Just back today. The good, bad and did that really happen.....

[RainK]

Just back today from our 7 night POP vacation. Amazing time had by all!

The good: the parks were VERY manageable. The longest line we waited in was 35 minutes for Everest. The average wait time was 15 minutes! Great time to visit!!
The hotel was clean, fun, and not obnoxiously crowded even though they said they were sold out. The bus waits were minimal as well.

The bad: it was HOT walking around the parks! Pirates of the Caribbean kept breaking down....that was annoying. the monorail was down for one of the days and getting to the Grand Floridian for dinner was awful! Long bus waits.

The "did this really happen":
Ok...so we were on the bus and this woman was telling us how she went to guest services at MK and told them her child has "high functioning autism" so they would give her some pass that allows them to fast pass EVERY ride all day long. She was so proud and thought she was helping us by giving us this info and told us we should do it too. I was appalled! Why would someone lie about their child having a disability...for the simple fact that she didn't want to wait in line??? Can you say KARMA? If you don't want to wait in lines, then don't go to Disney!!

Overall....amazing trip....can't wait to go back!

 

[jesswindsor]

Nice, thanks for sharing!! As for the woman, what goes around comes around.

 

[StitchSpawn]

Just back today from our 7 night POP vacation. Amazing time had by all!

The good: the parks were VERY manageable. The longest line we waited in was 35 minutes for Everest. The average wait time was 15 minutes! Great time to visit!!
The hotel was clean, fun, and not obnoxiously crowded even though they said they were sold out. The bus waits were minimal as well.

The bad: it was HOT walking around the parks! Pirates of the Caribbean kept breaking down....that was annoying. the monorail was down for one of the days and getting to the Grand Floridian for dinner was awful! Long bus waits.

The "did this really happen":
Ok...so we were on the bus and this woman was telling us how she went to guest services at MK and told them her child has "high functioning autism" so they would give her some pass that allows them to fast pass EVERY ride all day long. She was so proud and thought she was helping us by giving us this info and told us we should do it too. I was appalled! Why would someone lie about their child having a disability...for the simple fact that she didn't want to wait in line??? Can you say KARMA? If you don't want to wait in lines, then don't go to Disney!!

Overall....amazing trip....can't wait to go back!

I think it's called a GAC and people do it, but it's wrong and you still have to wait in line, even if it's a bit shorter. I think Disney should require a doctor's note of some kind and while those can be faked and there are less than moral doctor's out there, it would reduce abuse of the system.

I had a college teacher who recently told me I should have lied about being related to Michael Bolton. I'm not but people always thought I was growing up. I couldn't believe an educator told me I should have lied when I was a child. We were kind of joking around, but I still think that response was inappropriate for her position. Honesty is not a popular virtue it seems...

 

[acebatonfan]

The "did this really happen":
Ok...so we were on the bus and this woman was telling us how she went to guest services at MK and told them her child has "high functioning autism" so they would give her some pass that allows them to fast pass EVERY ride all day long. She was so proud and thought she was helping us by giving us this info and told us we should do it too. I was appalled! Why would someone lie about their child having a disability...for the simple fact that she didn't want to wait in line??? Can you say KARMA? If you don't want to wait in lines, then don't go to Disney!!

Overall....amazing trip....can't wait to go back!

I'm pretty shocked by this. My youngest sister does have autism (we used a GAC during our stay the past eight days), and it is really upsetting a person would lie just to avoid wait times. I can say right now that the GAC does not guarantee a shorter wait time, as we waited a good while at the wheelchair entrance for It's a Small World, but the card did prevent a lot of potential meltdowns. *sigh* That woman shouldn't have done that, and it's sad she is using a condition like autism, something that isn't all peaches and cream, to "bypass" lines.

They really should make it so that a doctor's note must be present when requesting a GAC.

 

[Mrs K]

I'm glad you had a great time. As for that woman, I don't even know what to say.

 

[kehlyrsmom]

I have 2 kids on the Autism spectrum and this really upsets me as I can see them decideing to do away with this if people are misusing it. It has helped us so much with our kids and we greatly appreciate the fact the Disney offers this and we never take advantage of it. We only ride a ride once unless the line is short anyway and if it is a fairly short line we will not use it. It helps cut some of the wait time as our kids have a very hard time standing in lines and getting bumped by people also being surrounded by so many people is also hard on them. Also we have found going the week of labor day the parks are not as packed so that helps as well.

Oh I forgot to mention that our kids see a pediatric neuroligst for their Autism and we always get a note from her though we did not see her before this trip so our note this year is from last year so I am hoping that will be OK.

I would glady trade shoes with anyone and wait in the longest lines if my kids could no longer be on the Autism spectrum.

 

[ciera321]

I'm glad you had a great vacation and thanks for sharing! As for the woman who lied about a disablity her child didn't have and then bragged about it, disgusting!!! I agree, what goes around somes around...

