GAC changes - July & Aug 2013?

[tmadden]

I am hearing that a lot of people are being denied the guest assist passes. I am a type 1 diabetic & we don't go not until the beginning of march. My diabetes is real bad to the point that i tire very easily & i have real bad pain in my feet & legs from neuropathy. I also take Xanax for frequent panic. I get one to help with the lines that are extremely long such as over a hour. I only use the pass maybe 4 or 5 time over the course of a week. I am freaking out about if i will be able to obtain one now after everything on the news. I can only do about 4-5 hours a day in the parks then i am finished for the day. Totally burned out. Usually when i go i show the card i received on the previous visit also i have a doctors note & my medication with me at guest services but they never ask to see it. Please advise

 

[wilkeliza]

I am hearing that a lot of people are being denied the guest assist passes. We don't go not until the beginning of march i have diabetes real bad to the point that i tire very easily & i have real bad pain in my feet & legs from neuropathy. I get one to help with the lines that are extremely long such as over a hour. So i am freaking out about if i will be able to obtain one now after everything on the news. I can only do about 4-5 hours a day in the parks then i am finished for the day. Totally burned out. Usually when i go i show the card i received on the previous visit also i have a doctors note & my medication with me at guest services but they never ask to see it. Please advise

It is hard to say if you will be denied or not. You may receive a pass that says you can wait in an alternate location or where seating is available. However, this card is not meant to shorten wait times and may actually length your wait time. If you have trouble waiting in the long lines they may just tell you to rent a wheel chair or ECV since GACs are not intended to shorten wait times.

 

[lanejudy]

I agree with the above poster. WDW's standard response regarding stamina or mobility issues is to suggest a wheelchair or ECV rental. The GAC specifically states it is not intended to shorten wait times, and to my knowledge there is no stamp specific to "lines that are extremely long such as over a hour." I'd suggest you consider whether an ECV might better help you to conserve your energy and make it through the day along with a good touring plan and use of FastPass. There is much more walking between attractions than within the lines, so if you can use less energy then you might not tire as easily and/or the pain may not hit as quickly. You can always park the ECV and walk for a bit to stretch your legs so you don't stiffen up.

If you really "only use the pass maybe 4 or 5 time over the course of a week" then I'm not sure why reason for a freak-out -- that's not even 1 ride a day. A disappointment to miss 1 more ride, especially if it's your favorite ride, but not worth freaking out over.

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[SueM in MN]

The information in post 6 of the disABILITIES FAQs thread is still accurate.
You can find that thread near the top of this bore or follow the link in my signature.

You have to explain your needs at Guest Relations and they will let know what can be done. Some people are turned down because they are asking for things that ate not available.
Most attractions do NOT have a place to sit unless you bring a mobility device in with you. (wheelchair, ECV, rollator). And, the distance walked in line is just a small part of the distance walked in a dy at WDW.
That is why WDW suggests guests who are concerned about their ability or stamina to walk consider renting a mobility device.

 

[ttintagel]

If a line is over 20 minutes I don't get in it.

 

[stitchlovestink]

If a line is over 20 minutes I don't get in it.

WoW! Without my GAC I would NEVER get to ride Soarin' and a few of the other HeadLiner's that the FP's are gone for early in the day. I can't get to the parks that early due to my medical condition. And I can't get landlocked into one of those long standby wait lines either.

I understand how you choose not to get in a line over 20 min long but am unsure how is this supposed to be helpful to the OP and her use of a GAC?

 

[luv2sleep]

I was there in June. Things have changed since then? I had no issues getting one for my son.

 

[stitchlovestink]

I agree with the above poster. WDW's standard response regarding stamina or mobility issues is to suggest a wheelchair or ECV rental. The GAC specifically states it is not intended to shorten wait times, and to my knowledge there is no stamp specific to "lines that are extremely long such as over a hour." I'd suggest you consider whether an ECV might better help you to conserve your energy and make it through the day along with a good touring plan and use of FastPass. There is much more walking between attractions than within the lines, so if you can use less energy then you might not tire as easily and/or the pain may not hit as quickly. You can always park the ECV and walk for a bit to stretch your legs so you don't stiffen up.

If you really "only use the pass maybe 4 or 5 time over the course of a week" then I'm not sure why reason for a freak-out -- that's not even 1 ride a day. A disappointment to miss 1 more ride, especially if it's your favorite ride, but not worth freaking out over.

Enjoy your vacation!

