What not to do at Disney?

[livndisney]

My son and I wear them. He would be embarrassed if I said this but here is why. As stated earlier in this thread about strollers verses big kids he has Autism with sensory issues (among Anxiety etc) Now he loves the thrill of the rides but does not like the feel of his clothing soaked to the bone. He wants who rides with him to be like him because no one else is. It helps to feel comfy and some what normal. So not always the the concept is to get wet, sometimes the idea in a childs mind is the thrill of the ride with out the lingering effect of wet undies after wards.

To each is own, please respect.

Makes perfect sense to me

 

[livndisney]

To those of you who find a nursing mother obscene, and/or claim it illegal, i hereby present a very legal, Jack Nicholson eating his lunch.

If that is allowed, then i see no problem with a mother nursing her child.

And to keep with the thread theme, Please don't be Jack Nicholson Topless eating your lunch in the parks.

Sorry Jack-It is not allowed at WDW. When a CM sees a guest without a shirt, they will ask them to but the shirt back on. Same thing with barefeet. Cm's will approach and ask you to put your shoes back on.

 

[livndisney]

p.s. what not to do at disney

please do not
-let you small kids run around and they be surprised when you cannot find them
-ask someone to take your picture if you are not ready for it to be taken, and then take up forty minutes of my time trying to get arranged
-steal from the disney stores
-leave your messes for everyone else to clean up, even when at a sit down dinner, consolidating your dishes makes it easier for the people cleaning up
-expect everything to go right
-DO NOT forget to nap and reapply every day!

DO try to
-go to the front of the monorail and ask if you can sit there, its so fun to see the train moving from the front
-relax for at least two hours every day. you will be grateful the days following
-schedule one day in the middle of the week to relax at the hotel all day
-go to downtown disney at night to shop for some things to bring home
-but some disney shirts before you go to disney, they will be much cheaper here!

Since the accident last summer guests are no longer allowed in the front car of the monorail.


As far as what NOT to do at WDW-don't argue with the CM when they tell you guests are not allowed in the front car and don't make comments about the CM who passed. You are speaking with his friends and co workers. Please be respectful.

 

[katiebelle21]

My tip is a little different. One thing that my husband and I make it a point NOT to do at the parks is use our cell phones. It is nice just to be able to escape the outside world and truly lose yourself in the experience.

 

[SpacedOut]

i've got to chime in on this since i am handicapped. there should be designated areas for handicapped people to sit in. if i am late to something it is because of all i have to go thru to get to the place due to being in chronic pain.

given that you are a church goer and volunteer as an usher, you should have a more gentle heart about this if you are a Christian.

back in the day, people would naturally render their seat to a handicapped person, an elderly person, or a pregnant woman.

your post, even coming from an usher at a church, is really disheartning.

Thank you for your response! I did mention in my post that I would "do my best to accommodate" anyone who is handicapped. In my duties, I always set up extra chairs in the back for such people and save the handicapped space in back for those people in need of such assistance. I will do everything I can to help, but at some point, there are no more chairs and no more seats and no more space...

And as a Christian, it is not my place to judge one person or his/her handicap over another. All I can go by is who shows up first...

I hope that clears up your misconception...

 

[roscoepc1]

We rented a stroller for our (big) 7 yr old last year. Why? She had someone stomp on, then scrape her foot along the bottom of the pool under theirs at the resort the night before.

And amen on the comments and dirty looks breaking the hearts of kids-w/-special-needs' parents....you DON'T know, you have NO IDEA, and you have NO RIGHT to comment! We didn't stand in line yelling "Yes, please!" to God when the babies w/ Special Needs were handed out. We love our kids just the same as you do, and sometimes (due to the hard road) even MORE!

My son w/ special needs passed away 04/08/08....the last trip we took with him as part of our family is one of our most dearly held memories...in SPITE of all those nasty looks and stupid comments.

