New Years Eve nighmare with my ecv

[wdwcrazy]

Just wanted to vent. I have been going to Disey World on NYE for the last 17 years. I think I missed one when I was in the hospital. For the first time last night I get to Epcot at around 8 pm and proceeded to go to a disability viewing area. My husband and I arrive at one and they are just opening it up. We proceed to go in with 2 other people on ecv's and their families. About 5 minutes later the cast member comes back and asks me if we are with the other people on ecv's and I say no. We are then told that we have to leave because we didn't have reservations for the disabled area. We are then told that if we wanted to stay there we should have been in the park at 8 am when they took reservations. I couldn't believe this. I don't go to parks at 8am even on a good day. I was floored. So even though I was willing to sit for almost 4 hours for a spot it was to no avail. My husband and I were floored. We were being kicked out of a disability area by a cast member who's attitude was I don't care, I don't know, I am new and take it up with guest relations. I asked why they hadn't told people this especially on check-in. My ecv is my own and I am always in it. If they had told us this at the BC when we checked in my husband would have gone over without me to make the silly reservation. I have to say that after much grief that guest relations managed to get them to allow us into the area. We sat there with maybe 15 others and watched them turn away other guests who also knew nothing about reservations. What next... reservations for viewing areas for parades, shows and popcorn? I know the ecv population is getting crazy but for those of us who truly need them it is quite unnerving. At 11:20 there was only half the area full and they wound up letting in all able bodied people and I was saddened by all those in wheelchairs that had been turned away. Disney shame on you for such a bad idea. I still believe that first come first served is a better way to go.

 

[Miss Peach]

I am glad you are okay. When I read the title of the thread I thought there had been an accident or injury of some kind.

Thanks for passing along the information regarding a new policy. It will help some people have less aggravation.

Cathy

 

[peemagg]

I think if I was you I would let Disney know what you experienced. They need to change that or let people know about this.

I get on several forums and I never once saw anything about reservations needed at anytime.


I hope that they don't do that all the time now. I guess I'll have to check when we get there at the end of the month.

 

[SueM in MN]

Where was the area that you were at?

I have never heard of them taking reservations (and they didn't when we saw Illuminations twice in October), but it's possible it had to do with it being New Years. It actually doesn't make any sense, since most people would not have know about it.
But, if it was a new thing, they certainly should have publisized it and let those in wheelchairs/ECVs who did not have reservations stay until it became too full with people who did have reservations.

 

[wdwcrazy]

We were in the area near to England and tried to get into numerous areas before we headed over to Guest relations to vent our frustrations. We travel to Disney approx every other month and I have never experienced nor heard of needing reservations for viewing areas before.

We were at Epcot during Food and Wine and didn't need them at that time. I was told that this was something that they were doing because of the crowds and testing out new policies. I was in Epcot for NYE during the Millenium and they didn't have this going on then. I just think that it should have been published either on blogs, boards or at the very least in the paperwork when you check in. Even the cast members at the Beach Club had no idea that this was taking place.

I wonder if this was done in all the parks or just at Epcot?

 

[SueM in MN]

We were in the area near to England and tried to get into numerous areas before we headed over to Guest relations to vent our frustrations. We travel to Disney approx every other month and I have never experienced nor heard of needing reservations for viewing areas before.

We were at Epcot during Food and Wine and didn't need them at that time. I was told that this was something that they were doing because of the crowds and testing out new policies. I was in Epcot for NYE during the Millenium and they didn't have this going on then. I just think that it should have been published either on blogs, boards or at the very least in the paperwork when you check in. Even the cast members at the Beach Club had no idea that this was taking place.

I wonder if this was done in all the parks or just at Epcot?

Thanks for the further information.
It would not be a policy that makes much sense to me because there would be no way they could publicize it to everyone who needed to know -
there is no one place that guests with ECVs or wheelchairs go. They would basically have to let people know as they came in with their own wheelchairs/ECVs and let everyone know who rented one.
But, if the reservations were handed out early in the day, there would be no way to let people know days before that they had to arrive very early on they day they plan to go.

Aside from the area right as you enter World Showcase from Future World, I have not seen the other viewing areas full enough to warrant reservations on a regular evening.

 

[seashoreCM]

At 11:20 there was only half the area full and they wound up letting in all able bodied people and I was saddened by all those in wheelchairs that had been turned away. Disney shame on you for such a bad idea. .

They should let wheelchair guests without reservations stand by for empty space in that area.

 

[dclfun]

This is nuts! For many of us, we aren't able to get to the parks early and I would NOT want the stress of trying to get there to make reservations for something happening that evening. What if I change my mind or am unable to stay for my "reservation"? It should be first come/first served. Those who are willing to arrive early and wait are guaranteed the seating vs. those who wheel up last minute and expect to be accommodated. Perhaps they think there have been issues on NYE or other crowded days of people renting ECV's or w/c's just to have access to this area? How could they even determine if this was happening or if people were renting them for legitimate need? OP- I'm glad you went to Guest Services and were accommodated, and I feel badly for the people who were turned away. This and the other "new" policies are leaving a really bad taste in my mouth.---Kathy

 

[BroganMc]

Ok now hang on. I went for my 4th NYE this year. I thought there always was a policy of signing up for a spot earlier in the day. At least this was info I vaguely remember reading about on the DIS when I went to my first NYE 4 years ago.

I believe I even did it for that first year (07/08). But I arrived in the park around 4pm, signed up and then came back for the 7:30pm fireworks. Sign-ups started no earlier than 4pm.

I went back for 08/09 but don't remember what I did then. I skipped it last year and just stayed in DHS for fireworks. I had always done early bird fireworks at EPCOT on NYE then hopped.

I did show up in EPCOT around 5:30/6pm on NYE this year. Tried England but that was full of signups. Went over to the main entrance path and that was full too. I gave up trying for Germany because the crowd was getting so thick then. Instead we watched from FutureWorld then vacated for DHS.

I heard later that EPCOT was over capacity on NYE this year. I know the crowd was much too thick when we exited. I got stuck in a bit of a scary mosh just before Canada where the bathrooms and path to rose garden is. The crowd could not move either direction and was getting denser and denser. One lady got pushed into me. Fortunately people maintained their cool and CMs were finally able to redirect the crowd to get it moving. For a few minutes there it did seem ripe for disaster.

I've sworn off going to EPCOT for NYE because of my experience. The crowd is just too heavy and the experience not worth it. Especially since they've been chinsing on the Christmas decorations last couple years. Whoever's in charge of that park needs a retraining or repurposing. They are clearly failing on the job.

NOTE: I never experience any sort of sign-up procedure anywhere else for any other day except NYE at EPCOT. I don't believe any of that has changed. It's just management of EPCOT screwing up. Since NYE is on a Saturday next year I'm anticipating it being even worse. I've decided not to return for NYE. I'll vacation in early December instead.

 

[LockShockBarrel]

Doesn't this smack of discrimination? I understand the wheelchair/handicap viewing areas can only accomodate so many people, but why should anyone have to sign up to use it? It should absolutely be first come first serve. Getting a spot at a "coveted" viewing spot is first come first serve. It's not fair to expect someone to have to sign up for one of these spots, early in the day when no one else has to sign up for a spot elsewhere in the park. If that's how they're going to do things, it needs to be publicized better. It should be mentioned on entrance if you're in a wheelchair/ECV and told when renting one of these things in park. If it's that big of an issue and these spots are being taken that fast, they obviously have to make them bigger. We've all acknowledged the increased use of these devices, and Disney does better than some other places, if this is what's going to happen, they're just going to have to do more.