How are people bypassing lines?

[vossjemi]

This was my first trip since 2009 and back then we used the fast pass. I know that’s not in current use due to the pandemic, so everybody has to wait, but I can’t tell you how many times I saw families going over to what I thought was the disabled line and somehow bypassing all the crowded lines. And while I could never be sure without asking, none of those families looked like anyone had a disability. They just looked like normal families that somehow didn’t have to wait 60 minutes and got to go to the front of the line. Is there some special pass they can purchase in order to do this? I apologize in advance for my ignorance. I just wondered because it seemEd to happen a lot on every single ride.

And then I would have a disabled person in a wheelchair behind me in the normal long line and I wondered why they didn’t go over to the disabled line. I felt really sorry for this one guy at FOP. He really had to wait in the heat and seemed uncomfortable. Yet all these families that had all these little kids with no obvious visible disability got to pass go and collect $200 ahead of everyone else. How do they do it???

 

[michellej47]

I'm assuming they were using rider swap.

 

[Random Ninja]

The people in the other line were likely those with non-visible disabilities or using rider swap. Many disabilities have no visible sign like autism and PTSD. There is no pass that you can buy to skip the lines aside from a VIP tour. The DAS pass that is used by those with invisible disabilities is not a front of the line pass; it acts more like a fastpass and the party is still waiting, just not in the line. Disney has mainstreamed most of the lines so those in wheelchairs and ECVs use the regular line.

 

[soniam]

There are also other guest recovery things, for instance, if a ride breaks down and the queue is dumped. They had what's effectively an FP to your account.

 

[Minnie1222]

They could also be Club 33 members and VIP tour guests.

 

[vossjemi]

What is a club 33 member? And do VIP tour guests get to do that on all rides or just one or two? How much does it cost to be VIP? And honestly they looked like the entire family was in the line together. It didn’t look like swapping to me. One line at Slinky dog had about 20-30 people over in that line and I couldn’t see anything different about them. If it is truly limited to rider swap or disabled, then it must have been something not noticeable to the eye. Do adhd kids get to go to the front of the line?

 

[fabfemmeboy]

This was my first trip since 2009 and back then we used the fast pass. I know that’s not in current use due to the pandemic, so everybody has to wait, but I can’t tell you how many times I saw families going over to what I thought was the disabled line and somehow bypassing all the crowded lines. And while I could never be sure without asking, none of those families looked like anyone had a disability. They just looked like normal families that somehow didn’t have to wait 60 minutes and got to go to the front of the line. Is there some special pass they can purchase in order to do this? I apologize in advance for my ignorance. I just wondered because it seemEd to happen a lot on every single ride.

And then I would have a disabled person in a wheelchair behind me in the normal long line and I wondered why they didn’t go over to the disabled line. I felt really sorry for this one guy at FOP. He really had to wait in the heat and seemed uncomfortable. Yet all these families that had all these little kids with no obvious visible disability got to pass go and collect $200 ahead of everyone else. How do they do it???

So the way that disability access works at Disney World is this:
* If your only disability is a mobility issue - e.g. you can't stand for long, you can't walk, etc. - then you're directed to use a wheelchair or scooter and use the regular line almost everywhere. At WDW almost every line is fully accessible.
* If you have a disability that can't be addressed by being in a wheelchair/scooter/other mobility aid, then you can request a DAS pass that allows you to wait outside of the regular line for the same length of time that you would wait if you were in the line itself. This includes a LOT of things, ranging from being on the autism spectrum to ADHD to heat intolerance to seizure disorders to all sorts of things. Plenty of people with such a condition "look normal" (whatever that means) but meet the criteria to wait outside of the regular line. It doesn't mean they don't wait - it's not like a FP where you just skip past all the other people waiting. For example, if I have a DAS pass (which I do) and the line for MMRR is 110 minutes, then they will tell me to come back in 100 minutes and go through the FP line. I don't get to NOT wait, but I wait in a shop or on a bench or somewhere because it is not safe for me or people around me to have me wait in the enclosed space for a couple hours.

The FP line is also being used for rider-swap, which means that people waited in line once already but only one parent got to ride so they're going back again to let the other parent ride.

