New DAS System at Walt Disney World 2024

[Fido Chuckwagon]

That can only be due to the inherent nature of an accommodation. It cannot be an intentional choice. An elevator can be slower than the stairs because of how it operates, but you can’t make it slower to deter people from using it.

They are not making it slower to deter people from using it. The nature of getting out of and back into a line necessarily adds more time to your wait. This is still shorter than waiting in standby line all over again from the back, it is still an accommodation.

 

[ConfettiCupcake]

I think Disney thinks the following things are true:
1. These new alternatives aren’t really that appealing versus just waiting in standby or purchasing Genie+ so people won’t use it unless they have to AND;
2. The number of people who will actually have to use this (who didn’t get DAS) is going to be minuscule. I think Disney is correct on both counts.

We’ll see though.

I agree.

To your point 2, Disney seems to be doubling down on the notion that more people can wait in regular queues some of the time. I don’t think they have this accommodation in place (AQR) with the thought that parties will be using it every time they enter a queue. They’re effectively giving the people who told them their issues are unpredictable and they sometimes will need to leave a line therefore they needed DAS the tools to directly address the stated need when it happens instead of preventatively.

 

[Touchdown]

Saturday Afternoon Memorial Day weekend 5:20pm, here’s all the attractions with over an hour wait:

 

[Angel Ariel]

Saturday Afternoon Memorial Day weekend 5:20pm, here’s all the attractions with over an hour wait:

View attachment 787551

Given that the vast majority of people with DAS this weekend would have qualified before May 20th, therefore under the old rules, I'm not sure how anything this weekend can be used to support changes to DAS having any impact. Memorial Day weekend has been slow for a while now. A Blog Mickey post from 2023:

"Ok, with that out of the way, let’s try to put our finger on just how “slow” it was at Walt Disney World this Memorial Day. The average wait time at Disney World during Memorial Day Weekend going back to 2016 is just over 31 minutes. If we throw out 2021, it’s 32.6 minutes, and if we throw out 2016, it’s over 33 minutes. Last year, the average wait time during Memorial Day Weekend was 34.5 minutes. In 2023, the average wait time was 29.25 minutes."

Disney World's Slow Memorial Day Weekend

Average wait times were below what we'd expect from Memorial Day crowds at Walt Disney World as a slow summer looms

blogmickey.com

 

[Vacationeer]

I think that remains to be seen legally - I personally don’t think it should be up to a business to decide what disabilities receive what accommodation.

If DAS is not a requirement of the law, Disney would be better off to not offer it to anyone in my opinion.

Legally it’s not unusual for businesses to have choice in how to provide accommodations. Certain things are well defined (eg- parking, ramps) but much focuses on a desired result rather than method.

If someone’s disability prevents them from reaching a top shelf at the supermarket, there’s not one precise remedy. The store needs to provide a method to get those items. One store may choose to pick the whole shopping order if those customers prefer, and another store has an employee assist with the items out of reach. This part sucks - a store might only have 2 employees and the disabled person has to wait for them to finish with other customers. Because the laws try to balance both the interests of the disabled and the business, it’s hard to set standards that are possible in every situation.

From ADA-

There are limitations and exceptions to how far a business must go to assist.

 

[Chi84]

But someone who is hard of hearing doesn’t have to interview for and have a random CM determine the amount of the hearing loss and decide if they get to use a CC device or sit in an area where there is an interpreter.

Yes, that’s what makes this complex, there is a benefit to saying you are disabled. But the fact that it is being abused, does not mean people who actually need it should get denied. I’m not sure what the best solution is myself.

This is why I keep saying that the courts are not the proper venue to obtain accommodations that allow people to skip lines at theme parks.

Where DOJ regulations come into play (accessible hotel rooms, provision of interpreters, treatment of mobility devices, etc.) they act as a safeguard for businesses because they set limits or guidelines for what is expected of the business. For example, it says exactly what type of documentation or assurances a business can ask for before allowing a person to drive a mobility device around their premises and what questions can be asked regarding service animals.

Accommodations for people whose disability prevents them from being able to stand in line are covered nowhere in the ADA and are theoretically unlimited in nature. This isn't like a hotel that runs out of accessible rooms or a business that runs out of handicapped parking spots. In those cases, the next disabled person cannot be accommodated and has no case under the ADA. With respect to line accommodations, the exposure is unlimited and there is no guidance on what documentation or assurances Disney can request. The only protection is the Act's reference to not having to alter the fundamental nature of the business.

