News New DAS System at Walt Disney World 2024

[RSoxNo1]

Personally, the Universal approach of third party doctor's note submission has been the simplest and least stressful. Selfishly, I'd also prefer a reversion back to the 6 guest cap from the 4 guest cap. It doesn't need to be a soft 6 guest cap as it was previously, but a switch from 4 to 6 would absolutely help. Honestly, if they want to put that two guest "buffer" behind some sort of LLMP paywall, I'd have zero issue with it.

This has been discussed many times and would not help. Many of the people who had DAS before have legitimate disabilities. So we’d be back at square 1.

I'm not sure which part you're indicating wouldn't help. The IBCCES / 3rd party doctor's note submission or the switch back from 4 to 6.

Speaking anecdotally on both, I've found the IBCCES approach to be far simpler in the case of my autistic brother and that approach does not require tickets to be purchased in order to acquire the approval. Both of those are positives in my mind.

As for the switch from 4 to 6. If you see my previous post, 6 is the most common cap in the US. Disney had employed that # for decades and reduced it to 4 on the most recent update. That's one of many reasons why this is an over correction.

I realize that its anecdotal, but in our experience last year before and after the DAS realignment there was a major change when comparing the visible and physical impacts. Prior to the change, Lightning Lane lines routinely exceeded the internal queue space and expanded to the walkways (and I'm not counting rope drop lines) and the resulting standby ratio acceptance made standby lines miserably long. After the change, we have yet to see egregious Lightning Lane queues and standby queues actually move again. This we observed and experienced weeks during April, September, November and December.

On our last 2 visits prior to the change m, many of the LLs were long. Not really “lightning”. We had to skip a few or try to come back later. And this wasn’t just one or two due to rides being down, it was many.

Generally speaking, backups at Lightning Lanes are more of an optical problem than an actual problem. Other than a handful of rides with long cycle times (looking at you Soarin'), usually these backups are resolved in under 15 minutes even when a line is "spilling out into the walkways". The instances when the backups aren't resolved that quickly are typically a function of attraction downtime.

 

[RSoxNo1]

I haven’t used the new LLMP yet. Does it normally have decent same day availability at MK?

I've found its useful if you want to hop to MK in the evening from DAK or EPCOT where the need for LLMP is reduced. That being said, the rides with availability are often strange combinations. At Tier 1, generally Space Mountain has the most availability. In Tier 2, generally Pirates and Mansion are the first ones to dry up.

 

[jaklgreen]

Fast pass/ Genie plus / Lightning lane should NOT be part of the DAS discussion.

I understand that some people that need accommodations are able to "get by" with these (free or not) but they are not a standby replacement. Disability accommodations are a substitute for Standby

Why not? It is no secret that many more people started asking for DAS once they got rid of free fast pass and went to paid LL. And yes it should be part of the discussion because those things DID affect those with disabilities as well as everyone else. It is a huge reason why more people started applying for DAS. Many used to be able to make due with the fastpasses but once those were gone, applied for the DAS.
I don't think that your point stands at all. It sounds like an argument just for arguments sake.

 

[jaklgreen]

This is never going to happen. Also, if FP worked for people then LLMP will as well. The issue is they don’t want to pay for it.

But FP and Genie+ are NOT the same. There was no limit on how many fastpasses you could get a day for a particular ride like there is with Genie+. So if someone wanted to only go on Pirates all day, they could just keep getting fastpasses for that, as long as the FP lasted. You can't do that with Genie+. So NO, they are not the same.

 

[jaklgreen]

This is a very vulnerable admission. It's 100% okay to want to feel "special", that's very human -- but that's not the purpose of these accommodations.

Who is saying that they want to "feel special"? That is a very condescending comment and should be removed by the moderators. My comments about this have nothing to do with me or me wanting to "feel special". Trust me, I am not that self absorbed. We are talking in general here about the what Disney is doing for Disability access and I am trying to give another perspective that maybe others have not considered.

 

[Jrb1979]

Who is saying that they want to "feel special"? That is a very condescending comment and should be removed by the moderators. My comments about this have nothing to do with me or me wanting to "feel special". Trust me, I am not that self absorbed. We are talking in general here about the what Disney is doing for Disability access and I am trying to give another perspective that maybe others have not considered.

