I Know This Can't Be Done, But... (Re: MR)

[Napria]

My son is 12 and has mild mental retardation, as well as autism. He's also got a ton of other medical conditions that I won't go into but, here's the point: My son functions like a 6 year old. In school he's reading at a first grade level and is doing math at a second grade level. His favorite shows are pre-school shows. He's sweet and innocent like a young child. And his temperment is that of a much younger child than his chronological years.

It would be wonderful if I could bring documentation of this and pay the child price for him. It's so hard to swallow that adult ticket price when he's so very far from anything resembling an adult. But I know this is something Disney could not do. I was just wondering whether anyone else is in a similar situation and has thought about this?

 

[mechurchlady]

My mother is 83 and would be able to Dsineyland very little as Calvin would have to push her. She would only ride Mark Twain and Small World. She could do Buz but that would freak her out. I might get her into innoventions, tiki room and the Saloon. Why should I pay $65 for her to go to parks and not ride anything. Thought that same thought today.

 

[Mary976]

You are not the first person to wonder about this. Others here have made similar remarks about children with developmental delays or children with physical disabilities who cannot ride many of the rides. As you noted, WDW does tickets only be age, but you are not the first to wish it could be done differently.

Mary

 

[Schmeck]

Just think of it this way - even though someone may not be able to go on the 'thrill' attractions, there's so much to do at WDW that it is very reasonable to have the age limit set as it is. Some adults (myself included) do not go on the thrill rides, but my family still can fill 8 days of WDW full of activity and fun.

If there was some kind of exemption for a ticket price, then I would think there would have to be certain restrictions as well.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

There is only a $35.00 difference between the child and adult prices for the most expensive ticket (10 day). The adult base ticket only costs 17%-19% higher than a same number of days child ticket.

And there is no attraction that, due to size, he would be prohibited from.

And does he eat as much as a 12 year old boy or a six year oild boy?

 

[SueM in MN]

I've thought of it, but decided it would not work.
Even though my DD who is disabled is a daredevil and would go on anything we can physically get her on, there are many things that she can't ride. Some are so difficult to get her onto that we just can't do it any more.
My other DD is not disabled and could go on anything, but is more timid and skips some rides because of this.
That's just the type of situation that comes up when people mention less expensive options for people with disabilities. Some people have issues with heights or speed or motion sickness and post that they should also get a less expensive ticket. And, there are elderly people, etc, etc.

I think that it would be difficult to decide who would pay what and there would probably be restrictions.
I guess, all in all, we feel that DD gets her moneys worth even if she pays full price and can't go on everything.

 

[SandrainNC]

We are in a similar situation. My oldest has Down syndrome. So cognitively he is not 8. He is around 4. Probably. It is hard to tell because if he is interested in something he does things on a higher level.

He has so much fun at WDW I have no problem paying the price I am supposed to pay for his chronological age. And next year he will require an adult ticket (I think we will have to upgrade or something since I just bought a 10 day ticket last year). He is very small for his age (just now 40 pounds and 44 inches tall) so it is taking him a little longer to be able to do things. But he loves rides so he gets to do a lot of stuff. Last trip he could do anything 42 inches or lower. We choose not to put him on TOT and a few other intense rides that we know he will not like. But he loves Test Track, he was fine on Soarin, BTMRR and Splash. So he does a lot of the bigger attractions. When I go to a buffet and pay $12 for him to just eat mashed potatoes (he is very picky), I know this going in. I could choose not to go and not pay it, but we want to go. So we pay it.

I agree with others in that if an elderly person goes they can't ride everything either, but they have to pay the adult price. So it is the same in this situation. Lots of adults go to WDW who do not like rides at all.

Sandra

 

[Napria]

Actually, he doesn't like to go to the parks at all, let alone do the rides. He's just there because we can't leave him behind (nor would we want to!) As to whether he eats as much as a 12 year old, well he certainly eats more than a 6 year old (he's 120 lbs!!) but he only eats Pop Tarts for breakfast and chicken nuggets, spaghetti or pizza for lunch and dinner. He will only drink purple grape juice for a drink and will drink water only when he's taking his seizure meds. And yes, he takes supplements. I know it's not an ideal diet, but he's under medical supervision and we're picking our battles.

I guess my ideal situation is what WDW did originally: free entrance to the park but use tickets for the rides. Unlike most everyone else, I'd happily pay per ride, especially since we rarely get to do more than three (yes, 3. I'm not exaggerating) rides per day. Not one of them is on the level of Tower of Terror or even Splash Mountain. The wildest ride we could get him on is Goofy's Barnstormer, but he doesn't want to do that again. Mostly we do Peter Pan, It's a Small World and the like.

Again, I'm not proposing WDW change. I'm just feeling the money crunch and wishing he could go back to the child ticket price. But yes, I do know that I'm one of very few who think this way. I was just wondering whether I'm the only one.

