (GAC) applied to everyone in the group? We are a group of 6 with one autistic child visiting in May 2008. I would hate to think we couldn't all experience the rides together.

Thanks in advance!

Jul
 
Hello everyone,

I was wondering if the Guest Assistance Card (GAC) applied to everyone in the group? We are a group of 6 with one autistic child visiting in May 2008. I would hate to think we couldn't all experience the rides together.

Thanks in advance!

Jul
::yes::
They will ask you how many you have in your party. The GAC is usually issued for up to 6 people - 5 plus the person with a disability.
If you check out the disABILITIES FAQs thread near the top of the board, there is a section about GACs that should be able to answer any of your questions.
 
Hi and :welcome: to disABILITIES!

I made this the start of a new thread; the one you attached to was about a year old.

If you have not done so yet, I would suggest you click on where it says "disABILTIES" at the top of this page it will take you to the Index. One of the top items is the "disABILTIES FAQ" which will gives lots of useful information, including where people rent ECVs.

Or, if you want an easier route, click on the link in my signature.

And the GAC is issued to the person who needs it and the members of that person's party, but normally not more than a total of six people. And it only applies when the person whose name is on it is going to be going on an attraction.
 
I'm taking my daughter to disneyworld for a grand gathring with 4 girl friends and 4 adults for her sweet sixteen birthday.My daughter who had spinal surgery for scoliosis is still recovering from her surgery its been almost a year she wears a brace at night and sometimes during the day. she is aloud to go on most of the rides at disney.while standing in long lines may cause her back pain.I have been reading on here that they will only give a pass for 6. I have 9 in my party and I didn't want to slit the group up. So I'm wondering if they would gave two passes so we could stay together .We will be there apr. 15-26 2008.
any suggests on how I can make this happen
I do have a doctors note which I also read they don't need.
 

You know fast pass is your best friend for avoiding long lines and waits. Nobody needs a Gac for that and your entire party can be together. :-)

The GAC is designed to meet needs not met any other way. Do you think she would benefit from a wheelchair? Even if she does not need it all day long maybe get one and let her sit when she needs then walk and push it empty when she needs some stretch time. I dont even think you need a GAC with a wheelchair because her needs are to get to the ride with no stairs. The wheelchair will go what ever route they designate no stairs. Also dont worry if people look at you funny for pushing an empty wheel chair. I say they need to walk in her shoes first before making that judgement. It sometimes hurts as much to sit all day as stand and so I personally think its ok to do a wheel chair part time through out the day.
 
I'm taking my daughter to disneyworld for a grand gathring with 4 girl friends and 4 adults for her sweet sixteen birthday.My daughter who had spinal surgery for scoliosis is still recovering from her surgery its been almost a year she wears a brace at night and sometimes during the day. she is aloud to go on most of the rides at disney.while standing in long lines may cause her back pain.I have been reading on here that they will only give a pass for 6. I have 9 in my party and I didn't want to slit the group up. So I'm wondering if they would gave two passes so we could stay together .We will be there apr. 15-26 2008.
any suggests on how I can make this happen
I do have a doctors note which I also read they don't need.

No! Six is the limit so you will either have to split up or no one use a GAC and all use Fastpasses.

A GAC does not shorten the wait in 99% of the cases, sometimes it adds to your wait time... it simply assists the person it is issued for to explore the park with the neccessary supports.

I don't quite understand how riding rides (ecspecially those like TOT, EE, A RNR RC, ect... can be OK, yet there is worry about waiting in lines :confused3but I guess if the doctor released her, so be it).

If you go to the WDW website and look up the Disability pamphlet (or they will mail them to you, one for each park, but it took me 3 weeks to get mine), you will find that WDW stance on the inability to wait in line is that you need either use a wheelchair or EVC (scooter), and at her age she would not be able to rent an EVC so a wheelchair would be your best bet.
 
