Guide to Disability Access Service at Disney World
This post offers info & tips for using the Disability Access Service (DAS) at Walt Disney World for those with special needs to experience attractions, plus new details for the Genie system. This is based on our experience with my dad, who has a service dog. (Updated October 13, 2021.)
This guide to using DAS at Walt Disney World comes in response to reader comments and questions, but I want to make it abundantly clear that this is anecdotal. We have a grand total of four days experience with DAS at Walt Disney World, and are far from experts on it.
Rather than relying solely on this post for DAS and other accessibility tips, I’d recommend reading the resources on DisneyWorld.com, as well as other sites specifically focused on disabilities at Disney. This post is only accurate to the extent of our experience. With that said, here’s a look at our experience with using DAS at Walt Disney World…
October 13, 2021 Update: Let’s start with the process for obtaining the Disability Access Service, and how it works. If a guest needs DAS, there are now 2 ways to obtain the pass (it’s really more a status in My Disney Experience than a pass like the old Guest Assistance Card). As before, registration can be done at Guest Relations locations near each park entrance.
In addition to that, there’s now a new way to register for the DAS program: pre-arrival via live video chat. Before you register, make sure to:
- Add your travel party to your Family & Friends list in My Disney Experience, so they can be included in DAS plans
- Link valid theme park admission for each member of your party
- Ensure that the guest who is requesting to use DAS is present at the time of registration
Eligible guests now have the option to pre-register virtually with a Cast Member via live video chat between 2 to 30 days in advance of a park visit. Video chat is available from 7 am until 11 pm Eastern, and requires logging into your Disney account.
When you’re ready to chat with a Cast Member to register for DAS, you can engage in a live video chat using the “Request Live Video Chat” button on DisneyWorld.com’s DAS page. Make sure the device has a working camera and a microphone. You must review and accept the Terms & Conditions before requesting a live video chat (you literally won’t have the option until accepting the T&Cs).
Once you’ve pre-registered via live video chat, you’re eligible to pre-select up to 2 one-hour return windows for select experiences (subject to availability) using Walt Disney World’s new DAS Advance planning option as early as 30 days prior to a park visit. These selections are in addition to the return times you can request throughout the day of your actual park visit.
More changes and additional features are on the horizon with the rollout of Disney Genie, Genie+ and Lightning Lanes. At this point, we don’t yet know how all of that will work in tandem with DAS. Keep an eye on our Guide to Genie+ at Walt Disney World and Lightning Lane FAQs for more info.
As before, eligibility for Disability Access Service is based upon a guest’s need, not diagnosis. Cast Members will not, and by law cannot, ask for proof of a disability. Rather, they will ask fairly open-ended and vague questions about the type of accommodations a guest needs based on the disability or condition.
These Guest Relations Cast Members who issue the DAS are well-trained on this probably in equal parts because they are the creme-de-la-creme of Walt Disney World Cast Members, and because Disney wants to steer clear of ADA violations.
When the inquiry is complete, the guest with the disability has their picture taken and the Disability Access Service is added to their My Disney Experience account, and it’s accessible via MagicBand or theme park tickets at kiosks outside attractions. All family members who will be experiencing attractions with the guest obtaining the DAS need to be present at Guest Relations to have their MagicBands scanned, too.
After this is done, the DAS status is valid for 60 days across all Walt Disney World parks. Waiting in line was the longest part of this, with the whole process from start to finish taking us less than 5 minutes after that. It was painless.
Once a guest has DAS status, they or one of the other party members who had their MagicBand scanned can head to a Cast Member outside the attraction to obtain a return time. (In our experience, this Cast Member was usually holding an iPad-like device and standing under an umbrella outside the queue.) Since my dad has somewhat-limited mobility, we sometimes sent a “runner” to the attraction to obtain a return time, while he sat elsewhere.