IMO they are still doing more for those with disabilities than most other parks. A lot of the options are equal or better than LLMP, when it should really only be equal to standby

 

[jennab55]

But FP and Genie+ are NOT the same. There was no limit on how many fastpasses you could get a day for a particular ride like there is with Genie+. So if someone wanted to only go on Pirates all day, they could just keep getting fastpasses for that, as long as the FP lasted. You can't do that with Genie+. So NO, they are not the same.

But it wasn’t always available. Sometimes you couldn’t get a ride on FP, or even multiple rides. Plus people who stayed on site had a better advantage and could prebook earlier (same with LLMP).

 

[Chip Chipperson]

Who is saying that they want to "feel special"? That is a very condescending comment and should be removed by the moderators. My comments about this have nothing to do with me or me wanting to "feel special". Trust me, I am not that self absorbed. We are talking in general here about the what Disney is doing for Disability access and I am trying to give another perspective that maybe others have not considered.

You literally complained that the alternative accommodations aren't special because anyone can return to the line to rejoin their group, which has nothing to do with their adequacy. That necessarily suggests that you want your accommodations to be special even if the existing accommodations are adequate.

 

[jaklgreen]

You literally complained that the alternative accommodations aren't special because anyone can return to the line to rejoin their group, which has nothing to do with their adequacy. That necessarily suggests that you want your accommodations to be special even if the existing accommodations are adequate.

I agree if you are able to go to the cast member at the rides and ask for a return time, that is way more than adequate. I don't agree that they force people to go through the line and then try to get out of it when the person is having a medical emergency. I think that too many people think that is reasonable because they are looking at it as either someone without medical issues, or with medical issues that don't manifest in the same way that others do.
For many, being 20+ minutes deep in a line and having to quickly leave that line is a nightmare. I don't think that people with disabilities should be put in that position.
I also think that the question that the DAS cast member ask "what do you do in lines at the grocery store" is even remotely comparable and shouldn't be used as any kind of metric to decide if a person should receive DAS or not.
As if being in line at the checkout is the same as being in a enclosed, dark, packed space with hundreds of other people. I think that too many are dismissing and downplaying people's disabilities.

 

[Jrb1979]

I agree if you are able to go to the cast member at the rides and ask for a return time, that is way more than adequate. I don't agree that they force people to go through the line and then try to get out of it when the person is having a medical emergency. I think that too many people think that is reasonable because they are looking at it as either someone without medical issues, or with medical issues that don't manifest in the same way that others do.
For many, being 20+ minutes deep in a line and having to quickly leave that line is a nightmare. I don't think that people with disabilities should be put in that position.
I also think that the question that the DAS cast member ask "what do you do in lines at the grocery store" is even remotely comparable and shouldn't be used as any kind of metric to decide if a person should receive DAS or not.
As if being in line at the checkout is the same as being in a enclosed, dark, packed space with hundreds of other people. I think that too many are dismissing and downplaying people's disabilities.

I disagree about downplaying people's disabilities. They aren't and neither is Disney. Not all disabilities are the same so DAS shouldn't be the only option. I still think that what they are offering is over and above what majority of parks offer. IMO at this point it's either accept it or maybe understand that it's not for you anymore. It's unfortunate that it may come to that.

 

[jaklgreen]

I disagree about downplaying people's disabilities. They aren't and neither is Disney. Not all disabilities are the same so DAS shouldn't be the only option. I still think that what they are offering is over and above what majority of parks offer. IMO at this point it's either accept it or maybe understand that it's not for you anymore. It's unfortunate that it may come to that.

It is just sad to see how heartless and uncaring so many comments are everywhere. People assuming that others are faking it or that they are exaggerating. Which is true for some people, but not everyone is like that. I feel like we are going backwards with the mentality of how people treat those with disabilities and the animosity that some show is disheartening. The reality is that NO ONE knows what a person goes through and for ANYONE to tell someone else, that they don't even know, that they are lying or exaggerating or even saying what they can and can not handle, is just wrong.
How anyone can say any of that is beyond me.
People come here to get information and share their stories, not to be told to "just deal with it" or "you just want to feel special".

