New here

[weebo]

Hello everyone i am new here and have my holiday booked for June 1st fingers crossed it still gonna go ahead , i am on the autism spectrum and am a little worried about the crowed can anyone give me any good advice?

 

[Welsh_Dragon]

Welcome.

 

[bookwormde]

A lot depends on your level of tolerance, but initially picking less crowded attractions and viewing areas and then trying more challenging situations later Having an "escape" plan also can limit anxiety

 

[lanejudy]

I'm going to guess that going when the parks first re-open may work to your advantage. Many people are not interested in traveling this June regardless of open parks. Plus those who do want to travel may not be able to get there immediately on June 1st opening. So the crowds may be considerably lighter than usual.

Other tricks:

• ear muffs/headphones/ear buds to block out auditory stimulation from the crowds
• sunglasses and a lightweight hoodie to help block some visual stimulation
• bring alone some fidgits or cell phone to distract from the crowds
• plan some downtime - either an in-park TS meal or leaving the park to return to your resort mid-day
• be ready to leave the park when it gets to be too much
• some attractions may be "calming" or allow you to simply "check-out" for a bit -- Hall of Presidents, Carousel of Progress, even riding the monorail around the loop may help as a break

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[weebo]

thank you for the replys , i have my fingers crossed that we will fly June 1st but not sure if that will happen

 

[lanejudy]

and ... to the DISboards!

 

[weebo]

thanks

 

[Bete]

For less crowds it's always good to go at park opening times. If staying on property you can possibly do early magic hour as a Disney resort perk and get in even earlier. Make sure you do fastpasses. If on property or at Disney Springs resorts you can do this 60 days out. Otherwise, you will have 30 days out for advanced fastpasses.

Not sure how Disney will cope with the crowd factors when they open. They may not have shows, parades or fireworks for a while. They might even institute virtual queues for the popular rides.

 

[MICKIMINI]

There are rocking chairs in a few locations: MK Just as you enter towards the right on the front porch, on the porch in Frontierland, and to the right of Hall of Presidents....just close your eyes and tune out. Epcot: to the right of Mexico there is a winding path which is quiet, in Germany you can sit at the fountain in the square, in Italy there is a quiet, shaded area near the front on the left side, Japan near the Koi Pond, American Adventure in the front and right side, France under the trees toward the right, Great Britain, follow the path behind the shops. AK should be relaxing, but I find it too crowded without places to zone out, though our strategy is to head to the back and do Kilimanjaro Safari, Lion King and head out. We don't go to the studios often but love Star Wars.

These places can be busy, crazy depending on the crowds, but with any luck you might be able to plan where to look for an "off ramp". I would recommend studying the maps of each resort and maybe circle areas which might offer respite. I hope you have a wonderful trip!

 

[lanejudy]

early magic hour as a Disney resort perk

Just to clarify:

Extra Magic Hours is a resort perk (WDW onsite and a few select offsite resorts). These are either AM (one hour prior to public opening) or PM (two hours after park close) offered a few times a week. Not all attractions are open during EMH (at least for morning, I've never stayed for evening hours).

Early Morning Magic is a paid event, booked as a dining reservation. It is one hour prior to public opening, very limited attendance, includes unlimited access to a few (3?) rides plus a breakfast.

These are easily confused. Either will provide lower crowds, especially the morning options.

 

[NYCrules]

Hello everyone i am new here and have my holiday booked for June 1st fingers crossed it still gonna go ahead , i am on the autism spectrum and am a little worried about the crowed can anyone give me any good advice?

Just be sure to take your time, don't rush to see "everything." All parks have some peaceful spots to relax and decompress for a bit. Stay hydrated, June is humid and hot and can drain you before you realize it. Water, water and water. I also have calming music on my phone with headphones, which can help with anxiety. Take care and be safe.

 

[cobright]

Hello everyone i am new here and have my holiday booked for June 1st fingers crossed it still gonna go ahead , i am on the autism spectrum and am a little worried about the crowed can anyone give me any good advice?

I don't know anything about managing autism, but have anxiety disorder and am people-phobic so from a practical standpoint ...

