New DAS System at Walt Disney World 2024

[Fido Chuckwagon]

So you didn’t read the story?

It was clearly a lack of knowledge of the rules.

The could have simply donated any profits to Make A Wish and Disney could have dropped it.

I read the article. They admitted it and apologized. Great. They can start using their AP’s again in ‘25. Scalpers are a scourge and I have no problem with Disney’s line here.

 

[Disstevefan1]

Yeah, that was the missing piece of the story.

I guess the article is fake news?
“To ensure somebody would use the tickets, I offered them for sale at face value,” Rich said

 

[Fido Chuckwagon]

I am missing that in this article, all I see is:
“To ensure somebody would use the tickets, I offered them for sale at face value,” Rich said.

I attached a screenshot of the relevant portion. There is literally a quote from Disneyland indicating that they sold it for more than face value, and then two paragraphs below that they write a full apology appearing to admit to it.

 

[Trauma]

I attached a screenshot of the relevant portion. There is literally a quote from Disneyland indicating that they sold it for more than face value, and then two paragraphs below that they write a full apology appearing to admit to it.

You have a wild definition of scalpers.

You catch Covid and sell your tickets.

Scalper!

 

[Fido Chuckwagon]

You catch Covid and sell your tickets.

Disneyland indicated they sold their tickets for more than face value. They could have called in and gotten a refund. They instead put it on eBay and turned a profit. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

 

[Trauma]

Disneyland indicated they sold their tickets for more than face value. They could have called in and gotten a refund. They instead put it on eBay and turned a profit. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

It was a misunderstanding.

If they had a history of doing this then they are scalpers. Nothing in the story suggests that to be the case.

The general tone of posters defending the new DAS policy is “Don’t worry if something goes wrong Disney will err on the side of guest satisfaction”.

However here is a clear example of Disney enforcing rules on their website.

Another rule on the Disney website is tickets are non-refundable.

So you better pay CLOSE attention to the rules or win a “stupid prize”.

Like losing your money on park tickets.

 

[Fido Chuckwagon]

It was a misunderstanding.

If they had a history of doing this then they are scalpers. Nothing in the story suggests that to be the case.

The general tone of posters defending the new DAS policy is “Don’t worry if something goes wrong Disney will err on the side of guest satisfaction”.

However here is a clear example of Disney enforcing rules on their website.

Another rule on the Disney website is tickets are non-refundable.

So you better pay CLOSE attention to the rules or win a “stupid prize”.

Like losing your money on park tickets.

Yeah, there’s a big delta between “accidentally” scalping a ticket to a sold out event at a profit and calling Disney to request a refund. Disney is extremely generous with their refunds and is world-renowned for their customer service. If we start getting reports of people with disabilities who were refused refunds after being denied DAS I will eat my hat.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

You don’t need to eliminate 100% of the fraud to have a major impact.

Especially if you eliminate much of the valid use at the same time.

You already said that you weren't disputing that the Rider Swap and Return to Line options address the needs of people with physical disabilities. So how does that not contradict what you have been posting when you claim the parks are now unwelcoming? If needs are met then that is the opposite of saying "Don't come here."

How would this work for couples? I stand in line alone while my GF wanders around or sits on a park bench alone? We both spend the majority of our Disney vacations alone? Sounds pretty unwelcoming to me.

 

[Trauma]

Yeah, there’s a big delta between “accidentally” scalping a ticket to a sold out event at a profit and calling Disney to request a refund. Disney is extremely generous with their refunds and is world-renowned for their customer service. If we start getting reports of people with disabilities who were refused refunds after being denied DAS I will eat my hat.

World renown customer service.

Give me your money then we will tell you if you can use the parks!

Man put the Disney name on it and people will defend anything.

 

[Sparksfly]

What about the statistics cited earlier in this thread?

