Mickey Delivers Autism Relief

Right down to the hotel, Disney may have the perfect vacation for autism children.

Going to a theme park is exciting. But for a child with autism, a theme park is absolute torture. Waiting in line causes an autism child to have severe tantrums. Add this to sensory over-stimulation and unhealthy food, get ready for a horrible day for everyone in the group.

We have visited Kings Dominion, Six Flags and Sea World. None of the parks were as autism friendly as Disney, although Sea World was bearable. At the other two parks, we suffered through severe breakdowns while waiting in line. We had to leave early.

That was not the case at Disneyland. They figured out how to cater to those with autism.

They start with a pass specifically for disabled individuals. This pass is not the Fast Pass and does not cost extra. Autism children get to go to a shorter line, along with the rest of their party.

To get the pass your autism child goes through a quick evaluation. After that, all you do is go to the disabled entrance and show the pass to the ride operator. This allows the child and their entire party to go to the front of the line.

An autism vacation at Disney also works well because of food. Disney has gluten-free food at nearly every restaurant and hotel they run. According to a cast member at Disney Dinning, all you need to do to get gluten-free food is ask a manager.

Many children with autism are sound sensitive and Disney hotels accommodate them too. All you need to do is let the hotel clerk know your situation and ask for a quiet room. So instead of having a tantrum at your lodging, everyone can get a full night's rest.

In addition, cast members are always smiling and go out of their way to help. Everything is clean and organized at Disneyland. This is gold for an autism child who might not understand emotions well, and craves organization.

After getting the pass, Disney made our days easy. Our autism child was able to wait through a shorter line and he didn't have tantrums. And he told us what he wanted to do next. For the first time, we saw him just enjoying being a kid. That meant the world to us.

Rides we recommend avoiding are the Haunted Mansion and Tom Sawyer Island. The entrance to Haunted Mansion is a giant elevator that fills with a couple hundred people--and very close quarters for an autism child. We also easily lost our son in the tunnels at Tom Sawyer's Island, although we always felt he was safe.

We found Disneyland to be good therapy for our autism child, and gave us a well deserved break. Finally, here is a company that understands the needs of autism children and their parents.

You must go to Disneyland with your autism child at least once. It will be one of the greatest experiences your autism child will have. I'll bet my Mickey Mouse ears hat on it.

Grade: A