Trip Report Broken lifts, EMTs, and spitters (oh my!): WDW with a wheelchair and DAS

I’m back, Magicians! For those who don’t know me, my name is Emily. You may recognize me from my sister @krause's Disneyland trip report from this past April, which was in celebration of my 30th birthday! I also wrote a report in September 2018 from a trip with my friend Kaitlyn and @krause wrote one other from a WDW trip from February 2018 for a trip with her family, myself and our parents. The last time I was in WDW was November 2019 (don’t remember a report? You can blame @krause for that as she took the notes) and I cannot wait to get back!

Let's get to the details!

Who: Myself, and my friend Jenny. This is us (I'm on the right):
me and jen.jpg

Some background on Jenny: Jenny was born with cerebral palsy which, for her, means some physical and cognitive disabilities. Jenny will be using an electric wheelchair on our trip. Her physical disabilities affect her life far more than her cognitive disabilities and she lives very independently. That being said, we know that getting the DAS pass will make this trip much more comfortable for her and so we plan to try to get the DAS using the online chat option when the time comes. Jenny has been to WDW before, as a child in 1996 and then again as a teenager (2006ish?). She remembers very little about her ‘96 trip and as a teenager she only did one day at Magic Kingdom, so lots will be new to her!

Some other (probable) players include: My parents, and my sister Kaely, her husband and two children. They are at WDW similar days as us (arrive and leave two days later than we do) and are staying off-property. Our trip dates just happened to coincide but we plan to meet up with them for dinner one night and potentially in a Park if possible. Here's us on our 2019 trip (not sure where the @krause crew was during this photoshoot):
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From L to R: Mom, Dad, my sister Kaely, her kids G and B (who are much bigger now!), her husband K, and myself.

When: October 25-November 3, 2022. We are flying in the afternoon of the 25th from Winnipeg, Canada where we both live.

Where: Pop Century Resort. This is only my second stay on property after staying at Port Orleans Riverside in February 2018. I liked the idea of having Skyliner access so that we don’t have to load the wheelchair on a bus each time we want to hit a park. I have not yet been on the Skyliner so having a wheelchair on there actually scares me a little bit but I’m pushing through the fear!

Up Next: The "Why"
 

AKemily

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Let's talk about what we have planned so far!

October 25, 2022 - DAY 1 - Arrival Day - we have to be at the airport at like 3AM (4AM Orlando time) and we land at 12:30PM at MCO (we have a layover in Toronto - the airport there has been terrible since COVID “ended” so hopefully everything goes smoothly😬). With any luck our room will be ready when we arrive. Either way, we have a park reservation for EPCOT that day and I imagine we will go for at least a little while before heading back to the room to get to bed early and catch up on sleep. I would love to be able to do Ratatouille this day! Getting a Guardians boarding group though is probably a stretch.

DAY 2 - Magic Kingdom - our first official day, of course, had to be Magic Kingdom! (We couldn't book it the night before due to a Halloween Party) I cannot WAIT to be back in the most magical place on earth
giphy.gif


DAY 3 - EPCOT - we have a 4PM ADR for San Angel Inn - it's kind of early so we might end up cancelling and doing Food & Wine instead, or we might be glad for a place to sit down, who knows! Anyway, I've always thought it would be cool to eat here because of the atmosphere in the Mexico pavilion.

DAY 4 - Animal Kingdom - my favourite :inlove: I'm excited to get Jenny on Flight of Passage - her mind will be blown 🤯

DAY 5 - Magic Kingdom - we have a 1:10PM Sanaa reservation with my parents and my sister and her family. We love going over to AKL and looking at the animals. We also love bread service 😂

DAY 6 - Hollywood Studios - we have a 5PM for ADR for Trattoria Al Forno - I have only been here for breakfast during the character dining and, as I understand it, it’s quite the different experience for dinner. I don’t know if we’ll take an afternoon break this day as it is our only day at HS, and I think we’ll be glad for the escape from the crowds for a little bit. We only have the one day at HS because neither of us are really Star Wars fans. My priorities for this day are MMRR, Toy Story Land, and Tower of Terror. Everything else is a bonus. I experienced Rise at Disneyland in April and I would like to do it again if possible but it’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t happen. I figure with the DAS we’ll be able to get the important things done with just one day in the books. Also, I’ve always loved Fantasmic so I’m hoping it’s back by this time - hopefully by next weekend we’ll know!
mickey mouse pixel art GIF by Disney


DAY 7 - EPCOT - we have a 11:10 Ohana breakfast. This was one place where Jenny knows she visited with her mother as a child and she’s looking forward to seeing it again. We are planning on indulging at Food & Wine this evening as well. Also, Kaely & company are also in EPCOT this day so we may meet up.