You mean the ones where the poster clearly states they weren't certain?
Those aren't statistics...those are guesses albeit maybe educated in some ways, but most likely not so educated in others. And when considering actual statistics for things like these you have to also consider things such as the rise of disabilities in general, the guests with legitimate disabilities who were able to be accomodated by FP+/didnt want to go through DAS (many people feel uncomfortable discussing their disability or needs and so opting to use FP+ instead may have worked better for them, especially those with social anxiety and severe ptsd) but now may need DAS to accommodate their needs as that system has been terminated...just to start. When Disney designed Genie +....along with their overall crowd control, those are things that 100% should have been considered. They also most definitely considered the system would be abused yet clearly thought it was worth it enough to implement it anyway. And yet...instead of making changes that wouldn't effect the disabled people who need it...they put the target right on them. Able bodied people who were abusing the system will most likely still abuse it anyway and the ones who don't will simply buy Genie+ or wait in standby and it'll be just a nuisance to them, but to the people who truly needed it, this will change their entire experience or prevent them from being able to go at all...and believe me, in a lot of ways, those are the people who need the magic Disney typically provides more than all.

 

[Chi84]

You mean the ones where the poster clearly states they weren't certain?
Those aren't statistics...those are guesses albeit maybe educated in some ways, but most likely not so educated in others. And when considering actual statistics for things like these you have to also consider things such as the rise of disabilities in general, the guests with legitimate disabilities who were able to be accomodated by FP+/didnt want to go through DAS (many people feel uncomfortable discussing their disability or needs and so opting to use FP+ instead may have worked better for them, especially those with social anxiety and severe ptsd) but now may need DAS to accommodate their needs as that system has been terminated...just to start. When Disney designed Genie +....along with their overall crowd control, those are things that 100% should have been considered. They also most definitely considered the system would be abused yet clearly thought it was worth it enough to implement it anyway. And yet...instead of making changes that wouldn't effect the disabled people who need it...they put the target right on them. Able bodied people who were abusing the system will most likely still abuse it anyway and the ones who don't will simply buy Genie+ or wait in standby and it'll be just a nuisance to them, but to the people who truly needed it, this will change their entire experience or prevent them from being able to go at all...and believe me, in a lot of ways, those are the people who need the magic Disney typically provides more than all.

Yes but the rise in disabilities is part of the problem. I don’t think there’s any question that Disney wants to get people with disabilities back into the lines and accommodate their disability in a more targeted way. It seems they want to limit DAS to those whose condition in itself prevents them from standing in lines.

There are 2 parts to the issue of whether and to what extent Disney is required to accommodate disabilities. The second part is the impact on their business model, which is to have people stand in lines or pay to avoid them. The statistics mentioned earlier in this thread are compelling and much more credible than a mere guess.

 

[Chip Chipperson]

How would this work for couples? I stand in line alone while my GF wanders around or sits on a park bench alone? We both spend the majority of our Disney vacations alone? Sounds pretty unwelcoming to me.

Again, there are multiple options available - Rider Swap, Return to Line, mobility devices. The reason for multiple options is because there is no "one size fits all" solution that works. They tried that with DAS and it overwhelmed their lines.

 

[ConfettiCupcake]

For anyone who was around Disney forums when GAC changed to DAS, I’m sure you guys also recognize what is nearly verbatim as to what was being said at that time. As time went on details came out, people transitioned over and gave it a chance, and the majority of the initial stress of the unknown went away. Now it’s being heralded as the “good” system when it was the one that was feared way back.

I truly think people will be given the accommodations they need to allow them to access all the attractions that they reasonably can. Need being the key word. Until Disney shows us they’re behaving in a way that deliberately excludes people (you know, besides excluding those who can’t afford to get in, lol) stating that seems unnecessarily alarmist and will only further stress people out.

 

[phillip9698]

For anyone who was around Disney forums when GAC changed to DAS, I’m sure you guys also recognize what is nearly verbatim as to what was being said at that time. As time went on details came out, people transitioned over and gave it a chance, and the majority of the initial stress of the unknown went away. Now it’s being heralded as the “good” system when it was the one that was feared way back.