while first off she will not be riding on TOT, EE, A RNR RC, they are some rides she will not be able to go on. But most of the other rides she will be able to go on. I'm not trying to get on the line first with my group. just trying to make the best of things so my daughter could enjoy her sweet sixteen birthday. The wheel chair she will not need walking is the best thing for her its standing for long periods of time that will cause her back pain. she may also be in her boston brace which is hard plastic and uncomfortable to wear so between the heat and standing on lines longer then 1/2 hour could be painful . sitting in a wheel chair will just cause her back to hurt even more and her back will became stiff. wheel chairs aren't for people who have had the type of back surgery she had done. she had a spinal fusion with rods place in her back. She also had 5 ribs removed which are growing back now. If they give me the pass and we could go through fast pass or wait at other places that are shaded. i just wanted the group to stay together not let six go then wait for us to get off the ride 30 min. later.so what i'm asking is would they give me two passes to keep our group together anyone know if they is a # i could call and ask.thanks for understanding her disability.:hug:
 
while first off she will not be riding on TOT, EE, A RNR RC, they are some rides she will not be able to go on. But most of the other rides she will be able to go on. I'm not trying to get on the line first with my group. just trying to make the best of things so my daughter could enjoy her sweet sixteen birthday. The wheel chair she will not need walking is the best thing for her its standing for long periods of time that will cause her back pain. she may also be in her boston brace which is hard plastic and uncomfortable to wear so between the heat and standing on lines longer then 1/2 hour could be painful . sitting in a wheel chair will just cause her back to hurt even more and her back will became stiff. wheel chairs aren't for people who have had the type of back surgery she had done. she had a spinal fusion with rods place in her back. She also had 5 ribs removed which are growing back now. If they give me the pass and we could go through fast pass or wait at other places that are shaded. i just wanted the group to stay together not let six go then wait for us to get off the ride 30 min. later.so what i'm asking is would they give me two passes to keep our group together anyone know if they is a # i could call and ask.thanks for understanding her disability.:hug:

No, they won't give you two GAC's.
 
... so between the heat and standing on lines longer then 1/2 hour could be painful...

Wow, sounds like she has been through a lot. Wishing her a speedy recovery pixiedust:

My suggestion is FastPasses and TGM. We visited WDW last July/August. I was very worried about my son (then 6) and waiting in the heat because he has Type 1 Diabetes and the heat typically makes his blood sugar drop VERY fast. I got lots of good info both here and in the TGM forums about the GAC. In the mean time, i also studied TGM and created a plan based on some of his philosophies and example plans.

We decided we would wait to get a GAC until we needed it. Turns out, between our FastPass strategy and our touring plan (both thanks to TGM), we did not have to wait more than 10-15 minutes for anything. In the end, we never did pick up a GAC.

This is not so much to discourage you from getting a GAC, but just to show you that you might be better off at most attractions just following a good plan and using FastPasses. According to all that I have read here, your wait is more likely to be longer with a GAC than not.

Have a great time!
Daneen
 
while first off she will not be riding on TOT, EE, A RNR RC, they are some rides she will not be able to go on. But most of the other rides she will be able to go on. I'm not trying to get on the line first with my group. just trying to make the best of things so my daughter could enjoy her sweet sixteen birthday. The wheel chair she will not need walking is the best thing for her its standing for long periods of time that will cause her back pain. she may also be in her boston brace which is hard plastic and uncomfortable to wear so between the heat and standing on lines longer then 1/2 hour could be painful . sitting in a wheel chair will just cause her back to hurt even more and her back will became stiff. wheel chairs aren't for people who have had the type of back surgery she had done. she had a spinal fusion with rods place in her back. She also had 5 ribs removed which are growing back now. If they give me the pass and we could go through fast pass or wait at other places that are shaded. i just wanted the group to stay together not let six go then wait for us to get off the ride 30 min. later.so what i'm asking is would they give me two passes to keep our group together anyone know if they is a # i could call and ask.thanks for understanding her disability.:hug:

Ribs growing back? :confused3 Totally removed ribs grow back?


To help you out - most of the queues at WDW are shaded now, with fans and even a bit of AC to help you out. There will be a lot more exposure to sun walking between the attractions. Try to get to the parks at opening, take a break in the afternoon, and stay out as late as possible. That's what I do to avoid the worst sun exposure. (melanoma survivor) A GAC can only be issued to the person who needs one. If another party member needs a GAC, have them get one too. Only thing is, they may not have the same needs as your daughter, so the accessibility may not be the same at every attraction. Fastpass can really help you stay together, as can getting to the parks as early as possible.
 
You are correct, a doctor's note is not needed and they won't even look at it.

And just repeating what others have said---they will not issue you two GAC. I went with a group of ten once and we ended up using fastpass. And remember--the person the GAC was issued to must be riding in order to use the card. The card is good only for the person it is issued to.

