Disneyworld

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My family (son 11 yrs old w/Asperger's, and husband) will be going to Disney in about a month. I wanted to hear any tips, advice, pros & cons, etc. from those who have also taken their children to Disney. Thanks

I find that the best time for us (my AS son was 8 and NT daughter was 9 at the time) is to be there right when the gates open. The
lines are shorter. (try to fastpass as much as possible - we became experts at this) My kids were more alert and didn't
complain about the heat, lines, etc. as much as in the afternoon
when the crowds get thicker and the weather gets hotter. Try to do as many of the popular rides early. Think of things to keep them entertained when there is a long wait for a ride. (gameboy,
nintendo ds, ask them trivia questions..etc) Fortunately, my son doesn't get upset or have meltdowns due to sensory issues such as crowds and noises (like other Aspies), he usually just stims more.

http://www.allearsnet.com/pl/dis_aut2.htm

That site might help you, they give a certian pass out for kids and adults on the spectrum in disney...

_________________
Being Normal Is Vastly Overrated

Write your mobile number in felt tip on his arms.

thanks everyone for the advice!! We're going to check into the card, I didn't realize they offered that. thanks again!!

I didn't know about the card either, that's so cool! My sister and I made up a game when we went to Disneyworld for waiting in line. It was like a last letter game. Someone says Orange, then you had to find a E word. We would try to make the other person stuck with the letter y, cause there's not many words for y. Also, the idea is to not say a word the person said previously. So when someone says a word the other person said before for a letter, then they loose.

I also was wondering, about bringing a Nintendo DS. What would you do for like water rides, or thrill rides? I'm not sure how much of this is a non-issue, based on if your kids like thrill rides or not. I always was kind of afraid to bring mine, cause I thought if I left it in the area for things you pick up after the ride, someone might steal it.

A tip for leaving the Magic Kingdom if there's a long line for the monorail. Take the monorail to the hotel, next to the line to the Magic Kingdom parking lot. The monorails at the hotel will connect to wherever you want to go. So you don't have to wait in line. What I suggest, is parking in Epcot, then taking the Monorail to the Magic Kingdom parking center, and hopping on the monorail to Magic Kingdom from there. Since there is vastly less crowds for Epcot. So it won't be like, having to be on a tram with a ton of people, or waiting in line for a tram. I wouldn't suggest parking at MGM, because the only way to get there is a bus. When the monorail is like sitting down for 2 seconds and you're there. Also the monorails are really roomy.

Also, don't be too surprised if your child likes Epcot Center more than Magic Kingdom. All the technology at Epcot is so much what Aspies would find fun.

I love WDW so much (twas a fixation) I moved there for three years, living immediately off property and going almost every day.

Yes, EPCOT is my favorite, even though they've ruined so much of it with thrill rides for the body instead of for the mind, like they used to have more of.

I taught a class about Disney theme parks and am working on a book. If you have any questions please PM me.

Hi,
We went to DL last year and I was able to obtain disability passes for both my boys. One has HFA and the other has Tourette Syndrome.

I just got a typed note from their Pysciatrist that noted their disability's and they just handed us two passes that let us go to the front of the line (or special area) each and every time.

It was a god send! Waiting in line is not a good thing with my boys and it really helped out alot with meltdowns and tics.

Are you also going for more than one day? I found that when we were able to make it at least two days we took breaks and went back to the hotel for a much needed rest at the pool. That also helped tremondously. We spent a few hours at the hotel, got dressed again and went back.

Have fun, I wish we were going again

Lainie

Thanks again for all the replies!! Lainie - we are going for 5 days, trying to do all 4 parks and squeeze in a waterpark if we can. My son is also excited about DisneyQuest, I guess its like a 4 or 5 story arcade. My son has a very hard time with patience and waiting in line and if someone accidently jostles him or touches him he gets mad. He also hates kids staring at him and since Disney will be full of kids my husband and I were excited about the special pass and being able to wait in another less stimulating area. When we checked out the all ears website that Age1600 suggested it said we needed a letter from our primary physician and they are not the ones that diagnosed my son so I was a little concerned about that but we will investigate further. We just want our son to have a good time, he's so excited, we can't wait

Lainie - what did this special pass allow you to do exactly?? The all ears website said the pass didn't allow you to go to the front of the line, just wait in another area that wasn't crowded etc. Thanks!!

make sure your son knows what to do if he gets lost! i have only been to the one in Paris before but managed to get lost there, i turned around & could no longer see my mum & dad. this normally would have sent me into a massive panic attack if not complete meltdown, but my mum had told me if i got lost not to panic & to go into one of the shops & find someone who works there & they would be able to sort me out. this is what i did & my parents were quickly found & there were no further problems. this was in the days before mobile phones that worked abroad so if you give him a card with your phone number on it could be even easier.

platypus1000

I would call DL to make sure of the rules (are you going to DL or DW?) but all I know is we got a letter from our Pysciatrist, a medical doctor, stating what he was treating our children for the disabilities that they have.

We actually used the letter that we gave to the school for a dx, (even tho the school didn't accept this - toopid school).

If your going to DL then there's a special place to go to first thing after your in the park to get the passes. I can't remember the name of the place, but I could figure it out.

They just looked at the letter and immediatly gave us the disability pass. It was no big deal.

My younger son has ts and he has coprolia and copraxia. I was worried that he was going to tic in line and offend people. The pass was a godsend but luckily all he did was eyeblinks, weird noises in the haunted house, and yelled out farts farts farts waiting for the bathroom lol

Anyway, If you would like more infor on the phone I would be happy to call you. Just email me and we can talk. I swear I am normal, well as normal as can be lol

Lainie

Playtapus,
I want to add that we couldn't go to the front of the line, but we did go in the area that were hardly any other people. Ya know sometimes there would be 6 people there, they shoot you off pretty fast.

It was soooo much better than standing in line with 500 people in front of you. I know, I did that before my kids were dx'd. It was not fun.

thanks for all the info Lainie, I really appreciate it!