If these type of accommodations are required by the ADA, they should be included in the regulations not decided piecemeal by caselaw.

 

[Angel Ariel]

If these type of accommodations are required by the ADA, they should be included in the regulations

I'm not holding my breath for any updates to the ADA for any reason, line regulations or otherwise.

ETA: that's not to say there aren't any needed. There are. But it's not likely.

 

[Vacationeer]

Given that the vast majority of people with DAS this weekend would have qualified before May 20th, therefore under the old rules, I'm not sure how anything this weekend can be used to support changes to DAS having any impact. Memorial Day weekend has been slow for a while now. A Blog Mickey post from 2023:

"Ok, with that out of the way, let’s try to put our finger on just how “slow” it was at Walt Disney World this Memorial Day. The average wait time at Disney World during Memorial Day Weekend going back to 2016 is just over 31 minutes. If we throw out 2021, it’s 32.6 minutes, and if we throw out 2016, it’s over 33 minutes. Last year, the average wait time during Memorial Day Weekend was 34.5 minutes. In 2023, the average wait time was 29.25 minutes."

Disney World's Slow Memorial Day Weekend

Average wait times were below what we'd expect from Memorial Day crowds at Walt Disney World as a slow summer looms

blogmickey.com

I think Memorial weekend is typically a dip in attendance. WDW used to do the 24hr MK day up to 2018, and likely was to draw guests. Alot of people have local, family, and graduation reasons not to travel this week. Parades, BBQs and family traditions of lakes and shores. Wait times are probably tied to attendance dip.

There might be a dent* from DAS too. It’s only the past 2 years that pre-registering DAS was possible. Infrequent guests might not even be aware. Long time visitors may have never bothered with video to start. What portion of DAS guests waited until visit? Less than 10% or 25%. Not sure.

*eta - bolded for emphasis

 

[Fido Chuckwagon]

I think Memorial weekend is typically a dip in attendance. WDW used to do the 24hr MK day up to 2018, and likely was to draw guests. Alot of people have local, family, and graduation reasons not to travel this week. Parades, BBQs and family traditions of lakes and shores. Wait times are probably tied to attendance dip.

There might be a dent from DAS too. It’s only the past 2 years that pre-registering DAS was possible. Infrequent guests might not even be aware. Long time visitors may have never bothered with video to start. What portion of DAS guests waited until visit? Less than 10% or 25%. Not sure.

This is true. I suspect many international guests and first timers were doing day of.

 

[Drdcm]

We did a Disney cruise to Norway instead of WDW last year and didn’t regret that decision for a second. This year it’s probably going to be a Princess cruise to Alaska instead of a WDW trip. Disney is making the decision to skip the parks easier every year.

As an adult, I’ve never seen the draw of Disney cruises. We did DCL to Alaska for our honeymoon, and then did celebrity a few years later and enjoyed celebrity more for 1/3 the cost. I suppose having kids makes it a draw, but I don’t need the Disney theming when I’m in Alaska, so the IP doesn’t matter at all for us

 

[Angel Ariel]

What portion of DAS guests waited until visit? Less than 10% or 25%. Not sure.

Many of them might have in previous years, but this change was announced in early April. It made national news outlets. Every place I read about DAS between then and now, people were making their calls ahead of time knowing that in person wouldn't be available and that the rules would change. So if anything, I would assume more DAS users would have pre registered this year than in any of the prior 2 years.

But my point was the average wait has been appx 30 mins going back to 2016 - long before pre registering was an option. So attributing these wait times to DAS is a faulty premise.

 

[Grantwil93]

An accommodation must be equal to or greater than the standard service. Making people wait longer because they sought an accommodation is incredibly problematic. That the purpose is to deter abuse doesn’t matter.

I'm not saying I agree with it or think its right. I'm relaying the info provided. But I appreciate the point you are making.

 

[DisneyHead123]

Seeing some posts on Disney Worlds Reddit that sound like the new system is just people shoving their way out. I hope they have a ton of pressure relief points in the event that crowds get out of control and start shoving. Not a fan of crowds in small spaces at all and stories like this make me very nervous. A couple of Reddit posts copied and pasted below:

I am an electric wheelchair user with bladder issues and heat sensitivity. Under the new system, the only accommodation I was given was a return to Q. So I had to explain to 50 strangers why I needed to exit the Q to get room for the wheelchair to pass and remove rope crowd control barriers.