I am, and always was, DELIGHTED to offer a simple explanation, especially if an innocent child asked a question about my son. IF it's asked politely. I NEVER minded being approached. If you don't know, go over to the family and gently and politely ask why their child needs a wheelchair/stroller/etc (NOT "What's wrong with HIM?" in a snotty tone) . Then wish them a wonderful holiday, and help them maneuver through the crowd etc if possible.

 

[livndisney]

We rented a stroller for our (big) 7 yr old last year. Why? She had someone stomp on, then scrape her foot along the bottom of the pool under theirs at the resort the night before.

And amen on the comments and dirty looks breaking the hearts of kids-w/-special-needs' parents....you DON'T know, you have NO IDEA, and you have NO RIGHT to comment! We didn't stand in line yelling "Yes, please!" to God when the babies w/ Special Needs were handed out. We love our kids just the same as you do, and sometimes (due to the hard road) even MORE!

My son w/ special needs passed away 04/08/08....the last trip we took with him as part of our family is one of our most dearly held memories...in SPITE of all those nasty looks and stupid comments.

I am, and always was, DELIGHTED to offer a simple explanation, especially if an innocent child asked a question about my son. IF it's asked politely. I NEVER minded being approached. If you don't know, go over to the family and gently and politely ask why their child needs a wheelchair/stroller/etc (NOT "What's wrong with HIM?" in a snotty tone) . Then wish them a wonderful holiday, and help them maneuver through the crowd etc if possible.

Just wanted to offer , I sorry for the loss of your son. I know you do treasure those memories of his trip. I was just able to help a family make some memories before the passing of their child. I was blessed to be a small part of the magic.

 

[roscoepc1]

Just wanted to offer , I sorry for the loss of your son. I know you do treasure those memories of his trip. I was just able to help a family make some memories before the passing of their child. I was blessed to be a small part of the magic.

God bless you. They will remember you forever! And thank you. I have good days and bad days, but they're all alike in one way. I miss him with every breath I take.

 

[fraservalleymom]

When reading all the wonderful ideas and information on the board.I know each of us has seen something or witnessed something that you could not believe that someone would do at Disney or in public. So I was thinking about sharing those moments.
Please remember to use only disney friendly terms. This is for fun.

Well here's mine " What not to do at Disney" - .
My DH, DD, DD-Bff, DBL, DN, and myself where at typhoon lagoon and this woman was playing with her children as they came off the slide near the wave pool. No problem there, My husband and I were being lounge chair lizards and noticed a group of men, young men and boys intently watching the slide, I said to my husband I wonder what they are watching, well about that time she gave us a "rear end" view the string that covered her "rear end" was about the size of a thread.( very south beach) First let me say that she had a very nice shape, and did look great in the suit. But the show that she was putting on was really not family oriented. I know that everyone has the right to wear whatever, but it should be appropriate. The lady next to me looked up to see what we were talking about and found her DH and 2 sons staring. Needless to say she was not happy. The crowd of men was so noticeable that one of the CM came over and asked what was going on? The poor young girl turn about 3 shades of red, she walked off then about 2 minutes later a other CM came out and spoke to her and she went and put on some bottoms.

a

 

[minniejack]

I agree with you Scarlett. It is a little odd for an adult with no children to sit there and listen to story time with Belle. I understand parents wanting to see their kids reactions and let's face it I am not going to leave my kid alone in Disney World, but I think Disney has gotten a little too big. I personally think they need to expand in many areas. They are going to start losing business as a lot of people won't go because they just don't want to deal with the crowds.

Maybe the adult by herself was me several years ago. I went to get some ice cream for my kids came back and no DH...asked my little ones, about 4 and 6, where was daddy? He was on stage as the Beast.

