Hi - new here but I've read so much and learned a lot so far. In reading the first post in this thread it talks about people in wheelchairs not needing the DAS. I have yet to read an experience that someone being in a wheelchair has had. My DD (age 15) has CP and is in a power chair that is oddly wide due to some customizations that she needs. When we have been other places and gone through typical queues, we usually end up taking out a few poles as we go. :-(. We plan to go to GS upon arrival because she also has issues waiting in the sun too long (the chair gets super hot) and she can get frustrated and become a grabber/hitter. Our trip is the 2nd week of April which looks so-so with the crowd calendar but it's still in between spring break and Easter. I'm apprehensive as I'm sure many are. Does anyone out there have experiences that could help me understand what to expect? I think our first park is going to be DHS. Thanks!
As was already noted, most queues are either inside or shaded.
Almost all attractions are wheelchair accessible thru the regular line.
My daughter has not brought her power wheelchair - using it all day in theme park conditions would be too mentally and physically tiring for her. She doesn't like driving when it's busy (like Christmas shopping) even though she is a good driver and has no problem driving around the mall at other times.
At WDW, the driver of a power wheelchair needs to be constantly alert and ready to stop at any time. People pop out in front of you all the time without even noticing you.
I'm not saying not to have her use her power wheelchair - just to think about the challenges - especially as you mentioned your daughter can get frustrated and hit.
Our daughter can get the same way, so to avoid her getting to overwhelmed, we bring her manual wheelchair, which is less frustrating, even if it is giving up some freedom.
This is less clear cut. Lots of different reports saying different things happened.
They should be issuing you a DAS for each child. However, they have been reports of them splitting the group up on each DAS. So, 1 DAS would have 2 people and another would have 2 people - and if you wanted to ride together you just get the same return time on both. I assume it's to prevent doubling up.
As far as the other portion of your family... the DAS is good for up to 6 people. They might put all 8 on there, but I wouldn't count on it since they are not immediate family members. They will obviously make exceptions for 2 adults and their 5 kids on the 6 person rule, but with 2 cards/8 people I don't think they'll bend it much. They might just put 4 people on each DAS card which would allow all 8 of you to ride at once with both cards having the same return time... but again... I think they're really trying to buckle down on the amount of cards/people's ability to use 2 cards for doubling up.
The very most they will give a DAS card for is 10 people.
Anything over 6 total requires a manager.
I'm not saying they won't give you two passes, but they might split your party up on them, and may not allow 8 people.
You could also schedule your FP+ reservations with the cousins so you don't have another worry about the DAS.
With ONE DAS card, the maximum is 10, as I mentioned.
With more than one card in a group, what people have been reporting is that the total for the entire party will still be no more then 10, but will be split up between the cards.
We'd prefer she stay in her chair if possible. She can never transfer to another type of wheelchair. She's needs 100% assist and is closing in on 90 pounds at 5'4". At our local amusement park, built in the 70's, the wrapping nature of the lines are where we have trouble as well as the widths. I've never been able to find info on the lines so if it exists somewhere here, that would help a ton.
Her manual wheelchair is 26 inches wide and 48 inches long and it fits everywhere.
A 'standard' wheelchair is 31 inches wide and 48 inches long and lines are at least 36 inches wide. As long as a wheelchair is no bigger than that 'standard' it should fit in lines.
I'll reply a little later with info about wheelchair accessible ride cars.
There are a few attractions where the line is not accessible and there is a special entrance or a special waiting area. It may be because the regular line is not accessible, because there is a limit on the people with special needs able to be in the attraction at one time because of evacuation limits or because the waiting area is small.
For wheelchair return times, whether they give them out or not depends on how busy it is. When we were at WDW from October 25 thru November 9, 2013, there were no attractions giving wheelchair return times when we went.
People who were there during the holidays reported getting wheelchair return times.