The report on theme parks and wheelchair access is very mixed. Officially, of course, all theme parks should be accessible to people with disabilities. However, actually getting onto a ride is not always a smooth process.
Over the past several years, several of the largest theme parks, like Disneyland and Disney World, at times amended their policies to eliminate access passes. Therefore, while people with disabilities could buy a ticket and get into Disney Land or Disney World, they had to wait in lines for a ride. That is an issue for some people with disabilities. The reason given for dropping the access passes was that the passes were being used and abused by people with out disabilities. Some tour guides tried to obtain the passes and charge a large fee to opportunistic visitors who simply wanted to skip the line. Some tourists even attempted to fake a disability in order to receive a pass.
Also, theme park attendees simply did not also respond well to a special queue in which some people went before others, especially in exceptionally popular places like Disneyland and Disney World, where long wait times for lines are legendary. Some ride operators board those on wheelchairs first, for example, because, according to a USA Today article, the operators feel that people in wheelchairs, due to the greater size of a wheelchair versus a standing person, make the line and the immediate space next to the rides more difficult to manage.
As a result, some theme parks, like Six Flags Great Adventure, allow guests to guests to reserve a ticket to rides based on wait times for boarding. This alternate access, according to the company, is “intended to accommodate guests with mobility aides and service animals and not to bypass others waiting in line.” This becomes difficult for people with other types of special needs, however.
Like many ADA rules, theme park access is not adequately defined. Much work remains to be done in order to make theme parks and amusement parks truly open and accessible to all members of the general public. What has been your experience?