DAY 8 - Animal Kingdom

DAY 9 - Magic Kingdom - we have a Topolino’s Terrace ADR at 11AM. Super excited for the character dining experience here and to see Riviera! Again, Kaely & company have an overlapping park day here so hopefully we’ll see them here on our last day!

Other than the one HS day, we definitely plan to head back to the hotel in the heat of the afternoon to rest, recharge, and hit the pool before heading back to the park in the evening.
ratatoille-alfredo-linguini.gif
 

youngdeb

Active Member
Let's talk about what we have planned so far!

October 25, 2022 - DAY 1 - Arrival Day - we have to be at the airport at like 3AM (4AM Orlando time) and we land at 12:30PM at MCO (we have a layover in Toronto - the airport there has been terrible since COVID “ended” so hopefully everything goes smoothly😬). With any luck our room will be ready when we arrive. Either way, we have a park reservation for EPCOT that day and I imagine we will go for at least a little while before heading back to the room to get to bed early and catch up on sleep. I would love to be able to do Ratatouille this day! Getting a Guardians boarding group though is probably a stretch.

DAY 2 - Magic Kingdom - our first official day, of course, had to be Magic Kingdom! (We couldn't book it the night before due to a Halloween Party) I cannot WAIT to be back in the most magical place on earth
giphy.gif


DAY 3 - EPCOT - we have a 4PM ADR for San Angel Inn - it's kind of early so we might end up cancelling and doing Food & Wine instead, or we might be glad for a place to sit down, who knows! Anyway, I've always thought it would be cool to eat here because of the atmosphere in the Mexico pavilion.

DAY 4 - Animal Kingdom - my favourite :inlove: I'm excited to get Jenny on Flight of Passage - her mind will be blown 🤯

DAY 5 - Magic Kingdom - we have a 1:10PM Sanaa reservation with my parents and my sister and her family. We love going over to AKL and looking at the animals. We also love bread service 😂

DAY 6 - Hollywood Studios - we have a 5PM for ADR for Trattoria Al Forno - I have only been here for breakfast during the character dining and, as I understand it, it’s quite the different experience for dinner. I don’t know if we’ll take an afternoon break this day as it is our only day at HS, and I think we’ll be glad for the escape from the crowds for a little bit. We only have the one day at HS because neither of us are really Star Wars fans. My priorities for this day are MMRR, Toy Story Land, and Tower of Terror. Everything else is a bonus. I experienced Rise at Disneyland in April and I would like to do it again if possible but it’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t happen. I figure with the DAS we’ll be able to get the important things done with just one day in the books. Also, I’ve always loved Fantasmic so I’m hoping it’s back by this time - hopefully by next weekend we’ll know!
mickey mouse pixel art GIF by Disney


DAY 7 - EPCOT - we have a 11:10 Ohana breakfast. This was one place where Jenny knows she visited with her mother as a child and she’s looking forward to seeing it again. We are planning on indulging at Food & Wine this evening as well. Also, Kaely & company are also in EPCOT this day so we may meet up.

DAY 8 - Animal Kingdom

DAY 9 - Magic Kingdom - we have a Topolino’s Terrace ADR at 11AM. Super excited for the character dining experience here and to see Riviera! Again, Kaely & company have an overlapping park day here so hopefully we’ll see them here on our last day!

