Disney World Cracks Down on DAS Abuse
Walt Disney World has seen an increase in abuse of its Disability Access Service, and is starting to crack down on improper DAS use as a result. This post covers how they’re accomplishing that, along with rumors about Lightning Lane utilization and our commentary about what’s happening. (Updated December 14, 2023.)
This revelation actually comes thanks to two high-profile articles about Walt Disney World suddenly trespassing third-party tour guides from the parks. Walt Disney World has reportedly been banning these unaffiliated tour guides who secure dining and resort reservations, design itineraries, and help their clients navigate the parks–often by acting as an in-person escort.
These guides have reportedly been pulled out of line by Walt Disney World managers, issued trespass notices by Orange County police, and indefinitely banned from all of Walt Disney World property. These trespass notices are not unprecedented–they’re issued whenever guests engage in fisticuffs, have a really bad adult meltdown, or sneak around backstage. A few years ago, there was a dude who went on a tirade about masks and compared himself to the hero in A Bug’s Life, misquoted the movie, and got trespassed. (Note: he was trespassed for the tirade, not misquoting A Bug’s Life. Although that should be a bannable offense.)
The more recent of these stories was published in the Washington Post in mid-December 2023. According to their reporting, dozens of third-party tour guides have been trespassed from Walt Disney World. This has left operators looking for new jobs, moving out of Florida and adjusting their business models to focus on non-Disney tour operations.
In an emailed statement, Walt Disney World indicated that that they are taking additional steps to enforce their rules that prohibit commercial activities, such as tours provided by third-party operators, because of a “significant increase in these rule violations.” Disney indicated that some operators have sold unauthorized services, including in-park offerings like Genie+ line-skipping services and access to the Disability Access Service.
“When this activity happens, it impacts the experience of other guests following the rules — including our guests with disabilities — and impedes our theme park operations,” a Walt Disney World spokesperson wrote. “Just like Starbucks would not permit a third party to come into their stores to sell coffee to their customers, Disney does not permit unauthorized commercial activities in its theme parks.”
This was all consistent with earlier reporting by Insider, which first reported on the third-party tour guide ban. The reason for this is pretty simple and straightforward. Walt Disney World’s official park rules website has a lengthy list of prohibited activities. Among them is that “unauthorized solicitations of any kind, whether commercial, religious, educational, or otherwise, or conducting any unauthorized commercial activities, including solicitations of money or other contributions or donations.”
Conducting a tour on Walt Disney World property is very clearly an unauthorized commercial activity. This isn’t the first time that Disney has trespassed tour guides. Way back in the nascent days of the internet, they did the same with high-profile park history and inside secrets tours that indirectly competed with things like Keys to the Kingdom.
About a decade ago, Disney also cracked down on disabled tour guides who advertised the ability for their guests/customers to bypass lines in the California and Florida parks. The company started by revoking Guest Assistance Cards of the guides, but that story exploded into nationwide headlines and resulted in the overhaul of GAC and creation of DAS.
We’ve been hearing for months that this type of crackdown was on the horizon. However, we heard that it would occur with web services that circumvent Walt Disney World’s policies and systems for various reservations. Disney managed to briefly cause some of those to go offline over the summer, but to my knowledge, they all returned. I’ve been under the impression that more would be done.
What caught our attention–and the part of this story that is relevant to Walt Disney World vacation planners–is the company’s statement that “there has been an uptick in abuses of the Disability Access Service and other services, which impede park operations.”
According to Insider, several third-party tour guides and business owners agreed that not everyone in their industry behaves ethically. One experienced third-party tour guide said there are several companies that are “widely known” to abuse Disney’s rules. “For instance, these companies might tell guides to tell guest services they have Irritable Bowel Syndrome to get a disability pass for themselves,” the business owner told Insider.
Other tour guides indicated that they had witnessed unethical behavior in the industry, with some even leaving certain companies because “their owner was involved in some of those unethical practices, and I didn’t want to be associated with that any longer.”
