Why can't DAS return times be booked through My Disney Experience?

[LillyL76]

I just have never understood this. If they can do it with FastPasses, there is no reason why they shouldn't be able to do it with DAS too. With Disney being so technologically advanced, per say, and it being the year 2020, I don't understand why we have to be going back and forth.

Let me backtrack. I think Disney does a great job with the DAS pass as a whole, and I like the method being used to acquire the pass, which really limits the chance that someone who does not truly need it will get their hands on one like before. I think it's very fair as it is right now since our intentions are not "skipping the line", but being able to wait our turn fairly without having to physically stand in line since we are unable to and still being able to enjoy a place we all love so much. All of that is great. I just don't see why we can't go to guest services to activate our pass as usual, but then get our return times through the app. I am the one who uses DAS in my family, and sometimes on our Disney vacations I end up going back to the park alone at the end of the day if no one else wants to go back but I feel up for it. Say I go to Epcot and I want to ride test track. I have to walk all the way to the ride, get a return time, and because there's nowhere directly in the area where I can sit and wait and not be in the heat for about an hour while I wait, I have to walk to somewhere else that's not necessarily close by to wait and then walk all the way back. If I'm with someone I will wait somewhere and they will go get a return time and come back to wait with me until it's time to ride, but if I'm alone it becomes really hard and it really takes a toll.

Disney really needs to implement a system where once they give us the DAS, we can get some special section that shows up on the app that lets us reserve our time (one at a time like currently of course, and not being able to get a new one until we use or cancel our existing one). For certain disabilities it's really hard to go back and forth and they can easily verify the DAS holder is getting on via scanning and looking at our picture like they do now. I'm extremely grateful that this system exists in the first place, and that Disney is so accommodating, but every time I come home from a trip I truly wonder why this isn't a thing.

Has this ever been brought up before? Has Disney ever mentioned something like this possibly being implemented in the future? Because for some (if not most) of us it would be tremendously helpful!

 

[siren0119]

It can't be treated like a Fastpass because that would be unfair access to a fourth fastpass reservation for DAS users. The whole concept is to provide equitable access to a ride for someone who cannot wait in the line for non-mobility reasons. A regular rider without a fastpass for that ride has to go to the ride and get in line. So a regular DAS rider without a FP for that ride also needs to go to the ride (just like the regular rider) and join the line virtually. DAS is meant to level the playing field for people with non-mobility disabilities and challenges, not make it easier for them over your average guest.

My son is the one who needs DAS when we go, so we've used the system quite a bit in our trips over the last few years. I totally understand that there are folks who have both mobility and non-mobility related issues, and for those folks it's tough to get to a ride if you aren't using a scooter or wheelchair or other mobility device. I suspect that isn't the lion's share of DAS users though.

 

[gap2368]

They have guest information booths that used to give return times out you can try one of them. I have not been to Disney in over a year but I had no problem getting return times form them but I have heard other did

 

[lovethattink]

They have guest information booths that used to give return times out you can try one of them. I have not been to Disney in over a year but I had no problem getting return times form them but I have heard other did

CM Lynn at Magic Kingdom when we added one person to ds’ DAS said she isn’t really allowed to set up a return time. Yet when we went to Epcot, to take that added person back off, the cm asked ds if he’d like her to set up his first attraction. MK was last Tuesday and Epcot was Sunday.

 

[gap2368]

CM Lynn at Magic Kingdom when we added one person to ds’ DAS said she isn’t really allowed to set up a return time. Yet when we went to Epcot, to take that added person back off, the cm asked ds if he’d like her to set up his first attraction. MK was last Tuesday and Epcot was Sunday.

Some seem to be able to and some not. I had one CM give me a hard time but he never said no really

 

[Lilsia]

The goal is to make it equitable for everyone. So let's say you have a DAS for a ride, your time has come to ride and so you tap your band and get in the FP line. So now you are in line with everyone else going on that ride. Well, if you were able to then get your next DAS while still in line, that would be an advantage over those who are physically waiting in line. They can't start to queue up for another ride while waiting to board their current ride, so why should you be able to? Do you see the advantage there?

 

[fabfemmeboy]

The goal is to make it equitable for everyone. So let's say you have a DAS for a ride, your time has come to ride and so you tap your band and get in the FP line. So now you are in line with everyone else going on that ride. Well, if you were able to then get your next DAS while still in line, that would be an advantage over those who are physically waiting in line. They can't start to queue up for another ride while waiting to board their current ride, so why should you be able to? Do you see the advantage there?