At Animal was in line at Navi today in an ECV. A woman was trying to exit the line in a scooter and we literally were stuck, I ended up ramming into a pole so she could squeeze her ECV by me. They were both the Disney ECV, if either one had been slightly bigger there's no way. I'm still not sure how she got past me. Then everyone behind me had to back up while I backed up, since part of my ECV was in pole/ plants. Pretty awful and it wasn't even me exiting. I was completely embarrassed and again, it wasn't even me that needed to exit.

 

[ditzee]

Seeing some posts on Disney Worlds Reddit that sound like the new system is just people shoving their way out. I hope they have a ton of pressure relief points in the event that crowds get out of control and start shoving. Not a fan of crowds in small spaces at all and stories like this make me very nervous. A couple of Reddit posts copied and pasted below:

I am an electric wheelchair user with bladder issues and heat sensitivity. Under the new system, the only accommodation I was given was a return to Q. So I had to explain to 50 strangers why I needed to exit the Q to get room for the wheelchair to pass and remove rope crowd control barriers.


At Animal was in line at Navi today in an ECV. A woman was trying to exit the line in a scooter and we literally were stuck, I ended up ramming into a pole so she could squeeze her ECV by me. They were both the Disney ECV, if either one had been slightly bigger there's no way. I'm still not sure how she got past me. Then everyone behind me had to back up while I backed up, since part of my ECV was in pole/ plants. Pretty awful and it wasn't even me exiting. I was completely embarrassed and again, it wasn't even me that needed to exit.

Sounds like this person must not have registered for DAS because until June 19th (WDW), those who received DAS are still under the old rules. Maybe he/she did not know they could not register in the parks anymore?

 

[DisneyHead123]

Sounds like this person must not have registered for DAS because until June 19th, those who received DAS are still under the old rules. Maybe he/she did not know they could not register in the parks anymore?

No idea of the details… assuming these are people who didn’t pre apply.

 

[Fido Chuckwagon]

Seeing some posts on Disney Worlds Reddit that sound like the new system is just people shoving their way out. I hope they have a ton of pressure relief points in the event that crowds get out of control and start shoving. Not a fan of crowds in small spaces at all and stories like this make me very nervous. A couple of Reddit posts copied and pasted below:

I am an electric wheelchair user with bladder issues and heat sensitivity. Under the new system, the only accommodation I was given was a return to Q. So I had to explain to 50 strangers why I needed to exit the Q to get room for the wheelchair to pass and remove rope crowd control barriers.


At Animal was in line at Navi today in an ECV. A woman was trying to exit the line in a scooter and we literally were stuck, I ended up ramming into a pole so she could squeeze her ECV by me. They were both the Disney ECV, if either one had been slightly bigger there's no way. I'm still not sure how she got past me. Then everyone behind me had to back up while I backed up, since part of my ECV was in pole/ plants. Pretty awful and it wasn't even me exiting. I was completely embarrassed and again, it wasn't even me that needed to exit.

So the “chaos” at the parks is that someone hit a pole with their ECV while someone else was able to (successfully) back out of the line to use the RTQ feature?

 

[DisneyHead123]

So the “chaos” at the parks is that someone hit a pole with their ECV while someone else was able to (successfully) back out of the line to use the RTQ feature?

Prequel to a prequel at this point. We’ll see.

 

[Fido Chuckwagon]

Prequel to a prequel at this point. We’ll see.

I mean, people crashing into stuff with their ECV’s is a right of passage at WDW. Have they fixed that Hollywood Studios shop wall that partially collapsed after being hit with an ECV yet?

 

[UNCgolf]

Saturday Afternoon Memorial Day weekend 5:20pm, here’s all the attractions with over an hour wait:

View attachment 787551

Mission: Space with a 60 minute wait and Ratatouille with a 90 minute wait seems absurd.

I wonder why their lines are so much longer than normal while almost everything else is shorter.

 

[ditzee]

Mission: Space with a 60 minute wait and Ratatouille with a 90 minute wait seems absurd.

I wonder why their lines are so much longer than normal while almost everything else is shorter.

Read ----- hold on to your mouse ears - Ratatouille was down earlier. I wonder often how ride breakdowns lead to lines getting out of control?