In our view, this is the most interesting aspect of the Insider story and the one that has the most material impact on the guest experience for everyone at Walt Disney World. We’ve heard rumblings about this issue prior to now, have observed it ourselves, and think the current crackdown might portend more sweeping changes to DAS at Walt Disney World. In our view, this is likely the start of a policy tightening on DAS, line-skipping policies, and other third party activity that’s far from over.
You might notice a lack of DAS coverage on this website, aside from our Guide to Disability Access Service at Walt Disney World, which covers our experience using it with my dad and was last updated when the Lightning Lane-era changes rolled out. The lack of DAS resources here are not an oversight; it’s deliberate.
This blog offers commentary about any and everything, while also soliciting reader feedback via an active comments section. That’s a powder keg for something like DAS, which is one of the most controversial and charged issues at Walt Disney World. Unlike topics like oversized strollers, price increases, parking fees, refillable mug ethics, etc., this has real stakes. DAS users are real people with real feelings, and often, are all to used to judgmental stares in real life. Compounding that with metaphorical ones online is rough, and I don’t want this platform to be a party to that.
With that in mind, I’ll start out with a simple statement. Two things can be true at the same time. First, that reasonable disability accommodations are very necessary for many Walt Disney World guests to have an enjoyable experience, including those with invisible disabilities. Second, DAS abuse is widespread and needs addressing. The first point does not invalidate the second, and the second point does not grant random guests the authority to be arbiters of who “needs” DAS.
Since the controversy several years ago about the Guest Assistance Card, there’s a lot more scrutiny concerning guests using and abusing DAS, along with a belief among some other guests that they are being ‘disadvantaged’ by the system. This manifests itself in visible and audible disdain towards other guests using DAS. I’ve witnessed it repeatedly in-person and in reading online discussions.
I would implore you to err on the side of courtesy. There are myriad invisible disabilities from which other guests could suffer, and the rude words or judgmental gaze of guests ‘scanning’ a person using DAS to ‘make sure’ they really have a disability are awful. I can only imagine how it’d make me feel if I were on the receiving end of that. Anyone using DAS out of necessity would trade places with you in a second and stand in long lines if it meant not being disabled.
I also can’t imagine being on the giving end of that. Okay, you’ve made yourself judge, jury, and executioner…now what? There is absolutely zero upside. Not only is the weight of your eyes or words unfairly falling on someone with an invisible disability at least half the time when you do this, but you’re upsetting yourself with something that’s entirely outside of your control and that you cannot change. Life is too short for that, and it’s far better to be happy at Walt Disney World and focus on your own family.
Look, my apologies for the preachy soapbox with very obvious ‘advice’ that 99.5% of you absolutely did not need to hear. But you know that saying about one bad apple? I’ll err on the side of a long lecture if it might cause even half of that .5% to rethink their behavior. Sorry not sorry, I guess.
To the second point that DAS abuse is widespread and needs addressing, we’ve been hearing ‘rumors’ of this for a while. Not really so much rumors–more unsubstantiated reports from those within the company. The Lightning Lane percentages from those were downright shocking to me. This is the first time I’ve actually seen Walt Disney World publicly admit that there’s an issue and that it needs addressing.
Intuitively, it makes complete sense. Those of you who visited during the phased reopening after FastPass+ had been suspended but before Genie+ rolled out likely saw usage of the FastPass queues. We certainly did! It started out occurring fairly infrequently, and increased (not so coincidentally) as crowds and wait times went up.
There were plausible explanations aside from DAS use. Club 33 members, Golden Oak residents, and other VIPs all had some degree of access to the FastPass lines. However, there were maybe 200 guests fitting the above profile in any park at any given time. They represented a small fraction of all FastPass users–probably a low single-digit number on most days.