Bolding is mine...
BUT if I had to miss ALL or MOST of MY Favorite attractions (which are the ones I need my GAC for) I would be VERY disappointed and Upset! They are a Large part of why I got to the parks. Yes, not the only reason, but why should I be forced to miss them?? I like the OP some days can only handle a handful of hours in the park so I have to maximize the productivity and the use of those hours I DO have in the park and make the best use of them! Why should I not be able to ride the attractions I want? Sorry to disagree with you but when I go to Epcot, I want to ride Soarin'. If I don't ride anything else there, I will be fine. But if I don't get to ride that I might as well not go to that park unless we are dining at a restaurant there. So I think this is a case of....different strokes for different folks and what may not be important to you, may be to someone else. And as I posted earlier, I can't generally get to the park early enough to get a FP for Soarin, they're gone by the time I get there. And I can't get landlocked in that standby line due to my medical condition...So without my GAC, I wouldn't get to ride Soarin'.

 

[SueM in MN]

They have not changed YET (other than Annual Passholders not being given a GAC for more than 2 weeks).

There are very good rumors that there will be a major changeover in August, but it is not known exactly what the changes will be. Likely rumors are that the card will better identify the person it was issued to (right now, it has a name printed on it, but the card itself is not numbered or tracked. That will very, very likely changed.
I have no inside information on how things will change, so these are just educated guesses.

Other rumored changes are that when someone with a Guest Assistance Card comes to an attraction with a long wait, they are likely to be given a return time ticket with a time to come back that is equal to the current wait. So, they won't have to wait in lines, but will be waiting somewhere outside the line.

Again, no one knows what the changes will be, but they are currently using return times at Disneyland in the Cars area. Universal does involve issuing return times, so there are models out there using that..

So, I would expect the changes to include some type of similar access.
Using some type of touring plan (even if you don't follow it exactly) will help a lot by helping you to be in the least busy part of the least busy park, whatever changes are made to GACs.
If there are no access changes, touring plans will still help you to get around in the least crowds. If return time tickets are used, they will likely be based on the current wait time, so knowing what the current wait times are would still be helpful.

 

[SueM in MN]

We use a GAC only for a few specific attractions that we would not be able to get a Fastpass. We can't get to the parks early because of the time involved in DD's morning care.
There are few that we are able to transfer her into and many that she would love, but can't go on (like all the mountains).
We do use Fastpasses and touring plans as much as possible, but often have gotten Fastpasses we can't use because DD has a seizure or a bad day and is 'done' after as little as 2 hours. That makes planning very difficult, but we use everything that is available to help us plan.
One of us often leaves with DD while the other stays in the park and on each trip, we trade off DH or I taking going to a park early, so we can experience some of the things DD can't do. It's not much fun to be always by yourself though.

 

[lanejudy]

Bolding is mine...
BUT if I had to miss ALL or MOST of MY Favorite attractions (which are the ones I need my GAC for) I would be VERY disappointed and Upset! They are a Large part of why I got to the parks. Yes, not the only reason, but why should I be forced to miss them?? I like the OP some days can only handle a handful of hours in the park so I have to maximize the productivity and the use of those hours I DO have in the park and make the best use of them! Why should I not be able to ride the attractions I want? Sorry to disagree with you but when I go to Epcot, I want to ride Soarin'. If I don't ride anything else there, I will be fine. But if I don't get to ride that I might as well not go to that park unless we are dining at a restaurant there. So I think this is a case of....different strokes for different folks and what may not be important to you, may be to someone else. And as I posted earlier, I can't generally get to the park early enough to get a FP for Soarin, they're gone by the time I get there. And I can't get landlocked in that standby line due to my medical condition...So without my GAC, I wouldn't get to ride Soarin'.

Sorry, I realize now my point didn't quite come across...OP indicates she has anxiety and is prone to panic attacks. To indicate s/he is "freaking out" over missing 4-5 rides in a week's time seems like s/he may be panicking a bit more than necessary. My point was to try and put it in perspective - don't get so upset before vacation even starts that it's so stressful. And after arriving, don't let 1 missed ride negate all the rest of the fun and enjoyment you've had the rest of the day - you're in WDW, much better than home even with a missed ride!

I'm guessing that we don't use a GAC in the same manner you do. OP indicates s/he uses one for "lines that are extremely long such as over a hour" and in my experience there isn't a GAC to accommodate such. Now maybe the accommodation is something else and OP only uses it when lines are that long but not necessary to avoid the wait. I stand by my position that to avoid a long wait, a touring plan and FPs will be much more useful than relying on a GAC.