The return time is determined by adding the current wait time for the attraction to the current time and subtracting 10 minutes (to account for transit to/from the attraction). For example, if it’s noon and Frozen Ever After has a 90 minute wait, the DAS return time would be 1:20 p.m. DAS is not a front of line pass or some sort of “Golden Ticket.”
While any party member can obtain the return time, the guest with the disability must be present for the other party members to board the attraction at that return time.
Note that you can use DAS in tandem with FastPass+ (or Genie+ and Lightning Lanes going forward), but we did not. Part of that is because it felt a bit like double-dipping (my dad’s a military man with a love of rules and order), and part was because that would’ve been too much for us to do in terms of walking with my dad and his service dog.
Usually, the DAS return line was simply the FastPass+ return line. On some older attractions (particularly those in Magic Kingdom) the DAS line was different, or branched off from the FastPass+ line. In all newer attractions, the DAS process went smoothly; it was easy to use and felt genuinely accommodating.
That’s the process in a nutshell, but I’m sure that leaves plenty of questions unanswered. Disney has an official Disability Access Service FAQ that addresses additional questions (and I’m happy to answer other questions–within the scope of my knowledge–in the comments to this post).
On older attractions where retrofits were made to make reasonable accommodations under the ADA (enacted in 1990–Magic Kingdom opened in 1971, Epcot in 1982, the Studios in 1989, and Animal Kingdom in 1998), it was far less smooth and pleasant. This was particularly true in Magic Kingdom where there are several attractions built in the 1970s.
The retrofit would not have been a problem in and of itself. It was exacerbated by Cast Members who were (typically) performing double-duty managing FastPass+ lines and also trying to accommodate DAS guests. While I cannot say we had any negative or rude encounters directly, we did witness some attitudes that seemed less than “accommodating.”
I’m not sure whether there’s some causation or if it’s just correlation (again, we only did this for 4 days, so this is totally anecdotal), but these unpleasant encounters were almost exclusively on older attractions with more convoluted DAS procedures. These procedures no doubt stress out Cast Members, too.
This is not to give Cast Members a pass for being anything less than accommodating. It is what it is. I was a bit surprised that Disney does not have dedicated DAS Cast Members at each attraction, trained in the same manner as Guest Relations Cast Members.
Not only would this be a more guest-friendly approach, but it would behoove Disney to do so from a legal liability perspective. Again, there’s a narrow set of questions Cast Members can ask without running afoul of the ADA. (I’ll just leave it at that…)
With that said, our experience was resoundingly positive, particularly outside of Magic Kingdom. Cast Members were largely very friendly and eager to help, and this was particularly true at Epcot and at Toy Story Mania in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. The Cast Members at Toy Story Mania were, far and away, the best we encountered over the course of the trip. (And this was multiple Cast Members, so it was not a one-off.)
What follows is more specific to our experience with my dad using a service dog at Walt Disney World, and not necessarily representative of what anyone else using DAS will encounter. I figure it’s nonetheless (potentially) helpful to read others’ anecdotes…
In terms of using the pass, there were some limitations we would have faced by virtue of the service dog. For example, Big Thunder Mountain, Expedition Everest, and other intense attractions would’ve been off the table because of the service dog. My dad can’t do those anyway, so it was a moot point.
The service dog was allowed on boat rides, such as Gran Fiesta Tour and Frozen Ever After, but we should not have done the latter. When describing the attraction to my parents, I forgot to mention the backwards drop, which freaked his service dog out. Oops. (In my defense, they had been on Maelstrom countless times.)
Outside of DAS, our experience using a service dog at Walt Disney World was pretty positive. I know my dad would’ve preferred to stay at Shades of Green, but the Fort Wilderness Cabins were an excellent (and far better) option with the service dog. I’d highly recommend Fort Wilderness to anyone with a service dog.
The one caveat here is that you definitely want to specify that you have a service dog when completing online check-in and also additionally request being close to a bus stop. We were placed in one of the accessible cabins, but a bit farther from the bus stop than ideal. Fort Wilderness is a huge resort that can mean a good deal of walking and changing buses. However, it’s far more inviting to a service dog than a hotel.
