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Thread: New Handicap/Disabled Policy [at DLR]

  1. #1

    New Handicap/Disabled Policy

    Info:

    As you may know, the Disneyland Resort strives to provide mainstream access
    whenever possible, that
    is, all Guests use the same entrance and queues. Information regarding specific
    attraction entrance
    procedures can be found in the "Guidebook for Guests with Disabilities"
    available in each of the
    Theme Parks, or by visiting our web site at www.disneyland.com. Some
    attractions have alternative
    entrances for Guests with disabilities. These are intended to offer Guests
    using wheelchairs, or
    with service animals, a more convenient entrance to the attraction. Alternative
    entrances are not
    intended to bypass waiting lines.

    You may wish to stop by Guest Relations or City Hall upon your arrival to obtain
    more information
    about our services for Guests with disabilities. There is a service option that
    has been created
    specifically for the benefit of Guests who, for various reasons, may require
    special assistance.
    The Resort can issue a Guest Assistance Card for Guests with a non-apparent
    special assistance need.
    Depending on a Guest's particular need, this card will alert our Cast Members to
    provide special
    assistance such as allowing Guests admission to attractions through alternative
    entrances, where
    applicable. This card can be issued upon your arrival to the Theme Parks, but
    cannot be arranged in
    advance. We would like to clarify, however, the intention of this service has
    never been to bypass
    attraction wait times. To accommodate individual needs, Guests are asked to
    discuss their assistance
    requests with a Guest Relations Cast Member prior to the card being issued.
    Proof of disability is
    not required.

    In addition, some Guests may be concerned that they do not have the stamina to
    wait in our queues.
    We strongly suggest these Guests consider using a wheelchair or Electric
    Convenience Vehicle, as the
    distance between our attractions is much greater than the length of our queues.

    Anyone now how to get around this policy to be able to get the special assistance pass?

    They will make you wait in line with a wheelchair if they have too..

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  3. #2
    Quote Originally Posted by Rodolfo
    They will make you wait in line with a wheelchair if they have too..
    As they should. Just because someone can't stand in line does not mean that they should have every attraction handed to them on a silver platter. Even guests who need special assistance need to wait their turns, too.
    "You know, some guys just can't hold their arsenic!"

  4. #3

    The ADA law requires that everything be accessible. If the queue to an attraction is wide enough for a wheelchair to fit through then there is no reason somebody in a wheelchair can not wait in line like everybody else.ADA means equal treatment NOT preferred treatment. Many guests were abusing this policy before so that is why it is harder to get a guest assistance card now.Every new attraction Disney builds now must have a queue large enough for a wheelchair to fit through it or they have to let you go through either an alternate entrance or exit.


  5. #4

    What exactly do you mean, "Get around this policy to get a special assistance pass..."? If you don't have any disability, then you should in no way even be attempting to get a special assistance pass, let alone a wheelchair. And if that is the case, I'm rather appalled that you posting such a request on this board. As a father of two special needs children who would benefit from having the pass on hand, it irks me to no end when I hear stories of teens renting the wheelchairs so that they can use the alternate entrance, or individuals who have no disability talking City Hall into issuing them one because they know all the right things to say.

    If by your question, you have a disability that's not noticeable, but where a special assistance card would help, then just explain what your disability is to City Hall. If you truely need one you should get it.

    However, the way you phrased your question made it sound like you were just looking for that special priveledges pass even though you don't need it. Bad form.


  6. #5
    It was a good day! Malcon10t's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rodolfo
    Anyone now how to get around this policy to be able to get the special assistance pass?

    They will make you wait in line with a wheelchair if they have too..
    Why? We have to use the alternative entrance. This does not mean we will get on a ride any faster. It gives us a line that makes waiting easier and loading of the ride easier for both us and the CMs. Many rides, the wait is as long, if not longer than the standard queue. However, we wait in a shaded/cooled area, and the CMs are aware we will need specific loading help, and have time to plan for loading us. If you have other issues, the CMs at City Hall can explain what can be done to assist you. If you have problems with stairs, they can give you an assistance card to bypass the stairs. What kind of assistance do you need?
    Planning 3 trips at once...

  7. #6

    Donald Duck Fan68, I was about to reply with much the same post as you just submitted (I have a special needs child as well). So instead of sounding like a parrot, I'll just state that I agree with your post completely. ^.^


  8. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by Malcon10t
    Why? We have to use the alternative entrance. This does not mean we will get on a ride any faster. It gives us a line that makes waiting easier and loading of the ride easier for both us and the CMs. Many rides, the wait is as long, if not longer than the standard queue. However, we wait in a shaded/cooled area, and the CMs are aware we will need specific loading help, and have time to plan for loading us. If you have other issues, the CMs at City Hall can explain what can be done to assist you. If you have problems with stairs, they can give you an assistance card to bypass the stairs. What kind of assistance do you need?

