Disney’s Disability Pass
There isn’t much out there that we’ve been able to find in terms of help or tips for traveling with a special needs child, even from Disney; however, one exception to that is their Disability Access Service (DAS).
The DAS pass allows parties with a special needs person, who would struggle to wait in a long line, to get a time when they can come to the attraction and not have to wait long. There is usually a short wait, 10-15 minutes usually in our experience, but it depends on the attraction and the day. This has really helped us because, while Zoe doesn’t typically mind a delay, one of the things she cannot handle is a crying kid. For being called the “happiest place on Earth,” Disney World has LOTS of crying kids. Her meltdown would make the entire experience much less magical for all in the vicinity. We are very thankful they have this.
If you’ve been to Disney with someone like Zoe, you are probably familiar with the DAS system, but they’ve made a couple of changes recently. For one, we were able to register by video chat ahead of time; you can do this as early 30 days out from your trip or within 2 days of your first park day. If you aren’t don’t manage to do it ahead of time, you can still go to a designated office in each park to register in person.
Whether you register by video chat or in person, the special needs person MUST be present to get it set up. You will also need to purchase park tickets and make your park reservations before you call. The once you’re in line for the video chat, it could go quickly or you could wait quite a while, so you don’t want to not be ready when it’s your turn.
One perk that Disney is offering to those who register early (aside from not using your park time), is two DAS Advance Passes for each park day. These work just like the fast passes they used to have, and they will schedule them for you while you’re on that call; so you’ll want to be prepared with a list of attractions for each park. These work on the same attractions that are eligible for Genie+; keep in mind that you only want to do advance passes on attractions the disabled person in your party will want to do. The DAS pass will only work if the special needs person is participating, so you may want to do a little research ahead of time.
I hope this helps, and that you’re able to plan a trip that will be magical for your family! Please reach out if you have a question I didn’t answer; I don’t know everything, but I will try to find it for you!
*Disclaimer: I do not work for Disney; I never have, and I don’t get paid to talk about them.
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