As noted above, use of the FastPass lines started slow and got progressively busier during the phased reopening. This makes sense, as there’s a greater incentive to use a line-skipping service when there’s a longer line. If a posted wait time is 15 minutes, even those with the ability or privilege to skip might simply opt for standby. If that same attraction has a 60 minute posted wait time, it’s a very different story.
It doesn’t require a vivid imagination to game out how much worse that might become if a paid line-skipping service is introduced, replacing what was once free and causing standby lines to come to a crawl at times as guests are pulled (very) disproportionately from the Lightning Lane.
Not only would there be more of an incentive to (properly) use the Lightning Lane, but there’d be more of an incentive to abuse it. This occurred even when there was a free FastPass+ option; DAS was a way to skip the lines more often and not be so constrained by “only” having 3 selections.
None of this is speculative. During a DAS lawsuit a few years ago, Disney revealed in testimony and discovery that users of its disability passes experience several more attractions over the course of a day on average as compared to non-users.
The company argued that any expansion of the current system would cause wait times to explode, with Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (for example) increasing by 39 minutes from an average wait time of 69 minutes to 108 minutes. Disney has now prevailed in several such lawsuits.
Now, regular line-skipping costs money but there’s an alternative that’s still free. Again, it doesn’t require much imagination to envision a scenario where some guests justifying abusing the system to themselves. “I’m just taking what Walt Disney World used to offer for free and still should.” “Everyone does it, I’m just leveling the playing field.” “I spend a lot of money and have always been loyal to Disney, it’s the least they can do.” And so on, and so on.
In fact, you can still see this play out in the parks. If you attend Extended Evening Hours, Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party, Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, or other events outside standard operating hours when Genie+ is not offered, you’ll still see people using the Lightning Lanes. In some cases, you will see a lot of people.
Totally anecdotal, but I’ve noticed it more this year–in particular at the busier Extended Evening Hours that I’ve attended. There were a couple of ExEH nights at Magic Kingdom where I saw the overflow Lightning Lane queues in use at Peter Pan’s Flight, Space Mountain, and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. Again, it’s probably not a coincidence that usage increases as posted wait times increase.
To be abundantly clear, I’m not suggesting that all of even a majority of these people are abusing DAS. I truly have no clue.
What I have heard, though, is that usage of DAS has increased dramatically in the last few years. It’s possible that this is coincidental, and it’s happening because the percentage of disabled guests visiting Walt Disney World has increased. If the comparison were to 2020-2021, I’d believe that. A unique form of pent-up demand would make sense, especially among more vulnerable populations.
But my understanding is that DAS usage is up significantly as compared to 2019. Other explanations are conceivable, but I think they strain credulity. You can likely draw a straight line between Genie+ (and then higher prices for Genie+) and a rise in use for DAS as the free “alternative” to it.
Now that we’ve established that DAS abuse is almost certainly occurring (again, along with plenty of completely proper use!) what’s Walt Disney World to do about it? Well, this crackdown on third-party tour groups is one step. It’s only a first step, and a small one at that. These tour groups are incredibly small scale, and it’s hard to conceive of them accounting for more than a low single-digit percentage of all abuse.
Most of it is likely happening among individuals–and that’s more difficult to police without running afoul of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Ironically enough, changing DAS is also its own powder keg, and a potential lightning rod for controversy. There are a lot of people with a vested interest in DAS, including both the legit users and the abusers.
You might be inclined to think that legitimate users would want to see DAS crackdowns occur. Many of them probably do. But it’s not quite so simple. For one thing, any change brings with it uncertainty until it has been implemented, and many of the families who need DAS most also (very understandably!) crave consistency and stability.
Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t. Which is to say that change can be intimidating and unsettling; many rightful DAS users might prefer keeping the stable but imperfect product rather than rolling the dice on a replacement. I can certainly empathize with that perspective.
Compounding matters is the small but vocal minority of abusers who would complain in bad faith and muddy the waters of any discourse around DAS changes. Knowing that their loophole would be closed, some of these individuals would have a strong incentive to voice outrage, even if it’s baseless and insincere.
