WDW+ Traveling with Autistic Kids Tips (Please Help)

[DisneyDreams4P&B]

With the number of diagnosis's of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) on the rise, many more of us are living with, caring for, and traveling with children who have some form of ASD.

I would love to compile a list of tips, touring plans and experiences for other parents who might be taking a trip to WDW. So many parents are often concerned or afraid to go to WDW and this might help make someone's vacation! It is my hope that with enough posts that they will make this a Sticky. Please offer any advice from traveling down, to rest. that you found were ASD friendly etc.

Thanks in advance!!!

 

[DisneyDreams4P&B]

Here are some things that worked well for us!

1. Prepare, Prepare, Prepare!-
We got videos brochures, everything WDW we could get our hands on and watched them with our son so as to prepare him for where we were staying and who we were going to see. Since he is so into his videos, I made sure to let him watch the ones that had characters we were going to see in Disney. He loves music to and I got the Disney music CD set that has music from the parks, rides etc. on it. (He would put "A Pirates Life for Me" on repeat and listen to it for ever - I think I can sing it backwards and in spanish!). Don't forget about the plane ride (if you going by plane), a "dry run" to the airport might help too. Show them the planes and how they take off and ALWAYS let the airline know that your traveling with a child who is autistic.

2. Earplugs
Bring them just in case. My son is SUPER sensitive to sound and I was so worried that he was going to melt down with all of the loud sounds, however he did great and hardly used them. Ask a CM was the noise/loudness factor is before getting on. (Son did have issues in EPCOT in the ENERGY Pavillion and at the end on the Great Movie Ride - too loud for even me)

3. Get a GAC card!

4. Take breaks- Many and often We go with the early in/early out theory- we are at the parks when they open (or close to it) and leave early afternoon. We nap, swim, eat and find the best playgrounds (Coranado Springs by far!) for some de-stimulation time.

5. Be Open! (Magic happens everywhere!) I am a scheduled overprotective mother and tried keeping our son on his schedule. After 2 days it wasn't working for him and it was okay. I started letting him flow and it was amazing. He did things we've never seen before and have such wonderful memories of our time. Too long of a story but he loves Star Wars and we went down on Star Wars Weekend, I will never forget the CM dressed as Boba Fett (his favorite) who made a point to single my son out during the parade. If we had kept to my strict schedule of leaving the parks by a certain time - we would have missed it.

 

[JenJen]

I am not sure if this is a normal ASD behavior or it is just my child but my DS is terrified of bubbles so it is good to ask if there are bubbles on a ride. When we went when he was 7 they had them in the muppets show and that was it for the day. He would not do anything else. I know this is a minor detail but it was something that made him not ride anything else for the rest of the day.

3D show seem to bother my kids ears the most out of anything at WDW or Disneyland so have some ear protectors or just advoid them if you can all together.

Fireworks are tricky for us to we normally try to get a snack at that time in a indoor location. The noise level is very high.

MAPS are so important to my kids. They seem to distract them and it helps them feel more in control of the trip to know where they are going.

JenJen

 

[mbb]

DVD player for the plane - prepare your kids for turning it off during take off and landing..

Gameboys or other handhelds - again for the plane, and turning them off - but really great for sitting and waiting for parades..wait staff at a restaurant...line ups anywhere...

Juice boxes...won't go anywhere without them

 

[TiggerCate]

If you can, drive. (I know this might not be realistic for everyone.) We found that driving 18 hours is much more restful for us than spending 6 or 7+ hours getting to the airport, checking luggage, waiting, boarding, flying, unboarding, getting luggage, getting to the destination, etc.

Portable or installed Video/DVD player. We don't have an installed DVD player in our van, but I am looking into getting a portable player for our next trip. We had a video player in the SUV we took last time and my DS watched videos the whole way down. He was much better behaved than his non-ASD sister!

If you have a special diet, make sure you plan in advance how you are going to handle it. We caved in and let DS have a Mickey pancake last time and we really paid the price the rest of the day. Next time, I am calling and finding out what our alternatives are when dining. Check out the menus. I've already found a couple of places that don't have a single gluten free item on their kids' menu.

Stay as many days as you can so that you don't feel bad if you leave the park for awhile. We spent 5 days at DL/CA last time and were able to go for a few hours at a time and then break and come back later.

 

[SueM in MN]

A very good suggestion.
We are waiting for some new PCAs to start working with DD. Once that happens (and school starts), I should have some more time for things like fixing some stickies.

Another attraction with bubbles:
Little Mermaid - it also has a mist of water when you go "under" the sea.

This website has a lot of good hints. The webmaster (?mistress, since it's a female?) has not updated it in a while so some of the outside links may not work, but the basic info on the site is good.

 

[mbb]

........Another attraction with bubbles:
.....