 

[Tiiiigergirl]

It's hard because WDW is where my son first became a man . He is still just 15. First WDW then admissions to other places, then menus at restaurants etc. Those transition years are very hard. I think WDW was a little easier for me because my little monster loves every ride - he has zero fear. I am not certain what will happen when I'm not well enough to ride with him because his Dad has motion sickness in a bad way. But for us we felt that the cost, although expensive, had value.

I can see your point but it would be too much of a slippery slope for Disney, I'm sure. They would have to evalute every individual request on the merit of how much they planned to use the facility. Wow. I cannot see them doing that at all.

 

[brenalexacamp]

Just an f.y.i. we went to the crystal palace for my ds's 15th birthday! He has down's too-he eats NOTHING but pasta.
i asked if we could get a dish of it- the chef was thrilled to make it- brought it over himself and showed us a pic of his son with down's.

I made sure he had something to eat before we went- figuring maybe he'd try some chicken--or salad.
I knew he'd eat ice cream.
i knew that going in but wanted to have the experience of the character's.

I never expect special service-but it seems everytime we go- magic happens

 

[KPeveler]

my mother can't ride hardly anything (motion sickness, neck problem, claustrophobia, and feat of heights)... even hte carousel is too much for her (spins)... but she still manages to fill a day and do even more than i do! (granted, i use a wheelchair and have a bad neck, but still...)

hope you have a great trip!

 

[Schmeck]

Just an f.y.i. we went to the crystal palace for my ds's 15th birthday! He has down's too-he eats NOTHING but pasta.
i asked if we could get a dish of it- the chef was thrilled to make it- brought it over himself and showed us a pic of his son with down's.

I made sure he had something to eat before we went- figuring maybe he'd try some chicken--or salad.
I knew he'd eat ice cream.
i knew that going in but wanted to have the experience of the character's.

I never expect special service-but it seems everytime we go- magic happens

They gave us an extra bowl of mashed potatoes at garden grill because that was all my older DD would eat. They also brought a big basket of rolls, as that was all younger DD would eat, LOL! Since we were dining there to meet the characters, the extra service was a nice surprise!

 

[bobjuliecarter]

My son is 9 and has a feeding tube and eats very little. However, what he does eat is not what is on the typical child's menu at Disney. We do the dining plan each time we go. He has always been 9.99 or 10.99. He turns 10 this December, and will jump form the kids price to the adult price of 38.99. I know he doesn't eat 38.99 worth of food, but I also know that it will open his meals up to more of the meals that he will eat.

It would be nice if they went by height for entrance and not by age. My son is also very short for his age, so he is just now tall enough to ride the bigger rides.

However, I don't complain too much because it still is a lot to do for your money and beats all the amusement parks I have ever been to.

 

[PatMcDuck]

It is interesting, because my son (now 19) has DS and Autism, and is not really verbal (has some words, but no conversational speech). He rides EVERYTHING. We are a ride family, so he came along with us onto the rides. His favorite has always been Tower of Terror. But he even rides the big coasters at Islands of Adventure, and loves them (like HULK). I am not saying this would work for all special kids, he may be unique in this. He loved California Screamin at DL. So, he sure should pay the adult price, even though his functioning age in many ways is about 3 years, some things maybe 5-6 years). I get it about the meals, because he still eats mostly off the kid menu, and eats kids stuff at the buffets.

But, if they lowered the price for handicapped, they would have to raise it for everyone else (just a tiny bit, of course). Six Flags used to have a special admission, I am not sure if they still do however.

 

[rjthkids]

I can understand. My daughter who is blind also has low-functioning autism and moderate M.R. Her I.Q. tests out around 42. She didn't become verbal until she was 5 1/2 and at 7 years old she is on par with a 20-24 month old. Her language skills fall a little weaker.

We regularly pay all sorts of admission fees to all kinds of activities that she definitely does not get the "full" experience in trade for that fee. We've taken her to plays and shows where she essentially sits there tapping on the seat and pressing her eyes, to the zoo where there are only a fraction of the exhibits that are meaningful to her, to the science museum where I'm prodding her to pay attention to anything around us, etc. etc. I try and make sure things are as accessible as possible and to include her as much as possible but so many things just aren't at her cognitive level.

But, what I tell myself is this: "I truly do not know just how much of this she is absorbing in ways I do not understand. I'm glad to give her the opportunity to experience this to the best of *her* capability."

Many times I've been tempted just to leave her home, but at the end of the day I bring her not so much because she is getting what I would expect a typical child to get out of the experience, but because she's my daughter and I want us to do things together as a family because I love her company. If that means paying a full price ticket for something she's just humoring me to be dragged along through, then I'll pay it because *she's* worth it, even if the experience--- *for her*--- isn't worth the money.

I totally hear you though. It would be really nice.

 

[SueM in MN]

But, what I tell myself is this: "I truly do not know just how much of this she is absorbing in ways I do not understand. I'm glad to give her the opportunity to experience this to the best of *her* capability."

 

[Brightsy]

Just an f.y.i. we went to the crystal palace for my ds's 15th birthday! He has down's too-he eats NOTHING but pasta.
i asked if we could get a dish of it- the chef was thrilled to make it- brought it over himself and showed us a pic of his son with down's.