Bad faith outrage around DAS might sound shocking…if you haven’t lived through the last several years of social media, in which case, it would be more surprising if this didn’t happen. Either way, it complicates matters and makes an explosive issue even more fraught for Walt Disney World.
Walt Disney World knows this, which is likely why there has been minimal movement on DAS abuse, aside from indirect acts like banning third-party tour guides. This won’t be enough, though. Something’s gotta give–just like it was too big to ignore back when the change was made from GAC to DAS, the same will soon be true. Perhaps they’re starting with low-hanging fruit like tour guides and waiting for an individual system until the new system that allows for the advance booking of Lightning Lanes in Spring 2024.
I’m somewhat surprised that Walt Disney World hasn’t used the protective veil of a theme park association to make industry wide changes. Sort of like how the California Attractions and Parks Association was the face of pushing for reopening a few years ago, which allowed Disneyland to mostly avoid controversy. (Well, to the extent they wanted. Disney still issued some sharp statements, but some of those were very justified.)
Frankly, I don’t know why Disney doesn’t use TEA or some organization like that for creating uniform standards and protocol for any potentially sticky issue. It’d be suitable for everything from security checkpoints to smoking rules, and would give Disney plausible deniability as to their involvement in the crafting of such rules. When it comes to ADA accommodations, standardization could also streamline things for those guests with actual disabilities by outsourcing the process. It wouldn’t just be about sidestepping controversy–it could truly make visiting easier for those with disabilities. Win-win!
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YOUR THOUGHTS
Thoughts on Walt Disney World cracking down on DAS abuse? If you’ve used Disability Access Service at Walt Disney World, what do you think of the experience? Have you noticed high Lightning Lane usage at times when Genie+ was not being offered? Please feel free to share your personal anecdotes about DAS and other thoughts in the comments below! Just be sure to err on the side of kindness and empathy and don’t engage in personal attacks, antagonism, or trolling. Comments that cross any lines will be deleted.
Every kid has anxiety or adhd now. And you can get DAS because of it. Of my local moms group of 40 families, 25 of them have gone to Disney in the past year and all of them have a kid so hindered by their condition each and every one of them got a DAS pass. One mother took her child to dr a bit prior to trip and had her some diagnosed shortly before their Disney trip. It’s really disgusting. Some people really need this. FWIW, my kid has adhd and has a lot of issues. But we paid for genie and had no part of the DAS system. Karma is real and I want no part of tempting that. lol
This is so rampant! These moms will make it so much harder for those with serious disabilities to get DAS passes in the future. Disney knows this is happening and I believe they are working on how to serve those who have a genuine need and at the same time stopping this abuse! These moms tell each other what “to say” to qualify for DAS. I am in few DAS Disney fb groups and you can always tell it’s one of those moms when they come asking for “advice”. These are the same moms who lie to try to get their monstrosity of a wagon in for their non-disabled child.
I am 74, I have neuropathy and other foot and ankle issues. We are saving for a trip. I intend to get a doctor’s note so if we need to rent a scooter, we can. I know I cannot manage 8-10 miles,a day,,and standing is gonna be impossible for long periods of time, even after physical therapy and ankle braces ( was born with ankle issues,,hypersupinate, and a scoliosis).
My husband had a leg amputated & all his toes removed from the other foot. It would be impossible for him to stand in any type of line for an extended amount of time, for that reason we ate thankful for the DAS process @ Disney. I do feel people who are not disabled take advantage of it & to them I say SHAME ON YOU…my husband would trade places with you in a heartbeat.
I wanted to share my opinion on the Disney DAS.They do have an alternative option with the ADA called the IBCCES card. Six flags, SeaWorld and even just last year Universal studios adopted its use for their Disability system. This pass requires the doctors note to be approved and is good for one year. It doesn’t break any HIPPA laws because it doesn’t show documents to the parks, Just the approval. This would cut down 50% of the abuse hands down. These places can keep the way they run the das pass but require the card to be shown as the current other parks do.
