WDW Summary of NEW DAS changes and Disney Genie - Post ONE is an updated summary

[lanejudy]

I must have missed (or forgotten) posts that clarified the expiration. I just remember reading some reports that it would expire earlier than expected -- or maybe it happened to be a glitch that fixed itself.

Anyway, 60 days from 1st use is still too short for the PP's 2 trips so they will need to renew. Are they allowing early renewals yet?

 

[SueM in MN]

I believe that it has been shown that it is not from the date of issue of video chat, but date of first use. There were a lot of rumors early on that it was 60 days from when you first were issued it, but that has been found to be untrue... sorry, don't have any documentation.... other than what I have been told by CMs.

EDITED: Perhaps someone calling in soon can clarify with the chat CMs for us to verify

It’s still listed on the WDW website DAS page as:

»Once registered, DAS is valid for up to 60 days. »

That is what it is for guests who are registering at the parks; that is not a change.
The part that is not clear is whether it starts at the time of the video chat or at the start of the first visit.

The other thing I have read (which is also consistent with past) is that it can be less than 60 days depending on the ticket type.
In the past, the inside the parks CMs were not able to make it more than 60 days even for AP holders once DAS went from a paper card to digital.

 

[jlundeen]

I think it would be great if they could put your DAS status somewhere... maybe in your profile? So you could see for sure exact dates that it could be used, instead of all of us having to guess and try to remember what you heard from whom or where... If they can tell you exactly what your park ticket dates are, it shouldn't be TOO hard to do the same for DAS, I would imagine. But then.... who knows?

I would be so on board with a bit of clarity... LOL....

I do have to mention how helpful every CM was for us while we were using DAS last week.... what a great experience we had that would not have been possible otherwise.

 

[jlundeen]

Oh, one other thing I can verify is that you must scan in to a park to be able to book a DAS return for that park. If you are hopping, you must scan in to that park before making a return time there. And, to clarity, the DAS tile does not show up for your first park until you scan in.

We also experienced after having used a day-of DAS return, that sometimes they don't "clear" and you cannot make a new one until you can get either a ride CM or a blue umbrella CM to clear it for you. The blue umbrella folks can also make a new one for you and seem to have a bit of leeway with what time they can do it... We found that a Everest DAS did not clear, but when the CM tried to make a new one for another ride for us after clearing it, it was after when we planned to leave, and she was able to bump it up to a time that would work for us...

AND, we had trouble doing the online DAS booking during the early entry, but ride CMs and blue umbrella folks can do it for you.

Again, we had a great trip that we would not have been able to have because of the DAS program. It really worked well for us after we figured it out.

I'll be happy to try to answer any other questions I can...

EDIT: One other thing I just remembered.. they do use DAS returns for the extended hours for Epcot and MK, but NOT for the AH party events.

 

[SueM in MN]

Oh, one other thing I can verify is that you must scan in to a park to be able to book a DAS return for that park. If you are hopping, you must scan in to that park before making a return time there. And, to clarity, the DAS tile does not show up for your first park until you scan in.

We also experienced after having used a day-of DAS return, that sometimes they don't "clear" and you cannot make a new one until you can get either a ride CM or a blue umbrella CM to clear it for you. The blue umbrella folks can also make a new one for you and seem to have a bit of leeway with what time they can do it... We found that a Everest DAS did not clear, but when the CM tried to make a new one for another ride for us after clearing it, it was after when we planned to leave, and she was able to bump it up to a time that would work for us...

AND, we had trouble doing the online DAS booking during the early entry, but ride CMs and blue umbrella folks can do it for you.

Again, we had a great trip that we would not have been able to have because of the DAS program. It really worked well for us after we figured it out.

I'll be happy to try to answer any other questions I can...

EDIT: One other thing I just remembered.. they do use DAS returns for the extended hours for Epcot and MK, but NOT for the AH party events.

The bolded has been verified by multiple people, so what you experienced was consistent with other people’s experience (including my family).

Regarding DAS not clearing after riding, there seem to be 2 possible scenarios that I’ve seen reported. The first is just one member of the group not scanning into the ride at the entrance and the second is one member not scanning at the second scan point inside the attraction. That can happen if that person scans quickly after the person before them or if they think they scanned, but it didn’t actually ‘read’ and was not caught by the CM.

 

[CBMom01]

It really is a great program and is a big part of why we have been back so many times. Like others have said: This program makes it possible to have enjoyable family vacations - not a "better parks experience". Some years it's been the thing that makes us comfortable with planning a vacation at all - anywhere.

 

[philbrody]

quick question. I thought I remembered there was an exception to the 1 das return time at a time which was if the return time was over 2 hours away, but am I confusing that with Genie+ or LL?

 

[lanejudy]

quick question. I thought I remembered there was an exception to the 1 das return time at a time which was if the return time was over 2 hours away, but am I confusing that with Genie+ or LL?

Yes, you are confusing Genie+ and DAS.

• DAS allows just 1 active return time at any given point during the day. It is open-ended and remains until used or cancelled; another cannot be scheduled until it is used or cancelled.
• Genie+ does allow for another to be booked 2 hours later (or 2 hours after parking opening).
• I$LL usually has a max of just 2 rides anyway but you may book both early in the morning if you so choose.

 

[jlundeen]

For those who have done the Advanced Online Registration lately, are they still only offering one time for Advanced Selections? I need to renew in early Jan for an early Feb trip, and when I did it the last time, there were three (I think) time options given for them. It changed shortly after that, but I don't know if that was just for the Holidays or a permanent change.

