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Disney & SN

lite-brightlite-bright member
in Special Needs

So the NY Post thing about the 1% hiring disabled people to act as family so they can cut the lines that has been floating around got me thinking. 

Has anybody here done Disney, with or without SN accommodations? I think it's called the GAC. What was your experience? 

We're going to Disney World (FL) in July. DD1 has done well at a local amusement park the past two summers, but the only time we've ever gone has been when DH's company has a private event -- they rent the whole park, so the lines are way shorter than they would be if it was open to the public. And that's just for a few hours, not three days of multiple parks (we are renting a condo to come and go from, with plenty of space, a pool, etc. when we need a break from the parks). I'm having mixed feelings about the Disney option -- like, I think we might be able to manage without it. She adores the "fun park," as she calls it, and I have no doubt she's going to have an awesome time overall; my dilemma, I guess, is whether or not to take this SN option. Maybe we could try the first day without it and see how it goes. Or maybe we just say, hey, this is a service for those with SN and she fits that and quit vacillating on whether or not she's "special needs enough;" let's just do it and not wait to see if she melts down. 

If we do opt for the GAC, what documentation should we bring? Would a dx page from her evaluation or IEP document suffice, or should I get a note from our doctor? She will be wearing a medical/ID bracelet as well. 

 

 

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DD1, 1/5/2008 ~~~ DD2, 3/17/2010
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Re: Disney & SN

  • hopankahopanka member
    We live about 45min from Disneyland, so we have been a few times. We use the disability pass every time. If it's the only perk of having an SN child, then dammit I will use it. Cars ride has a wait of 2 hours on the regular, so it was nice to breeze through in 10 minutes. I feel I would have had a meltdown in the middle of it, never mind my son. Also, they cannot ask you for documents. I brought the IEP once, and when I wanted to show it to them, they stopped me and said they don't need to see anything.
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  • kar5162kar5162 member

    I would get it. Getting it doesn't mean you *have* to use it, but she's young and has a disability that could potentially use the accommodation. When you're there, you can use your judgment.

    I hear Auntie on the eventually she will need to learn to wait and it will serve her well, and don't disagree but I also think there's a time and a place for that. You can have her wait during early hours and when the park is quieter, and maybe she'll be able to wait again after a rest in the middle of the day, but maybe she'll need the break at times. Maybe she'll need the break the first day or two, but able to handle a little more waiting later in the trip, or the opposite. If the trip ends up being a fun, positive experience, even if the pass was useful in helping make it that way, she will be more prepared to have a fun, positive experience next time, and likely better able to handle a little more waiting and chaos.

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  • mommyof4boysmommyof4boys member
    We're going in July too.  We're going because I'm speaking at a conference for 16p11.2 syndrome on special needs advocacy and it's going to be in July.  I'm planning on using the GAC card only because Matthew has issues with heat and tends to pass out.  I plan on not using it to cut in line for anything, etc.
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  • smiling76smiling76 member
    image-auntie-:

    The way I read the backstory, was that these were adults in the Orlando area working for an unrelated tour company. They are disabled adults who use scooters/electric wheelchairs as tour guides. They don't need a free trip for some charity fund, they are doing it as a job.

    There's a lot of wacky stuff out there about this. One piece I read identified these people as "children with disabilities" which doesn't seen to be the case. 

    I kind of agree with you actually.  If they are doing it because they WANT to --then let them.  You just never know the real backstory.

    As for the GAC--I've heard people over the years on the boards say that it truly made their trip different to have it with their SNs LO's.  If we go, I would probably ask for it and then if I felt it wasn't necessary, wouldn't use it--and if I did--would have it.  July can be very crowded and VERY VERY hot. 


    My new "mom" blog: http://realityofamommy.blogspot.com

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  • Ginlyn0Ginlyn0 member
    We went to WDW over Spring Break (rated 9 out of 10 on busiest times) and DD has AS & ADHD and SS has ADHD (possibly undiagnosed ASD) and DS has some sensory issues. We did not get a GAC. We contemplated it but decided we would try the first day at Epcot without it and see how it went. We figured out that getting Fast Passes and using child swap worked well for us. I think the longest line we waited in was for Mickey, Minnie and Pluto @ Epcot and that was about 30 mins.  We used the Fast Passes on everything else and made sure we always picked up the next FP as soon as we could and spend our "waiting" time walking around enjoying Disney. We had no major issues other than DS & SS during the Firework shows & Fantasmic due to sensory issues but the GAC wouldn't have helped with that.
    DD(14),SD(13),SS(11),SS(9),DS(3)

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  • greengirl0909greengirl0909 member
    I also wonder for the folks who are hiring the SN people to speed them through Disney- how do they explain that to their children? How do they treat that person while they're with them? I just can't imagine utilizing that service would support any of the lessons I'm hoping to teach my children, ya know?
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  • lite-brightlite-bright member

    imagegreengirl0909:
    I also wonder for the folks who are hiring the SN people to speed them through Disney- how do they explain that to their children? How do they treat that person while they're with them? I just can't imagine utilizing that service would support any of the lessons I'm hoping to teach my children, ya know?

    Someone on my local board is pretty sure she saw this happening the last time she was at Disney. Where a "cousin" was eating lunch and taking longer than the rest of the "family", and when they were done, he was being nagged to finish, talking about "keeping to the arranged schedule" and making reference to there being a point where his "time was up."

    I think if you're the type willing to hire someone disabled so you can get a shorter wait at Disney, you aren't all that worried about teaching your kids to treat people with respect. 

    image

    DD1, 1/5/2008 ~~~ DD2, 3/17/2010
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  • CaptainSeriousCaptainSerious member
    image-auntie-:

    This isn't going to be a popular opinion, but given the fact that unemployment/under employment for adults with disabilities is a common reality, if a few wish to pimp themselves out as unofficial tour guides- I'm not going to judge. I am sort of side-eying the whole story as BS because WDW does offer special VIP access with an official guide for those who can afford it. I'm fully expecting this to turn up on snopes.

    https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/events-tours/vip-tour-services/


    Auntie, it's really not a made-up story.  My husband works with someone who did this.  The "uncle" is in all their family vacation photos.  My husband had just heard about this and told me a few weeks before the Post article.  It's a real thing.

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