GAC to Become DAS

[IWantMyMagicBand]

here we go, people who use a gac legitimately are already out to defend it while not being aware of the extreme abuse the cards have caused. this new system will be fair and still accommodate your needs.

you will see a reduction in standby wait times... maybe not immediately apparent... but I'm almost willing to put money on that.

Which will lessen the time for thegenuine DAS's to wait too. Win.

 

[wdwmagic]

Let us not let this thread turn into a fight. It is for sharing information and civil discussion.

 

[WDWFan_Boston]

I thank Disney for their GAC program. It has helped me teach my son concepts I never thought possible. But I have also always understood that it is there to help him overcome his hardship, not to make it easy for him. I know all cases are different, and my method took/takes a lot of work. But the payoff is well worth it. My son still has his moments and it is by no means easy. But he loves WDW more than anything, the GAC/DAS has made that love possible. The last thing I would want is to see that destroyed by abusers. So, I accept the changes as a necesarry evil to keep the system functioning. No way around it.

Thanks for your perspective. Very well said!

 

[Lord_Vader]

What I am curios about is.. when this rolls out in Florida and I'm sure it plays a roll for some in Cali.. I travel with my friend and her daughters.. one of her daughters needs the GAC and a stroller as a wheelchair pass.. when they limit to one ride at a time and say you can go ride something else with a low wait time for those children that literally cannot handle a 10-20 minute "low wait time" what are the families suppose to do?

Do what we plan to do, shop & dine, sit around and people watch, play SotMK or the Pirate game, watch a parade or fireworks, etc. There is so much to do in all Disney parks other than just the rides.

 

[millercv]

Seems like a fair and reasonable thing to do all around, but I'm glad we are leaving on Friday for one last trip the old fashioned way.

 

[Grumpy21]

I cal

l call BS

Your a CM and you don't like this. Can you explain why?

 

[NowInc]

People typically are always afraid of "change"...in any sense. The GAC switch isn't something thats going to hurt people who aren't abusing the system. In fact, it sounds to me that the new system is actually BETTER, letting the person(s) better assure that they won't in fact have a 15+ minute wait once the lines merge, which is often the case these days.

 

[arko]

here we go, people who use a gac legitimately are already out to defend it while not being aware of the extreme abuse the cards have caused. this new system will be fair and still accommodate your needs.

you will see a reduction in standby wait times... maybe not immediately apparent... but I'm almost willing to put money on that.

Does this new system curb abuse, absolutely it does, is it fair, it depends on your point of view. For those who understand why they have to come back later this should not be an issue, for those with autism or other mental and behavior issues the loss of the GAC is a loss of benefit and the new system is less fair than it used to be.
That being said I was totally expecting it to end up with some variation of what has been reported here, simply because the benefit was just too good not to see abuse.

We were already debating whether to renew our passes after this year, and we plan to possibly visit Disney on that weekend. So we will see how much it affects our ability to enjoy the parks, and if it is no longer enjoyable , then that will be 1600$ saved next year to do other things.

It will be interesting to see just how much FP+ and the DAS actually change standby waits. My guess is the change will be small.

 

[WDWFan_Boston]

Does this new system curb abuse, absolutely it does, is it fair, it depends on your point of view.

As far as it being fair, I don't think it depends on a person's point of view in this instance. Everyone is finally on an even playing field. That is the very definition of the word fair.

It will be interesting to see just how much FP+ and the DAS actually change standby waits. My guess is the change will be small.

That is definitely up for debate. I believe the difference could be quite significant since GAC abuse will be eliminated. But, we will see.

 

[PolynesianPrincess]

So families that have children that cannot physically wait in line due to the childs inability to understand what is going on and why you said ok lets go ride small world and you get in line and 15 minutes have passed and the child still isnt on small world and the child doesnt understand that they have to wait to have that child break down and freak out and start lashing out where the parents have to try and calm a child down in line where people are staring at them thinking about what a horrible parent they are because they can't control their child and the other children in the family see all of this and hear what people are whispering to each other and get embarrassed about the situation and the parents are now getting beaten up by their child and start loosing it themselves... yep that makes such magical moments.... I hope every one here that doesn't have a child with a disability thinks about that before they make such comments... and yes this happens and yes you may say "oh I would never think that about another parent" but you know you would/do we are only human and who do you think gets more annoyed over GAC abuse then that parents that NEED to use this to have a magical trip for their families because they deserve a magical vacation just as much as every one else

Don't take them on a ride then. Take them to walk around, take them intro a store... No one said you HAVE to take them to wait in another line.

 

[Ariel Savage]

wow. some of the responses on here are disturbing. are people really getting upset at the idea that a child with physical or mental disabilities might actually get to wait 10 minutes less than you? Why argue about this? Yes, people abuse the current system, and they should be shamed for their ignorance and audacity. But really, to think that a child or an adult with a life altering disability is somehow getting one over on you and your healthy family because they didn't have to wait in line for Peter Pan is ridiculous. Life is hard enough as it is, and having a disability or having someone in your family with one is no picnic. It's not a pity badge to get free stuff. It's difficult. If you're so concerned, continue writing letter to WDW management expressing your concerns over the abuse of GAC, not berate people who have stories of how it helped them have a nice vacation. I mean, it is all about the magic, right? One place where for a week life is easy and stress free? Maybe that's what the GAC allows for a few families. I understand the frustration, but I think the hate and really inappropriate responses are misguided and aimed at the wrong people.