Yes but that already kind of exists because I can go ride other rides while I'm "waiting in line" for my DAS time, so if we're okay with one I think the distinction you're trying to draw is kind of artificial. Is there a difference between booking a DAS time for Soarin while I'm standing in line for Living with the Land, or booking a DAS time for Soarin and then getting in line for Living with the Land?

I think OP's main complaint - and mine as well - about the way it's administered at Disney World is that you have to go all the way to the ride itself and then find somewhere to wait, which isn't always possible. At Disneyland, you still (ok, when it's open) get reservations from the guest services umbrellas, which means you can wait somewhere appropriate and don't need to criss-cross the park additional times to do it. Especially in EPCOT, with how torn up it is, there aren't a lot of places to kill time in all areas of the park, certainly not with air conditioning or shade if that's a concern (which it is for me). Same thing at DHS, only with less distance but additional crowds to fight through.

I understand the idea of "equal experience" behind the policy - e.g. everyone else has to physically go to the ride to stand in line, so we should have to go to the ride to get a time and start the clock - but as a practical matter there are times that the requirement to get times at each attraction almost negate the accommodation. Particularly when everything official about the DAS pass talks about being able to rest somewhere, shop, or eat while waiting for the return time. For Test Track, it trades waiting in a noisy line for waiting in a crazy-hot plaza because there's nowhere to kill time on that side of the park anymore. If you could still use the guest services umbrella kiosks to add a DAS time, you could get a reservation for Test Track wherever you were already, kill time in a more convenient/useful place, and use part of the time to work your way over to Test Track - particularly for families that have more than one challenge.

 

[Lugan]

I found it exceptionally bad this past week, with the extended queues, and the way that they are sometimes setup to zig-zag around. It becomes very difficult to find the correct CM to get a DAS return time. Heck, FOP was all the way across the bridge, out of Pandora, and almost to the Africa area of AK when I was last there on 10/11. A "normal" person joining the standby queue just steps right up there, but to get a DAS time I had to squeeze by a bunch of people, snake through Pandora and get all of the way to the normal FP+ tap-in point to get a return time.

Now, some attractions had a CM standing under an umbrella away from the line to give the DAS return time. But, since this was inconsistently implemented, often times I found myself getting to the FP+ entry point only to be turned around and directed to somebody else to get my DAS return time.

 

[DisneyOma]

Say I go to Epcot and I want to ride test track. I have to walk all the way to the ride, get a return time, and because there's nowhere directly in the area where I can sit and wait and not be in the heat for about an hour while I wait, I have to walk to somewhere else that's not necessarily close by to wait and then walk all the way back. If I'm with someone I will wait somewhere and they will go get a return time and come back to wait with me until it's time to ride, but if I'm alone it becomes really hard and it really takes a toll.

Disney really needs to implement a system where once they give us the DAS, we can get some special section that shows up on the app that lets us reserve our time (one at a time like currently of course, and not being able to get a new one until we use or cancel our existing one). For certain disabilities it's really hard to go back and forth and they can easily verify the DAS holder is getting on via scanning and looking at our picture like they do now. I'm extremely grateful that this system exists in the first place, and that Disney is so accommodating, but every time I come home from a trip I truly wonder why this isn't a thing.

Has this ever been brought up before? Has Disney ever mentioned something like this possibly being implemented in the future? Because for some (if not most) of us it would be tremendously helpful!

That would be a mobility issue, wouldn't it? Not what a DAS is for?

Yes but that already kind of exists because I can go ride other rides while I'm "waiting in line" for my DAS time, so if we're okay with one I think the distinction you're trying to draw is kind of artificial. Is there a difference between booking a DAS time for Soarin while I'm standing in line for Living with the Land, or booking a DAS time for Soarin and then getting in line for Living with the Land?

Did you have a DAS for Living with the Land? But no, you can't be in two places at once, so it's a really nice perk for DAS holders that they get to go on other rides while they wait for their return time, isn't it? Disney could have people wait in a room instead, like the rider swap spaces they have (had?) at Universal. DAS is a good tool - it works like a 4th FP, even for attractions that have their FP snapped up in minutes, if not seconds, on the 1st day of availability. Queue for FOP is 120 minutes? FP was gone 5 minutes into the morning? No problem, you can still get a DAS return time for 110 minutes from now. No need for the DAS holder to worry they won't get to ride. No need to plan around whatever time you were able to grab a FP if you were able. To be able to book that return time without even having to go to the attraction? That seems very over the top to me. The DAS is for non-mobility issues that keep someone from being able to access the attraction they have arrived to ride. To do more makes it very close the the GAC, which was a huge problem.

