New DAS System at Walt Disney World 2024

[KrzyKtty]

They are accommodated. It may not be DAS but they giving out other options.

I agree that there are other accommodations. But I also concede to the fact that to the disabled, it might seem like there's not because of the lack of information and clarification they are really able to receive about these other accommodations.

Every attraction has its own page. It wouldn't be that hard for WDW to include the basic rules for AQR pertaining to that ride on the website. They can even include a blurb in there about solo travelers and single parents with young children to see the castmember on their way out to clarify return.

 

[natatomic]

That's the plan make a reservation then call 30 days --only way to get an answer

Same as 3 of our kids were denied...I could guess what we should have stressed more

Quick question. Did all three each have a DAS last time? And if so, how did that work? If your whole family had a reservation for attraction X in 45 minutes under child 1’s DAS, could your whole family also have a reservation for attraction Y in 60 minutes under child 2’s pass? Basically, could you have three different rides booked at once?

(I’m genuinely asking - I don’t know the answer)

 

[Splash4eva]

Is there anything that says you cant call again and try?

 

[Splash4eva]

Quick question. Did all three each have a DAS last time? And if so, how did that work? If your whole family had a reservation for attraction X in 45 minutes under child 1’s DAS, could your whole family also have a reservation for attraction Y in 60 minutes under child 2’s pass? Basically, could you have three different rides booked at once?

(I’m genuinely asking - I don’t know the answer)

If more than 1 person has a DAS in your party they cant be attached to each other. Only Non DAS users can. So a party with multiple DAS users have to make multiple reservations for the same ride if they all want to ride it together.

 

[natatomic]

If more than 1 person has a DAS in your party they cant be attached to each other. Only Non DAS users can. So a party with multiple DAS users have to make multiple reservations for the same ride if they all want to ride it together.

Gotcha. So there wasn’t any type of “advantage” to having more than 1? (Talking about cheaters, not people who genuinely needed it).

 

[Splash4eva]

Gotcha. So there wasn’t any type of “advantage” to having more than 1? (Talking about cheaters, not people who genuinely needed it).

Correct. Having more than 1 per party didnt allow a person to be part of both DAS selections and vice versa. All it did was say split up mom and dad w each child as an example…

 

[Kristamouse]

Quick question. Did all three each have a DAS last time? And if so, how did that work? If your whole family had a reservation for attraction X in 45 minutes under child 1’s DAS, could your whole family also have a reservation for attraction Y in 60 minutes under child 2’s pass? Basically, could you have three different rides booked at once?

(I’m genuinely asking - I don’t know the answer)

They all could of had a DAS, BUT we only used one, we didn't need others. The first time started using the DAS, about 10 years ago a helpful Cast Member explained we only needed one for our party, despite 3 of our 6 "qualifying". We stick together and don't separate in the parks (one of of my annoyances with the current options... at one point our son was a flight risk runner) so more than one DAS wasn't needed. Also it would be a headache to keep track of all of them via the app. so we just went with one. That child/teen would tap first and we would all follow. In subsequent visits we would just go with our son, as he was our biggest concern. I have taken a few girls trips with our daughters and one of them have gotten the DAS and again we just used one for the whole party.
All 3 of them have documented past use of the various DAS style passes. Hope I made sense

 

[Kristamouse]

Is there anything that says you cant call again and try?

I am curious about this as well, we leave on Saturday. If our first park day, Sunday, is a disaster I will go to Guest Services and plead our case or ask for some more clear help/options/etc.,

 

[Splash4eva]

I am curious about this as well, we leave on Saturday. If our first park day, Sunday, is a disaster I will go to Guest Services and plead our case or ask for some more clear help/options/etc.,

Not sure if you saw my earlier post but fwiw Genie has been pretty effective using drop times and knowledge of being in the parks all these years. Even at MK ive seen plenty of solid not sure if they are drops but definitely inventory popping up. Yea not ideal to be on phone but its not awful refreshing a few times etc

 

[nickys]

They can even include a blurb in there about solo travelers and single parents with young children to see the castmember on their way out to clarify return.

Just partially quoting to stress a point.

Everyone who thinks they might have to leave the queue should speak to a CM BEFORE they enter a queue. Not just solo guests etc.

From firsthand reports, different rides are using different procedures. In some cases those guests are being redirected to an alternative entrance because of the difficulties leaving the stand-by line.

Find out before hand what you should do. Reports in the last few days are saying things are generally working well if you ask before you enter the queue.

 

[C33Mom]

I think that Disney doesn’t want to put the exact formula for what accommodation is available at each ride under each circumstance on their main attraction pages or MDE information because it makes more people who can wait in lines but don’t want to start thinking about how to “beat the system” instead of actually being available as a resource for ex-DAS users. If, hypothetically, one knew that Peter Pan typically just directs you to the LL when the wait is less than 45 or issued a LL return pass when the wait is more than 45m, a lot of people would tell the attraction CM “gee whiz, I would just love to wait in this here 75 minute line but I sure can’t, what can you do for me?”

