New DAS System at Walt Disney World 2024

[ditzee]

We should start seeing results in LL of fewer DAS users in a couple of days.

Was surprised to read that a lot of people are turned off by anything Disney - they're boycotting. People say one thing and do another but, on the other hand, Bud Light sales decreased by 25% for a while and they were still 30% down per week in December 2023 and at about 14% down now. Plus people canceling trips because of not getting DAS or the uncertainty of not qualifying.
Would these numbers affect crowds and DAS? Curious to see how Disney parks numbers will compare to Universal. I mean I know Disney's will be higher but will Universal's numbers increase?

 

[WDWTrojan]

DAS is a form of access - I believe it is a requirement.

No, DAS is not a requirement. Disney has to provide some kind of access, but it doesn't have to be DAS.

I do think one mistake in this whole thing was keeping the DAS name. They should have simply gotten rid of the name all together and relaunched a new "Guest Assistance Service" (or some such title) which would allow them to sidestep the "we are taking this shiny thing you love away and only giving it to a few other people" narrative that these TikTok warriors with their IBS and POTS are so irate about. It's just a better look to start from scratch and say "we're retiring DAS and offering a host of new accommodation options," which can then be discussed in detail on the video call.

 

[KrzyKtty]

No, DAS is not a requirement. Disney has to provide some kind of access, but it doesn't have to be DAS.

I do think one mistake in this whole thing was keeping the DAS name. They should have simply gotten rid of the name all together and relaunched a new "Guest Assistance Service" (or some such title) which would allow them to sidestep the "we are taking this shiny thing you love away and only giving it to a few other people" narrative that these TikTok warriors with their IBS and POTS are so irate about. It's just a better look to start from scratch and say "we're retiring DAS and offering a host of new accommodation options," which can then be discussed in detail on the video call.

Agree 100%. I said something earlier that was very similar. Obviously said it was a bad idea to keep calling a disability access service and then limit which disabilities got access. Mostly due to these social justice warriors like you pointed out.

 

[John park hopper]

Am going to make a resort reservation (no intention of going yet) just to see what they say about my VA disability condition since they won't tell me otherwise.

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

Again i would not disagree. All im saying is its something in theory noone would really know about…and something Disney can probably do semi discretely and loosen some of the restraints they have put on people now…

How do you establish a policy at a publicly traded multinational corporation and think no one would really know about it? You don’t/can’t establish a compliance policy and have it be discrete.

 

[KrzyKtty]

Am going to make a resort reservation (no intention of going yet) just to see what they say about my VA disability condition since they won't tell me otherwise.

As in if you qualify for DAS? I'm not sure you're gonna get an answer other than calling at 30 days. It will be nice if you do though

 

[John park hopper]

As in if you qualify for DAS? I'm not sure you're gonna get an answer other than calling at 30 days. It will be nice if you do though

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

 

[jennab55]

Am going to make a resort reservation (no intention of going yet) just to see what they say about my VA disability condition since they won't tell me otherwise.

Just keep in mind their decision is only good for 120 days if approved (assuming you are an AP since you said making a reservation).

 

[natatomic]

No reason to think you’d get nothing out of everything you listed. Genie+ and ILL are available to anyone and easy to get. I’ve never not been able to get a virtual queue as long as I’m on at 7am. Return to queue is available to anyone for any reason even if most people don’t seem to understand what that actually is.

I can’t speak from experience, but I swear I see posts like this in the FB groups every single day. So, easy for those who know what they’re doing, but probably not so for your average first time (or even second time) guest.

 

[John park hopper]

Just keep in mind their decision is only good for 120 days if approved (assuming you are an AP since you said making a reservation).

Logic would say if they grant it once they would grant it again. My point is I would like to know well in advance of planning a vacation to the bubble

 

[jennab55]

Logic would say if they grant it once they would grant it again. My point is I would like to know well in advance of planning a vacation to the bubble

But that is what got people into this mindset in the first place “they granted it before so I will be approved next time”. Based on their recent changes, or any possible upcoming changed, I would never assume that if you are approved this time you will be the next. They could totally change the program again or restrict who is eligible even more. I would go into any trip assuming you will not be approved for DAS and have alternative options just in case.

 

[Vacationeer]

People are upset with this transition.

If a different package of changes was released built around monitoring use for approval?