Table service restaurants were a bit hit or miss. There were a couple of times when we were seated in the middle of a crowded restaurant when tables along the perimeter, away from other guests were available. Usually, requesting to be moved worked fine, but I was surprised we wouldn’t have been seated in these spots to begin with.
I want to give Disney the benefit of the doubt on this one. Perhaps staff at these restaurants do not want guests with service animals to feel ostracized? My parents’ take is that they’d prefer to have a bit of space away from others in the restaurant, and they also understand that a restaurant is a restaurant, and other patrons may not want to be around an animal. It’s quite possible others with service animals have different perspectives, though.
Beyond that, it felt like Cast Members went above and beyond more often. Even those who were not assisting with the DAS process were particularly helpful and friendly. In large part this was probably because my dad has a visible disability and a service dog wearing a vest, so I’m not sure it’s something every guest with disabilities will experience. It was nice, though.
There are a lot of misconceptions about the Disability Access Service at Walt Disney World. The biggest is that it’s a front of line pass. Again, it’s not. There is the potential for abuse, but the system is imperfect out of legal necessity. (I’ll reiterate for the third time that this is by virtue of the ADA.)
However, since the controversy a few years ago about the Guest Assistance Card, there’s a lot more scrutiny concerning guests using DAS and this lingering belief among some other guests that they are being ‘disadvantaged’ by the system. This manifests itself in the form of disdain towards other guests using DAS. We did not experience these attitudes firsthand (my dad’s disability is plainly visible), but I’ve witnessed it both over the course of our visits and in reading online discussions.
My advice here would be to, respectfully, mind your own business. There are myriad invisible disabilities from which other guests could suffer, and the judgmental gaze of guests ‘scanning’ a person using DAS to ‘make sure’ they really have a disability and are not gaming the system is…I don’t even know. I can only imagine how it’d make me feel if I were on the receiving end of those judgmental stares.
Unless you’ve recently been nominated to the post of World Police, don’t give it any thought. Even if people are still gaming the new system (if there’s a system to be gamed, it will be gamed), what does fixating on it accomplish? There is absolutely zero upside.
Not only is the weight of your eyes invariably falling on someone with an invisible disability (an unpleasantness they likely feel all too frequently) but you’re upsetting yourself with something that’s entirely outside of your control. Life is too short for that, and it’s far better to be happy at Walt Disney World.
Overall, I would say our experience with Disability Access Service at Walt Disney World was mostly positive. I’ve struck a few cautionary notes here, and that’s mostly so those first-timers with disabilities go in with realistic expectations. Walt Disney World has a deserved reputation as being incredibly accommodating, and going above and beyond. This does not mean your visit will be without hiccups, though.
Anything with humans is an imperfect system with the potential for inconsistency, and that’s true with DAS and Walt Disney World. There’s also the balancing act Disney has to perform between using DAS to reasonably accommodate guests in need, while also discouraging widespread abuse, and maintain normal attraction operations. It’s a very tough needle to thread, and to Walt Disney World’s credit, I think that by and large, the system is pretty good from that perspective. But again, we only had 4 days of experience, and my opinion of the system is entirely predicated upon that limited exposure.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
If you have experience with using the Disability Access Service at Walt Disney World, what do you think of the experience? Anything we didn’t cover here? Other things to know? Strengths of DAS? Weaknesses? Any other Disability Access Service tips of your own to add? If you have not yet used DAS but are considering it, do you have any questions that we did not answer here? Please feel free to share your personal anecdotes about DAS and other thoughts in the comments below!
I’m from the UK and it sounds like the DAS system is similar to the ones used here. However, ours uses a special app and you can ask for return turns through that one at a time and virtual queue. It was amazing, as it meant we could go on the rides that have shorter queues and then return to the one later and only queue for 10 minutes or so. Lots of families didn’t like the approach, they preferred the original where you use the UK version of lightning lanes where you just went to the front of the queue. I disliked this, as I felt guilty and always got daggers from the other riders who’d obviously queued for an hour! We often got comments, ‘if you can’t queue, don’t come to a theme park’.