Other than the one HS day, we definitely plan to head back to the hotel in the heat of the afternoon to rest, recharge, and hit the pool before heading back to the park in the evening.
ratatoille-alfredo-linguini.gif

We will be in MK on the 26th as well. I will definitely keep an eye out :)
 

AKemily

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Also, I’ve always loved Fantasmic so I’m hoping it’s back by this time - hopefully by next weekend we’ll know!
So, as we all now know, there was no Fantasmic announcement 😒 Safe to say, I have set my expectations low.
sad%2Binside%2Bout%2Bgif.gif

:hilarious:
I'd say so! Thanks for joining, @Darstarr! :happy:
We will be in MK on the 26th as well. I will definitely keep an eye out :)
Yay! Please do! We should be easy to spot, we'll be the ones giggling all the way through the Park :joyfull:
There are definitely a few overlaps!! I'm getting ready to head to work now but I'll send you a message in the next day or so!! :D
Yahoo!
Max, don't do this to me! I'm stressing enough! Positive vibes only (lack of Fantasmic news aside)!
lol-what.gif

(Yes, I see the irony of using a Joy and Sadness gif in one post.. they're clearly battling it out in my brain 😅)
 

AKemily

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
29 Days to Disney!!
dance party GIF by Disney Pixar


Yesterday, Jenny and I sat down to pre-register her for the Disability Access Service (DAS) pass. I'm going to use this post to explain a bit about the current system and how registration went for those who are interested. (Read: another text-heavy post ahead)

Under the new system (launched at the same time as Genie), you can choose to register at Guest Services at the Parks as you would have before, or you can choose to pre-register online. Pre-registration comes with some perks by way of Advance ride selections - you can choose two rides per each day of your trip with a return time (similar to Fastpass+) where you can enter through the Lightning Lane. No matter when you register, once you’re in the Park you can book one DAS pass at a time (which allows you to virtually wait in the queue for any ride of your choice and then enter through the LL) and then with pre-registrations you additionally have your two advance passes that have a set return time.

Still with me?
no sense GIF


One other thing about the Advance ride selections is that not every ride is available. The most popular rides in each park are excluded, obviously including the Individual Lightning Lane rides, but up to the top three most-coveted rides in each park. All of these rides (excluding GotG since it has its own virtual queue), however, can be selected for DAS return times in-park. Clear as mud, I know.

I Am Groot What GIF by Disney+


A bit of an overview on how the pre-registration went for those who are interested:
  1. We went to the DAS webpage at about 1:00 (2pm FL time), agreed to the Terms and Conditions (I believe if you don’t do this ahead of time they will have to go over it with you over the video chat which will prolong the process), and requested a video call.

  2. A chat window pops up and tells you to wait for the next available Cast Member and warns you of long wait times. I had heard of varying wait times anywhere from 45 minutes to several hours. However, I had noticed that a warning on the website a few months ago about wait times was no longer there so I assume they have the process smoothed out a bit since launch.

  3. 10-15 minutes after the chat window opened we got our first message asking who the person was who needed the DAS, the names of the guests linked to it (up to 6 are allowed) and confirmation that the person who needed the DAS was there.

  4. Within 5 minutes of that happening they asked us to confirm that we were okay with a video call and not long later we were speaking with Cast Member Ernestine over video call.

  5. Ernestine gave a brief description of the DAS program and asked Jenny why waiting in long queues would be difficult for her. I won’t put Jenny’s answers here as I don’t want to help anyone abuse this system. Ernestine confirmed right away that Jenny was a fit for the program and signed us up.

  6. Soon, we were on our way to choosing our Advance DAS selections. This is where it helps to be prepared (which, of course, I was). Ernestine went through each of our days, I told her which rides we wanted, she gave a few time slots (usually one in the morning morning, one afternoon, and one evening), and I chose from those options. Like Fastpass+, you have an hour to get to the ride in the hour-long return window (for in-park selections you have all day to go to the ride, as you fairly waited your turn, however you can’t book another until you use your current one or cancel it). I’m sure people not being prepared for this part of the registration process slows things down considerably. Note, you can pre-register for DAS and then later talk with someone again to make your selections. I assume the longer you wait to do this, the fewer options for rides and return times that exist.

  7. One thing I did not know is that you can only book 7 park days worth of Advance selections. We have 9 park days so the last two we don’t have any selections. Ernestine said we could call or visit Guest Relations to book them on those days once we have used up our first two days… we’ll see if that happens or not haha.

