My Family's Tips for Navigating Disneyland with My Special Needs Brother

Sharing my family’s experience with Disneyland Disability Access Service + how we navigate Disneyland Resort with my special needs brother, Tommy

Happy Thursday, everyone!! In case you didn’t see my Instagram post yesterday, today isn’t just any Thursday – it’s also my brother Tommy’s 25th birthday 🎉🎉🎉

For those who might not know, Tommy has an extremely rare genetic disorder called Prader-Willi that makes him think he is constantly hungry. He has virtually no metabolism so even though he’s pretty active, gaining weight is very easy + losing weight is not. Because of this, my family is hyper-vigilant about keeping food out of his reach but it’s a daily struggle.

Tommy, like many with this syndrome, is developmentally disabled. He beat all odds + reads at about a 2nd/3rd grade reading comprehension level + loves loves loves his books.

My brother Tommy is the happiest person I know. And he’s probably at his extra-happiest when at Disneyland.

I look forward to my family’s trip to Disneyland every year. Seeing the look of pure joy on Tommy’s face when we go on Indiana Jones, Radiator Springs Racers, or spin round + round on the teacups, + his laugh the entire time we plunge down Splash Mountain are my favorite moments. Tommy also has no fear + laughs throughout all of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, the wildest ride in the wilderness.

To celebrate his birthday, I wanted to share more about my family’s experience navigating the park through Disneyland Disability Access Service with my special needs sibling.

A friend of mine recently was going to Walt Disney World with her family, including her nephew who is on the autism spectrum. She asked about my family’s experience with Disney to accommodate my brother + his needs. I shared the tips I’m about to share with you + encouraged her to check out the Disney Parks Disability Access Service site for information about accommodating needs that others may have that Tommy doesn’t, such as sensory sensitivities.

Renting a Wheelchair

The very first thing we do after going through security at Disneyland is head to wheelchair services, which is immediately on the right hand side of the park’s entrance.

Tommy would never be able to operate an electric wheelchair so my family rented a manual wheelchair for $12/day through Disney. Wheelchairs can’t be reserved in advance so it’s best to do this first thing in the morning. Guests need to be 18+ years old with photo ID to rent a wheelchair.

Tommy normally does not use a wheelchair but all the walking at Disney would be too much for him without it. After we get him in the wheelchair, we head into the park + our next stop is City Hall. Here’s why ⬇️

Disability Access Service Card

City Hall in Disneyland is located immediately to the left once you enter the park. There’s usually a bit of a line so better make a beeline there. Make sure you have all of your group’s tickets with you!

You can get a Disneyland Disability Access Service Card at City Hall, which helps guests who have difficulty waiting in a conventional line. Oftentimes, the lines at Disney can have flights of stairs or be narrow, twisting, + quite long (in terms of length, not wait time) for Tommy.

The DAS card will allow guests with disabilities to get a return time for rides + attractions. The return time is based on the ride’s popularity + current wait time. Here’s why you need your group’s tickets with you: The ticket of the guest with the disability will be the primary ticket + the cast member at City Hall will link your tickets to theirs. Once you’re set up, ask the City Hall cast member for a return time to get your magical day started!

My family usually asks for Indiana Jones to be our first return time since Tommy absolutely loves that ride. He gets such a kick out of it!

My Family’s Game Plan for Return Times

The rule about return times: You can have a return time for only one ride at a time but there is no limit to that return time’s lifespan. For example, let’s say you get a return time for Splash Mountain at 2:30. But your group needs to sit down + take a break. No worries, you can go any time after 2:30. But you cannot ask for return times for multiple rides at once.

After using return times for several years, this is the system that works best for us. I’m my family’s designated speed walker + will be the one to take all of our tickets to get a return time.

My family has a ranking of rides that are priorities because of their cult-statuses to us. Before you head off to get a return time, be sure your group has a few rides they’d like to go on in case the return time for the #1 ride isn’t for awhile or doesn’t jibe with a dining reservation, parade, etc.

Besides City Hall, there are designated Guest Relations centers throughout DLR that you can go to for return times. You’ll be looking for green umbrellas with cast members underneath, ready for help.

Wait in line, hand the cast member the primary ticket (This is Tommy’s, we mark it with a star to quickly identify it) + ask for a return time for a specific ride. They’ll tell you when the return time will be + then will scan the primary ticket first along with the tickets for the rest of your group. And that’s it!

Here are the other locations for Disneyland Guest Relations centers:

Main Street: In front of Plaza Inn (When you’re walking down Main Street towards Sleeping Beauty’s Castle, the center is on the lefthand side. If you get to the Walt Disney + Mickey statue, you’ve gone too far. It’s across from Jolly Holiday)
Fantasyland: Next to Dumbo the Flying Elephant
Tomorrowland: Next to Star Trader
New Orleans Square: Next to the Haunted Mansion

And in Disney California Adventure Park:

Chamber of Commerce on Buena Vista Street
Cars Land: Right at the entrance, across from the “Welcome to Cars Land” sign)
Pixar Pier: Near the FASTPASS Distribtion area by the Incredicoaster + Toy Story Midway Mania

Oh, one last thing about return times. You don’t have to go to a Guest Relations center near the attraction you want to get a return time for. For example, you can get a return time for Haunted Mansion at the center in Fantasyland.