 

[Jrb1979]

It is just sad to see how heartless and uncaring so many comments are everywhere. People assuming that others are faking it or that they are exaggerating. Which is true for some people, but not everyone is like that. I feel like we are going backwards with the mentality of how people treat those with disabilities and the animosity that some show is disheartening. The reality is that NO ONE knows what a person goes through and for ANYONE to tell someone else, that they don't even know, that they are lying or exaggerating or even saying what they can and can not handle, is just wrong.
How anyone can say any of that is beyond me.
People come here to get information and share their stories, not to be told to "just deal with it" or "you just want to feel special".

I disagree with that too. I understand losing DAS access for many sucks and I can understand the frustration. I don't think there is animosity at all. I think many understand the situation and what Disney is trying to accomplish. All these other options that they offer have always been available. They weren't used much as everyone who needed DAS got it. Not all disabilities are the same. A one size fits all system like DAS isn't the answer when some of these other options work better for some.

Not every one with a disability needs a short wait for every attraction to ride it.

 

[Keladry84]

It is just sad to see how heartless and uncaring so many comments are everywhere. People assuming that others are faking it or that they are exaggerating. Which is true for some people, but not everyone is like that. I feel like we are going backwards with the mentality of how people treat those with disabilities and the animosity that some show is disheartening. The reality is that NO ONE knows what a person goes through and for ANYONE to tell someone else, that they don't even know, that they are lying or exaggerating or even saying what they can and can not handle, is just wrong.
How anyone can say any of that is beyond me.
People come here to get information and share their stories, not to be told to "just deal with it" or "you just want to feel special".

No one here is saying or has said that. You're interpreting it that way, but that is not what is being said or implied.

I've noticed that people who think DAS and only DAS should be the accommodation for everyone's disability no matter what tend to interpret any denial of DAS, suggestion of other options, or different possibilties by Disney to accommodate as dismissive/painting people as liars/ableist, etc. A suggestion of other accommodations available to use is none of those.

DAS is ONE specific accommodation. There are many other accommodations and processes. All are listed very clearly on the website, in my opinion much more thorough and more clearly than what I've seen for other parks. It was much easier for me to navigate and understand what is there for Disney than it was for my local theme park.

If DAS didn't/had never existed, I think many people would be very happy and satisfied with what is there.

Reading between the lines of what has been approved vs. not, I agree with another poster: DAS is being issued for disabilities where the difficulty is specifically caused by something in the queue (in other words environmental). Other accommodations are suggested for those whose difficulty primarily comes from the length of wait, and/or is situational to factors other than specifically the queue design. For the first scenario, that person will never be able to move through the queue, because every time they reach that point, they will need to exit. For the second scenario, once the mitigating factor is resolved, they can access the queue/environment.

Disney is not evaluating severity, they are evaluating cause/effect. This is entirely individual, even among people with the same disability. A denial for DAS is not in any shape or form make\ing an evaluation on if a person is disabled or not, it is simply a checklist for the cause/effect that they are offereing that one specific accommodation for. Other avenues of access are available for other cause/effects of need. This is not discrimination, nor is it abelist.

 

[Chip Chipperson]

I agree if you are able to go to the cast member at the rides and ask for a return time, that is way more than adequate. I don't agree that they force people to go through the line and then try to get out of it when the person is having a medical emergency. I think that too many people think that is reasonable because they are looking at it as either someone without medical issues, or with medical issues that don't manifest in the same way that others do.
For many, being 20+ minutes deep in a line and having to quickly leave that line is a nightmare. I don't think that people with disabilities should be put in that position.
I also think that the question that the DAS cast member ask "what do you do in lines at the grocery store" is even remotely comparable and shouldn't be used as any kind of metric to decide if a person should receive DAS or not.
As if being in line at the checkout is the same as being in a enclosed, dark, packed space with hundreds of other people. I think that too many are dismissing and downplaying people's disabilities.

That's not the only possible accomodation, though. Depending on the attraction and the guest's needs they may be able to wait outside the line with another member of their party and meet up at the LL merge point. So there are 2 known accommodations, one of which doesn't involve waiting in the Standby line. That's not dismissive of people's issues at all.

 

[Chi84]

Why don’t we concentrate on what may be new or on people’s experiences. This argument is an exact repetition of what has been previously said in this thread.

