Just spend 3 days at WDW. Our 2yo has a seizure disorder. She is severely developmentally delayed, non mobile & non verbal. She also has hypotonia, CVI & retinopathy so she is very floppy and doesn't have good head control and we know she can see because she recognizes people and objects, just unsure of how much she sees and processes.
She loves Disney though! I think it's all the stimulation, the movement, the colors. We have a "stroller as a wheelchair" red tag that we used on our trip. I can't even begin to tell you how nasty people were to us. Several nasty comments from other guests. At epcot, in "the land" building, we had at least 5 people make comments of how we must have "snuck" the stroller in. When I said to one woman on the elevator "we didn't sneak it in, she's disabled" the woman started mocking me saying oh yeah sure , she's not disabled. At little mermaid in MK I had a man yell at us for "cutting" the line (we did not cut, we were ushered into the wheelchair parking section" and then he started yelling that we were those people like on the news that fake things to get ahead in line. I just can not believe how nasty complete strangers were. Has anyone else had this happen? Do you ignore people or try to explain to them why your child has the tag?
Lastly, I was a bit disappointed at MK. Their baby care center is not wheelchair accessible. I was surprised because the one at hollywood studios was so nice & we were able to take the stroller in. At MK, I had to park the stroller outside (even with the tag on it) and carry my daughter and all of her gear in which was not an easy task. Is there anywhere else at MK that is handicap accessible and offers a place to change and feed a young child? What would they do if the mother was in a wheelchair? Seems a bit off to me.
All in all, we had a wonderful trip. I tried very hard to not let the comments of others get to me. I'd give anything to wait in a real line and have my daughter walk onto a ride like other healthy two year olds. I'd happily ditch all the gear and the stroller to have her take steps in "the land". I guess others just don't get it.
That is not new and isn't actually just strollers being used as wheelchairs.
One of my vivid memories from when my youngest DD took her first trip using a wheelchair is a parent blocking the CM at The Land from letting us in.
She was angry because they would not let her bring her stroller in and was yelling, "you have to let me bring my stroller in! You are letting her bring hers in," (pointing to us).
The CM explained we were using a wheelchair and ask the woman if her child was disabled. She said no, but still kept going on that it was not fair we could bring our 'stroller' in and she could not.
Now, our DD's wheelchair looked nothing like a stroller - it was a traditional wheelchair with big back wheels. It didn't matter to the woman that both the CM and her husband were telling her that ours was a wheelchair, she didn't like it!
The CM said no. I even showed her the red tag and she said absolutely not because it's a safety hazard. She said there is only one exit so it wasn't allowed. I was surprised too. After a few mins of trying to struggle with gear I walked out in tears. I didn't try the one at epcot or AK but the one at hollywood studios was very nice.
That does surprise me - as someone else mentioned, what would they do if a parent came in using a wheelchair?
I have not been in Baby Care at MK in a long time. I wonder what the space is like - I know it is small and wonder if a stroller in the changing area would block passage??
But, if that was the case, the logical thing yo do would be send you next door to First Aid. You could have used one of the rooms there to change your child without any issues with blocking an exit.
As someone who has worked in Guest Relations I can say that we can read notes from doctors. However they are usually one of two things. Either a diagnosis written in complicated medical jargon that the CM cannot understand or something incredibly vague such as "cannot wait in line" or "has diabetes". Neither of these explain specific needs.
I know a couple of Guest Relations CMs have said they were told not to read notes from doctors.
The main reasons were the ones you mentioned, but also to avoid given any appearance that a note might be required. (The ADA states no proof can be required).
So, CM's understanding about might depend on how their manager presented it to them.
I have a feeling this question has been asked and answered, but I can't read through 102 pages to find out, I'm sorry. I did read the info provided by Sue in the first couple of posts.
I'm wondering if anyone could clarify whether people with severe mobility issues will need a
DAS card.
My understanding is that if I'm using a personal scooter, the CM at the attraction will just direct me to the wheelchair accessible queue, but I do need minor accommodation beyond just being able to bring my scooter into a queue.
Not much, mostly I just need a lot of extra time getting into and out of ride cars, and for the moving walkways or platforms to be stopped. My sister will help me do as much as I can, but it's a slow and painful procedure for me to get from my scooter over to wherever I'll be sitting during the attraction, especially when it involves stepping up or down onto a different surface.
For that matter, if I've been sitting on the scooter for awhile without getting up, when I first stand up it takes a minute or two to adjust, get my balance. Silently bully my knees into unlocking and moving properly, and inform my feet that we WILL be walking a short distance, so they have no choice but to take my weight and shuffle forwards when I want to move. Come on, joints. We're moving, don't argue with me just behave and move when I tell you to. Please don't embarass me in public by locking up mid-step and I'll give you some nice dilaudid in an hour or two. Let's go.
Would I need a DAS card for this sort of accommodation? I never used a GAC, never needed one.
You would not actually need a DAS for that kind of accommodation - DAS is just for the actual waiting in line, per Disney's information. Those other things would be communicated by you at the time.
Since you will be using the
ECV in line, you will be boarding at the accessible boarding area, if it is not the same as the standard boarding area/entrance.
You can try to explain your needs to CMs at Guest Relatuons, but are likely to be told you don't need a DAS and should just talk to CMs about your needs the way you did before DAS.
A couple of other things to be aware of -
- the attractions that don't accommodate
ECVs in line do have ECVs you can use in line. Ask at the entrance before parking your ECV.
- they are seldom actually stopping the moving walkways; it is much more common to slow them. Having a DAS would not make it more likely that CMs would stop the moving walkway.