Is Kings Island's new-ish handicapped policy chain-wide?

maXairMike said:
it would be a violation of the ADA to question or "pry" for further information on the disability. I find it very hard to believe that they would risk the wrath of the ADA on this.

This is true. I fully understand and support the "can't ask" aspect (none of your damn business), but at the same time it does open the door for abuse by uncouth people who have no concept of "appreciate that you still have your health". (Yes, this subject bugs me :) )

Let's keep in mind that generally there's a difference between equal access and better access. There is an unfortunate subset of people with handicaps who expect better instead of equal, and that's where the abuse situations crop up. I think parks want to address that rationally, and the systems where you come back at a time relative to the length of the line makes sense.

I'm not comfortable with someone making a judgment in any case, or the need to provide documentation for that matter. Am I being naive to think that people will be generally honest?

Kings island has some weird policies.

We had a problem with the parent swap program at kings island. Like all the other cedarfair parks we have been to, you just go to the rides entrance and tell a worker that you are doing a parent swap. They will eather give you a slip of paper, or have you wait at the exit of the ride to switch riders there.

At kings island, my gf waited in line for 45 min for the beast, and we waited at the exit to do the swap just like we just did on diamondback.

That was when an employie told us that we have to go all the way back up to park operations at the main gate to get a parent swap form. He was not allowed to give out the slip himself for some reason. After that I had to go and wait another 45 min to ride the beast after walking all the way back up from the back of the park with a crabby 3 year old.

Why is this an issue at kings island, but not at any other park I have been to with my daughter?

The reason I bring this up, is because I think that kings island DOES have differant policy's than other parks do.

Jeff said:
Let's keep in mind that generally there's a difference between equal access and better access. There is an unfortunate subset of people with handicaps who expect better instead of equal, and that's where the abuse situations crop up. I think parks want to address that rationally, and the systems where you come back at a time relative to the length of the line makes sense.

Completely agreed. Even if one can't wait in line physically, they should still have to "wait their turn". With a system like that, there's less need for any judgement calls, or asking for verification, because people using the system aren't really gaining a significant advantage anyway. (Within limits -- you COULD game the system, much the same way the debate always comes up in any virtual queue system, but is it really worth the effort?)

That's what Hershey does. For all the major rides (basically all coasters and the more popular non coaster rides), they make you get a boarding time based on the length of the line. So if a ride is a 90 minute wait, they tell you to come back in 90 minutes but you can only get 1 boarding time at a time (so you can't go to Storm Runner and get a boarding time and then go right to Fahrenheit and get another).

well i doubt they can turn down a doctors note because for one thing if they do, and your mom gets hurt from her medical condition because the park was to stubborn to give you a handicaped pass, most likely you can get em in trouble and get yourself some money from them and they cant reject it and ask you to leave because you didnt do nothin wrong so it would be a win win situation for you :)

Also, beware that rush to the courts can have some nasty unintended side effects. Case in point, Dollywood, they used to admit those in wheelchairs and possibly some others free as a courtesy. The intention was an act of kindness for those who had been dealt a bad hand. Recall at the time, Dollywood was primarily a show park, not a ride park. Anyway, there were some complaints brought up about the policy,and eligibility and such, the net result of which is the policy was discontinued.

Maybe its just Kings Island, but that's where its clear the parks aren't really being run as a system. If they were you would think they would take what was deemed as best practices amongst their member parks and roll them out chain wide. The Cedar Point special rider books seem to be a great answer at providing equal access, and as Rideman pointed out, just burdonsome enough to discourage abuse. I'm surprised they haven't rolled those out chain wide. I know a few rides at KI were built to do mainstream queuing, however I'm, having trouble thinking of any such rides that actually do mainstream queuing.

The thing about Baby Swap on Beast is curious, KI is also fairly unusual in having "penalty boxes" on the coaster platforms. These are, essentially, fenced in areas, usually with a bench, where the child waits while the parents ride. I don't think I've seen them at any other park. Was your child too small to be left alone in the penalty box, and in this day and age even if they weren't so small I can see philosophical reasons against it? Even so, I don't think I've heard of a baby swap form or pass. I think I may have seen a "baby swap" lanyard at a park somewhere, the idea is the entire party walks up to the greeter and announced their intention to baby swap, the greeter gives a lanyard to the guest waiting in line, that person waits in line, rides the ride, then gives the lanyard to the other person who is most likely sitting on a park bench with the non rider watching the ride. That person can then enter through the exit using that lanyard as a ticket.

(I can sympathize with the OP, my own mom can walk short distances fine, but trying to walk a big theme park would be out of the question. When we went to WDW even though we were going to park the chair outisde the ride and wait in the line like everybody else, as soon as we would start to approach a ride the greeter would direct us to the alternate entrance.. We even explained this to the Haunted Mansion CM and he still insisted we use the back entrance, which is a fairly unique entrance if you ever get to see it, you essentially enter through the servants quarters and there is a small waiting room where you wait until the foyer before the art gallery has cleared out, yes the room is loaded with detail, not just a blah behind the scenes hall)

Jeff: I'd like to live in the same world as you and assume that 99% of the people using special access legitimately need it.

Why are we resurrecting the dead so much lately?

Jeff: I'd like to live in the same world as you and assume that 99% of the people using special access legitimately need it.

I would, too. Sadly instead we live in a world where a few months after her hip replacement surgery, a friend of mine was going to the grocery store with her cane and had someone behind her loudly complaining that "people who are going to walk this slow shouldn't be allowed to go out".

No, I'm not kidding -- wish I were.

My question is: I am a long time KI season pass holder and I've never used the handicapped pass before but, my daughter is coming home from college for a couple days and she wants to go to KI this week. I happen to have injured my achilles tendon in a race last weekend & I really shouldn't be walking around the park with her but I want to go. Under any other circumstance I would just wait for it to heal before trying to go but she lives in Atlanta and this is her only chance until who knows when. Do I even try to get a pass? I don't mind waiting in line as long as the chair will fit in them. What do you all think? And I agree, I totally hate the kids that are obviously not injured that use the pass just to skip the lines. I've seen it happen for years!

Particularly since you're responding to a thread from last year, your best bet is to call their guest services ahead of time.

I was at CP during CoasterMania and at the operations bldg when a woman in a motorized chair (cp one) and her daughter came in. They asked for an access pass and after a few questions she got it with no issues. I think she said she could stand but not for long which sounds similar to the first story here.

Documentation is needed for a no drama situation - call your Dr. and have the secretary write you a note on Letterhead and have them sign it.

Due to Hippa legislation - if the park calls the office they have no way to confirm it, but if your Dr. office is "in the know" - they will authenticate it on the spot.

Not to be rude, I'm no doctor. If your mom has the conditions listed above, isn't going on rides kind of dumb? I know not every ride there is gut buster but 95% of them are. So do you really need a handicap pass for the other few you'll be waiting in line for?