 

[jennab55]

It is just sad to see how heartless and uncaring so many comments are everywhere. People assuming that others are faking it or that they are exaggerating. Which is true for some people, but not everyone is like that. I feel like we are going backwards with the mentality of how people treat those with disabilities and the animosity that some show is disheartening. The reality is that NO ONE knows what a person goes through and for ANYONE to tell someone else, that they don't even know, that they are lying or exaggerating or even saying what they can and can not handle, is just wrong.
How anyone can say any of that is beyond me.
People come here to get information and share their stories, not to be told to "just deal with it" or "you just want to feel special".

I don’t think anyone here is uncaring. I think many are just over people thinking they should get DAS just because they are disabled. It’s a Disney policy and they’ve changed it. They’ve made other accommodations for people who no longer qualify for DAS, but many people are unwilling to accept those, even though the accommodations could work, because they are “less than” what they want. To be honest, a lot of it just seems very entitled. No one is entitled to DAS, it’s a made up program by a theme park that they could get rid of tomorrow. I’m also making these statements as a person with and a child who also has disabilities .

 

[jennab55]

No one here is saying or has said that. You're interpreting it that way, but that is not what is being said or implied.

I've noticed that people who think DAS and only DAS should be the accommodation for everyone's disability no matter what tend to interpret any denial of DAS, suggestion of other options, or different possibilties by Disney to accommodate as dismissive/painting people as liars/ableist, etc. A suggestion of other accommodations available to use is none of those.

DAS is ONE specific accommodation. There are many other accommodations and processes. All are listed very clearly on the website, in my opinion much more thorough and more clearly than what I've seen for other parks. It was much easier for me to navigate and understand what is there for Disney than it was for my local theme park.

If DAS didn't/had never existed, I think many people would be very happy and satisfied with what is there.

Reading between the lines of what has been approved vs. not, I agree with another poster: DAS is being issued for disabilities where the difficulty is specifically caused by something in the queue (in other words environmental). Other accommodations are suggested for those whose difficulty primarily comes from the length of wait, and/or is situational to factors other than specifically the queue design. For the first scenario, that person will never be able to move through the queue, because every time they reach that point, they will need to exit. For the second scenario, once the mitigating factor is resolved, they can access the queue/environment.

Disney is not evaluating severity, they are evaluating cause/effect. This is entirely individual, even among people with the same disability. A denial for DAS is not in any shape or form make\ing an evaluation on if a person is disabled or not, it is simply a checklist for the cause/effect that they are offereing that one specific accommodation for. Other avenues of access are available for other cause/effects of need. This is not discrimination, nor is it abelist.

Precisely the type of people who hang out in the fb group that shouldn’t be named. They call anyone ableist who doesn’t agree that DAS is the only acceptable answer for every disabled person and they are entitled to it.

 

[jaklgreen]

That's not the only possible accomodation, though. Depending on the attraction and the guest's needs they may be able to wait outside the line with another member of their party and meet up at the LL merge point. So there are 2 known accommodations, one of which doesn't involve waiting in the Standby line. That's not dismissive of people's issues at all.

It would be nice to know before you book a trip though how you will be accommodated. For many, the type of accommodations do make the difference between having a someone normal trip and a frustrating and sad experience. That is my main issue with how Disney is handling things. The whole "trust me bro" mentality telling people to just go and see what they can do for you, is not how it should work.
Going to the parks is not like stopping into your local store. It takes a lot of money and a lot of planning for these trips.

 

[jaklgreen]

I don’t think anyone here is uncaring. I think many are just over people thinking they should get DAS just because they are disabled. It’s a Disney policy and they’ve changed it. They’ve made other accommodations for people who no longer qualify for DAS, but many people are unwilling to accept those, even though the accommodations could work, because they are “less than” what they want. To be honest, a lot of it just seems very entitled. No one is entitled to DAS, it’s a made up program by a theme park that they could get rid of tomorrow. I’m also making these statements as a person with and a child who also has disabilities .

No, my issue is with the not knowing what kind of accommodations they decide to give you before you book your trip. And I know that most people have seen reports about how every cast member at the rides tells you something different. The inconsistency is not something that a huge company like Disney should have. Every cast member should be trained and the accommodations should be consistent to the person.

 

[Jrb1979]

No, my issue is with the not knowing what kind of accommodations they decide to give you before you book your trip. And I know that most people have seen reports about how every cast member at the rides tells you something different. The inconsistency is not something that a huge company like Disney should have. Every cast member should be trained and the accommodations should be consistent to the person.

It's never going to be consistent due to party size, what the wait times are like, time of day.