 

[Chloesmom]

I just got back yesterday and the main thing I saw that freaked me out was people eating at buffet lines. Cant you wait to nibble til you get to your table? I saw time and time again people eating bits of meat or bread with thier fingers and then using the spoons to get more food... Yeah I realize people are eating with thier hands at the tables and then going back up and touching the spoons but I dont wanna see it. Out of sight out of mind I guess.
Oh.. and another issues we had was kids not sittign down at restaurants. We repeatedly had tables near us with kids who would get up and roam or dance in the aisle. One little girl was twirling at CP and swung and hit my daughter ( we were seated across the aisle from them) and you bet I was all over that. I tried to ignore her lying on the floor and running around but when she made contact that was it. Did it help? Umm.. nope. She still roamed around. She also " joined" other people at thier tables when the characters came so I imagine she is in many pictured. Pooh actually kinda nudged her out of DDs pic with him and I had to take my hand and kind of shoo her away from Piglet. Her mom just sat there watching the whole time even after I said something to her about her daughter hitting my DD. Her older brother ( 12 or 13 I would say) threw a tantrum in the aisle at the end of our meal because his mom told him he had to try a clam. I have no idea why anyone would force a kid to eat a buffet clam anyway but his reaction was unreasonable. He started screaming " clams are for rich people" and threw himself to the floor. As we left we had to step over him becaus ehe was down there a good 3-4 minutes screaming about clams. On a side note she hit my dd so hard she had a bruise on her arm the next morning.
We found out from our wonderful server at Kouzzina that as a Disney employee they are not allowed to say anything to parents about kids behavior.. even if other patrons complain. I think this is crazy. In fact the way we found out was because there was a crazy kid there too who was literally running thru the place and kept bumping the host and waitresses. He finally bumped my DDs chair while she was mid drink and she ended up wearing her drink. I took it upon myself to walk over to the table and ask her to control her child. The mom got mad and actually left about 5 minutes later .. We actually got our meals free ( we were on the dining plan so they didnt charge us points) because my daughters clothes were soaked and the glass hit her lip and caused her lip to swell right away. My poor DD got pretty beat up this trip.. I felt so bad for her.

 

[LockShockBarrel]

Oh man Chloesmom, that really is just ridiculous. People need to stop relying on the people around them to babysit their kids. The whole "Well I'm on vacation too" thing doesn't fly with me. Being on vacation doesn't excuse you from the responsibility of caring for your kid. Some people will tell you that Disney is for kids and you should expect them to be rowdy or whathaveyou. Rowdy is one thing, completely misbehaving is another. I can even understand a kid bumping into someone, but when they're running around and do something like what happened with your little one, it's wrong, no 2 ways about it.

Where I work, the general rule is you address the parent, not the child in the event they're really really misbehaving (something like destroying product, putting themselves in dangerous situations, etc) I don't think it's unreasonable for Disney to do the same thing. Doesn't it make much more sense to put in place some kind of basic rule system or empower the CM's to be more proactive about approaching parents rather than leave it to the guest to work out themselves and possibly end up with a big issue?

Years ago, we were at a restaurant, and my father was with us and had his guide dog. We kept the dog under the table as much as possible so he wasn't in the way of anyone, servers or customers, and to kind of minimize attention. At one point we hear a lot of jingling, and it was coming from the dog's leash and collar. My mom pokes her head under the table and lo and behold, there's a 6 year old (ish) boy sitting his merry butt on the ground next to the dog, petting him and unhooking his leash! I think most people by now know it's bad manners to pet a service dog, even if it appears they're not actively 'working'. His parents didn't even realize he was gone (they had 2 younger kids with them) and when asked to keep their kid with them and that he wasn't allowed to pet the dog their reply way "well it's a dog, what do you expect him to do?"

 

[MajorThomasina]

We found out from our wonderful server at Kouzzina that as a Disney employee they are not allowed to say anything to parents about kids behavior.. even if other patrons complain. I think this is crazy.

I am truly shocked to hear of this. Is this Disney's lazy way to avoid lawsuits? Shame on them! They have bigger lawsuits heading their way should an injury (or even death!) occur because of poor parenting. I remember when I was younger, minding my own business at a grocery store with my mother. We were at the checkout line when I spotted a brother and sister around the same age messing with the ECVs. They actually figured out how to turn them on and ride around the store. The boy SLAMMED into me when the ECV got out of control and my mother THREW A FIT! She was literally screaming at the boy and his mother. I was alright and was just trying to pull my mom away from the store. She was so infuriated. The only comfort that I got from that event is that both the mother and brother (even the sister who had nothing to do with the accident) looked REALLY guilty and acknowledged the fact that they were not careful, nor being responsible.