 

[KPeterso]

When I was there in March, I was able to get DAS return times at the Guest Relations stands throughout the parks. I feel like they had blue umbrellas but I may be wrong. So, I did not have to go to the actual ride to get a return time. Similar to how it is at Disneyland which makes things much easier for not going back and forth too much. I have not been back post Covid, but I would hope they would still be able to get the return times that way. I had asked at one of the parks when I had to ask another question about something and was told I could always get them at these locations.

 

[LillyL76]

It can't be treated like a Fastpass because that would be unfair access to a fourth fastpass reservation for DAS users. The whole concept is to provide equitable access to a ride for someone who cannot wait in the line for non-mobility reasons. A regular rider without a fastpass for that ride has to go to the ride and get in line. So a regular DAS rider without a FP for that ride also needs to go to the ride (just like the regular rider) and join the line virtually. DAS is meant to level the playing field for people with non-mobility disabilities and challenges, not make it easier for them over your average guest.

My son is the one who needs DAS when we go, so we've used the system quite a bit in our trips over the last few years. I totally understand that there are folks who have both mobility and non-mobility related issues, and for those folks it's tough to get to a ride if you aren't using a scooter or wheelchair or other mobility device. I suspect that isn't the lion's share of DAS users though.

Ok, I see your point. That is true.

At the same time though, when you get your DAS return time and you return to ride, you're not getting straight into the ride vehicle, you're waiting in the FP line, which can sometimes be 20 minutes + (talking about when the parks were normally operating not right now necessarily), so if you think about it, we could normally have to wait more than a typical person who gets in line and stays the entire time. And considering how the parks are now, the posted wait time could be 50 minutes but the actual wait time could be 30 minutes (since they aren't using the red cards to actually measure), so our return times could be 20 minutes or more (depending on how quick they get us on once we get in the FP line) over what a typical guest would have waited. This doesn't bother me but it's a point to bring up if we're talking about advantages.

Again, I'm grateful for DAS and the ability to enjoy a place I love and I know no system is ever going to be 100% perfect, but it's just a thought and something that could help certain guests. Maybe if the being able to get times though the app can't be a thing, at least maybe have a station at the entrance of each land where we can get a time for an attraction in that area to make it a little bit more accessible for those have a hard time going back and forth from one extreme to another (and don't have mobility issues), especially at Epcot right now.

 

[LillyL76]

They have guest information booths that used to give return times out you can try one of them. I have not been to Disney in over a year but I had no problem getting return times form them but I have heard other did

I feel like these are hit or miss and depends on the castmembers. I haven't tried at the info booths but at guest services when I've activated my pass, I've had times where they've asked if they can set up a time for me, so on another occasion I asked them if they would set up my first time for me and they told me I had to go do it at the ride. I guess it depends but I'll definitely try on my next trip!

 

[LillyL76]

CM Lynn at Magic Kingdom when we added one person to ds’ DAS said she isn’t really allowed to set up a return time. Yet when we went to Epcot, to take that added person back off, the cm asked ds if he’d like her to set up his first attraction. MK was last Tuesday and Epcot was Sunday.

Yes, this seems to be depending on the castmember. I've had times when I've activated my DAS and the castmember offers to set up a time for me, but once I asked it they would set up my first time (since I had been offered before) and they told me they couldn't do it and that I had to go to the ride.

 

[LillyL76]

That would be a mobility issue, wouldn't it? Not what a DAS is for?

No, my illness is not mobility related.

 

[LillyL76]

The goal is to make it equitable for everyone. So let's say you have a DAS for a ride, your time has come to ride and so you tap your band and get in the FP line. So now you are in line with everyone else going on that ride. Well, if you were able to then get your next DAS while still in line, that would be an advantage over those who are physically waiting in line. They can't start to queue up for another ride while waiting to board their current ride, so why should you be able to? Do you see the advantage there?

I do see your point. They could prevent this by adding a buffer time though. Maybe like having to wait 10 or 15 minutes after you scan into the ride before the option to get another return time appears again. It totally could be possible if they really wanted to do it. Anyways, like someone else mentioned, people with DAS could essentially get a return time for a ride and ride a few low wait attractions before heading back to the ride they have the return time for, as it is now, so the system isn't perfect anyways (and of course never will be, nothing can be 100% perfect).

