DAS changes coming WDW May 20/ DL June 18, 2024

[LSUmiss]

Even if one of them successfully faked autism, I suspect that in this scenario the accommodation offered would be exactly the same as for fake IBS (rider switch with 4 out of the 6 being required to go through the standby line).

I seriously doubt that Disney is going to have the audacity to tell someone they’re “faking autism”. What does an autistic person look or act like exactly that can be determined by a brief online video chat???

 

[Angel Ariel]

But you can choose a ride with a 4 hour wait (God forbid!) , go ride other stuff with shorter waits all day, then come back and you just saved 3 hours and 45 minutes of line time! That type of time savings is hard to do on any day any other way

The discussion is about the negative impact DAS has on lightning lane. People not redeeming their DAS for hours means they aren't in any other lightning lanes via DAS.

I will not back and forth with you. Good night.

 

[Gentry2004]

My party size is 3. Well within the previous limit and current limit they're changing to.

I understand that's true right now. I'm more talking about where this all is heading. I don't think this is the end, at all.

 

[Evita_W]

I mean the more out of hand it gets, the easier it will be able to prove that it was fundamentally affecting their daily line of business if they are sued by anyone over the change

And the more money they can make by selling an alternative like Genie+ and make an extra buck off of those who are disabled, as they know w lot of people who are disabled will shell out the money to avoid the hassles if they make the system too difficult to navigate.

 

[Tatebeck]

The discussion is about the negative impact DAS has on lightning lane. People not redeeming their DAS for hours means they aren't in any other lightning lanes via DAS.

I will not back and forth with you. Good night.

Whoa

Having an incentive for more people to apply for DAS definitely does have an effect on DAS and LL.... Also they could still be in LL during that time if they bought genie+ too...

But have a good night I guess? I'm just not sure why you are in a discussion thread if you don't want to discuss.

 

[Gentry2004]

And the more money they can make by selling an alternative like Genie+ and make an extra buck off of those who are disabled, as they know w lot of people who are disabled will shell out the money to avoid the hassles if they make the system too difficult to navigate.

Not to mention the less attractive they make it, the less incentive there is to cheat.

 

[LSUmiss]

Disney keeps changing their website disabilities pages for WDW and DL.
A few days ago, there were 2 sets of instructions - one was for people coming BEFORE the date changes take place. And one was for people coming after.
Now, there is only one set. I don't know why they cut the second set. It may be because it was confusing people or maybe because they will add more information as the time gets closer.
This is copied from the Disneyland page:
For Guests visiting from April 9 through May 19, 2024, please note:

• Pre-arrival conversations to determine eligibility for DAS are available 2-30 days prior to your park visit.
• In-person conversations to determine eligibility for DAS will continue to be at Guest Relations locations.
• You can book up to 2 one-hour return windows for select experiences using our DAS Advance planning option.
• DAS is valid for up to 30 days from the start of the registration. Once the service has elapsed, Guests will need to re-register.

Most have assumed this means the health professional company would be:
- training Cast Members who will be doing screening
- training front line cast members on how different accommodations would be managed at their attraction
- coming up with possible accommodations and how to operationalize them
- act as consultants as difficult situations occur

We don't know what the process will be. It could be something very different than what people are imagining.


Totally agree.
In the past, when all registration was in person at Guest Relations, I heard lots of discussions regarding letters. CMs talking quietly and guests talking loudly:
"My Doctor wrote AN ORDER that says we need front of the line access. You have to give it to us."
"What do you mean WHAT ARE MY CONCERNS with waiting in line? I need handicapped accommodations."
"My doctor said you shouldn't make me wait in lines. You try being pregnant with 3 small kids. That's a disability"

It does spread guests out except for if the ride goes down and all who didn't ride when it was down come back at the same time to ride


The piece we don't know is how many 'slots' were taken up by the DAS Advance Selections. The websites no longer mention them, so it appears they are going away, at least for most people with disabilities.
Allears net reported they may be still available for certain disabilities- no information on who or how

Orlando Medical Rentals has the largest variety of special needs strollers to rent for WDW.
AdaptiveMall. Com is a good place to 'window shop.'

I thought dlr started later?

 

[OurBigTrip]

I don't think there is any rule or legal precedent that states that in addition to being able to wait outside the queue, they have to allow ALL of your party to wait with you. There was already a limit. And there is no reason Disney can't lower the limit even further.

The issue with some autistic guests would be that they need to wait outside the line and they can’t be separated from their family without having a meltdown.

Can’t be separated v. Doesn’t want to be separated are two very different things.

It oddly seems that you now might be ok with DAS being eliminated, so long as it’s eliminated for everyone. Or perhaps I’m misunderstanding.

 

[Gentry2004]

The issue with some autistic guests would be that they need to wait outside the line and they can’t be separated from their family without having a meltdown.

Can’t be separated v. Doesn’t want to be separated are two very different things.

It oddly seems that you now might be ok with DAS being eliminated, so long as it’s eliminated for everyone. Or perhaps I’m misunderstanding.