Agree!
not reading comments before I write this but I speculate that suspicions from public about legitimacy of handicap status at Disney stems from the apparent common abuse of handicap parking stickers when you see a driver hop nimbly out of their car with the tag clearly on the mirror and you know they are abusing the system,,. this is more than rule than the exception,..
This conversation is disgusting. The people that abuse this are truly the worst that walk amongst us. Obviously, there are folks that truly need this service. If I have to wait an extra 10, 15 or whatever minutes per ride bc of the jerks that abuse it, but the folks that need it are able enjoy the parks, so be it. I hope that Disney some how can figure this out, but if they can’t, boooo hooo…. Not the end of the world. Enjoy the extra time in line with your family, talk to them and see how they are doing……….If they are like my kids at home, they are in their rooms looking at their phones.
Although, like you said many abuse the handicapped parking with the placards hamging from the mirror, there are some who are able to “hop out the car”, seeming to not need to handicapped parking or the tag. I can say that about 8 to 10 years ago my sister could get out her car, parked in the handicapped spot with her placard at the store. After getting in the store and getting what she needed, she would slowly come out the store, unable to get to a further spot if she wasn’t parked in the handicapped spot due to MS. At that time, she liked to keep as mobile as she could but knew she’d get worn out and thus planned what she needed to get and where it was. Unfortunately four to six years ago she ended up wheelchair bound.
Thus, some may appear unhandicapped at first but if you were to follow them, become tired shortly after or unable to move as quick or at all as the did initially.
And you might also be very wring to assume that person isn’t disabled. Sure,I can climb out of the car. But I have a scoliosis,,and after a trip through Wal-Mart my back is in knots. Invisible disabilities are,real.
I happily trekked through Disney World in my 40s and Tokyo Disneyland at 50. But now I am 74, the back issue has gotten worse,,and my right knee has decided to join in. I discussed this with my husband,,and concluded we will get a doctor’s not JiC if we are able to.go again. I suspect I will do okay for the first day or so, but by Day 3, may end up in a chair. And someone will see me walk into the park and assume I am.faking it.
I have IBS for realsies and have never used DAS. People who have IBS know how to manage it (like by not eating) and if you’re having an unmanagable day the lightening lane isn’t going to help you. I don’t really find that to be a legitimate reason to get DAS but I also understand how it would be difficult to put a stop to it.
I also have misophonia and one of my triggers is whistling. I ended up in the mine train line a few people behind someone who had whistling as a tick. I tried to hang on but I was completely going to lose it and had to leave the line. It was the first time I thought I had a genuine use for DAS but I still didn’t go get one.
People who don’t need it at all and lie to get it. I just don’t know what to say about that. Do they lack a moral compass?
About ten years ago, I was working in PR, and my agency had recently been hired by a large company to work with their in-house staff. In my first meeting with my new client, I noticed that she had a few pieces of Disney World memorabilia on her desk, and we got to talking about our shared love for the place. At some point, she said something along the lines of, “oh let me tell you this great tip for your next visit, it’s something we do on every trip: tell Disney that someone in your party has a disability, and you’ll get to jump all the lines! They don’t ask for any proof!” It was wild. I had just met this woman half an hour earlier, and here she was confessing to this and acting as if I’d be excited to learn about it and impressed by her savvy.
I believe this! I have an son with severe autism and blindness so I joined some fb groups to learn how the DAS works for Disney World before our first visit because I had no clue about how anything was at Disney in general. But… there are many people that join the group that ask what to say to get the DAS pass claiming they have someone in their party that needs it. My thought is that if you have a loved one that truly needs the DAS you know what their needs are and do not need someone else to tell you what to say to get DAS pass. If someone is turned down by CM for pass I have seen some members coach others what to say and tell them to talk to a different CM. The abuse is real!
