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Ride Access Pass and Disabled Access - 2024 Discussion

My friend kindly brought me back the booklets Disneyland Paris produce for disabled guests. The level of detail is amazing!

One thing i noticed is presumably due to it being the older park, pretty much every Disneyland attraction seems to use the exit as the entrance (compared to Studios where they mostly seem to have dedicated entrances or share with Fast Track).

So my question is does anyone have experience of this and does it mean you miss pre-shows and things?

In particular i'm wondering about Space Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean and Phantom Manor? My son is a lot more tolerant of queues if they're moving regularly and nicely themed (i.e. most rides at Efteling) so would be a shame to say miss the elevator room in Phantom Manor if the queue was a reasonable length.
 
Bowser said:
In particular i'm wondering about Space Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean and Phantom Manor? My son is a lot more tolerant of queues if they're moving regularly and nicely themed (i.e. most rides at Efteling) so would be a shame to say miss the elevator room in Phantom Manor if the queue was a reasonable length.
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I went on quite a quiet day but here was my experience:

pirates is probably one of the best queues I have been in, from what I recall it moves regularly and has large open portions with really good theming.

I didn't wait long in phantom mannor as it had no queue, although there is the time it takes for the lifts to reset (a couple of mins) you may be stood waiting before it moves. after that it is basically TCCAM, the outdoor queue is all the queue before the lifts, and it look like there was a reasonable amount of theming.

BTM was quite long queue and quite tightly packed (I think disney were challengine the smiler for most compact queue line) and due to that there isn't much themeing although it is really cool to stand at the start of the queue and watch trains catch lift 4.

Its a small world is alright, although there isn't much (just a glass canopy) in terms of theming

star tours is good, with a couple scenes in the and usually moves quick

snow white, phinocio was VERY slow and quite un themed queue (only like 2 rows of 2 every like min+)

buzz I recall moving but being slow and not much theming (painted walls)

autopia looked very slow (even on the quiet day it was like duoble that of hyper space mountain)

the steam boat ride is a really nice ride arround the river (arround BTM then a bit further) and it was really nice to just sit or stand at the railings and watch

I am not too sure on what thrill level you want so:

Hyper space mountain, they have a turnstile where fast track and normal merge where you may be stood for a while waiting for them to let you in, then I recall it being a bit slow and are very close to the breaks with little sound sheilding so every time it enters the breaks you hear *clatter* *clatter* *clatter* *clatter* *clatter* also there are speakers on the ride vehicles that can be quite loud. also it has little to no theming

Indi I recall being quite a slow queue with not much theming.

edit: in terms of when I say large amount of theming I am thinking more interms of set pieces, things to look at etc not detail, as phantom mannor and BTM has a huge amounts of details in their queue, but a lot of it is just the same place.
 
jibbsie said:
I went on quite a quiet day but here was my experience:
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Thanks. So sounds like Pirates, Star Tours and Phantom Manor in particular have good queues. Do you know if RAP going in via the exit bypasses them completely or is there a merge point somehow?
 
Bowser said:
Thanks. So sounds like Pirates, Star Tours and Phantom Manor in particular have good queues. Do you know if RAP going in via the exit bypasses them completely or is there a merge point somehow?
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I am not sure, I havent used either the fast pass or RAP,
BTM I recall has a fast track point just before the stars down to the station, I think star tours is similar.
 
An email was sent to Towers' RAP users this morning;

​
We are delighted to welcome you back to Alton Towers Resort for the 2025 season! Before your visit, we would like to share important updates regarding the Ride Access Pass system, along with exciting details about our brand-new attraction, Toxicator.​
​
Ride Access Pass – Essential Information for 2025
​
Pre-Booking Your Ride Access Pass
All Ride Access Pass (RAP) reservations must be made online in advance. If your preferred date is fully booked, a limited number of additional reservations will be released online daily (between 9 am - 10 am) for the following day.

Please note that same-day reservations are not available, and once a date reaches capacity, no further RAP allocations will be provided at the Resort from our Guest Services colleagues.