Your best friends will be Fastpass and a touring plan such as TGM. Knowing where the crowds AREN'T is as good as a GAC sometimes.

Also--beware of the shows--some are bleacher style seating without backs--she may be very uncomfortable at them (like Fantasmic and Lion King).

If standing still is the main issue, I would enter any line with her in the middle of your group--your group can then space yourselves apart leaving her room to pace a little/keep moving. I do this frequently, people never seem to notice if I am moving back and forth (however if I add talking to myself I do get some stares)
 
as only one member of your party can benefit from a GAC, only one will be issued.
 
i know you said wheelchairs may not be helpful, but if you said sitting makes it worse, she may have a hard time going to shows and on longer rides... i cannot sit on very hard seats without consequences, like the long boat ride through small world. you could be sitting on metal benches for 1.5+ hours in fantasmic... perhaps a wheelchair with lots of cushioning wont be a bad idea to have, so she can have a comfortable place to sit for shows... then she can push it when she wants to walk, sit for 10 mins when she needs a break, and then walk again... just a thought

i know that you want your party to stay together, but i think you will find it difficult to find a CM to allow all 10 of you to go together. if you use fastpasses then you won't have much of a problem at all...
 
Ok what is TGM sorry new at this.

Tour Guide Mike.

There is a link to his service with a discount on the top of the DIS boards Theme Park Attractions page. Basically it is a service created by Mike who runs a VIP Disney Tour Guide company and used to be a Disney (employee) tour guide. he has put down the strategies he uses for touring to make the most of your days without running your family into the ground. His info teaches you the 'whys' behind the touring choice he makes so you are able to apply the info even when you want to make changes with you plans. The service DOES NOT auto generate touring plans for you, though. However, there are sample plans that I used to start with and i had no trouble adapting them to our needs. In my opinion the $17 is a small price to pay to make your very expensive vacation go very smoothly.

As i said, we visited last week of July and first week of August last year (11 days) and we did not wait more then 10-15 minutes for anything, with less than 5 exceptions.

--Daneen
 
There have been some excellent threads on how to deal with people who over heat easy. If the site's search engine does not help the go to google and type site:www.disboards.com subjectmatter
site:www.disboards.com overheating for example.

I suggest that when standing in line is necessary that your party put her in the middle and leave enough room to walk around. Also I have been goosed and poked in lines so make sure she is in the middle of the group to protect her back. I have a disintigrating disc and scoliosis so my back is off limits usually.

Others have given you great advice.
 
thanks I goning to look at Tour Guide Mike. great idea about putting her in the middle.the shows she may have to stand up a few times i will try to get her a seat at the end of a row so she doesn't upset the others around her.Some people in the world are so rude to look at her she looks fine.She a tuff cookies and has learned to deal with her disability.The wheel chair she will just been uncomfortable in unless will had some pillows and my daughter would never wont to have that kind of attention draw to her.
 
If you go to the WDW website and look up the Disability pamphlet (or they will mail them to you, one for each park, but it took me 3 weeks to get mine),
There are links in post #3 of the disABILITIES FAQs thread that takes you to the web version of the WDW Guidebooks for Guests with Disabilities.
That allows you to see the text of the guidebook. When you get to the parks, you can go to Guest Relations in any of the parks.
its standing for long periods of time that will cause her back pain. she may also be in her boston brace which is hard plastic and uncomfortable to wear so between the heat and standing on lines longer then 1/2 hour could be painful .
I just wanted to point out that in most of the lines, you won't actually be standing still. You may for shows that 'load' a lot of people at the same time, but for the majority of rides, the time will be spent moving somewhat. For continous load rides, the line moves forward slowly because they are continually loading people on. For rides like Soarin', that load people in 'batches', you will be standing for 2-5 minutes at a time and then moving forward for a minute or 2 as they select guests for the next 'batch.'
The attractions where you may be standing for a long time are the shows. For example, in the Little Mermaid, once you get into the building (from either the Fastpass Line or the Standby Line) you will be standing for 10-15 minutes in the Preshow room waiting for the guests currently seeing the show to complete their show and exit the theater so your group can enter. Having a GAC would not help with that because you need to wait in that preshow area no matter how you get to that point. All the movies work like that and basically anything that uses a theater works that way too (like It's Tough to Be a Bug). Most of them don't have any benches, so there is no place to sit while you wait.
Knowing which attractions work like that will help you to spread that kind of wait out during the day. Using services like TourGuide Mike will help you to wait the shortest time in line.