Oh man Chloesmom, that really is just ridiculous. People need to stop relying on the people around them to babysit their kids. The whole "Well I'm on vacation too" thing doesn't fly with me. Being on vacation doesn't excuse you from the responsibility of caring for your kid. Some people will tell you that Disney is for kids and you should expect them to be rowdy or whathaveyou. Rowdy is one thing, completely misbehaving is another. I can even understand a kid bumping into someone, but when they're running around and do something like what happened with your little one, it's wrong, no 2 ways about it.

Where I work, the general rule is you address the parent, not the child in the event they're really really misbehaving (something like destroying product, putting themselves in dangerous situations, etc) I don't think it's unreasonable for Disney to do the same thing. Doesn't it make much more sense to put in place some kind of basic rule system or empower the CM's to be more proactive about approaching parents rather than leave it to the guest to work out themselves and possibly end up with a big issue?

Years ago, we were at a restaurant, and my father was with us and had his guide dog. We kept the dog under the table as much as possible so he wasn't in the way of anyone, servers or customers, and to kind of minimize attention. At one point we hear a lot of jingling, and it was coming from the dog's leash and collar. My mom pokes her head under the table and lo and behold, there's a 6 year old (ish) boy sitting his merry butt on the ground next to the dog, petting him and unhooking his leash! I think most people by now know it's bad manners to pet a service dog, even if it appears they're not actively 'working'. His parents didn't even realize he was gone (they had 2 younger kids with them) and when asked to keep their kid with them and that he wasn't allowed to pet the dog their reply way "well it's a dog, what do you expect him to do?"

ITA with your first and second paragraphs! It boggles my mind how many parents generally drop every responsibility they have attached with their kid. I honestly think that they pretend that they're not the parent or something! In the words of Hank Hill, "that's just asinine!!"

On the service dog, I agree with you, that was completely out of line what that boy did, especially his mother's response. But I was always curious, and I mean no offense. Why are you not allowed to pet a service dog? I never tried to interact with a police or service dog because that's what I was taught to do. However, no one really told me why. I refrain myself from even asking when I see a service animal "off duty".

 

[DisneyMomm]

I am truly shocked to hear of this. Is this Disney's lazy way to avoid lawsuits? Shame on them! They have bigger lawsuits heading their way should an injury (or even death!) occur because of poor parenting. I remember when I was younger, minding my own business at a grocery store with my mother. We were at the checkout line when I spotted a brother and sister around the same age messing with the ECVs. They actually figured out how to turn them on and ride around the store. The boy SLAMMED into me when the ECV got out of control and my mother THREW A FIT! She was literally screaming at the boy and his mother. I was alright and was just trying to pull my mom away from the store. She was so infuriated. The only comfort that I got from that event is that both the mother and brother (even the sister who had nothing to do with the accident) looked REALLY guilty and acknowledged the fact that they were not careful, nor being responsible.



ITA with your first and second paragraphs! It boggles my mind how many parents generally drop every responsibility they have attached with their kid. I honestly think that they pretend that they're not the parent or something! In the words of Hank Hill, "that's just asinine!!"

On the service dog, I agree with you, that was completely out of line what that boy did, especially his mother's response. But I was always curious, and I mean no offense. Why are you not allowed to pet a service dog? I never tried to interact with a police or service dog because that's what I was taught to do. However, no one really told me why. I refrain myself from even asking when I see a service animal "off duty".