Also, if you think about it, then we can also say that sometimes DAS could possibly wait longer than a regular guest. When you get your DAS return time and you return to ride, you're not getting straight onto the ride vehicle, you're waiting in the FP line. Yes, when you get your time, it's the posted wait minus 10 minutes to make up for this, but I have encountered many situations where I'm in the FP line 20 minutes + (and of course I'm talking about when the parks are operating normally, not right now necessarily). So, you could also say we wait our turn and then some?

And if you want to look at how the parks are currently operating, the posted wait time could be 50 minutes but the actual wait time could be 30 minutes (since they are not using the red cards to actually measure), so our return times could be 20 minutes or more (depending on how quick they get us on once we get in the FP line) over what a typical guest would have waited, because we were told to return in 40 minutes and then have to walk through/wait in the FP line, for example.

None of this bother me but it's a point to bring up if we're talking about advantages. I'm overall just grateful for DAS and the ability to enjoy a place I love, but it's something I've thought about often that could help certain guests. If getting times though the app can't be a thing, maybe then they could have a station at the entrance of each "land" where we can get a time for an attraction in that area only to make it a little bit more accessible for those have a hard time going back and forth from one extreme to another (and don't have mobility issues), especially at, say, Epcot right now.

 

[LillyL76]

Yes but that already kind of exists because I can go ride other rides while I'm "waiting in line" for my DAS time, so if we're okay with one I think the distinction you're trying to draw is kind of artificial. Is there a difference between booking a DAS time for Soarin while I'm standing in line for Living with the Land, or booking a DAS time for Soarin and then getting in line for Living with the Land?

I think OP's main complaint - and mine as well - about the way it's administered at Disney World is that you have to go all the way to the ride itself and then find somewhere to wait, which isn't always possible. At Disneyland, you still (ok, when it's open) get reservations from the guest services umbrellas, which means you can wait somewhere appropriate and don't need to criss-cross the park additional times to do it. Especially in EPCOT, with how torn up it is, there aren't a lot of places to kill time in all areas of the park, certainly not with air conditioning or shade if that's a concern (which it is for me). Same thing at DHS, only with less distance but additional crowds to fight through.

I understand the idea of "equal experience" behind the policy - e.g. everyone else has to physically go to the ride to stand in line, so we should have to go to the ride to get a time and start the clock - but as a practical matter there are times that the requirement to get times at each attraction almost negate the accommodation. Particularly when everything official about the DAS pass talks about being able to rest somewhere, shop, or eat while waiting for the return time. For Test Track, it trades waiting in a noisy line for waiting in a crazy-hot plaza because there's nowhere to kill time on that side of the park anymore. If you could still use the guest services umbrella kiosks to add a DAS time, you could get a reservation for Test Track wherever you were already, kill time in a more convenient/useful place, and use part of the time to work your way over to Test Track - particularly for families that have more than one challenge.

Exactly ⬆

 

[marcyleecorgan]

How would the changes you propose affect DAS users' ability to have an equal experience to any other visitor - or would it provide an advantage to the DAS user?
Everyone gets an opportunity to have an equal experience at Disney.

 

[LillyL76]

How would the changes you propose affect DAS users' ability to have an equal experience to any other visitor - or would it provide an advantage to the DAS user?
Everyone gets an opportunity to have an equal experience at Disney.

Yeah, I do understand this point. But is it really unfair? I mean think about it, all they would be doing is eliminating one walk to the ride. A regular guest walks up to the ride they want to ride, waits in line, gets on, rides, gets off, moves on to the next.

DAS guests walk to the ride they want to ride, ask for a return time, get a time that's the posted wait time minus 10 minutes, walks all the way to a different part of a park if there is nowhere nearby to sit and wait, waits, walks all the way back to the ride, gets in the FP line, waits in that line (yes, this is what the 10 minute subtraction is for when you get your time, but I've had plenty of times when the wait has been well over 20 minutes), gets on, rides, goes on to the next ride and repeats.

I personally see no reason why something can't be implemented. If the "advantage" is not having to walk up to the ride, a typical guest goes to the ride once, we go twice. If the "advantage" is being able to get another time while already in line after scanning for another time, they could prevent this by making us have to wait 20-25 minutes after you scan into the ride before the option to get another return time appears again.