We have yet to try Disneyland Paris’ new access pass. Which I believe is a similar system with a return time. We used a mixture last time of access pass and FastPass but knowing that’s no longer free, we will have to wait and see. Haven’t made it to Florida yet, however, the pre-registration applies to Paris as well now, and I have heard of horror stories of connection issues. But thank you for this post.
Just to echo some of the other comments with respect to the online chat to set up the DAS….log into the line when they first open up (I believe it’s 7am ET), it will cut your wait time. I had tried previously and waited hours (with several disconnects) but only about 20 minutes at open.
Also, the advance reservations appear to overlap with the Genie+ attractions so depending on your interests and available time, you may not need both (we didn’t on the trip we just finished).
You can request a standby equivalent return time as soon as you scan into the park from the Disney app (appears in the “hamburger menu”, this includes rides such as Rise of the Resistance or Seven Dwarfs Mine Train that are not available in advance other than for individual purchase. We were able to book each and do less busy rides while waiting. Unlike Genie+, there is not a limit on how many times you can select the same ride (we were able to do Seven Dwarfs multiple times in the same day).
Also, you can request another standby return equivalent time as soon as you scan into the lightning lane (second checkpoint on those with them-such as Dwarfs or Test Track) so you can ride your current ride while “in line” for the next.
If your advance reservations get modified due to ride down time (either the advance or standby equivalent), you can make an alternate selection from the advance reservation list, or keep in force and hope that the ride becomes available later because you can still return after the stated time and use it if the ride is back in service. Should you book the Lion King show in Animal Kingdom park, be sure at arrive about 15 minutes ahead of start time, as they seem to stop taking the lightning lane holders about 10 minutes before start. I saw several people turned away at that point.
This past November (week before Thanksgiving), we took our intellectually disabled uncle to Disney. Hearing about the dramatic wait lines for the online chat/pre-registration, and more importantly, my concern that the discussion with my uncle would not be discreet, I decided not to pre-register. It is imperative that my uncle not know ahead of time of our plans to visit Disney, as the anticipation is too much for him to handle.
When we got there, we signed up in the park and it was quick and easy. My disappointment that we had not received the 2 advance return times quickly became completely irrelevant. My uncle moves very slow, and yet we were able to ride all rides we wanted by or just a little after lunch, and without any rush. We even got to ride all of the newest rides more than once during our visit–including Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, BOTH Star Wars rides, and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure.
Being able toast up return times through the app and no longer needing go TO the ride, makes a HUGE difference, and is a GREAT improvement. My legs thank them, as I was usually the runner to get the next return time. It also has allowed us to be much more flexible with plans, as before it was much more important to plan out the whole day to avoid having to run all over the park many times over to get return times and go back to get on the rides.
Thanks for your notes. Anybody know what is happening internationally, as last I heard it wasn’t available to book in advance
I was able to book online from Canada for my daughter. It was a long wait on the chat but smooth sailing once we got through.