 

[fabfemmeboy]

What is a club 33 member? And do VIP tour guests get to do that on all rides or just one or two? How much does it cost to be BIP? And honestly they looked like the entire family was in the line together. It didn’t look like swapping to me. One line at Slinky dog had about 20-30 people over in that line and I couldn’t see anything different about them. If it is truly limited to rider swap or disabled, then it must have been something not noticeable to the eye. Do adhd kids get to go to the front of the line?

1. People using riderswap can take the entire party back through the line if that's easiest for them, so that the non-riding parent isn't stuck trying to entertain/wrangle the family while the other parent goes and rides.
2. A group of 20-30 people going through probably means that they got a return-pass because the ride broke down when they tried to ride it earlier.
3. Not all disabilities are visible. Or some are visible but only if you "know what to look for."
4. No, "ADHD kids" don't get to skip the line. Some kids with ADHD or on the autism spectrum do get a DAS pass which means they wait outside of the queue for the same length of time as everyone else.

 

[disney16]

What is a club 33 member? And do VIP tour guests get to do that on all rides or just one or two? How much does it cost to be BIP? And honestly they looked like the entire family was in the line together. It didn’t look like swapping to me. One line at Slinky dog had about 20-30 people over in that line and I couldn’t see anything different about them. If it is truly limited to rider swap or disabled, then it must have been something not noticeable to the eye. Do adhd kids get to go to the front of the line?

VIP tours allow for up to 10 guests to experience one or more parks escorted by a Disney VIP guide. You basically set the agenda for the day. Cost depends on time of year but I believe start at $450 with a 7 hour minimum plus gratuity for your guide. At Christmas (and other peak) time cost can be $600+ per hour with a 7 hour minimum plus gratuity for your guide. The cost of the tour does not include park pass/admission. You bypass all the lines and have special transportation between parks. You can not access RoTR on a VIP tour. You still need to go through the same BG lottery as everyone else. Right now VIP tours are the only way to park hop. You must have a park reservation for your first park. Now that experiences are more limited, you miss out on special sections for parades and fireworks, etc. which were included for VIP tour guests.

 

[Rockbro]

I don't have a visible disability, but I have PTSD from being a cop. I can't so much be around people to a great degree. For those of us with a DAS, we still have to wait, but we get a chance to wait in a different way.

Trust me, the DAS is not a perk, it's a help. I can't afford a service dog, and I'm not one of those to fake one. I would give anything to have a dog circling me to keep people away. But, i's not so much of an issue now.

Sorry about the multiple edits, but you have no idea how much a service dog costs and that you many times have to travel to different states to train.

 

[Bullseye]

This was my first trip since 2009 and back then we used the fast pass. I know that’s not in current use due to the pandemic, so everybody has to wait, but I can’t tell you how many times I saw families going over to what I thought was the disabled line and somehow bypassing all the crowded lines. And while I could never be sure without asking, none of those families looked like anyone had a disability. They just looked like normal families that somehow didn’t have to wait 60 minutes and got to go to the front of the line. Is there some special pass they can purchase in order to do this? I apologize in advance for my ignorance. I just wondered because it seemEd to happen a lot on every single ride.

And then I would have a disabled person in a wheelchair behind me in the normal long line and I wondered why they didn’t go over to the disabled line. I felt really sorry for this one guy at FOP. He really had to wait in the heat and seemed uncomfortable. Yet all these families that had all these little kids with no obvious visible disability got to pass go and collect $200 ahead of everyone else. How do they do it???

We were just there a couple weeks ago and I experienced the same thing several times. Actually got halted from moving to next dot in A&E line so a family could pass through FP line. Was told by CM it is for disabilities, but every one of them looked young and vibrant. So I assumed I don't know, what I don't know.

 

[Rockbro]

To vent a little. I can't afford a service dog, but there are ao many that fake them.

There are plenty of us that need them.

 

[vossjemi]

Thank you all so much for explaining. I just wondered how all that worked or if there was something special you could buy to jump ahead. At my local amusement park, you can actually pay extra to go to the front of the line, but it is limited to a certain # of jumps per day.