I truly think people will be given the accommodations they need to allow them to access all the attractions that they reasonably can. Need being the key word. Until Disney shows us they’re behaving in a way that deliberately excludes people (you know, besides excluding those who can’t afford to get in, lol) stating that seems unnecessarily alarmist and will only further stress people out.

I distinctly remember the argument “Autistic people become fixated on specific things, we need to be able to ride any ride of our choosing back to back as many times as my son would like or he won’t be able to enjoy the park, the trip will be ruined for him and others around him”.

Im not exaggerating. That was an argument that was parroted around all the major boards and Facebook groups. Unlimited FP was the only way large groups of people could enjoy Disney and anything below that was illegal and not accommodating enough. And we had the tried and true “people will be passing out, there will be fights in the queue, Disney is creating medical emergencies, etc…..as you said none of this is new.

 

[ConfettiCupcake]

I distinctly remember the argument “Autistic people become fixated on specific things, we need to be able to ride any ride of our choosing back to back as many times as my son would like or he won’t be able to enjoy the park, the trip will be ruined for him and others around him”.

Il not exaggerating. That was an argument that was parroted around all the major board and Facebook groups. Unlimited FP was the only way large groups of people could enjoy Disney and anything below that was illegal and not accommodating enough.

Yes that was commonly said. I remember it too.

 

[rtmachine]

Just thinking outside the box here..but I would think that pretty much everything in WDW is ADA compliant except the ride vehicles themselves..
Since they are not, why would they have to make the wait to get on them ADA compliant ?
I believe that they know this and can do whatever they want based on their own policy's and needs...
been in many DAS groups and not everyone can get on.

 

[Happyday]

For anyone who was around Disney forums when GAC changed to DAS, I’m sure you guys also recognize what is nearly verbatim as to what was being said at that time. As time went on details came out, people transitioned over and gave it a chance, and the majority of the initial stress of the unknown went away. Now it’s being heralded as the “good” system when it was the one that was feared way back.

I truly think people will be given the accommodations they need to allow them to access all the attractions that they reasonably can. Need being the key word. Until Disney shows us they’re behaving in a way that deliberately excludes people (you know, besides excluding those who can’t afford to get in, lol) stating that seems unnecessarily alarmist and will only further stress people out.

Thank you! I know change is hard and it is made worse when there is the fear of the unknown because of the lack of information.
I just think arguing or putting others down is not the way to change or deal with the situation. Can we all agree to disagree on those things we do not have specific details on? It is not helpful to look at the dark side before we know. This is a very emotionally heavy situation, can we wait to see what happens without all the speculation?

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

Just thinking outside the box here..but I would think that pretty much everything in WDW is ADA compliant except the ride vehicles themselves..

That depends on the ride vehicle - when possible they are.

 

[Sparksfly]

Yes but the rise in disabilities is part of the problem. I don’t think there’s any question that Disney wants to get people with disabilities back into the lines and accommodate their disability in a more targeted way. It seems they want to limit DAS to those whose condition in itself prevents them from standing in lines.

There are 2 parts to the issue of whether and to what extent Disney is required to accommodate disabilities. The second part is the impact on their business model, which is to have people stand in lines or pay to avoid them. The statistics mentioned earlier in this thread are compelling and much more credible than a mere guess.

The rise of disabilities has everything to do with the environment both in physical and mental terms, increase in awareness and medical knowledge, and changes in how we treat and diagnose conditions. Genetic testing alone has increased our ability to detect a multitude of conditions people doesn't even know existed a decade or so ago. These are positive changes as with them come knowledge in treatment and prevention. It's also something places like Disney need to consider when designing their accomodation services and when implementing things such as Genie+. It falls on them to correct any issues without causing adverse effects on a large group of people who are already protected by the ADA and need the accomodations in the first place.


I will say this, Disney is not in the position to decide who needs what accomodations, and by putting themselves in that position, whether they are a third party or not, is going to cause them much bigger problems and most likely lawsuits in the long run. Disneys recent statement regarding DAS being for developmental disabilities such as austim further highlight their ignorance to who needs DAS.

 

[rtmachine]

That depends on the ride vehicle - when possible they are.

which ones are ?