I made sure he had something to eat before we went- figuring maybe he'd try some chicken--or salad.
I knew he'd eat ice cream.
i knew that going in but wanted to have the experience of the character's.

I never expect special service-but it seems everytime we go- magic happens

For Thanksgiving 2007 we went to WDW and met up w/ my Momma, her friend and my Uncle CheshireFigment. We ate at one of the character buffets for dinner (the one at the Swalphin).
I picked that one because A: they had openings and B: they had Mac-n-Cheese on the menu listed on AllEars. Anyways, we got there and found out they changed the menu for t-day, no mac-n-cheese. WDWs mac-n-cheese is my younger DSs favorite thing in the worls (ok maybe not, but it's the ONLY thing aside from Ice Cream and some breads and Kaki-gori (in Japan at Epcot) that' he'll eat at WDW). I lamented on this as our greeter took us to our table. She was very sympathetic. Next thing I know our waitress brings over a GINORMOUS bowl of mac-n-cheese and says "courtesy of the Chef and Mickey."
The worst part of the whole thing was that my older DS (ADHD) was so tired and beat from the day that we paid $17.50 (T-day buffet price for kids) and what did he eat? He had two rolls and one itty-bitty mini-pumpkin pie thingy. *sigh*

 

[teachallday]

Oh I much prefer the current pricing over what they had in the past. Having to pay for every ride is a real negative. One of the things that makes Disney so magical is that once you are in it is all payed for. Oh how I hate having to keep going back to the ticket office to get more tickets and seeing the money in my wallet go down and down. Or having one ticket left when two are needed for the last ride you want to take before heading home. The one I loved last summer at the county fair was taking my little girl with special needs to one of those haunted house / fun house type places that she begged me to to in, and paying two tickets for each of us to have her decide two steps into it that it was too scarry and she refused to go in. I could not get a refund on the tickets because they had already been torn in half. Litterally she only got two steps into the doorway, never even turned the corner to go down the walk way actually into the thing. Now that was a huge waste of money.

At Disney, even if she only chooses to go on one ride, there are the characters, playgrounds, parades, and general feel of being at Disney. Are the tickets expensive, yes. If you feel they are too expensive what what your child will get out of it, don't take her. I have held off five years to take my little princess to Disney, till a point that I thought she would get some level of magic out of it. Is she going to get out of it what a typical 7 year old little girl would, no. Will she get out of it what a typcial 3 year old would, I hope so. I know during my planning I am looking at what I would take a 3 year old to, not a seven year old. I am looking for places to change a seven year olds diapers, and trying to figure out which lids I will be bringing for her sippy cups (regular sippy cup lids or the ones with the straw). She gets motion sick, fears easily, and waiting for rides will be VERY hard for her. I do not question the value of her ticket however. I am sure my little princess will find extreme excitement and enjoyment in her visit. I am sure that her expression when meeting Handy Manny or seing Chip & Dale will make it all worth it, the priceless factor.

I am paying for a Disney Experience, not for the rides. If I didn't think that experience was worth the price of admission, I wouldn't go with her. I suggest you look for what your child can get out of Disney, instead of what they will not be able to do at Disney.

 

[Brightsy]

I agree with teachallday. When we first went to WDW my youngest was 3, and my older son was 5. They were both too small for a lot of things, too scared for some other things, and as a result that first trip we didn't ride a whole lot of things. (The rides we did use I had to praise the GAC for making our lives so much easier!!!) Still I feel we more than got our money's worth. My kids adored the atmosphere of the place and where happy to wander around and look at things. The Swiss Family Treehouse and Tom Sawyer Island were HUGE hits with my boys. The little playarea by Splash Mountain was a great joy, as was the play area in Toontown Fair. At Epcot they spent a loooong time happily splashing in the various water-spout things, and loved playing near the fountains by "Honey I shrunk the audience." They loved the "Figment Ride" and the boat ride in Living Lands, not to mention the fun they had "under the sea" in the Living Seas pavilion. The were so happy to walk around the world (okay get pushed around the world) and eat Kaki-Gori in Japan and a pretzel in Germany.
Animal Kingdom was a huge joy, except for the 3D bug show, they didn't kike that, but the safari? oH YEAH.

 

[Brightsy]

Ooops, cat walked on the Keyboard... To ramble on, at the Studios (back then they were still the Disney/MGM Studios) they enjoyed the movie ride, of course there was Playhouse Disney! Star Wars was thrilling for my older son.
There is so much I could go on about, a lot of it I already have! Suffice to say, despite not riding too much we more than got our monies worth on those first early trips. Even the time we took my Mom with us, and she couldn't ride several things because of motion sickness and a bad back, we paid adult prices for her and she had so much fun! WDW is waaaaayyyy more than the rides, it's the atmosphere, the characters, the food (mmmm Dole Whips.....mmmmm), the street performers, the CMs, the Mouse ('natch) and the MAGIC!