• If you'll be going with friends or family, use them to create a buffer for you in lines. Just keep a mate behind you and in front of you at arms length or so. Then if the other guests in line are the crowdy type they'll crowd your buffer-pals instead of you.
• Outside of lines, your buffer-pals are less effective but learn to use the terrain to your advantage. Put a wall to the side of you instead of a throng of savage strangers.
• Sometimes it's a whole lot less crowded inside the shops than it is on the sidewalks. Sometimes it's not. But most of the shops along any straight path will be connected inside and you can get a long way without plowing through the humanity on the sidewalks. this is especially true leading up to parades and fireworks shows wen the sidewalks become impossible.
• Do not expect any sense of order to the way people move here. I don't know if this is something I can finally blame on multiculturalism and it's a case of all these people coming together without all of them knowing to stick to the right-hand side or what but it's madness and you just have to accept it for that. Wherever you are trying to get to, find a group of big loud people and drift in behind them for as much of the trip as you can.
• Stay hydrated, like it's no joke.
• Have fun. Talk to cast members. Sometimes just to ask them how their day is going or if there's anything off the beaten path they can recommend. It's shocking how much fun CMs will have with you. It will take your mind off the rest of the madness.

Good luck

 

[ladyjubilee]

Here is my advice, though my experience is my son on the severe side....

-be prepared to have a really good time. As I mentioned my son is on the severe side. The first time I took him I thought we *might* be able to stay for 20-30 minutes. I expected that we would have a look, ride a ride if we were lucky and leave. After one bump, we realized he LOVES WDW. We can go at opening and stay to close...and the next day he is ready to go again.

-But have contingency plans. For instance:
Print out the quiet area locations, and keep an eye out for out of the way places you can take a break if you need to.
Stop by First Aid and get a feel for it. We never visited first aid, until we needed a bandaid on the last trip. Turns our First Aid could have helped us out with a very quiet relaxed place when we needed it.
Keep your body comfortable to prevent overload. June is HOT. Have a plan to keep yourself cool and regulated.
I know this is kind of stereotyping, but I would have a plan in place for communication if you get overwhelmed or overheated. It's hard to plan out communication while in distress, and autism is on many levels a communication disorder. We know some older very high functioning folks with ASD who keep cards to hand out to a friend or responsible person when communicating maybe an issue, even as a way to order thoughts to communicate the distress.

My other piece of advice is watch crowd flows. We been at really busy times, including Christmas and even during huge crowds, people flow as a group. We watch the crowds....and flow elsewhere. We eat before lunch time and dinner to avoid crowds. We take a break when crowds start to peak. I like planning down to the minute, but even without planning, you can often avoid crowds by watching the flow.

Finally, if you need help ask. CM really do go out of their way to help find solutions.

 

[weebo]

Here is my advice, though my experience is my son on the severe side....

-be prepared to have a really good time. As I mentioned my son is on the severe side. The first time I took him I thought we *might* be able to stay for 20-30 minutes. I expected that we would have a look, ride a ride if we were lucky and leave. After one bump, we realized he LOVES WDW. We can go at opening and stay to close...and the next day he is ready to go again.

-But have contingency plans. For instance:
Print out the quiet area locations, and keep an eye out for out of the way places you can take a break if you need to.
Stop by First Aid and get a feel for it. We never visited first aid, until we needed a bandaid on the last trip. Turns our First Aid could have helped us out with a very quiet relaxed place when we needed it.
Keep your body comfortable to prevent overload. June is HOT. Have a plan to keep yourself cool and regulated.
I know this is kind of stereotyping, but I would have a plan in place for communication if you get overwhelmed or overheated. It's hard to plan out communication while in distress, and autism is on many levels a communication disorder. We know some older very high functioning folks with ASD who keep cards to hand out to a friend or responsible person when communicating maybe an issue, even as a way to order thoughts to communicate the distress.

My other piece of advice is watch crowd flows. We been at really busy times, including Christmas and even during huge crowds, people flow as a group. We watch the crowds....and flow elsewhere. We eat before lunch time and dinner to avoid crowds. We take a break when crowds start to peak. I like planning down to the minute, but even without planning, you can often avoid crowds by watching the flow.

Finally, if you need help ask. CM really do go out of their way to help find solutions.

this is all great advice out hoilday was cancelled last year :-( and we are dew to fly now on the 27th april and its not looking good again i would love to talk to you more is there away we can messge?

nicky.