The pushback and collective rejection… The current upheaval would pale in comparison I think.

 

[pdude81]

I don’t think we’ll have any choice but to buy Genie/ILL, we’ve only used it once and we were very disappointed though so we have low expectations, we showed up at HS about 10am, after doing a runDisney race, and everything was sold out by about noon. I think we managed 2 rides for our $20 each, not a great first experience.

It’s why I chuckle when everyone says to just use Genie, hard to do when they sell out, even harder when you aren’t sure how long you’ll be able to stay in the park and it assigns you times hours into the future.

I’m sure we’ll figure it out after more people have shared their experiences, none of it makes me eager to book a trip anytime soon though.

Just a note for the future. Suddenly at 7am you'll see a lot of walking on course. With Genie+ at DHS you can't wait until 10am or you'll be way behind the eight ball.

 

[Splash4eva]

How do you establish a policy at a publicly traded multinational corporation and think no one would really know about it? You don’t/can’t establish a compliance policy and have it be discrete.

The policy seems arbitrary and again behind closed doors in theory noone would know not saying it be something they can “officially” announce but if the feedback is bad its something they can possibly look into. Again just thoughts & yes i work on wall st so im well aware of the fact of what they are…

 

[Vacationeer]

But that is what got people into this mindset in the first place “they granted it before so I will be approved next time”. Based on their recent changes, or any possible upcoming changed, I would never assume that if you are approved this time you will be the next. They could totally change the program again or restrict who is eligible even more. I would go into any trip assuming you will not be approved for DAS and have alternative options just in case.

A big piece of this overhaul looks like they’re trying to recalibrate expectations and extent of reliance on DAS.

Dial back some of the more extreme expectations and make more obvious a middle ground exists for remedy.

 

[Kingoglow]

I'll play devil's advocate here.

photomatt is unnecessarily combative, I agree.

However, his idea would actually allow Disney to continue to accommodate a wider range of disabilities through DAS. They would have to conduct DAS interviews farther in advance, for sure. But if they limited the number of DAS passes per day they could accommodate more disabilities, people would just have to plan ahead.

Disney wants to reduce the number of people using DAS and to provide other accommodations where necessary. Disney no longer feels like DAS is an operationally sustainable program to such a wide range of disabilities. Coming into this thread so late and saying it is DAS or nothing isn't adding anything at this point.

 

[Chip Chipperson]

The policy seems arbitrary and again behind closed doors in theory noone would know not saying it be something they can “officially” announce but if the feedback is bad its something they can possibly look into. Again just thoughts & yes i work on wall st so im well aware of the fact of what they are…

Do you think that could possibly be kept quiet today with social media? You're expecting the employees to all keep it quiet AND expecting all of the customers granted the service to keep it quiet. No whistleblowers. No "I got DAS approved for ____" posts on social media or Disney message boards. It's not possible and - as you already conceded - quite likely illegal.

 

[jaklgreen]

so I wonder why CMs aren’t getting approved? Don’t they get asked the same questions as everyone else?

Yes I think the visitors who come often are putting the strain on the system. I think the people who come once a year or less are probably buying G+ already even if they are getting DAS. At least we did the last 2 times we came in 2021 and 2022. I do also wonder if they are being more lenient on approvals of DAS for non APs.

But they really shouldn't be deciding who qualifies for DAS based on if you have an AP or DVC. It is supposed to be needs based, right? If this is true, that they look up your AP/DVC status and it has an affect on if you are approved, that is just trash. How quickly they forget that those are the people that kept them in business after the shutdown.

 

[jaklgreen]

I do want to clarify I can only speak for 1 attraction that I'm not able to name(sorry, I care enough to post but not to get in trouble). I don't know what the ratio looks like property wide. But I do think it's a good indicator of what Disney is going for here.

Can you say what they are doing for solo travelers that have medical needs but get rejected from DAS?

 

[Splash4eva]

Do you think that could possibly be kept quiet today with social media? You're expecting the employees to all keep it quiet AND expecting all of the customers granted the service to keep it quiet. No whistleblowers. No "I got DAS approved for ____" posts on social media or Disney message boards. It's not possible and - as you already conceded - quite likely illegal.

Short answer. No i dont think its possible. Same way i dont think its gonna be possible to keep the “key words to say” secret either on who is getting approved.