I.am.one of those with invisible disabilities. I was born with sublimation I. both ankles. The podiatrist asked if I had had surgery for club foot because my right ankle rolls over o easily When sitting, you can see how the inside of my foot doesn’t touch the ground. As a child,I had to.have cookies (inserts that are thicker on the right go stabilize my feet so.they don’t roll.over and knock me to.the ground. It has happened in crowded places, and I have had people curse me for lying g on the ground, stepping g over me even when there was room to.step around,and even kicking me. I wear boots a lot to.keep some stability, but standing and walking comply exhaust me.
The other invisible disability is my back. I have a scoliosis. In senior year in.high school, I hit a wet landing and fell down half a concrete stairway to a concrete floor. THIS is how I learned about the scoliosis. I ended up.in a back brace for 4 months. My gym teacher (bless her heart)/wanted me to do gymnastics anyway– I was lucky to.be able to.walk in that brace, so.forget vaulting over a pommel.horse! Six months later in freshman year in college, someone even less athletic than me hit me in the lower back with a field hockey stick,and I ended up.swimming for the rest of my PE requirement. AAt 25,_I had a flare up,,and was diagnosed with facet joint syndrome.
Needless today if the ankles roll.over and take me down, my back.issue tends to flare up. I managed Disneyworld when I was much younger. I wore ace bandages on both ankles for support, and got through the day.
But at 74,_it is a lot harder. I am rather unhappy with the idea that Boomers are the problem. We are just getting older, and it exacerbates the issues, so you see more of us using DAS. In my case I simply cannot stand in line for two.hours without being in severe pain. I used to act enjoy standing in line for movies when I was 30+ in NYC. It was fun talking to other Star Wars and SF fans. I cannot do.that today. So, younger folk, don’t regard us as entitled because more of us use DAS than used to. One day you will need it too.
As for student loans, I was an only child, and while my grades qualified me for scholarships, I didn’t have “need”. My parent paid out of pocket. I worked every summer. I took 18 credits,A semester and would have graduated a,semester early if I didn’t have an honors thesis to write. I stead I worked on my thesis and had a part time retail.Nobody. For grad school.I had fellowships. I went back at 38 to.get an A.S. as a paralegal and had student loans.
Supination, not sublimation. Ya gotta love in when Autocorrect chooses,change the wording wafter you hit post…I am a,terrible typist.
I hope that if they do make changes, these changes take international guests into account. We are coming over from Europe in the summer and the DAS pre-booking system only applies to guests in North America. We have to go to City Hall when we get there to talk to someone and collect our pass. In Disneyland Paris, we can just show the National Disability Card from our country, but people in the comments say they would expect to show a doctor’s letter. Our doctor’s letter will be in Estonian. Will there be someone at City Hall who speaks Estonian? I doubt it.
I don’t agree with anyone dishonestly using the DAS line. We used to go to WDW every year. I don’t even know “where” you go to use that line. But, to the comment above stating it is “sad” that some people lie about their children’s ages & the number of guests per room, I’m not sure how they can lie about the number of guests, maybe they buy their tickets separately? Still seems like a difficult proposition.. In my opinion, what is genuinely “sad” is the way Disney has made it so massively expensive for a family to try to go to WDW! And the whole removing of the old fast pass system is beyond awful. We pay enough to get into the park & everything else! I’m sure some people could afford but are dishonest, but I can’t really blame a family if they remove a year off their kids age to get them to WDW! I know Iger has fixed many issues but I’m really hoping he brings back the “fast pass” system.. Anyway, sorry I veered off the DAS topic, I just don’t want anyone to beat themselves up over an age fib. The DAS thing is a whole other level of dishonesty!