  8. Ernestine gave us time to ask questions and mentioned the quiet rooms in each park that we could go to to escape the noise if need be. We thanked her for her time and I believe we wrapped the whole thing up by 1:40! Easy peasy.
Marvel Studios GIF by Disney+


And this is how they show up in the app (little sneak peek for the next post):
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As smooth as this went for us, I can’t imagine how absolutely confusing/overwhelming it would be for someone who has not been to Disney in recent history (or doesn’t obsessively follow Disney Parks news online). DAS, Genie+, Lightning Lane, Individual Lightning Lane, Advance DAS, in-Park DAS, virtual queues, etc. it’s a miracle anyone can keep any of it straight. Don’t get me wrong, DAS is a wonderful and much-needed tool for those with cognitive/sensory disabilities but there is SO much to learn and SO much of it is unclear. I myself am a bit worried I won’t be able to remember all the times we’re supposed to follow - virtual queue openings, DAS return times, even parades and shows - it’s a lot.
frustrated the emperors new groove GIF

But alas, the things we do for Disney 😅 :inlove:
 

AKemily

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
With all the above being said, I figured I should let you know our Advance DAS selections and provide an updated schedule. We did cancel a couple ADRs - that Canadian exchange rate is brutal y'all.
Prime Minister Shrug GIF

(Not a political statement:hilarious:)

Anyway, here it is:

Day 1 (Arrival Day) - EPCOT
- Living with the Land 5:30
- Soarin' 6:30

Day 2 - Magic Kingdom
- Jungle Cruise 10:30
- BTMRR 11:00

Day 3 - EPCOT
- Soarin' 11:00
- Spaceship Earth 11:00 (a testament to the lack of good Advance DAS ride options in EPCOT, not that I don't love SE)

Day 4 - Animal Kingdom
- Kilimanjaro Safaris 10:30
- Na'vi River Journey 12:30

Day 5 - Magic Kingdom
- Haunted Mansion 10:00
- Pirates 10:30
- Sanaa ADR 1:10

Day 6 - Hollywood Studios
- Tower of Terror 10:00
- Slinky Dog 11:30
- Trattoria Al Forno ADR 5:00

Day 7 - EPCOT
- Living with the Land 5:00
- Soarin' 5:30

Day 8 - Animal Kingdom
(no Advance DAS yet)

Day 9 - Magic Kingdom
- Topolino's Terrace ADR 11:00
(no Advance DAS yet)

excited the little mermaid GIF

Let's do this thing!
 

youngdeb

Active Member
I had to scrape the ice off my windshield this morning 🥶 Florida couldn’t come soon enough (not that they don’t have weather troubles of their own😣). 28 days!
Beach Day Singing GIF by Walt Disney Animation Studios
We're having second summer out here. It's usually close to freezing overnight by now but it's currently 23C and I went for a walk last night and it was 16C in the dark.
 

Sandurz

Well-Known Member
I recently travelled with some first-time DAS users. We totally forgot to pre-register so we missed out on the pre-selections, and it was really no big deal! The system works amazingly well since it moved to the app, so I wouldn't sweat those last two days at all. At that point towards the end of a trip it's nice to have some time to freestyle your day anyway!

Looks like you've got some great plans lined up, sounds like it'll be a wonderful trip!
 

Tiggertoo56

Well-Known Member
I'm in WDW and a member of our party did nothing about DAS until we got here last week. No issues - sorted it on the first morning and has been lucky in securing rides in all parks on the day. You should have no problems for the last couple of days.
 

AKemily

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
I recently travelled with some first-time DAS users. We totally forgot to pre-register so we missed out on the pre-selections, and it was really no big deal! The system works amazingly well since it moved to the app, so I wouldn't sweat those last two days at all. At that point towards the end of a trip it's nice to have some time to freestyle your day anyway!

Looks like you've got some great plans lined up, sounds like it'll be a wonderful trip!
I'm in WDW and a member of our party did nothing about DAS until we got here last week. No issues - sorted it on the first morning and has been lucky in securing rides in all parks on the day. You should have no problems for the last couple of days.
Thank you both! Yes, we certainly didn't end up needing the Advance DAS Reservations on our last two days! They were helpful on our early days to get as much done as possible but by the end of the trip they wouldn't have been necessary. We were so glad for our DAS pass in general though. Thank you for reading - hoping to get the report going today.
 

AKemily

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Hello again friends!
Bom Dia Hello GIF


Jenny and I have been back from WDW for two days now and, since then, I've been mostly catching up on sleep :hilarious:

Despite the title, our trip was an absolute blast with so many adventures and relatively few mishaps (although perhaps more mishaps than any trip I’ve been on before? Let's count 'em!).