Its more of a thought experiment. What is Disney's end goal here? Because the initial announcement made no sense and still doesn't. What they were proposing was not going to meaningfully improve the LL experience for others or eliminate fraud. So either they weren't genuine about those being goals, or this is merely a step along the way to a deeper change in accommodations. I do think its a shame it had to come to this and I think social media is to blame.

It seems odd that as a non DAS user you are so deeply invested in one group keeping DAS and another group losing it.

 

[Angel Ariel]

Its more of a thought experiment. What is Disney's end goal here? Because the initial announcement made no sense and still doesn't. What they were proposing was not going to meaningfully improve the LL experience for others or eliminate fraud. So either they weren't genuine about those being goals, or this is merely a step along the way to a deeper change in accommodations. I do think its a shame it had to come to this and I think social media is to blame.

It has been over 10 years since the switch from GAC to DAS. I don't know that I'd assume they're going to make any further significant changes after this one for a while. Maybe sooner than 10 years, but I wouldn't assume it'll be in the next few months or even a year. They'll want time to take data across a wide range of crowd levels, seasonal events, etc.

 

[Madteaparty001]

For those of you who cannot do Disney without the DAS in its current form, how do you navigate other scenarios that have similar issues but no available accommodation? Airport, concert, festival, etc. Places that have long lines, large crowds, but no DAS.

The person who this post was intended for has seen it and thus the content was deleted in case the information could be used for future DAS abuse.

 

[OurBigTrip]

Its more of a thought experiment. What is Disney's end goal here? Because the initial announcement made no sense and still doesn't. What they were proposing was not going to meaningfully improve the LL experience for others or eliminate fraud. So either they weren't genuine about those being goals, or this is merely a step along the way to a deeper change in accommodations. I do think its a shame it had to come to this and I think social media is to blame.

It seems odd that as a non DAS user you are so deeply invested in one group keeping DAS and another group losing it.

I’m not invested in one group keeping it or one group losing it. I’m invested in reducing the number of the people in the LL because as it is now, it negatively impacts EVERYONE.

Not everyone needs a DAS, even if that’s what they currently have. Given it’s been the only real option the last 11 years, that’s understandable. But just as Disney did in 2013 when they cracked down on the GAC, they are now cracking down on the DAS, and apparently focusing DAS on a group that can’t be effectively accommodated without it.

I don’t see why that’s such a bad thing.

 

[Gentry2004]

It has been over 10 years since the switch from GAC to DAS. I don't know that I'd assume they're going to make any further significant changes after this one for a while. Maybe sooner than 10 years, but I wouldn't assume it'll be in the next few months or even a year. They'll want time to take data across a wide range of crowd levels, seasonal events, etc.

Perhaps. We'll know a lot more in a couple months who is actually receiving DAS vs. being told to use Rider Swap/Return to Line and how it all actually works. If the problem is truly a 3x increase in DAS users, they aren't going to make much headway with only the small changes they are proposing right now.

 

[SueM in MN]

I like the idea of extending an hour - that would work for us. I do take exception to the fact that DAS is a real advantage - most who qualify don't get as much done as a typical guest, let alone more rides per day.

One thing Disney has now that they didn't have in the past is ability to 'put' things onto the guest's profile.
When it was GAC (Guest Assistance Card), different stamps were added to the physical card with different accommodations. Just off the top of my head they included:

• Wait in a shaded area when the queue is in the sun for a significant amount of time
• Avoid stairs
• Seating in the front
• Alternate entry (often the exit when the regular line wasn't accessible)
• One stamp - the green arrow stamp allowed immediate entry thru the exit (or later, Fastpass Line) - was supposed to be reserved for Make A Wish trips. But, a lot of people got that stamp anyway

The different stamps were confusing and sometimes people even had contradictory stamps. Sometimes people with vision related disabilities who needed close seating in a show also had a stamp to use the accessible entrance - which put them at the back of the theater. To avoid scenes at Guest Relations and at attractions, people often ended up with a higher level of access than they needed and attraction CMs often just treated them all the same.

BUT - blue sky thinking...
What if they used the ability to add things to personalize the disabled person's accommodations profile to match their needs. Sort of like a digital version of the GAC stamps.
Maybe one person has 'traditional DAS' that works the same as presently.
Maybe someone else gets a certain number of 'DAS entries' per day
Someone else has a Disability Rider Swap that can be arranged at every attraction - not just the ones with height requirements that are presently on the list

Multiple other things I can't think of right now because my eyes are tired from Internet reading...

At Disneyland this past January they told us they were now alternating the colors of the Stroller as a Wheelchair tag because people were faking them on Etsy.

People suck.

Agree.
I've seen them on eBay too.
People used to sell their GAC cards on eBay as "never ending Fastpasses; a great convenience to assist guests". I remember reading some complaints on Facebook when GAC changed to DAS because "it's demeaning to have a card with the word 'disability' on it". That kind of made me wonder if they were some of the ones selling their GAC

 

[Gentry2004]

I’m not invested in one group keeping it or one group losing it. I’m invested in reducing the number of the people in the LL because as it is now, it negatively impacts EVERYONE.