 

[TubaGeek]

What complaint does anyone have other than the fact that you can only get a return pass if the wait time is over 15?
I mean, the ONLY thing I would change about the essentiality of the system is making that 10 minutes, since that's the theoretical maximum wait time for the FP line they'd probably wait in anyways.

 

[flynnibus]

That is definitely up for debate. I believe the difference could be quite significant since GAC abuse will be eliminated. But, we will see.

I still think there is ripe chance for abuse at WDW... the difference is the gain is just less than it used to be. But without more details.. the system will be extremely attractive still for people

They didn't talk about trying to manage who qualifies or not... there is still some incentive for abuse here as this basically becomes a uber-Fastpass. They never run out, the return time is likely better than the FP return time, and it doesn't hinder your use of FP.

They also didn't talk about strictness on return times.

Think about in WDW where FP+ is rolled out.. you have limited # of FP+ uses... the DAS card basically bypasses all your FP+ restrictions. So if legacy FP goes away as rumored... it will be very attractive for abuse in WDW.

 

[minninedaisy74]

wow. some of the responses on here are disturbing. are people really getting upset at the idea that a child with physical or mental disabilities might actually get to wait 10 minutes less than you? Why argue about this? Yes, people abuse the current system, and they should be shamed for their ignorance and audacity. But really, to think that a child or an adult with a life altering disability is somehow getting one over on you and your healthy family because they didn't have to wait in line for Peter Pan is ridiculous. Life is hard enough as it is, and having a disability or having someone in your family with one is no picnic. It's not a pity badge to get free stuff. It's difficult. If you're so concerned, continue writing letter to WDW management expressing your concerns over the abuse of GAC, not berate people who have stories of how it helped them have a nice vacation. I mean, it is all about the magic, right? One place where for a week life is easy and stress free? Maybe that's what the GAC allows for a few families. I understand the frustration, but I think the hate and really inappropriate responses are misguided and aimed at the wrong people.

I don't think anyone is begrudging them entrance to a ride or a magical vacation. I think this new way is a great idea and it seems to be a win win for all involved. Also just a little public service announcement no one is entitled to a Disney vacation and if you child has a disability that is so bad that having to wait a few minutes to ride a ride will cause them to have a miserable time perhaps you should rethink your vacation destination.

 

[TP2000]

What I am curios about is.. when this rolls out in Florida and I'm sure it plays a roll for some in Cali.. I travel with my friend and her daughters.. one of her daughters needs the GAC and a stroller as a wheelchair pass.. when they limit to one ride at a time and say you can go ride something else with a low wait time for those children that literally cannot handle a 10-20 minute "low wait time" what are the families suppose to do?

Do all the things that families without children who can't handle a 20 minute wait don't get to do. Watch a stage show, go to a singing robot theater show, have a snack, browse through a store, sit along the water in the sunshine and feed the ducks, watch a parade, listen to a band, ride the riverboat, or just enjoy being at a Disney theme park.

The other families with other children will still be waiting in the fifth switchback of the Standby line missing out on all that stuff.

 

[Neverland]

What I can say about DAS:

It's not BS, it's absolutely real and it is indeed starting in early October. WDW is currently hiring a whole new crop of Guest Relations CMs to deal with DAS and also MyMagic+.

And the other thing is that, apparently, the original acronym for the system was going to be ARS. It was quickly changed.

 

[PirateFrank]

I'm having a hard time reading that this still isn't good enough for some former GAC users/abusers. Disney comes out with a system that seems to adequately/reasonably level the playing field to at least discourage abuse. While I still have questions about whether access to the system will be sufficiently restricted those in actual need or will this simply create an additional tier of fastpass+ users who can pull the wool over the CM at guest relations, it's a good step in the right direction.

Seriously, if a 10-15 minute wait isn't good enough and will result in a massive tantrum, what the devil are you doing in a theme park? I've been in the MK on days where I've had to wait 10-15 minutes for everything except taking a leak. How does one expect WDW to make it any better for people who feel 10-15 minutes just won't do? This is borderline offensive here. How much more blood do you want to squeeze from the stone?

 

[PirateFrank]

And the other thing is that, apparently, the original acronym for the system was going to be ARS. It was quickly changed.

Now that is outstanding! What was it to stand for?

 

[PirateFrank]

Do all the things that families without children who can't handle a 20 minute wait don't get to do. Watch a stage show, go to a singing robot theater show, have a snack, browse through a store, sit along the water in the sunshine and feed the ducks, watch a parade, listen to a band, ride the riverboat, or just enjoy being at a Disney theme park.

The other families with other children will still be waiting in the fifth switchback of the Standby line missing out on all that stuff.

Well said! It really stinks of entitlement when 15 minutes isn't good enough!

 

[Yensid1974]

Yes, there is no BS about it. This change is coming, and coming quickly. I can verify this as confirmed as I will be one of the people trained to train the rest of the CM's for it in my area.