I can’t wait for you all to read along!

On the day before we left (Monday, Oct. 24), I worked a couple of hours in the morning and then left early to finish packing and take my pup to the groomers. Doesn’t he look handsome?:inlove:

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He was going to stay with @krause but I dropped him off at my parents’ place where she would pick him up the next day. They have a pup the same age and they are best buds. I think they played the whole 10 days I was away.

My mom picked me up at around 2:15am and we picked up Jenny shortly after. A week or so before our trip we had decided to take Jenny’s smaller power chair which I was able to disassemble, making travel easier. Here’s the photo I took when I practiced disassembling it. Jenny was so impressed with me :hilarious:
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We made it to the airport at 3am for our 5am flight to Toronto.
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Jenny has very little movement in her legs. They are very stiff and one of her knees is bad enough that it cannot bear weight. For this reason, we needed her to transfer from her chair to an aisle chair to be able to get to her airplane seat. Here she is, ready to go (Tim Hortons in hand)!
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Boarded!
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We were flying into the sunrise on our way to Toronto and had some beautiful views! Here is Toronto's downtown above the clouds (can you spot the CN Tower?).

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In Toronto, there was some miscommunication from the airport staff regarding getting her chair off the plane - some staff telling us it would be transferred directly to our next flight and others telling us it would meet us at the top of the bridge. We had already traveled some distance in the airport before a staff person started wandering by with her chair back toward the gate we had just come from. Luckily, we noticed him and were able to transfer Jenny then. I can’t imagine what would have happened if we didn’t see him! This was almost mishap #1 but not quite!

After transferring back to her chair, we made it through customs and to our gate with little trouble. Thank goodness!

Fonorail selfie!
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Up next: Travelling to Pop Century
 

AKemily

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Day 1 continued

We had booked the MEARS shuttle to Pop Century. Before we decided to use Jenny’s smaller chair, I felt this would be the easiest option in terms of transporting her chair. We arrived at the MEARS shuttle location at 1:20 and waited maybe 15 minutes before they put us in a taxi - yes, a taxi. I found out later (by emailing them) that the only reason we got put on a taxi was because the lift on the bus was broken. Here's Jenny all loaded in!
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On our way!
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When we got to Pop, the taxi driver required me to pay him for tolls and tip. The whole trip by taxi would have been about $75 I believe (after tip). We had paid MEARS $32 for both of us for the shuttle. I paid $15 in tolls and tip so our trip cost us $47 at the end of the day. I’m all for tipping your driver, but I kind of feel that MEARS should cover those costs considering the fact that we did not ask to be in a taxi. Was it nice to have the private trip direct to resort? Yes. But should I have had to cover those costs? I honestly don’t know. What do you think? Canada has tipping culture but not as much as America. Would you have tipped your Magical Express driver when it was a free service? Would you tip a MEARS shuttle driver? I’m really curious.

First view of Pop!
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Also side note, the taxi driver wasn’t super keen on buckling Jenny in properly. We had to ask him for a seatbelt. 🤔

Ah well, we made it to Pop Century in one piece. Yahoo! We arrived at the resort around 2:30 and our room wasn’t ready, however they did have an accessible room available so assigned us to that one. Room 3251 here we come!
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It was awesome! The room was very nice and clean. The beds were very comfortable. Once the murphy bed was down, Jenny did struggle to move her chair around and ran into the furniture (a lot :hilarious:) so a little more room would have been nice. I can't imagine how it would work if you had a scooter, although admittedly there are better drivers out there than Jenny😅

We had a slight view of the Skyliner out our window. I'm not sure you can even tell in the below photo haha, but it runs behind those trees.
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Jenny needed some time to recuperate and I wanted to check the resort out. I went down to the 50's bowling-themed pool and relaxed a bit.
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While I was sitting there a lifeguard had to jump in the pool because I guess there were two boys roughhousing and one was being held under water. They couldn't have been more than 10 years old. It became clear pretty quickly that there were no parents around. A couple minutes later the boys walked off. I assume the lifeguard told them that a parent had to supervise (this was one of the pool rules). Yikes!

By 4pm we were on our way to Epcot!
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