Wanted to share our experience successfully registering in advance for DAS. TLDR, it works and despite technical glitches along the way, was not nearly as frustrating as I thought it would be, based on things I read leading up to it. Short trip coming up in Feb, 2 park days. Timed our first attempt to be 30 days prior to our final park day, which was this past Monday. Logged in on laptop at about 4:30pm, got to the chat box and waited. There was an auto message that came in saying to continue waiting to register or click the link to go straight to advanced DAS return reservations if already registered. At least five times while waiting the chat got disrupted and told us to go to the previous page or log back in, which we did and when getting back to the chat, the same robo message appeared. I typed something in to the chat just to see if it was still connected a few times. Still nothing. Finally gave up and closed the computer to put the kids to sleep. Next day, I figure maybe I’ll get in the queue to talk to someone earlier and went in on my phone browser. Turns out that when I brought the chat box up, it was the same chat that had started the night before (like FB messenger or SMS or something). I noticed the messages I had typed AND that a cast member reached out into the chat about 5 hours after we started to help us register. Sadly the computer was closed and we had no idea, so after three attempts to chat us, the CM closed out the chat. While frustrating, this gave me hope it would work. So I wrote something into the chat and almost instantly someone wrote back to get the process started! Sadly my eligible family member was not with me, and we couldn’t continue at that moment, but it was encouraging to make contact. Ironically the CM wished me well and closed the chat again before I typed “Thanks!” And when I did, another CM almost instantly chatted back, saying they were going to help me in a moment after they finished w/ someone else. Anyway, 2 hours later when the eligible family member was with me, we logged back in, again on the phone browser. This time it was about 45 min and someone came on to get the process started. From that initial contact by the CM thru the end of the approval process was about 10 min tops, and they immediately transferred us to a DAS Advanced Selection representative. It was a bit chaotic picking rides via chat, asking questions, toggling back and forth between the browser and the MDE app to see the return times in our daily plans. We were picking rides for two days and took maybe 15-20 min to nail them down. I could see how this could take much longer for a 6+ day trip, especially if you are working around ADRs (which we weren’t). This CM also booked rides simply based on our attraction preference and hadn’t asked what time of day, so when I asked about moving things, there was a sense of reluctance saying it could only be done to avoid ADRs. The CM still ended up moving things around a little, tho wasn’t able to book the precise times I hoped for since slots are limited. At one point we had two Advances DAS for the same hour return time (only knew that by toggling back to the app) but the CM did change one of those. The next day I decided I’d see if anything more convenient was available and see if a CM would be kind enough to make changes. I went back into the chat and connected with someone very quickly. They were more than happy to look at all sorts of options, easily spending half an hour with me. Changed two times of our return windows.
Things I learned: Once you connect with a CM during this, they are all SUPER FRIENDLY, HELPFUL and PATIENT. Take your time and ask your questions. Use your phone for the chat if you can. Keep it in your pocket and check it every 3 min or so, but otherwise go about your day or night. If a CM chats you back and you reply 3 min later, they’re still gonna be on the call. Don’t worry about technical glitches and having to log back in and outs because it’s an intact chat within your account rather than calling into a phone line and actually getting disconnected, you’ll keep your place in the queue and even get right back to the same CM you’re talking to if it disconnects while chatting (this happened to me). Be prepared to be flexible with advanced selections. It is most definitely limited, tho like ADRs, is possible other people cancel and something opens up. Doesn’t hurt to check periodically. Finally, the piece of mind knowing this is taken care of ahead of time was worth the hours over two days, and still would have been worth it if it took 20 hours over the course of the week.
Despite the technical glitches and time spent, this is absolutely a good thing that Disney has set up!
DAS sadness: I logged into round one of the chat at 6:06 (7:06 Disney world time) this morning and around 9:00 I was able to talk with a person about being eligible. 3 more hours later, I finally had a conversation with a representative who informed me that my daughter is not eligible for a DAS because there are now categories. She would be in the “anxiety” group and we could request return times at any ride in lieu of waiting in line. I can’t find any information supporting that strategy. Has anyone else heard that? I don’t understand how we get return times without the designation, but my child is now saying she doesn’t want to go if she has to stand in line surrounded by people talking and I cannot imagine having to explain why we need a return time over and over again.
After EIGHT HOURS of on line “chat,” And still not getting registered, I would summize that Disneyworld’s DAS is in serious need of some pixie dust! Has anyone had any bit of success with the video chat registration? If so, please give us your magical recipe for getting this done.
My two sisters and I all have different mobility issues and all use ECV’s in the parks. Last year we used DAS for the first time. We registered in HS on our first day there and were able to navigate the parks with no problems. I have decided – after reading comments and articles about the video chat – that we will just go to Guest Services on our first day in the parks as we did last year. Hopefully it won’t take up too much of our time. Thank you for your articles and anecdotes, Tom. I enjoy getting your emails; they are my little bit of Disney happpiness when I can’t be in the parks.