If there's a ride that is an absolute favorite that it would ruin the trip to miss the ride, I suggest OP talk with Guest Relations about needs specific to that situation. We do at times miss rides, sometimes a favorite of one or another in the family, because we need to leave the park before we've had a chance to do that one. It's unfortunate, it's disappointing, but if it was going to ruin the trip I would make sure early in the day that we did that ride so if anything else happens and we need to leave the park we don't feel we missed anything vitally important.

Again, sorry if my original response came across rudely as I didn't intend that.

 

[ajgardner]

I've read in a few places that new GAC rules will be starting August 1st - does anyone know about this? I know that rumors like this have been circulating for years, but with the GAC being in the news so much I was wondering if this may be more than a rumor? I thought if it were true I'd see something about it on Disboards, but I didn't seem to see anything here. The only thing that I saw that was specific was that you would only get a GAC for one day at a time (rather than the current length of stay or AP 2 weeks), but other rules may also be included? We will be going August 6 and want to be prepared so was just wondering what anyone else knows or has heard?

This is one of the places I read about it (halfway down the page - titled "GAC Attack"):

http://micechat.com/34900-miceage-disneyland-tomorrowland/

 

[jmartinez1895]

I think the only way to know for sure is to wait and see. I have not heard of them only issuing a GAC for one day at a time. I know that they have shortened the issue date for AP holders, but I thought that it was good for longer than one day.

 

[Rowanonfire]

I don't know about anything else, but if they're really restricting GACs to one day only - Well, I don't really mind. I'm sure there are plenty of people who will complain, but, it matches up with any other themepark I have been to, where you have to get a seperate card for every visit. Assuming you can show an old GAC in order to get a new one stamped, so you're not explaining your issues every time, that seems okay to me.

 

[SueM in MN]

I'm going to combine this with another thread that was asking about recent experiences - I posted what I know (or guess) in that thread.

Regarding the ONE DAY question - from what I understand, the one day sounds like it will be short lived. Its purpose is apparently to make sure that on August 1 (or whatever the start day ends up being), they can start NEW with whatever they are putting into place.
It sounded like the 'valid' dates of GACs will go down day by day so that by the date of starting the NEW GACs , all the old ones will have expired.

 

[Wendydagny]

We were there at the beginning of July, and we experienced NO difference in how my dd's GAC was handled in the past-- both in terms of guest relations AND in terms of the CM's at attractions. In fact, I was prepared to have to explain in detail at guest relations, and literally, the CM walked up to me while we were still in line with a GAC already filled out with the stamps we needed. (Though my dd is visibly disabled).

I do worry about how future changes in the GAC will affect dd's ability to tour at Disney. Since due to her medical issues, being embedded in a line can be dangerous (as evidenced by the fact that we had to ambu bag her in the middle of Le Cellier, which raised a few eyebrows), and since they also limit the TIME she can spend touring and enjoying specific attractions because she only has limited windows when she is free enough from medical equipment to actually transfer to a ride. Still I trust, that Disney will work to find solutions specific to individuals with disabilities.

Now if only they could get rid of the bumpy walkways at the poly.....

 

[Wishes Count]

So far Guest Relations CMs have not been notified of any upcoming changes. However that does not mean that changes are not coming.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[wilkeliza]

So far Guest Relations CMs have not been notified of any upcoming changes. However that does not mean that changes are not coming.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

I read the rumored changes and it does appear to me that they are just going to start following written policy again. I know when I received my GAC training for attractions we were told the rules say issue hand written Fastpasses equal to the return time but no one does that so ignore it. I saw that as one of the rumored changes so was thinking perhaps it is simply returning to written policy.

 

[luv2sleep]

I read the rumored changes and it does appear to me that they are just going to start following written policy again. I know when I received my GAC training for attractions we were told the rules say issue hand written Fastpasses equal to the return time but no one does that so ignore it. I saw that as one of the rumored changes so was thinking perhaps it is simply returning to written policy.

What does the written policy say?

 

[wilkeliza]

What does the written policy say?

I don't work at an attraction that accepts GAC but all CMs are trained briefly about them. When I received my original training it said that is guest needs to use the FP line because the regular line was not accessible or they could not use it then you should hand write a return ticket that is equal to the wait time. I've only seen this done at Space Mountain.

I must state that I have no clue what is currently official policy or actually written.