Parents using their children’s disabilities to skip the queues at Disneyland

[satsumaqueen]

I know the title will probably infuriate some people, and I just want to say from the outset that I am not writing this thread to cause offence. I’m writing because I don’t have much experience with having children that have disabilities such as Autism and ADHD and I am genuinely curious and want to understand more.

I’ve been planning a trip to Disneyland Paris and have joined some groups on social media to get some tips etc. I’ve been really surprised at the amount of posts asking how to get a special pass from Disney so their children can skip the lines on all the rides.

I know there are some conditions which very obviously make it physically impossible to stand for a hour, however a lot of these posts are from parents whose children have ADHD or Autism. I also know there are varying levels of autism (my cousin is severely autistic), and I know there are numerous things that people with autism have to deal with like sensory overload etc, but there are also many forms of autism where people can function like every other person, and would have no issue in standing in a queue with everyone else.

ADHD I really have no experience with so can’t comment on it, but isn’t our job as parents to teach our children how to cope in society? Things like queues are part of every day life. Why does having ADHD excuse you from waiting like everyone else?

I know there will be many genuine requests for those passes, but I also feel because of the sheer volume of them, that a lot are trying to claim them because the parents can’t be bothered to wait in line and are using their child as a free way to skip the queues? This then impacts everyone else’s experience who then have to wait even longer in queues to accommodate all of the people skipping.

Shouldn't these passes be reserved for the people who really do need them?

I have young children, so believe me when I say I know what it’s like to stand in line for long periods of time with children who find it difficult to stand still/stand for long periods of time. I’m just struggling to understand why parents with toddlers have any less of a difficult time in the queues than those with children who have ADHD as a example, but they are expected to stand in line for a hour with no option to skip. - I will just add I’m not expecting parents with young children to skip the queue, I just don’t understand why a child with ADHD or mild autism (sorry if this is the incorrect terminology) couldn’t wait in the same queue as everyone else?

I dont know about Disneyland but I have been to Emerald Park in Ireland and its very easy to get one of these passes. My sis got one for her DS who has ADHD.

The problem is that when they are easy to obtain and you can include all your guests on it, it makes the queues move much slower. The last time we were there, the "fast pass/disability" queue constantly had loads of people in it that got priority, with that queue often taking up the full ride. It did seem to make a mockery of the system.

With respect OP, you should probably stop digging and read the responses you have had properly as all your questions have been answered.

Banging on about causing offence suggests an ulterior motive, that's why you are getting grief.

I agree. I heard one family talking on the train about a theme park and their teenage daughter saying how her friend got a pass to skip the queue as she was autistic, so why didn't she get one too as she also had autism. Her parents (I assume) replied that she didn't need it as was able to wait.

I am also in a lot of theme park groups and actually seen that a lot of people are disappointed with the way queue jumping works in many UK theme parks and that they now find so many people have a pass that the disabled queue can be longer than the normal queue!

I don't know how you would identify those in most need and I also imagine that it does sometimes depend on the day whether the individual would cope or not.

This.
T1 diabetic here. I can't wear my inulin pump on some rides, due to electromagnets that are used in some; on most rides, I chose not to wear it, as I simply don't want it to get squashed in a harness, or damaged at all. But hey, it's only a £4000 piece of life-saving medical that the NHS kindly paid for (yes, I do have insurance for it).

Could I wait in a normal queue, and remove my pump as I get close to the end. probably. Would I prefer to remove it, in a safer/more private environment before I head to the ride? Absolutely.

Do I carry hypo treatments with me? Yes. Could I eat some of these in the queue. Yes. Do I feel more comfortable sitting down at the nearest seat, and dealing with my hypo that way, you know in case I fall/faint in the middle of the queue? Absolutely. Does this allow me time to take as long as I need to recover from my hypo, without having to constantly be aware of those standing in a queue around me, or me having to stand and move forward, whilst I am sweating like crazy, and struggling to stand? Yes. Not to mention the privacy it gives me, due to not having people stare at me in the queue.

For the record, I am an adult. My diabetes is extremely well-controlled (my Hb1Ac is that of a non-diabetic), and I rarely have hypos now. The last time I went to Thorpe Park, I had four hypos in one day. This was due to the change in normal daily activity (lots more walking), the adrenaline. It being a random day ending in y ...

I’d gladly swap my child’s autism for waiting in any queue.

Don’t worry OP.His autism makes it impossible for us to go anywhere so you’ll keep your precious place.