Hoping the whole process is smoother now... it sure wasn't when I did it in early November.

Thanks in advance!

 

[keishashadow]

sometimes they don't "clear" and you cannot make a new one until you can get either a ride CM or a blue umbrella CM to clear it for you.

Did you try logging into your account & cancelling it yourself?

 

[jlundeen]

Yes

 

[SueM in MN]

For those who have done the Advanced Online Registration lately, are they still only offering one time for Advanced Selections? I need to renew in early Jan for an early Feb trip, and when I did it the last time, there were three (I think) time options given for them. It changed shortly after that, but I don't know if that was just for the Holidays or a permanent change.

Hoping the whole process is smoother now... it sure wasn't when I did it in early November.

Thanks in advance!

From what I’ve been reading, whether the guest is offered one time or a choice of times for DAS Advance Selections depends on what is available for that attraction at the time of your call.
Again, from what I understand, there are ‘slots’ set aside for DAS Advance Selection for each day. If you happen to ask for a popular attraction, there may be limited times or that attraction might not be available to choose at all.

 

[jlundeen]

From what I’ve been reading, whether the guest is offered one time or a choice of times for DAS Advance Selections depends on what is available for that attraction at the time of your call.
Again, from what I understand, there are ‘slots’ set aside for DAS Advance Selection for each day. If you happen to ask for a popular attraction, there may be limited times or that attraction might not be available to choose at all.

thanks, Sue. I did hear from a couple of folks privately and for them, they were given more than one option, still limited to the same time groupings (slots) it seems as I experienced last fall ... but their trips are for after the Holidays, so maybe there is just more availability!

Thanks again.

 

[sharadoc]

Took less than an hour today to get connected and register my son. But, I kept getting an error message on the chat window once I was connected to plan my daily experiences. Still trying to get back to that, and I missed the chat while I was trying to get it to work. Still trying probably about 2 hours now.

 

[macandcheeseplease]

Hey all. Registered myself for DAS Advanced Reservations on Christmas morning and waited no time at all. However, I was only provided with one time for each advanced day. Some are a little later in the day then I would have preferred. Could I request time changes for them or would I have to just cancel them and try my luck again with scheduling? Or, is keeping them the status quo with advanced registration

 

[irish_trip_mom]

Was nervous to do the registration this AM after hearing some 8 hour wait time stories. Rolled out of bed and jumped on at 7am. Video chat just prior to 8am. All finished before 9am. When CM asked to meet my son (who has autism) and he was upset and couldn’t get on until a specific time 2 minutes later, CM was kind and explained the changes to the program from the old DAS while we waited those 2 minutes. We’ve always been a Disney family because it is the only place in our lives that helps us to have a memorable family vacation. Hopefully covid let’s this trip happen!

 

[lorenae]

From what I’ve been reading, whether the guest is offered one time or a choice of times for DAS Advance Selections depends on what is available for that attraction at the time of your call.
Again, from what I understand, there are ‘slots’ set aside for DAS Advance Selection for each day. If you happen to ask for a popular attraction, there may be limited times or that attraction might not be available to choose at all.

For my AK day, I was given very few choices (January 12). So I picked Safari and Festival of the Lion King. I know FOP isn’t one of them, and EE will be down (can’t ride it anyway), but I was surprised that those were my only real choices. I probably would have selected Na’Vi River if offered.

 

[Dispro1]

Hey all. Registered myself for DAS Advanced Reservations on Christmas morning and waited no time at all. However, I was only provided with one time for each advanced day. Some are a little later in the day then I would have preferred. Could I request time changes for them or would I have to just cancel them and try my luck again with scheduling? Or, is keeping them the status quo with advanced registration

It's all subject to availability of course, but I have been able to do another planning chat and get some times adjusted. I just renewed my DAS again this morning and got it all done in around 2 hours total...and I didn't even log on until noon! I guess they aren't as busy on major holidays or maybe we both got lucky?? I was initially offered some times that were a little later than I could do and was able to adjust some of them slightly while still in the chat to where I can at least make them work. Otherwise, I would probably have tried another planning chat later to see if I could adjust times a bit. I was offered more than one time on most rides, but I sometimes had to ask "is there a time a little later in the day" or "is that the only time available?" Good luck planning your trip. Hope you have a great time!

 

[DisSurfer878]

I'm sure this is somewhere in this thread, but I couldn't initially find it. A friend is heading to WDW for their spring break, and wants to know: is it 30 days from CHECK IN or 30 days from first park day? They arrive on a Saturday but their first park day is a Monday.

 

[jlundeen]

I'm sure this is somewhere in this thread, but I couldn't initially find it. A friend is heading to WDW for their spring break, and wants to know: is it 30 days from CHECK IN or 30 days from first park day? They arrive on a Saturday but their first park day is a Monday.

Here's what the website says:

Guests with Disabilities – Frequently Asked Questions

Q.

I would like to use Disability Access Service (DAS) during my upcoming visit. When can I begin online registration and planning with the DAS Advance option?
A.

Eligible Guests can now pre-register for DAS Advance virtually with a Cast Member, using live video chat. Please note that you may pre-register as soon as 30 days in advance of a park visit, but no less than 2 days before arrival.
During the registration chat, you will be able to use the DAS Advance planning option to work with a Cast Member to book up to 2 one-hour return windows for select experiences, for park visits within 30 to 2 days of the live chat.
Learn more about Disability Access Service.