    My point exactly...You wait in the line hte same amount of time any person would wait just closer to the vehicles so you dont have to move..alot of vehicles go by before yo go on...they wouldnt give us the pass before they did no problem but now they dont..

  9. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by Donald Duck Fan68
    What exactly do you mean, "Get around this policy to get a special assistance pass..."? If you don't have any disability, then you should in no way even be attempting to get a special assistance pass, let alone a wheelchair. And if that is the case, I'm rather appalled that you posting such a request on this board. As a father of two special needs children who would benefit from having the pass on hand, it irks me to no end when I hear stories of teens renting the wheelchairs so that they can use the alternate entrance, or individuals who have no disability talking City Hall into issuing them one because they know all the right things to say.

    If by your question, you have a disability that's not noticeable, but where a special assistance card would help, then just explain what your disability is to City Hall. If you truely need one you should get it.

    However, the way you phrased your question made it sound like you were just looking for that special priveledges pass even though you don't need it. Bad form.
    Nono no i didnt mean it to sound that way yes someone in my family has a disibility and they had a misreble time at disneyland but then again we didnt bother to go to guest relations

  10. #9
    Tower of Terror is the best
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    well it done on a one to one basis the new policy now

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  11. #10
    It was a good day! Malcon10t's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rodolfo
    My point exactly...You wait in the line hte same amount of time any person would wait just closer to the vehicles so you dont have to move..alot of vehicles go by before yo go on...they wouldnt give us the pass before they did no problem but now they dont..
    Right, they changed their policy 2 or 3 years ago, because people were seriously abusing it. I have no problem waiting, as long as I can do so easier, and get loaded easier. We have waited numerous times longer in the alternative entrance than we would have in the regular line, however, I don't have a problem with that when I know we are harder to load. What kind of assistance do you need?
    Planning 3 trips at once...

  12. #11
    Read to your children...
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    I have 5 special needs children and 4 of them are going with us in a few days to Disneyland, We have never used or asked for special previladges for anything, we want our children to be seen and treated as normal as possible, my children may not look like they are "special needs" and may look as "normal" as the kid next door, but Special Needs is not just limited to physical needs either, there is so much more. For people to rent wheelchairs and ask for assisant cards when they don't need them just irks, the h*ll out of me! If my kids can wait inline so should they!! Oh, please don't even get me started on this!!!


  13. #12

    To all those who have special mobility or other disabilities.......you are always more than welcome to cut in front of us anytime you need to because I realize how much more effort it took you just to get to the start of the line than it could ever take our "lucky to not be disabled family". Shame on everyone who is worried that they might have to wait in line longer than you did!


  14. #13

    Trust me I would change my legs for any one so as I could wait in the long line and board the rides the way the rest of you do. It would be a plesure

     

  15. #14
    I drink your milkshake. DisneyDustin22's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rodolfo
    ...they had a misreble time at disneyland but then again we didnt bother to go to guest relations
    A bit off topic but I just cannot stress this enough. People, if you have ANY kind of issue at a theme park weather it be Disney, USH, SFMM, Knotts, anywhere, if you had a bad time, or something happened or you need any kind of assistance, any at all, please go to Guest Relations before you leave the park. They are there to assist you and if they can't accomodate your every need, they will surely do within their power what they can to help. I work in Guest Relations Management at one of the major theme parks in southern california and I cannot tell you how many times people write in sometimes days, weeks, months, in one case this week a year after they have visited with an issue expecting all kinds of compensation. It is very hard to assit the guest if they let the situation go unreported. You may think your question is stupid, but ask it anyway before you leave the park. It is much easier to handle the issue on the spot then it is to go back and do it later. People always complain about being dragged through the mud when they complain about something after they visit. They have to understand the guests are not on watch the whole time the are in the park. So if you have an issue and you don't bring it to Guest Relations attention until days later, it's your word against theirs. Guest Relations will always favor to the guest, but they have to make sure the issue is legit, so the being "drug through the mud" is only them trying to obtain information from staff, supervisors and managers as to the issue. If you bring your issue to their attention before you leave, there are a lot more options open to handling the situation right then and there as opposed to in the future. Just a few words of advice to anyone who has ever been in a situation like this, or may find themselves in one day.