The thing about it is this: The reason for obtaining DAS is because the person cannot stand in a long line. But there have been many times where the “lightning lane” is long, too! So we’ve had to skip that line altogether and just not ride. The DAS doesn’t help in that situation. They need a true DAS line so that it serves its purpose. There’s the misunderstanding that DAS means you don’t have to wait….which we do have to wait, we just don’t wait in an actual line. If affords us the ability to wait in the shade, wait sitting down somewhere, etc.
emily thank you for your reply!
We use DAS my teenage son who has autism and who can wait just not in a packed line touching other people or being so close. We get a return time the same at the time it would take to stand in line. We don’t get to just walk on the ride or get put in the fastpass lane. I’m confused about people who are thinking otherwise. We go and get a snack or look at other things or sometimes get to ride something else if we have a lightning lane. we still wait. I am so thankful for the DAS pass as we wouldn’t be able to enjoy the parks without it. They also talk to my son directly and ask him about why he needs one. I think people just don’t understand its purpose.
Thanks
Dawn
I know people that say they have anxiety and will throw up if they have to wait in long lines…. Then they get basically free fast passes with this disability thing.
This is not particularly fair and shows a misunderstanding of anxiety. PTSD is an anxiety disease. So are panic attacks – my “hidden disability”. I have fainted in line at Disney before and I get a DAS pass now. If the LL is too long, I skip even that.
I.am one of those people with invisible disabilities. I was born with a scoliosis and bad ankles do to supination. I wore corrective inserts in my saddle shoes(Catholic school uniforms). The ballet for 9 years, which the pediatricians said would strengthen my ankles, only made them worse.
The back issues were made worse when I fell down half a flight if concrete stairs and ended up in a back brace for 4 months in senior year of high school. Five months later it was co.pounded by a girl.even less graceful than me hitting me in the small of the back I. field hockey for PE.
My ankles turn easily. I spent my honeymoon in a wheel at a science fiction convention. I could barely walk. I cannot predict what will send me sprawling. The back issues are the same. Neither is obvious.
I am also 74. There is Avery good chances that 3-4 days into.A trip, I will end up in a chair. I plan to GRT A letter from.my doctor explaining this. I will put it in a clear folder. I will.show it to Cast Members. If some unpleasant judgmental jerk.glares,at me, I will.wave it in their face. Just because someone looks to e doesn’t mean they are. I was mortified on.my honeymoon to.have to.have my chair carried up.A long flight of stairs. I wanted to sink into the stairs. It use fun.
Think about people like me next time you are tempted to give a,DAS person a hard time.
When a disabled person approaches the entrance to an attraction, they should be given a card with a number on it and escorted, along with one care giver if needed or desired, to a waiting area that has comfortable seating and bathrooms,etc. All other members of their party get into line with a matching number card which they present to a cast member when nearing the front of the line. The cast member calls to the waiting area for the disabled guest with that matching number and they rejoin their group at that time. This eliminates the incentive for fraudulent behavior. I’m sure this doesn’t address every scenario, but it would help.
I totally agree, if there is no big advantage, the abusers will be a lot less. I read an article that since the pandemic Disney’s DAS passes have jumped 900% that’s nuts. Universal has tried stemming the abuse by having the people go through a 3rd party IBCCES that actually has the person create an account and also requires a doctor’s note/diagnosis to apply for a DAS. It is just a very sad statement on our american society today, that the people with real disabilities have to go through this because so many people abuse the system.
Sounds good in theory unless its your child who needs the supervision and wouldn’t understand being separated from the family even if one parent stayed with them. Buzz, as far as a doctors note or diagnosis, it wouldn’t add any more work or effort on those with disabilities, as those disabilities are already documented and done with the doctors. The disabilities do not just pop up before Disney trips. They are something that is part of everyday life.
that does sound like a great way to stop abuse while simultaneously improving it for genuine users.
I gave bever used Das but latelyi gave helped a large number of people with booking their first trip. All of them have gone to get DAS, informEd by their travel agent and none of them have any real disabilities beyond not wanting to stand for a longtime. I really hate the system and expert genuine users do too.
