Visiting The parks with my nephew whom is autistic?

[rapisano]

My Nephew is visiting with us in Nov of 2007 at Saratoga springs is autistic.
He is very sensitive to loud noises and can get easily impatient while waiting in long drawn out lines can we get any assistance from the parks so he doest have to wait in line??? Will they do anything to make his welcome the best he ever dreamed of??? Please advise??

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Hi and to disABILTIES!

If 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 information about Guest Assistance Cards.

Also, there are many threads in this forum related to that; you might try looking at some of them.

 

[SueM in MN]

also on the disABILITIES FAQs thread in post #3, there are some links to past threads. One of the links is to a trip report from a parent of a child with autism.

 

[Dis1978]

We have just come back from Saratoga Springs. I would suggest to ask for a quiet section of the resort as it can be quite noisy in the section near to downtown disney. We were in the Carousel part of the resort and it was so quiet, not a sound. Very relaxing after a day in the parks.

Also the GAC is invaluable. My teenager is autistic and without the GAC our vacation would have been ruined. He never had to wait for more than a few minutes for rides and that is why he had no meltdowns at all in the parks, even though it was a very busy time of year. He could cope with the crowds but could not have coped with waiting in line.
Feel free to pm me if you have any questions at all.

 

[WendyisDarling]

Keep a set of earplugs for him handy
I was so afraid to take DS on our first trip. But, it was so wonderful. He was so happy. I treasure my pics. Everyone says they have never seen him look as happy as he does in the pictures.
Get the GAC, sometimes you may need it, sometimes you won't. Fast Pass works well. Be prepared and allow for flexibiltiy.

 

[rapisano]

Thank you for the info. I will have my sister look into getting this pass so that he will have a smooth transition and enjoy the attractions. He is only 8yrs old so we would love for him to be able to get the most out of the attractions with out melt downs.

 

[rapisano]

Great idea about the ear plugs I will pass this along to my sister. I know he is going to be so happy and he just loves the excitement and the adventure of this. thank you for your interest

 

[SueM in MN]

Thank you for the info. I will have my sister look into getting this pass so that he will have a smooth transition and enjoy the attractions. He is only 8yrs old so we would love for him to be able to get the most out of the attractions with out melt downs.

I just wanted to mention that the GAC (Guest Assistance Card) isn't a pass. It is a tool to let the CMs know what sorts of 'help' people need because of their disabilities. The exact type of help available on each attraction may be a little different and may also depend on how busy it is and the staffing at that time at that attraction.

Something that is very helpful is to get to the park as early as possible (especially MK). It's not as busy then and it's possible to get on many attractions (especially in Fantasyland) with a very short wait without a GAC. For example, my older DD (who is not disabled) went to MK the April during Spring break with my niece one morning. By 11am, they had ridden all the Fantasyland attractions without waiting more than a few minutes for any of them. They also rode a couple of others, but I can't remember which.
There are also suggestions/guides about how busy the parks are on different days and times in books and places like TourGuideMike.com (a Theme Park sponsor). Knowing that helps you avoid the busy places and see the places that are more quiet. That can be even more helpful than a GAC because the GAC helps only in the lines and the general busy-ness of the park and noise from lots of people can be too much for a lot of people.

 

[DIS-NH]

The youngest of my 2 Autistic sons is extremely sensitive to loud noises. I keep a set of ear muffs 9Shooters protective ear coverings) in my back pack for when he needs them. It helps with the noise and he likes the feel of them
(sensory) on his head.

He can finaly enjoy the parades !!!

 

[Bugsmom73]

Plan, Plan, PLan, get the GAC card. Have your sister create social stories for going on the plane, if you fly to waiting in line b/c even with the GAC card, you sometimes have to wait. DS did wonderful, and I will bring him some earplugs next trip. My last advice, be flexible, but that goes with any kid.

SOme one on here created specific PECS for Disney

 

[Nik's Mom]

My best piece of advice is th get to the park early. We have 2 little guys with special needs and I rarely have had to use the GAC because we get to the parks about 30 minutes before the parks open, then head straight to the rides we know will have lines later in the day.

 

[gillenkl]

My Nephew is visiting with us in Nov of 2007 at Saratoga springs is autistic.
He is very sensitive to loud noises and can get easily impatient while waiting in long drawn out lines can we get any assistance from the parks so he doest have to wait in line??? Will they do anything to make his welcome the best he ever dreamed of??? Please advise??

My son age 7 has similiar issues and when we took him last year we weren't sure what to expect - we had nightmares of what "might" happen. Anyway, we did the parks early in morning, once it got hot we went back for a swim, then back out at night when it wasn't quite so hot. I brought one of those mister fans and that helped occupy him during waiting - at night waiting for parades we had little "gifts" I'd brought with us like glow sticks and colored spinners (they have these at Walgreens for 1.99). We basically followed his lead and tried not to force any rides he wasn't "into". We only had one major meltdown and that was at The Coral Reef when our dinner reservation was 45 minutes later than expected. This year, we're taking either a Pixter or Leapser system for waiting in lines.

 

[gillenkl]

Also, TourGuideMike is great - we used it last year for when to go to which parks - and we never waited in line more than 15 minutes! Definately using it again this year.