My mother has a friend who uses a service dog, and I don't know if there are any other reasons, but it is so they stay in "work mode" and are not distracted away from the needs of their owner. If they are wearing their harness they are working. If the owner has released the dog from working, then they'll usually allow them to be petted. This would only possibly happen in a setting that the owner is comfortable like a private party or somewhere they know. If your in a very public place, chances are the dog is not released from working. Even if the dog looks like he is not working , you still must ask, but that's the same with asking to pet anyone's dog. We've had our friend's service dog stay at our house and it hillarious because he's just a big goofy silly dog when he doesn't have the harness on, and then as soon as the harness goes on his whole demeanor changes. He becomes the most serious and focused dog I've ever seen. And then like a light switch, as soon as the harness comes of, he becomes a big lovable goof again and goes bounding off to be sociable with whoever will pet him. The training these dogs get to switch like that is absolutely remarkable.

 

[mitsybella]

Years ago, we were at a restaurant, and my father was with us and had his guide dog. We kept the dog under the table as much as possible so he wasn't in the way of anyone, servers or customers, and to kind of minimize attention. At one point we hear a lot of jingling, and it was coming from the dog's leash and collar. My mom pokes her head under the table and lo and behold, there's a 6 year old (ish) boy sitting his merry butt on the ground next to the dog, petting him and unhooking his leash! I think most people by now know it's bad manners to pet a service dog, even if it appears they're not actively 'working'. His parents didn't even realize he was gone (they had 2 younger kids with them) and when asked to keep their kid with them and that he wasn't allowed to pet the dog their reply way "well it's a dog, what do you expect him to do?"

I don't allow my children to pet any dog without asking, I would hate for something to happen and some dogs just dont like to be pet by strangers...

 

[LockShockBarrel]

PP is pretty much right. The way I learned it, with most service animals that come from actual service animal schools it goes like this (Just fyi I'm basing this off how Guiding Eyes for the Blind works/worked)

A puppy is born and goes at a few months old to a puppy raiser. The puppy then pretty much becomes the puppy raisers world. They're house broken, taught basic commands (sit, down, stay) and socialized. They'll start wearing "blankets", which is that little jacket looking thing that will typically say something like "Guide Dog in Training" on it. The purpose of that jacket is not just to prove it's in training, or tell you what its in training for, but also to get them used to eventually wearing a harness. It's almost like being in uniform for them. They start to associate wearing the blanket or the harness with a work mentality. After their stay with the puppy raiser, they go back to school where they go into intense training, learning how to actually guide someone. This is where they learn stuff like stopping at curbs, when to ignore a command if it may put their future partner in danger, etc etc. At some point in this a visually impaired person will come to the school and start training how to use a dog (usually using a dog that's trained to listen to anyone). Once they get the basics down, they're matched with their own dog. GEB takes into consideration how fast you walk, how tall you are, even if you have mobility issues when pairing you with a dog. For instance if someone has a bad hip, they're not going to pair that person with a dog that likes to walk quickly. Once paired, the rest of the time is spent working with your dog, bonding, and learning how to really respond to each other.

I know that's going a lot further than your question asked, but I figured I'd tell you to explain there's a TON of stuff that goes into training those dogs. When they're in that harness, they are totally switched into work mode. If a person with a guide dog were to be walking, and someone tried to pet it, that's an obvious distraction and could put the person at risk of getting hurt. A lot of people understand that, but when they see someone with a dog say at a restaurant where the dog isn't actively doing work, they assume it's ok to approach it. The way you have to think of it is the dog is still at work but on a break, he's not off the clock. I'll tell you with both our dogs, they knew the difference between being in that harness and being out of it. Our second one was very mellow in his harness, did his work and all, but man when that harness came off he was bouncing around like a moron, butt wiggling and tail knocking stuff off the table.

Now as a disclaimer of sorts, I'll say this. I haven't been around a puppy in training in a long time, and GEB may do stuff differently now. My experience is really around fully trained dogs. Other schools may do things completely different than the one I'm familiar with. I also can't speak to schools that train any other kind of service animal (dogs for the deaf, mobility assistance etc). I've known people that won't let anyone touch their dog, some that will let someone like a handicap child pet their dog, or will let anyone pet their dog. It can really just be a matter of preference.