We always stayed on property for the “perk” of being able to select three fass passes 60 days out. This allowed us to navigate the park . Not needing to apply for DAS. Some days those were the only three rides we would manage to do in an entire day. The old fass pass system. Acted as our DAS. Now without it. My granddaughter would never be able to navigate the park except for applying and using DAS
Agree. I have a son with high functioning autism – who never want special rights. Fast pass (plus rope drop and knowing how to do things) made life manageable. But there is no way he can stay in the parks for 12 hours, so genie does not help. DAS is our only option.
You just nailed it; with the included Fast Pass in place, my daughter never got a DAS pass. We went on those pre-booked rides and other rides with short cues. Since Genie+ was implemented, we used DAS for the first time on our last trip. It was a game-changer for her. She could relax between rides, recover and enjoy her time at Disney. We just went through the IBCCES process with Universal and will apply for a DAS with Disney when the time comes. I think the IBCCES process was fair, and I was happy to provide a doctor’s note and explain her needs to them so they could give her a pass. I am sure Disney will follow suit.
Firstly, let me state that I am not handicapped so I have no direct knowledge of what I speak. I also mean no harm or ill will if I say something incorrect. Surely to get things like handicapped stickers for cars people have to show some sort of “proof” of disability correct? Is there a reason Disney could not implement the same type of process to obtain a pass that allows you to use DAS? I understand people could probably still find a way to forge documents, but it would surely cut down on the abuse while still allowing the service for those who actually need it.
This is actually illegal under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Private entities are not allowed to ask for proof of disability. This is to prevent discrimination (either by turning away disabled people or overzealous questioning of whether the proof provided is “legitimate”). I also believe the reason dovetails with HIPA regulations that keep medical data private. Based on other comments, the ADA rules are so tough in this regard that cast members actually have to ignore/give back any documented proof guests try to provide of their own volition.
Appreciate the response. So the difference being government (for parking tags) vs private entity I assume? Someone mentions below that there is a 3rd party that allows people to register their disability and become a member and Universal uses those cards as “proof.” Not sure how accurate that is but that could be another option for Disney. Especially if there is already a like company doing it. Once again, I’m sure it is easy to fake a disability and get a card from that 3rd party, but at least you are putting some barrier to entry that doesnt allow everyone in the park to just jump in DAS. It wont stop it, but it would surely decrease it.
One of the reasons we became DVC members years ago was to accommodate our two sons, who were sensory challenged when they were younger and struggled to focus and eat in the hotel food courts. A condo made life so much easier. Even so, we never sought disability access for them; we figured out how to juggle our park days and activities so they could get the breaks they needed. Now I’m the one with an issue. I have stage 4 cancer. Some days I’m fine; others I’m less so. We didn’t seek any special access when we went to WDW in October, and we certainly didn’t do everything we typically would have done on a WDW trip. I couldn’t manage the lines. But we accepted that going in, and we were fine with it. It is difficult to see how Disney can tighten requirements and the application process without violating ADA, but then again, I had to provide MD documentation to get my handicapped parking tag, so maybe something can be done to limit DAS abuse.
I’m so sorry to hear about your diagnosis. 🙁 That’s so hard to go through.
I agree, its tough with DAS because on one hand, anyone with a serious disability would be fine showing some sort of doctor written statement/diagnosis/pass. This is in fact what Universal moved to this year (along w/ Seaworld). I did notice a LOT less people in the disability lines at Universal on my last trip. I think that basically solved the problem. Sure you may have *some* people get fake doctor notes to submit to ibcces or whatever its called, but probably less people are inclined to lie on paper than verbally. We know plenty of guests lie about their kids ages, the number of guests in their rooms and all sorts of things. It’s sad.
I honestly think the explosion of Tik Tok in 2020 had a lot to do w/ the DAS. Other things that have blown up on Tik Tok have gotten so crazy that they had to shut it down. It’s a huge way people find out about things now. It’s hard to quell it once it starts.