Bear in the Bog Blue House. Bubbles come down from the ceiling

 

[minkydog]

Consider staying at Fort Wilderness,either in a cabin or in your own camper. It is very quiet & relaxing after the sensory stimulation of the parks.

Just walking along the paths can calm an autistic kid.

And you can easily prepare the foods he is used to eating, rather than having every meal in a restaurant( an iffy experience, in my book).

Some days just taking a trip on the boat is enough.

And if everything is falling apart...

 

[DisneyDreams4P&B]

BUMP

 

[DIS-NH]

Take an early morning swim in the pool. Swimming always seems to have a calming effect on my (2) ASD sons. The pool areas are deserted in the early hours...they're awake anyway....so we take an opportunity for a relaxing swim. It starts the day out right.

 

[marj70]

I will be taking my son who has autism in early December. He will have just turned 4 then. We took him 2 years ago at this same time of year and it was amazing! He had the best time and the very best behavior we've ever seen from him. There was just so much for him to look at! I am going to start trying to prepare him for the 3D movies by getting glasses and practicing wearing them. Otherwise he will resist any form of hat, glasses, stickers, earplugs, etc. I plan to get him a GAC card although I'm hoping we won't need to use it, and I also plan to get him a nametag indicating he has autism. He is very tall for his age and that way characters/CMs/etc will understand when he doesn't respond to them verbally or otherwise. I also plan to get him listening to various Disney music, the Lion King stuff. He isn't interested in animation very much, but he loves music so I think if he recognizes the various songs he will enjoy the shows. I'm hoping for the magic again this year...

 

[Nik's Mom]

My 6 year old ds is autistic. Thanks to this board, we have learned so much!
Here are just a few things:
Avoid fireworks! Plan, plan, plan! Have the GAC handy for emergencies. We bring a familiar object from home so ds feels comfortable. For our family, it's his beloved rope that he carries everywhere.
An afternoon break is a life saver. The worse thing you can do is be a park touring comando when you have an autistic child with you.

 

[sherry66]

DVD player for the plane - prepare your kids for turning it off during take off and landing..

Gameboys or other handhelds - again for the plane, and turning them off - but really great for sitting and waiting for parades..wait staff at a restaurant...line ups anywhere...

Juice boxes...won't go anywhere without them

I second this I would add a discman if your child likes to listen to music.

 

[Jotash]

Baby Einstein Discovery Cards!!! We use them in the car, while waiting in lines, at restaurants. They have four sets now: Animals, Seasons, Toys, Numbers and Shapes. My son can go through them over and over and over and never get bored. They are easy to keep in a purse or bag and we plan to have them with us at WDW in Oct.

 

[SueM in MN]

Another thing people have posted in the past was that the monorail trains are a big hit with lots of kids with autism.

 

[marj70]

DS will adore the monorail!! When we took him the year before last his FAVORITE ride was the resort bus! When we got home from our trip he'd still grab us and say "ride bus, ride bus"-- I don't think he could remember not getting on a disney bus every morning to start the day!! Oh, and those words from a boy who barely spoke at all then (and still speaks very little communication-wise).

 

[JenJen]

That is so funny because my DD loved the tram at Disneyland until she was about 6 LOL. We could ride the parking lot tram all day and she would be happy.
JenJen

 

[andijean]

I have found a new thing to keep my boys occupied during meals and waiting time and gives them some therapeutic input at the same time. His OT used theraputty in their sessions and I bought a sampler pack(5-2oz) from one of the therapy catalogs. Eash color/level was in its own container and we put pegs in there with it to dig out, the boys will knead and stretch them, and they will try different textures in them. They have been so helpful.

 

[andijean]

Another thought: I was not prepared for how noisy Disney was and even our condo with the echo bothered him. We went out and bought earplugs at the drugstore for him. It helped take the edge off. This time we have headphones that really block out the intensity.

 

[HayGan]

I think the most important thing is to know your own child. For instance, others here have mentioned avoiding fireworks but my son fireworks. He would really be disappointed if he didn't get to see them.

Although our DS5 (PDD-NOS) doesn't have many issues with other amusement parks, we are taking several steps to try and insure that we all have a wonderful vacation.

1. DVDs - We have been watching 2 of the planning videos for several months. DS is now very familiar with most of the rides and is aware that characters will be present. He really doesn't like non-human costumed characters and that will likely be his biggest challenge in the World!

2. Maps - We ordered some park maps off of Ebay so that he can look at them frequently and learn more about the parks. We think that it will also be helpful in the parks because he will have a better knowledge of where we are and where we are going.

3. Pin trading - I have purchased about 150 pins to trade for our upcoming trip. We (along with his therapists) believe that it will be really good for him to pin trade since social interactions are one of his biggest challenges.

My son is a HUGE fan of amusement parks and rides so I really believe that he will love Disney World. He talks about it constantly and says he can't wait to give Cinderella a big hug & kiss ! Hopefully, he will