I (obviously) don’t speak for all potential AQR users, but I’m willing to endure a little more friction/uncertainty when I need AQR assistance to avoid the new system being completely overwhelmed by people who don’t need it but would like to have it once they learn about it.

 

[maemae74]

I think a huge part of the issue is that so many now say their medical issues are disabilities but funny how it only applies to their time at Disney. This is why the program was so over used and it was definitely affecting how non DAS people were being able to utilize the rides. If the average Disney guest only gets to take part in 4" good attractions" a day than DAS users should only get the same and also not a DAS for multiple visits to the same ride in a day.

 

[ConfettiCupcake]

I think that Disney doesn’t want to put the exact formula for what accommodation is available at each ride under each circumstance on their main attraction pages or MDE information because it makes more people who can wait in lines but don’t want to start thinking about how to “beat the system” instead of actually being available as a resource for ex-DAS users. If, hypothetically, one knew that Peter Pan typically just directs you to the LL when the wait is less than 45 or issued a LL return pass when the wait is more than 45m, a lot of people would tell the attraction CM “gee whiz, I would just love to wait in this here 75 minute line but I sure can’t, what can you do for me?”

I (obviously) don’t speak for all potential AQR users, but I’m willing to endure a little more friction/uncertainty when I need AQR assistance to avoid the new system being completely overwhelmed by people who don’t need it but would like to have it once they learn about it.

Yeah I think this is an issue as well as procedures likely differ at some attractions depending on the party size, the situation, the location in line, the crowd level, the reason for leaving (are you coming back promptly or do you need an open amount of time), and that makes it hard to publish a set of procedures. I don’t think they want a person to think they will be accommodated with X when actually their situation gets Y.

I think they mean it when they say you need to ask at each attraction because the procedure is different. I don’t think they’re trying to be difficult for the sake of being difficult.

 

[KrzyKtty]

Just partially quoting to stress a point.

Everyone who thinks they might have to leave the queue should speak to a CM BEFORE they enter a queue. Not just solo guests etc.

From firsthand reports, different rides are using different procedures. In some cases those guests are being redirected to an alternative entrance because of the difficulties leaving the stand-by line.

Find out before hand what you should do. Reports in the last few days are saying things are generally working well if you ask before you enter the queue.

But it's unrealistic for someone to talk to a CM before they enter every line just in case their child has to go pee. Lord knows i'm not gonna do that.

 

[natatomic]

But it's unrealistic for someone to talk to a CM before they enter every line just in case their child has to go pee. Lord knows i'm not gonna do that.

Sure, but that's been handled in Disney queues - and queues all over the world - for as long as queues have existed, long even before DAS. I don't think people are confused about how to handle emergency bathroom situations. I had to duck out of the Test Track line when my oldest was 4 years ago for a bathroom situation, and it was handled just fine without any heads up to the cast. I think it's more for people who have other (and more specific) needs that may or may not need to be accommodated while waiting in line. Someone in this thread posted that they needed to leave because of back pain, so their entire family got out of line and the CM wouldn't give their entire family a return time. But that's the thing - the whole family isn't supposed to leave together - just the person who needs to get out of line, and perhaps one person to accompany them (depending on size of the party and the needs of the person). Why on earth would he think his entire family would need to leave because HE has back pain, you know? That's like taking your entire family of 8 out of line because your 3 year old needs to go potty. But since there was obviously confusion on his part, and knowing that his back pain was a possible hinderance to waiting in line, I don't understand why he wouldn't have asked for the specific procedure before getting into the line. "Hey, I have a bad back that sometimes acts up if I stand too long. If it starts flaring up during my wait, what do I need to do?"

Or even more specifically, I think it's best to talk to CMs when you already know that you (or a member of your party) cannot wait in the SB line at all. That way the CM can tell that person what to do while their family waits in SB and then how to meet up with them at the appropriate time as they get closer to the ride.

 

[KrzyKtty]

Sure, but that's been handled in Disney queues - and queues all over the world - for as long as queues have existed, long even before DAS. I don't think people are confused about how to handle emergency bathroom situations. I had to duck out of the Test Track line when my oldest was 4 years ago for a bathroom situation, and it was handled just fine without any heads up to the cast. I think it's more for people who have other (and more specific) needs that may or may not need to be accommodated while waiting in line. Someone in this thread posted that they needed to leave because of back pain, so their entire family got out of line and the CM wouldn't give their entire family a return time. But that's the thing - the whole family isn't supposed to leave together - just the person who needs to get out of line, and perhaps one person to accompany them (depending on size of the party and the needs of the person). Why on earth would he think his entire family would need to leave because HE has back pain, you know? That's like taking your entire family of 8 out of line because your 3 year old needs to go potty. But since there was obviously confusion on his part, and knowing that his back pain was a possible hinderance to waiting in line, I don't understand why he wouldn't have asked for the specific procedure before getting into the line. "Hey, I have a bad back that sometimes acts up if I stand too long. If it starts flaring up during my wait, what do I need to do?"