Don’t Be Afraid to Ask Cast Members for Help

Getting Tommy a wheelchair helps immensely with all the walking you do at Disney. But some rides have stairs or moving walkways that are a challenge for him. Tommy loves Indiana Jones, which has stairs that can be kinda in the dark, and Ariel’s Undersea Adventure and Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters, both of which have moving walkways.

Don’t be afraid to ask cast members for help. That’s what they’re there for! If you ask, they will show you were you can take a elevator to avoid stairs. Or in the case of moving walkways, they will stop the walkway so the guest can more easily get on and off the ride.

At some rides, like Radiator Springs Racers, the cast members will proactively direct your group to a special area where your group can take a little more time getting into the ride + getting buckled so you don’t feel rushed.

That said, all of the cast members + our fellow guests were extremely patient + polite with my family when it was our turn to get on and off the rides. We never once felt pressured to hurry up or flustered.

Getting on the Rides with a Wheelchair

When it comes to getting on the rides with a wheelchair, each Disneyland ride is different. But usually when you tell the cast member at the ride’s entrance you have a return time, they will direct you to the wheelchair access route. This route is usually at the ride’s exit, which has room to park your wheelchair there. You’ll then follow the exit to get to the ride. Remember to ask the cast member if you need help with stairs, moving walkways, etc!

Download the Disneyland App

The Disneyland app has been a game changer for my family, especially mobile ordering. The app lets you see wait times, locate Disney Characters, and allow you to skip the line when ordering your meals!

Because of Tommy’s constant hunger feelings, we try to keep him away from the food lines. My parents will pick out their meals and Tommy’s meal and I will select mine + then pre-pay from the app. It’s easy for a group + usually quicker than standing in line.

You can also access, book + cancel your dining reservations through the app. This was helpful for coordinating group logistics.

We also used the app to locate Disney Characters to make sure Tommy saw who he wanted to see instead of walking through the park hoping to come across a favorite.

My personal favorite use of the app was getting access to all our photos almost immediately. We were on a mission to get as many photos of all of us on our trip as possible. Disney has professional photographers throughout the park to help capture those magical moments.

I was the only one in my family who had the MaxPass, which is an extra $15/day + includes unlimited PhotoPass downloads for the day. This includes attraction photos, just take a photo of the code on your ride photo at the exit + you can later link it to your account. You can also ask the photographers for “magic shots,” where they will Photoshop a magical Disney element into your photo!

After you have your photo taken, open your Disneyland app, scroll down to photos, tap + then they can scan to link your photos. Opening + closing the app often can drain your battery so pro tip from a Disney photographer: Take a screenshot of your photo scan page + use that to scan instead.

The photographers were all awesome + had great ideas for cute shots + Instagrammable backgrounds. Use them, they know what they’re doing!

When We Need to Take Breaks

There are some rides + attractions that are great for when you could use a bit of a break. My family loves going to see the Enchanted Tiki Room when Tommy needs a breather. The attraction is about 15 minutes, you’re sitting down, + it’s air-conditioned. Tommy is always mesmerized by the singing birds + the Enchanted Tiki Room just has that whimsical nostalgic Disney feel that my parents + I love.

Plus when you exit, you walk right into The Tropical Hideaway so you can cool down with a Dole Whip. Winner winner!

Another ride we love to take a break on is It’s A Small World. Like the Tiki Room, It’s A Small World clocks in at about 15 minutes, it’s out of the sun + you can relax while the world serenades you.

The Happiest Place on Earth

Disneyland Guest Relations has done a great job with making sure Tommy, and other guests with disabilities, have as magical of a trip to Disneyland as possible. Return times have been very helpful for my family in planning out our time + ensuring Tommy gets to enjoy his favorite rides as much as possible.

I hope those of you who came across this post for help planning out your Disney vacation found this helpful!

It’s hard to believe that my family’s Disneyland vacation was almost 2 months ago. For Tommy, the Disney magic is still very real and to him, it’s actually Mickey Mouse, Tigger, and all of their pals. Seeing his face light up makes my heart melt.

I shared snippets of Disneyland + Disney California Adventure over on Instagram throughout our family vacation + one day on a whim, decided to do a Q+A with Tommy. Not surprisingly, my freckled + dimpled little brother is quite popular + you all had cute questions he enjoyed answering. If you missed it or just want to re-watch it like I do all the time, I saved it on my Tommy highlights on Instagram!

One of the questions wasn’t a question at all – it was someone commenting how much they love his smile. I couldn’t agree more, Tommy radiates happiness + the happiest place on Earth is truly his happy place. Here are some of his best smiles from our trip to Disneyland + Disney California Adventure 😊