  16. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by Donald Duck Fan68
    What exactly do you mean, "Get around this policy to get a special assistance pass..."? If you don't have any disability, then you should in no way even be attempting to get a special assistance pass, let alone a wheelchair. And if that is the case, I'm rather appalled that you posting such a request on this board. .


    Amen!!! I am a person with a disability that is invisible, (a degenerative spinal disease, and an arthritic condition) and it is nearly impossible for me to stand for more than 15 minutes at a time. Even my employer has to offer me options for not standing. If all you are seeking is the pass, and you have nothing physically wrong with you....give me a break. I will gladly swap my painful illnesses with you so that you can have the pass.

  17. #16
    Quote Originally Posted by Rodolfo
    Nono no i didnt mean it to sound that way yes someone in my family has a disibility and they had a misreble time at disneyland but then again we didnt bother to go to guest relations
    Well...good luck. They wouldn't allow me one the last time I was there, in May. And I DO have physical limitations. I was a very unhappy camper.

  18. #17

    I had a hurt ankle on time, all I can say is handicap entrance is hella cheating the lines.
    It was there 2 days DCA, and DL, we got on every ride we wanted to get on and were done extremly fast.


  19. #18

    I know most of you know this that come to this board but for those of you that don't. You do not need a Guest assistance card if you have a wheelchair. Guest assistant cards are for non apparent disabilities. The exception is, if you use a wheelchair and have other underlying condtions that are non appearant. If you are able to sit in a wheel chair then you are able to sit through a wheelchair accessable line in your chair. Disney does not give out passes for mobility or endurance issues anymore but they will suggest you rent a wheelchair for your stay becasue the distance between the attractions are longer then the standard line. If you can not stand in line because of your condition they will still reccomend a wheel chair for you to sit in while waiting in line.
    IF you do qualify for a GAC it does not mean you bypass the line. There are dfferant stamps for dfferant needs. An example of one stamp is the front row stamp for those that visually impaired. You would still wait in the normal que but once you get to the front of the line you show your pass and they will sit you up front so that you are able to see. There are some passes that let you bypass stairs but that does not mean bypass the line it simplely means you can go around the stairs or use an elevator for the part of the line that has stairs. As you can see none of these give you "front of the line privledges."
    I hope this explained things more for you and I hope you have fun in the park!
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  20. #19
    It was a good day! Malcon10t's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sandiegoboy
    I had a hurt ankle on time, all I can say is handicap entrance is hella cheating the lines.
    It was there 2 days DCA, and DL, we got on every ride we wanted to get on and were done extremly fast.
    DCA has no alternative entrances. Wheelchair users use the same lines as everyone else. At DL, many lines have alternative entrances. Very few really shorten the wait. POTC you may actually wait longer, due to their only allowing 5 chairs on the dock at one time. Haunted mansion, you shave a little bit of the wait off outside, but they can only send 1-2 chair parties down at a time, then you have to wait for buggy 5 to come around. So, if you get sent down, and they are on chair 15, you have about a 8 min wait. This is after waiting for for your turn to go. I think most people know the wheelchair line used to be a lot longer than the reg line for Space Mountain. With the new rockets being able to move offline to load, its now about the same as the regular line.
    Planning 3 trips at once...

  21. #20
    Quote Originally Posted by Malcon10t
    DCA has no alternative entrances. Wheelchair users use the same lines as everyone else. At DL, many lines have alternative entrances. Very few really shorten the wait. POTC you may actually wait longer, due to their only allowing 5 chairs on the dock at one time. Haunted mansion, you shave a little bit of the wait off outside, but they can only send 1-2 chair parties down at a time, then you have to wait for buggy 5 to come around. So, if you get sent down, and they are on chair 15, you have about a 8 min wait. This is after waiting for for your turn to go. I think most people know the wheelchair line used to be a lot longer than the reg line for Space Mountain. With the new rockets being able to move offline to load, its now about the same as the regular line.
    Even small world you have to wait in a line up top before going down to wait more time. Not a savings of time.
    And do not even get me started on the BUs instead of the tram thing. Lets just say one night we waited over 45 minute to take the bus back to the parking lot!

