My family and I took my brother who has severe autism to Disney last week. We have gone many times previously (my brother's last trip there was in 2011), but this was our first time using the DAS instead of the GAC.
We were a little concerned as to how the trip was going to go with the DAS as on past trips my brother was not able to wait in lines longer than 15 minutes without getting very upset (which the DAS addresses), and would subsequently get upset if we told him he would have to wait to get on the rides( Example: We were concerned that if he wanted to go on Splash Mountain, he would not be able to understand why we could not automatically go on Splash Mountain, as on past trips we usually used the FastPass Return line with the GAC unless the standby line was 15 or less, and would get very upset as a result.) The DAS seemed to only address this to the point that the one with the disability does not have to go and get the return time. We were also concerned that this would no longer be the case as the DAS was now connected to that person's MagicBand/ticket.
So, going into last week with those concerns, this was our experience:
Getting the pass:
We brought a doctor's note that stated exactly what my brother needed (which was essentially the GAC pass, even though we were not expecting Disney to make that additional accommodation.) We started off at Magic Kingdom and went to Guest Relations, explained my brother's disability and (voluntarily and without them asking of course) handed over the doctor's note. The Cast Member told us that the most accommodation they could give us was the DAS, as expected.The Cast Member then explained that the DAS was included in the MDE now, and the reservation times would show up on my MDE app. They took my brother's photo and made the first return time for us. They also explained that when we went to redeem the return time, we did need to scan my brother's ticket first, otherwise all that would come up for the Cast Member at the attraction would be our FastPass+ reservation.
Using the pass:
Positives:
1. The return time being connected to the MDE was very convenient for easy reference.
2. Also convenient was that the DAS return time was not a window, so we were able to return to the attraction anytime after the return time had past.
3. If the attraction time was reduced (Had a 50 minute return time for a 60 minute wait for Rock n Roller Coaster, 40 minutes later the wait time was reduced to 30 minutes) the Cast Members had no problem letting us on early as long as we had waited whatever the current wait time was.
4. Thankfully now that my brother is older he was more capable of understanding that even though he could not get on a certain ride right away, he would be able to get on it eventually as long as he did not have to actually wait in line, so crisis averted.
5. The Cast Members were very accommodating when things went wrong with it.
Negatives:
1. The system to make the return times is ridiculously glitchy. The Cast Members used iPhones or iPads with ticket/MagicBand scanners and would make the Return Times using what I'm guessing is the Wifi. However, the process was very slow, as it took awhile for their Network to load, and then many times they had trouble getting the ticket to scan. "Sorry, our network is having problems" was a phrase I heard more often than not when obtaining a return time. However, the Cast Members were very accommodating when this happened resulting in a long delay, and either gave us re-entry FastPasses or simply a paper return time ticket instead of bothering to try and figure out what was wrong. The system is fairly new, so hopefully it is likely to get better with time as all the bugs get worked out.
2. When I returned with my family to ride the attraction, there were many times where I would scan my brother's ticket first, and the DAS return time would not be recognized in their system. "Did you already make a return time?" was usually what I was asked. I'd always say yes, bring it up to show them on MDE, and then would be allowed to proceed with no problems. Once again, hopefully with time the glitches will get worked out with this as well.
3. Logistically, making the DAS return times was a nightmare due to the requirement to physically go to the attraction to get the return time. There were many times I had to go clear across the parks to get a return time in-between FastPass+ reservations (made excellent time getting from Splash Mountain to Buzz Lightyear for return time and back for our BTMRR FP+ though). It would be way easier if I was able to make the DAS return times via MDE, or at a FastPass+ kiosk first and then be able to make changes with MDE if I chose to do so. I really hope Disney is heading in this direction.
Overall, the new DAS worked out for us. As my brother is more able to understand situations now that he is older, essentially having the extra FastPass+ still allowed him to experience Disney as he would have with the GAC. However, the DAS would not have worked for us when my brother was younger, so I can definitely see why some families would/are having issues with it.