Not everyone needs a DAS, even if that’s what they currently have. Given it’s been the only real option the last 11 years, that’s understandable. But just as Disney did in 2013 when they cracked down on the GAC, they are now cracking down on the DAS, and apparently focusing DAS on a group that can’t be effectively accommodated without it.

I don’t see why that’s such a bad thing.

Really? Because you seem very invested in IBS/Crohn's losing the benefit and very invested in Autism/DD keeping the benefit, from your posts.

 

[prettypatchesmsu]

I was within my 30 days today so I did the video chat for DAS. The wait from start to finishing everything was 2 1/2 hours. The focus was still on why you cannot wait in line like I had answered before. There were more specific questions and I did feel like they were carefully considering my answers. I am autistic so my difficulties and problems are associated mostly with that and my comorbid disabilities. I obviously won’t go into detail on here. I had written down ahead of time what I wanted to cover as I do have some verbal difficulties communicating just off the cuff.
He did say that DAS changes were coming and that I should keep my written communication sheet as he said it was good information, I’d need it to help me next time, and good information helps them determine my eligibility.
My pass is good beyond the May 20 change date, up till in June actually. So 30 days from our first day.

 

[SueM in MN]

I thought dlr started later?

It does - WDW starts May 20 and DL starts June 18.
I probably copied from the wrong page - I have both WDW and DL page open in tabs so I can recheck what they changed since I looked last. The text in that part is the same except for the dates

 

[OurBigTrip]

One thing Disney has now that they didn't have in the past is ability to 'put' things onto the guest's profile.
When it was GAC (Guest Assistance Card), different stamps were added to the physical card with different accommodations. Just off the top of my head they included:

• Wait in a shaded area when the queue is in the sun for a significant amount of time
• Avoid stairs
• Seating in the front
• Alternate entry (often the exit when the regular line wasn't accessible)
• One stamp - the green arrow stamp allowed immediate entry thru the exit (or later, Fastpass Line) - was supposed to be reserved for Make A Wish trips. But, a lot of people got that stamp anyway

The different stamps were confusing and sometimes people even had contradictory stamps. Sometimes people with vision related disabilities who needed close seating in a show also had a stamp to use the accessible entrance - which put them at the back of the theater. To avoid scenes at Guest Relations and at attractions, people often ended up with a higher level of access than they needed and attraction CMs often just treated them all the same.

BUT - blue sky thinking...
What if they used the ability to add things to personalize the disabled person's accommodations profile to match their needs. Sort of like a digital version of the GAC stamps.
Maybe one person has 'traditional DAS' that works the same as presently.
Maybe someone else gets a certain number of 'DAS entries' per day
Someone else has a Disability Rider Swap that can be arranged at every attraction - not just the ones with height requirements that are presently on the list

Multiple other things I can't think of right now because my eyes are tired from Internet reading...

Agree.
I've seen them on eBay too.
People used to sell their GAC cards on eBay as "never ending Fastpasses; a great convenience to assist guests". I remember reading some complaints on Facebook when GAC changed to DAS because "it's demeaning to have a card with the word 'disability' on it". That kind of made me wonder if they were some of the ones selling their GAC

Disney has the technology to do everything you just mentioned, and it would be awesome.

 

[OurBigTrip]

Really? Because you seem very invested in IBS/Crohn's losing the benefit and very invested in Autism/DD keeping the benefit, from your posts.

That’s your perception.

 

[MediumSizedMermaid]

Thinking of what a better system might look like that meets needs and discourages bad actors, I wonder if the following would work:

1.) Allow guests to choose from all available timeslots when selecting Genie+ slots, not just the soonest available.

2. All guests gets 1 Genie+ per day FOR FREE they can select up to 7 days in advance of their trip. During their trip they can select another after the first is used or after a 2 hour cool down, whichever comes first. (If this clogs things too much, you could change it to on-property hotel guests only and/or extend the cooldown.)

3. Guests also have the option to pay for A Macdaddy $$$ option (think what Universal charges or more) where you can pre-select 3 in advance and when the first one is used you can select another, but you can't have more than three active at once. Possibly include ILLs with this version. (Yes this is pay to play and no I personally don't like that aspect, but I'm trying to think like the Mouse while still letting non-premium paying guests get something.)

4. All ILL rides move to a virtual queue system for standby when the standby line becomes over 45 minutes. Or it's active 1 hour after park open to one hour before park close. Either/or. This way ropedroppers and end of nighters can still do their thing but you're not having people on 4 hour lines.

4. DAS remains as is in function, without being limited to developmental disorders, BUT you can't double-dip with the free Genie+, it's one or the other. You can of course add the Macdaddy version because Disney likes money.

Do people feel like this hypothetical would work for them? I'm curious as to why or why not.