Or even more specifically, I think it's best to talk to CMs when you already know that you (or a member of your party) cannot wait in the SB line at all. That way the CM can tell that person what to do while their family waits in SB and then how to meet up with them at the appropriate time as they get closer to the ride.

For what it's worth, I'm not disagreeing with the system's disney has in place. My post is simply empathizing with the stress those with disabilities are going through right now due to a lack of information. How stressful must it be to plan a very expensive trip to WDW for your family and not have a lot of information on the specifics regarding how your disability will be handled until you get to the actual ride.

I also don't think that there is as much danger about misusing AQR or Rider Swap. They are simple enough systems that basically equate to get back in line. I honestly think disney's hesitancy to put any of that on their website is just them not wanting to go through the logistics of having to pay their web design team to overhaul the information on that many ride pages.

 

[natatomic]

For what it's worth, I'm not disagreeing with.The system's disney has in place. My post is simply empathizing with the stress those with disabilities are going through right now due to a lack of information. How stressful must it be to plan a very expensive trip to WDW for your family and not have a lot of information the specifics regarding how your disability will be handled until you get to the actual ride.

I also don't think that there is as much danger about misusing AQR or Rider Swap. They are simple enough systems that basically equate to get back in line. I honestly think disney's hesitancy to put any of that on their website is just them not wanting to go through the logistics of having to pay their web design team to overhaul the information on that many ride pages.

Sure, I can appreciate that as well.

As much as it seems to be a huge unknown, I have to imagine that after a number of attractions, you get a feel for what the accommodations are going to be most of the time. A single adult, with her without a young child is probably going to receive a RTQ most times. An individual in a larger group is probably going to be directed to a quite/cool place to sit (if needed) while they wait for their family to do the SB, who will then call them to join them at the merge point. There might be some rides that might have slightly different procedures, but for the most part, they all sound like one of two options - RTQ or AQR. I would hope that after getting a couple of attractions under one’s belt, the process will become a lot less stressful once a family knows what to expect. Again - I HOPE. I could be way off base here, I suppose.

I’m just thinking back to my old CM days - pretty much every 4th person entering the queue would ask us such silly questions: “How long is the wait?” (while pointing to the wait sign) “Is this Attraction X?” (While pointing to the ride’s name?) “Wife, are you sure you’re tall enough?” (Har, har husband…)
A genuine question about a brand new procedure isn’t going to annoy a CM (unless they’re just a bad CM ), so I hope no one feels bad or like a pest for talking to the CM before entering the queue about an accommodation they might need.

 

[Jrb1979]

For what it's worth, I'm not disagreeing with the system's disney has in place. My post is simply empathizing with the stress those with disabilities are going through right now due to a lack of information. How stressful must it be to plan a very expensive trip to WDW for your family and not have a lot of information on the specifics regarding how your disability will be handled until you get to the actual ride.

I also don't think that there is as much danger about misusing AQR or Rider Swap. They are simple enough systems that basically equate to get back in line. I honestly think disney's hesitancy to put any of that on their website is just them not wanting to go through the logistics of having to pay their web design team to overhaul the information on that many ride pages.

I disagree with that. The reason they don't put the info online as AQR will fluctuate depending on line length and LL usage.

 

[Angel Ariel]

I also don't think that there is as much danger about misusing AQR or Rider Swap. They are simple enough systems that basically equate to get back in line. I honestly think disney's hesitancy to put any of that on their website is just them not wanting to go through the logistics of having to pay their web design team to overhaul the information on that many ride pages.

Agreed. Again, it's not like other parks don't post attraction by attraction disability information. They do. And apparently Disney did just publish an attraction by attraction sensory guide. That's a great step! This shouldn't be buried, though - link it on all attraction pages in MDE. They can't post something with every possible scenario in play taking into account party size and such, but they can give basic details for AQR at each attraction (esp. given they say they have a defined process for AQR at each attraction).

 

[NotTheOne]

I disagree with that. The reason they don't put the info online as AQR will fluctuate depending on line length and LL usage.

I agree - "on the ground" reports I've seen show that procedures can differ based not just on the attraction, but crowd level, standby length, LL length, number in party, need of the guest, etc.

Putting out a page for each attraction saying "this is how it will be handled" will not only encourage too many people to try to get more accommodation than they actually need, it will result in unhappy guests who expect one thing but get something else due to all of the variables listed above.