I think the best thing to do is if you see a dog and it looks like its doing anything that could be considered work, ignore it. If it's at rest, you could politely ask the owner about them or if you could say hi to the dog. Most of the time, you'll probably be turned down, so please don't be angry if you are. While it may not seem bad if one person pets the dog in harness, over time the training will be broken and the dog will stop making that distinction between work and play. Also I'd like to stress that if you should ever approach someone with any type of service animal, address the person, not the animal.

 

[minniejack]

I think it all goes back to parents want to be friends with their kids and not parent and it happens everywhere not just on vaca.

Just yesterday, 2 little girls about 10 yrs olds kept pushing past me and my DD at TJ Maxx dept store in the dressing rooms and the aisles. The last time it happened, the one said in a little fake voice "excuse me". I then mumbled, I'm going to excuse you with my hand if you run into me again.

Then I heard one of them telling her mother that she was going to get someone in trouble.

While we were checking out, we heard that the manager was having to talk to one of the employees. Yep, the mother had turned the dressing room clerk because she had yelled at her angels for running in and out of the MEN'S dressing room.

I stayed to tell the manager of the behavior of the girls and that the employee did not deserve any type of punishment. She said the employee would not get in trouble because she too had observed the girls. I truly hope she wasn't just feeding me a line.

 

[dr-momx4]

WOW! I will be the first to admit that at first I was like ...this lady appears to be having a melt down!

but...

I watched the video with the sound turned off... (TRY IT!)

Obnoxious horn aside, it appears that she is actually driving respectively!

Leaving WDW on an ECV in a crowd is more difficult that many people could imagine. Adults and kids are CONSTANTLY stepping in front of you. Some are just not paying attention and some do it on purpose trying to rush ahead so they do not get stuck behind you. (People will also force you over into the railroad tracks where the ECV can get stuck or tip over.)

I am going to stick my neck out here and say that it looks like maybe she was trying to follow that person in front of her on the ECV and not get cut off by the crowd? I think maybe she she was just tying to keep peoples attention so they would not step in front of her. " Loud Pipes Save Lives"

checked out the video with the sound off and I agree she is following the ECV in front of her. I also wholeheartedly agree concerning managing an EVC in a crowded park is very problematic. I am in a wheelchair from a spinal cord injury and have extreme difficulty with maneuvering in the crowds @ WDW. People stop suddenly right in front of you to check a map or figet with a bag etc. The ECV's and electric wheelchairs have a magnetic brake which has a delay in response to braking (you cannot stop on a dime) so no matter how quickly you respond to the change in pace to the folks ahead of you, one can still end up inadvertently hitting the person who stopped in front of them. People are jumping in front of you to get in lines or across the lane etc, I especially have little respect for folks who push-in+crush right in front of you during parades or fireworks obstructing your view when you have waited in the same spot for 20 minutes beforehand. Then they put their kids up on their shoulders making it impossible for you to see from the 3 foot height that you are at.
I also had a horrible experience in MK Tiki Show. The CM sent my assistant into the show and told me to take the outdoor elevator at the exit of the show to be at the same level. I got in shut the door and rode up all of 4 feet to take the ramp into the show. Well, I could not open the gate on the other end, it was locked on the other side. The CM was no where to be found, my assistant was stuck in the Tiki Show and could not leave becasue the 'show' had already started. I kept yelling for some-one to release me from the tiny elevator. Hundreds of people passed by, some looked at me and kept walking! Finally, the show let out and my assistant rescued me. I went to locate the CM who left me stranded and he told me it was not his responsibility to make sure I got out of the elevator on the other side or unlock the release on the door. Now everytime some-one mentions Tiki (which used to be my favorite), my stomach turns.

 

[-DisneyFreak-]

we were in blizzard beach and this guy was wearing a skin colored see through speedo it was sicking

 

[MajorThomasina]

I know that's going a lot further than your question asked, but I figured I'd tell you to explain there's a TON of stuff that goes into training those dogs.

Ah, no! I'm actually glad you went further, it was very interesting to read and I thank you! As much as I love animals, I do indeed always address the owner. And I'll make sure they're not wearing any harness before I ask (if I get the courage to that is! )