    I also know tha the year I had my cast on my leg. (18 months of three different types of casts) That althought I did not use a wheel chair I was able to wait in regular line on Idiana Jones but when it got to the stairs I was taken from the line and allowed to go up the elevator. then walked across and then back down the Elevator. (my party stayed in line and had to wait for me) So again not much on saving time.
    Now that is my personal experiance. From my mother's point of view who is in a wheel chair. Would also give up the pain she suffers daily to wait in line.
    Becuase it is usualy my mother, Grandmother, my 4 year old who go to disneyland, I can only push one person. That would be my mom. Meaning that my 83 year old grandmother has to walk the full park. Which slows us down greatly. But what are we to do? We like going and we make do we do not complain. We are thankful instead that we can go when we want.

  22. #21
    www.visionsfantastic.com
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    I often get a GAC (I'm not going to say what it's for here so that it won't give abusers any ideas) but it's really only works on a couple rides. On one hand I get so PO'd at the teenagers being pushed around in wheelchairs, sometimes by adults. On the other hand, I'm am so touched by Disney's graceful handling of parties with children with severe disabilities and groups with autistic children or adults. These groups are, and should be, the exception to getting to the front of the line as soon as possible.

    I am just fine with the changes for special assistance. Do I miss the practically front-of-the-line access I used to have? of course! I didn't ask for it, but it's what I often got. But after seeing the abuse (and the abuse that still happens) I understand Disney's attitude.

    My aunt has disabilities due to Lupus and degenerative arthritis, and got quite upset at being told that she had to wait in her wheelchair in the regular lines or to make use of the fastpass system... to the point of not renewing her premium pass this year. She say that there are many with disabilities that cannot possibly spend the whole day at Disneyland even in a wheelchair, and these people should be accomodated for. She frequents Disney World and says their system is much better and 'inclusive' of guests with disabilities.

    I can understand her point. Why is Disney World handling disable guests differently?

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  23. #22

    [QUOTE=DaddyB]On the other hand, I'm am so touched by Disney's graceful handling of parties with children with severe disabilities and groups with autistic children or adults. These groups are, and should be, the exception to getting to the front of the line as soon as possible.QUOTE]

    I so totally agree! Although no one in my family is disabled (thank goodness) both DH and I work with autistic kids and their families. There is no way these families could enjoy Disneyland at all without special accommodations!!!


  24. #23
    Quote Originally Posted by DaddyB

    I can understand her point. Why is Disney World handling disable guests differently?
    I think it has to do with the era that the parks were built in.

    In 1955, nobody gave a hoot about how a disabled person was gonna ride a ride. Decades later the handicapped are mainstreamed into our culture rather than tucked safely away at home or in a long term hospital. So the parks which opened later are much better suited to the physically challanged.


    Frankly, the "better system" also has to do with the widespread abuse of the SAP several years ago at DL. The abuse was widespread and readily visable. They had to crack down, becasue it was at the point where it was affecting the other park guests.

  25. #24
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    Quote Originally Posted by DaddyB
    I can understand her point. Why is Disney World handling disable guests differently?
    The WDW GAC system is the same system in use at DLR.

    Adrienne
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  26. #25
    Quote Originally Posted by Malcon10t
    DCA has no alternative entrances. Wheelchair users use the same lines as everyone else. At DL, many lines have alternative entrances. Very few really shorten the wait. POTC you may actually wait longer, due to their only allowing 5 chairs on the dock at one time. Haunted mansion, you shave a little bit of the wait off outside, but they can only send 1-2 chair parties down at a time, then you have to wait for buggy 5 to come around. So, if you get sent down, and they are on chair 15, you have about a 8 min wait. This is after waiting for for your turn to go. I think most people know the wheelchair line used to be a lot longer than the reg line for Space Mountain. With the new rockets being able to move offline to load, its now about the same as the regular line.
    OK, I realized I used crutches in DCA, because I was on a wheelchair, but they made me go in line for MM, and I had a horriblke time trying to get through the line. So I used crutches the rest of the day and it was a horrible time anyhow.

    But in DL I skipped all the lines, and there was no wait for me. The ones I remember getting on was, Splash Mountain, like a 5 min wait, and the line was well over an hour long. Indiana Jones, I had like no wait, and there was a good sized line. Fantasy land rides I just hoped on through the exit. Thunder Mountain I went through exit and waited no more than 5 min., PotC was pretty much instant, and the line was definatly longer. (ps, is the styandby line for potc alot shorter than it used to be)
    In fact I felt bad about doing this, but my mom said it was in place for people who could not walk like me. So whatever I did it for that day.

    Anyhow, this was a few years ago, maybe it has changed. The whole time I was thinking that they should just ask someone in back of the line to hold a marker or something and when they get to the ride the people at handicap entrance would get on.

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