If you really think about it, one would be able to say that DAS holders sometimes wait longer than a regular guest to ride the same ride. When you get your DAS return time and you return to ride, you're not getting straight onto the ride vehicle (like someone waiting the posted time physically in line). We return to wait in the FP line after. Yes, I know that when you get your time, it's the posted wait minus 10 minutes to make up for this, but like I said I have encountered many situations where I'm in the FP line 20 minutes + (and of course I'm talking about when the parks are operating normally, not right now necessarily). So, you could also say we wait our turn and then some?

These aspects don't bother me because I am extremely grateful for the service and ability to be able to visit the place I love and being able to have fun because of DAS, but it's something I've thought about often that could help certain guests. If getting times though the app can't be a thing, maybe then they could have the option to either go up to the ride and get a return time or have a station set up at the entrance of each "land" and make it to where you can get a time for an attraction in that area only to make it a little bit more accessible for those have a hard time going back and forth from one extreme to another (especially at Epcot right now).

 

[Lilsia]

Yeah, I do understand this point. But is it really unfair? I mean think about it, all they would be doing is eliminating one walk to the ride. A regular guest walks up to the ride they want to ride, waits in line, gets on, rides, gets off, moves on to the next.

DAS guests walk to the ride they want to ride, ask for a return time, get a time that's the posted wait time minus 10 minutes, walks all the way to a different part of a park if there is nowhere nearby to sit and wait, waits, walks all the way back to the ride, gets in the FP line, waits in that line (yes, this is what the 10 minute subtraction is for when you get your time, but I've had plenty of times when the wait has been well over 20 minutes), gets on, rides, goes on to the next ride and repeats.

I personally see no reason why something can't be implemented. If the "advantage" is not having to walk up to the ride, a typical guest goes to the ride once, we go twice. If the "advantage" is being able to get another time while already in line after scanning for another time, they could prevent this by making us have to wait 20-25 minutes after you scan into the ride before the option to get another return time appears again.

If you really think about it, one would be able to say that DAS holders sometimes wait longer than a regular guest to ride the same ride. When you get your DAS return time and you return to ride, you're not getting straight onto the ride vehicle (like someone waiting the posted time physically in line). We return to wait in the FP line after. Yes, I know that when you get your time, it's the posted wait minus 10 minutes to make up for this, but like I said I have encountered many situations where I'm in the FP line 20 minutes + (and of course I'm talking about when the parks are operating normally, not right now necessarily). So, you could also say we wait our turn and then some?

These aspects don't bother me because I am extremely grateful for the service and ability to be able to visit the place I love and being able to have fun because of DAS, but it's something I've thought about often that could help certain guests. If getting times though the app can't be a thing, maybe then they could have the option to either go up to the ride and get a return time or have a station set up at the entrance of each "land" and make it to where you can get a time for an attraction in that area only to make it a little bit more accessible for those have a hard time going back and forth from one extreme to another (especially at Epcot right now).

But DAS users already get the advantage of doing whatever they wanted to while others are waiting in line. You can sit and eat a Mickey bar, go on a ride or see a show that has a short wait time, use the restroom, watch a parade, etc. All while everyone else is just standing in line. This sounds very much like a "you give an inch and they want a mile" situation. And they do have some guest assistance areas set up around some of the parks to set up a DAS so that you don't have to walk to the ride. You also don't have to walk to the ride twice, as you said. You can wait close to the ride entrance for your turn. Nobody is making you go halfway across the park to do something else while you are waiting.

 

[marcyleecorgan]

like @siren0119 said , it would function as a 4th FP.

also... if any of your symptoms are well-served by a mobility device, that is why it is highly highly suggested by Disney themselves to rent or bring a mobility device! The queues and other access points have, for the most part, been modified to accommodate various devices throughout the Parks. All this difficulty you are speaking of, is all about walking back and forth because there is no seating and the Parks are large. Well, if you are using a mobility device, you now have your own place to "sit down ". It's a tool to get you through the asphalt marathon of heat and endurance, just like glasses help you read and keep you from falling in the lagoon Cover up with hat, umbrella, rashguard clothes, fans, cooling packs, whatever... but the DAS is not supposed to be a way to address a physical condition that a mobility device cannot . does that make sense?

anyway, this forum has some awesome members who have specs and recommendations and reviews of all the different types of devices there are. Prepare with tools and info and you can be more flexible with your options and problem solving in the moment, which always means a better Disney trip