We were a little concerned as to how the trip was going to go with the DAS as on past trips my brother was not able to wait in lines longer than 15 minutes without getting very upset (which the DAS addresses), and would subsequently get upset if we told him he would have to wait to get on the rides( Example: We were concerned that if he wanted to go on Splash Mountain, he would not be able to understand why we could not automatically go on Splash Mountain, as on past trips we usually used the FastPass Return line with the GAC unless the standby line was 15 or less, and would get very upset as a result.) The DAS seemed to only address this to the point that the one with the disability does not have to go and get the return time. We were also concerned that this would no longer be the case as the DAS was now connected to that person's MagicBand/ticket.
So, going into last week with those concerns, this was our experience:
Getting the pass:
We brought a doctor's note that stated exactly what my brother needed (which was essentially the GAC pass, even though we were not expecting Disney to make that additional accommodation.) We started off at Magic Kingdom and went to Guest Relations, explained my brother's disability and (voluntarily and without them asking of course) handed over the doctor's note. The Cast Member told us that the most accommodation they could give us was the DAS, as expected.The Cast Member then explained that the DAS was included in the MDE now, and the reservation times would show up on my MDE app. They took my brother's photo and made the first return time for us. They also explained that when we went to redeem the return time, we did need to scan my brother's ticket first, otherwise all that would come up for the Cast Member at the attraction would be our FastPass+ reservation.
Using the pass:
Positives:
1. The return time being connected to the MDE was very convenient for easy reference.
2. Also convenient was that the DAS return time was not a window, so we were able to return to the attraction anytime after the return time had past.
3. If the attraction time was reduced (Had a 50 minute return time for a 60 minute wait for Rock n Roller Coaster, 40 minutes later the wait time was reduced to 30 minutes) the Cast Members had no problem letting us on early as long as we had waited whatever the current wait time was.
4. Thankfully now that my brother is older he was more capable of understanding that even though he could not get on a certain ride right away, he would be able to get on it eventually as long as he did not have to actually wait in line, so crisis averted.
5. The Cast Members were very accommodating when things went wrong with it.
Negatives:
1. The system to make the return times is ridiculously glitchy. The Cast Members used iPhones or iPads with ticket/MagicBand scanners and would make the Return Times using what I'm guessing is the Wifi. However, the process was very slow, as it took awhile for their Network to load, and then many times they had trouble getting the ticket to scan. "Sorry, our network is having problems" was a phrase I heard more often than not when obtaining a return time. However, the Cast Members were very accommodating when this happened resulting in a long delay, and either gave us re-entry FastPasses or simply a paper return time ticket instead of bothering to try and figure out what was wrong. The system is fairly new, so hopefully it is likely to get better with time as all the bugs get worked out.
2. When I returned with my family to ride the attraction, there were many times where I would scan my brother's ticket first, and the DAS return time would not be recognized in their system. "Did you already make a return time?" was usually what I was asked. I'd always say yes, bring it up to show them on MDE, and then would be allowed to proceed with no problems. Once again, hopefully with time the glitches will get worked out with this as well.
3. Logistically, making the DAS return times was a nightmare due to the requirement to physically go to the attraction to get the return time. There were many times I had to go clear across the parks to get a return time in-between FastPass+ reservations (made excellent time getting from Splash Mountain to Buzz Lightyear for return time and back for our BTMRR FP+ though). It would be way easier if I was able to make the DAS return times via MDE, or at a FastPass+ kiosk first and then be able to make changes with MDE if I chose to do so. I really hope Disney is heading in this direction.
Overall, the new DAS worked out for us. As my brother is more able to understand situations now that he is older, essentially having the extra FastPass+ still allowed him to experience Disney as he would have with the GAC. However, the DAS would not have worked for us when my brother was younger, so I can definitely see why some families would/are having issues with it.