We have discontinued the daily waitlist, instead introducing an optimised online availability service, allowing guests to pre plan their visit more effectively.​
​
Collecting Your Ride Access Pass Reservation
Your RAP timesheets can be collected from the following locations:
• Guest Services at Admissions: Before the turnstiles, open until 11:30am
• Towers Street Guest Services
• Forbidden Valley Guest Services Hub
• Hotel & Accommodation Guests: Available at the reception desks of Alton Towers Hotel, Splash Landings Hotel, and CBeebies Land Hotel​
​
Cancelling your Ride Access Pass
Cancelling your Ride Access Pass reservation is now more convenient with our dedicated cancellation inbox. Simply complete the Ride Access Pass Cancellation form to modify or cancel your booking efficiently. We strongly encourage guests to cancel reservations if you can no longer attend on your chosen date. This helps us maximise our capacity and often allows us to offer the Ride Access Pass to other guests, which we know has such a positive impact on their visit.​
​
Mobility Scooters and Wheelchairs
To enhance accessibility and comfort during your visit, mobility scooters and wheelchairs are available for booking. As availability is limited each day, we strongly recommend pre-booking in advance to secure your equipment. For more information, please visit our Theme Park Accessibility website.​
​
Enhancing Your Visit
If you are unable to secure a RAP for your chosen date, consider these options to make the most of your visit:
• Plan Ahead: Use the Alton Towers App to check ride times, and view live updates on the day of your visit.
• Parent Queue Share: If visiting with children, take advantage of our Parent Queue Share service. For more details, visit our Help Centre.
• Single Rider Queues: Reduce wait times by using Single Rider queues, available for the following attractions:
• The Smiler
• Th13teen
• Spinball Whizzer
• Date Change: We understand you may want to move your dates. If you are unable to secure a RAP for your chosen date, to change the dates of your booking, please follow this link or contact our team for assistance.​
​
New for 2025 – Toxicator
The process of safely assisting guests from the ride requires a limit on the number of Ride Access Pass (RAP) users who can board at any one time. This is common practice across all our rides to ensure the safety and efficiency of the RAP system. As a brand-new attraction, Toxicator is expected to be extremely popular, because of this, we will need to dynamically manage the RAP queue throughout the day, which may result in temporary RAP queue closures. Simply follow the instructions from our colleagues and we’ll get you on the ride as quickly as possible!

If the queue is closed when you arrive, we encourage you to make the most of your time at the Resort by exploring our other fantastic rides and attractions before checking back later. We kindly ask guests not to wait in the surrounding area while the queue is closed to ensure everyone’s comfort and safety. For real-time updates on when the queue is opened and closed, we recommend downloading the Alton Towers Resort app to stay informed throughout your visit.

Key Ride Restrictions for Toxicator
To ensure a safe and enjoyable experience, please be aware of the following general restrictions:

Minimum Age: 10+
Minimum height: 1.4m
Maximum height: 1.95m (due to the shoulder harness)

In addition, the following RAP-specific safety requirements apply:

All RAP Guests (Yellow & Red ID Holders):

• Must meet all standard attraction restrictions.
• Must have the ability to brace using at least three limbs.
• Guests with an above-the-knee leg amputation cannot ride.
• Must be able to sit upright and support their own body weight, including their neck and head.

Additional Requirements:

• Yellow RAP ID holders may ride alone or choose to be accompanied by a carer. Please note that the carer will only be allowed to ride if they have been prebooked and marked on the RAP timesheet

• Non-ambulant guests must be able to transfer into the ride vehicle without being carried.
• Prosthetic limbs must be removed before riding.​
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They obviously had an issue with people requiring RAP travelling to the park on the off-chance and then waiting on standby for something to open up. This seems like a better system, if you're planning a trip in advance you can book your date but if you want to be spontaneous there is a mechanism to get a booking a day in advance, and if you don't get it you just don't make the trip.
 
Of course if they had the digital system they could apply that across all rides like they do at Chessington and Legoland rather than have people with mobility issues etc traipse across a gigantic park only to find out a queue is closed when they get there.

In theory they could indicate on the app but wouldn’t get my hopes up.

I hate complaining about RAP issues because I think ultimately Merlin offer a wonderfully inclusive experience but it does feel like they constantly make decisions without consulting people with relevant expertise.
 
Bowser said:
Of course if they had the digital system they could apply that across all rides like they do at Chessington and Legoland rather than have people with mobility issues etc traipse across a gigantic park only to find out a queue is closed when they get there.
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This is a very good point, although I'm not a fan of digital RAP personally.

I'm also not a fan of flip-you-over-and-over flat rides so won't have this problem.

Slightly dreading tomorrow's visit, sold out day and first day of the season, but my friend was able to book with his RAP so we're going and we'll make the best of it, since it was the only Saturday date we could get this side of Easter.
 
Just to note, Toxy has two RAP entrances now. They've changed the Fastrack sign to RAP, probably for the first few weeks or months.

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