Apologies but in my last post I am referring to the DAS video chat
I am not sure if you are aware but I have just been informed by Disability services that the above is only open to the US and that people are waiting hours and some times days to get through.
Although this service and the ability to book 2 rides in advance, has been advertised internationally, it is not open to outside the US. It seems grossly unfair. Yes I could book it on arrival but I would not get the extra 2 rides each day. As we are coming for 15 days, at Christmas, this is really needed.
Also does anyone know if on the day the system works like Genie+ and allow more than 1 booking, if your booked ride is several hours away?
Josette- I am sorry to hear about your daughter having a horrible experience the past couple days. I am in the same boat as her. 🙁 And trying since Friday. I connect and fill out the form on the chat with an agent. But they’re not even a Castmember, they are only agents. Then they say they’re going to connect me to a cast member to do the video chat. it will log me off or I’ll get a response at 8pm saying “agent and conversation.”Without ever speaking to an agent or Castmember.I don’t know what’s going on with it except to say that the Advance DAS roll out is a complete mess and failure! My husband said it’s a big lie. He said to stop wasting my time they’re never going to answer the video chat. after today I finally believe him. screw em’ Shame on Disney for sure
My disabled daughter has tried for 5 days to get registered and has been online for 10 plus hours She has been connected to a chat 4 times and 4 different cast members did a chat and then said they were transferring her to the video chat Each time the chat was disconnected Shame on you Disney for making disabled guests use a system that doesn’t work
Kat-
You’re correct. I don’t think I really read it all the way through. That’s fine with me. It would be a great service if it worked. But I tried it this weekend and it wasn’t working for guest. We arrive 31st and our first park day is 1 November. I don’t want to wait in line at the guest relations. Plus I don’t think my daughter will be able to get 2 pre-approved rides. It clearly states you have to register two days before your park visit. If you get your pass at guest relations at the theme park, you won’t get 2 rides. I kept getting the same three agents names. Really fake and weird. I’m sure there’s more than three people working the call center. Understaffed. Once again Disney. Failure.
Has anyone tried to get the pass in advance, this weekend? I tried Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Relatively early on Sunday, 10:15am, I finally got an agent, Who pre-registered me. I had to accept a form they would send me, to fill in my information and they submitted it to see if I qualify. Then, they said they would connect me with a cast member, to finish the second part of the registration. (I thought they were cast member!? Ugh!! They arent) Needless to say, this happened 4 times on Sunday. After an hour of registering. The same agent will come back on, and say “how can I help you?” And start the process all over again. They said they’re very busy. But, I’m just curious if anyone was able To succeed in pre-registering? It was a nightmare. Absolute nightmare. Especially if you’re trying to register for your child.
And I started this process at 7 AM on Sunday. I was excited to finally get an agent. Only to realize it was a repetitive cycle of unsuccessful misery.
Andrea, The way I read it, there are certain rides that you cannot book a DAS return time for in advance, and those include the rides you mention. I think you can still use your DAS on those rides though…you just can’t book them in advance. You can book 2 in advance when you register it seems, and those options do not include all rides.
Just tried on Friday afternoon at 3 o’clock I was on hold waiting to get to speak to a live cast member to register. For over 5 1/2 hours! And then they just notified me they ended the conversation and said due to high call volume’s try back another time. We arrive in less than two weeks! Very frustrating process disney needs to come up with a better way hire more staffing. I also seen that they took away 2 ride attractions(@ each park)that used to be allowed for the DAS users to ride. My daughters on the autism spectrum, with sensory issues, and does not like the motion simulators or real fast roller coasters. But she loves seven dwarfs mine train and Mickey and Minnie’s railway can’t do that either. Does that mean we will have to pay to ride those rides? I’m so confused and disappointed in the change. I appreciate being able to pre-register if it would work.