Here's a link to a page that shows the length of the rides at WDW. For the shows, the 'preshow' will usually be about the length of the show, since they start letting guests into the preshow area after the guests who were in that area move into the show area.
The length will also be helpful for knowing how long you will be sitting in the show - as someone already mentioned, the show and ride seats are usually hard plastic, metal or wood. Most either have no backs or very short backs that will not give much support. Knowing how long the show is will help you to spread out the ones that are longer.
If they give me the pass and we could go through fast pass or wait at other places that are shaded. i just wanted the group to stay together not let six go then wait for us to get off the ride 30 min. later.so what i'm asking is would they give me two passes to keep our group together anyone know if they is a # i could call and ask.thanks for understanding her disability.:hug:
Other posters did clarify, but just to clarify the GAC (Guest Assistance Card) a little more; it's not a Pass.
It is just what it sounds like it would be a Card that tells CMs what sort of Assistance a Guest needs. The card is issued to that guest who has a disability and the assistance given is based on the needs that guest has. So, GACs are not passes that all allow one thing; different messages are stamped on the GAC based on the needs of the person.
There is no number to call ahead of time. The GACs are given out at the parks by the Guest Relations CMs, who assess the needs the guest tells them about and give a GAC based on those needs.
One of the reasons for limiting the GAC to 6 is that some of the attractions have limited space - for example, if what you need is a shaded spot to wait, the shaded space may be small, so letting a party of 9 or 10 wait there might mean there is no room for other people who have need to wait out of the sun.

Sometimes the GAC is not needed at an attraction because the needed assistance (like waiting in a shaded spot) is part of the queue. Sometimes the needed assistance is not even available (like the line for the Nemo show at AK doesn't have any shaded areas at this point in time).
And, since the GAC would only be used in the queues, you still have to contend with the sun/heat while walking around. You also have crowds that might be problematic just getting from place to place. We've been 'jostled' much more by crowds walking than by people in lines.

So, although GACs are helpful (and really necessary for some people) knowing where it's busy so you can avoid those places is going to be even more helpful.

hope you have a great trip.

PS - Almost forgot - if she needs a cool place to go for a while or needs to get the brace off for a few minutes/adjust it, etc., each park has a First Aid station with private rooms or cubicles that you can use for that purpose. The location of First Aid is marked on the park maps.
 
Hello everyone,

I was wondering if the Guest Assistance Card (GAC) applied to everyone in the group? We are a group of 6 with one autistic child visiting in May 2008. I would hate to think we couldn't all experience the rides together.

Thanks in advance!

Jul

Hey Madison Mouse:

We were at WDW last year for my son's wish trip. He is a transplant patient, and also has seizures and is high functioning autistic. He is the middle child of 5. With my husband and I, we were a party of 7. My husband is obese, and he did not want to go on all the rides, but he did ride several things. Defer to the CM at the beginning of the ride que; they are very interested in making sure you have a good visit. You should be fine with 6, we were fine with 7 when we all rode (but 5 of them were children). It didn't get us to the beginning of the line; it did take us through a different entrance where we could wait in the AC or allowed us to load the attraction (star tours) from the exit before the other riders got on. It is a great accomodation for special needs families and it does make things go smoother, so even though it might not speed things up considerably, it feels like it does because it makes your atmosphere much more peaceful. There were days where the stimulus at the parks and the heat were too much for him because of his autism, not because of his transplant. On those days we left the parks early and headed for some de-stressing at the pool. That cool water can work miracles! Other posters have listed TGM as a help...he was invaluable to us. If you sign up through this site link I beleive that you get a $3 discount. I will never go there without it. Hope this helps...

~Elisa
 
... she may have a hard time going to shows and on longer rides... i cannot sit on very hard seats without consequences, like the long boat ride through small world. you could be sitting on metal benches for 1.5+ hours in fantasmic...

Another thought ... I purchased a portable 'stadium seat' to use when I am sitting a long time in bleachers at swim meets. It is essentially 2 foam cushions attached to each other with straps so when you sit on the bottom cushion the straps hold up the backrest cushion and you can lean against the backrest cushion for support. It is very light and portable (folds up and has a shoulder strap). I have seen very fancy options for this, but I think mine was about $10 at Target.

Would not be too hard to cary around with you when you are planning to see shows with bleachers.

--Daneen
 














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