 

[zuzu310]

As a person who is high functioning on the autism spectrum, I am appalled. And no I don't need a GAC card because I am high functioning. If you are high functioning, why do you need one?

 

[FlightlessDuck]

I thought GAC's aren't supposed to get you to bypass lines.

 

[Eljay]

The "did this really happen":
Ok...so we were on the bus and this woman was telling us how she went to guest services at MK and told them her child has "high functioning autism" so they would give her some pass that allows them to fast pass EVERY ride all day long. She was so proud and thought she was helping us by giving us this info and told us we should do it too. I was appalled!

So very sad that this woman was able to somehow rationalize that this was a good thing to do, and to go so far as to suggest it to a stranger. It's that whole "haha, I beat the system" sense of entitlement that sets such a charming example for their kids.

 

[stargazertechie]

Disney should require a doctor's note of some kind and while those can be faked and there are less than moral doctor's out there, it would reduce abuse of the system.

They really should make it so that a doctor's note must be present when requesting a GAC.

That's kind of murky waters- what about people who are awaiting diagnoses, who have a temporary disability, whose doctors wouldn't know what types of accommodations to ask for, etc.

I thought GAC's aren't supposed to get you to bypass lines.

They technically don't. They're SUPPOSED to give you an alternate waiting area with fewer crowds. Unfortunately, a lot of these "alternate waiting areas" are the FP lines.

 

[acebatonfan]

I thought GAC's aren't supposed to get you to bypass lines.

They give you the option of using the wheelchair entrance. It usually is a slightly shorter wait, but there are rides when you could be waiting longer than if you did the standby line. It, generally, gives the person(s) a quieter, less crowded, sometimes shorter wait, area to get into the ride.

 

[kokotg]

good to hear about the low crowds...we'll be there in a couple of weeks, so they should be even better then!

 

[suemom2kay]

I thought GAC's aren't supposed to get you to bypass lines.

Because children on the autism spectrum often have difficulty with long waits, crowd situations, their GAC can be used to bypass the regular lines. Someone with direct experience using it can tell you more than me.

 

[RainK]

I should add, this was also the same woman who had an ADR at a restaurant but didn't want to leave the park and was over an hour late....I mentioned that the restaurant may not be able to accommodate her since she was so late and she proceeded to tell me "they have to. It's all about guest service here and all I have to do is ask for a supervisor. I spoke with a lot od supervisors this week"

She really did have a nerve! She acted like she was superior to everyone else.

 

[StitchSpawn]

That's kind of murky waters- what about people who are awaiting diagnoses, who have a temporary disability, whose doctors wouldn't know what types of accommodations to ask for, etc.


They technically don't. They're SUPPOSED to give you an alternate waiting area with fewer crowds. Unfortunately, a lot of these "alternate waiting areas" are the FP lines.

They could probably still get a doctors note asking for a GAC to assist them in the park. That's all it would really have to say. It could say they have a temporary disability or that they are awaiting diagnoses and it is asked that they have access to a GAC. It wouldn't have to be detailed.

 

[momtoejanda]

This woman is also teaching her child that it is ok to lie and cheat. Not to go off on a tangent but this is the problem with 90% of the complaints on here. People teaching their children poor values (not waiting in lines, saying they are a different age than they are, pushing their way into good parade viewing locations, picking up their trash etc...) It just disgusts me and it is hard to explain to your own child why they have to take turns, wait in line and behave themselves when so many other people dont bother to do that.

 

[zuzu310]

I should add, this was also the same woman who had an ADR at a restaurant but didn't want to leave the park and was over an hour late....I mentioned that the restaurant may not be able to accommodate her since she was so late and she proceeded to tell me "they have to. It's all about guest service here and all I have to do is ask for a supervisor. I spoke with a lot od supervisors this week"

She really did have a nerve! She acted like she was superior to everyone else.

I think I would have changed seats at that point and told her I couldn't listen to her any more because she was a detestable human being.

 

[racefanof88]

Very glad you had a great time . I find it extremely sad that anyone would use their child because they are too impatient to wait in line. I won't say what goes around comes around because I wouldn't wish any ill harm to anyone, but I do hope she realizes how wrong it was.

 

[jemlover]

I read in a Walt Disney World book that some federal law (I think it was ADA) prohibits WDW from requiring a doctor's note before issuing a GAC. I think that lady is setting a very poor example for her children. It reminds me of something my boss told me about when she and her son with leukemia were visiting WDW with a group of children with cancer. They were allowing them to bypass lines since they were on a "Make a Wish" type vacation. A woman who was waiting in line began complaining loudly that she didn't understand why this group was allowed to bypass the lines. There were kids in this group in wheelchairs and with IV's. It was obvious that they were very ill. My boss said "Ma'am we would be happy to trade places with you. What kind of cancer would you like to have?" That shut the woman up. Unfortunately there are rude people in this world who think they are entitled to special privileges.