At Walt Disney World the MagicBand is your passport to access nearly every aspect of your vacation. Since you’re going to use it to enter the theme parks, buy food, unlock your hotel room door, and more, why not look extra stylish while doing it.… Read More »This MagicBand has more bling than yours
I’m a little surprised this issue hasn’t arisen before now. Recently, a Disney collector friend of mine was complaining how they just discovered the Limited Release Haunted Mansion MagicBand wouldn’t let her replace its battery. Each MagicBand has two RFID chips in it a passive… Read More »Buyers not warned Disney’s MagicBands won’t work after battery dies, no way to replace it
from Instagram: Don’t like wearing your MagicBand on your wrist? Disney now sells an easy way to attach it to a bag or belt. I carry mine in my pocket? You?
If you head to the theme parks as frequently as we Disney bloggers do, you probably feel fairly familiar with the services that are part of MyMagic+. But if you haven’t been in a while, you may be surprised at all the features included with… Read More »Walt Disney World pushes Fastpass+, MagicBands, and My Disney Experience
Just before the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train officially opened to the public, these odd boxes were added to the track. They looked like on-ride video or photo cameras, but since there is no ‘gift store’ attached to the exit of the ride, there was no… Read More »Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Photopass automatic with Memory Maker
from Instagram Are you part of the rebellion or the galactic empire? Disney is pushing the MyMagic+ enabled MagicBands hard. There are a ton of accessories you can add to yours. Above are a few of the Star Wars themed ones, perfect for the upcoming… Read More »Instapic: Star Wars Bandits. All the cool kids will be wearing them at Star Wars Weekends
Annual Passholders who pre-ordered online are now receiving their MagicBands in the mail. I just received mine and you can watch my Instagram unboxing video below. All APs can now go through the My Disney Experience website to connect their admissions media with the My Disney Experience App and make Fastpass+ reservations as far as 30 days ahead. You may have any 7 days booked in that rolling 30 day window.
The latest rumor, although there’s no official word from Disney, is that beginning March 31st, just like Annual Passholders, off-site guests will be able to book their Fastpass+ 30 days ahead of time. Guests will be able to enter their ticket information via the My Disney Experience website and have access to the same booking window as APs.
Disney resort guests can book 60-days out. Which is Disney’s big incentive to get you to stay on property (although I always thought that being enveloped in the Magic was enough incentive).
As a local and an annual passholder, I never really know which park I’m going to be at until a few day ahead. If off-site guests and APs share the same booking window, it means I will have to plan at least 30 days ahead to make sure I’m not letting the 10’s of thousands of off-site guests ahead of me in line to reserve their Fastpass times. So far, with only resort guests having an earlier booking window, there have been good options to making FP just a few days out, but with everyone in the pool, it might get more difficult to secure that E-ticket FP+. Making plans 30 days ahead is definitely a change to how I do things now, but I guess I’ll get used to it or I just won’t get many FP+ for popular attractions.
Off-site guests will be able to use their RFID enabled tickets or upgrade to a MagicBand for an, as yet, unannounced price. If you plan to do this on your day of arrival, you might want to allow some extra time in the morning to configure your wristbands. A better strategy might be to head in and enjoy the park in the morning, then get your bands when the park is experiencing mid-day crowds.
Keep in mind that the system is still technically in testing (although as was pointed out to me, when everyone is forced to use it to the exclusion of the old system, it’s not really testing, it’s experimentation). So everything is subject to change.
More details on the MagicBand and Fastpass+ below the jump:
Read More »Online Fastpass+ Reservations To Roll Out To All Guests Very Soon
Jeff and Denise of the excellent Mousesteps Disney fan site were invited by a cast member friend to be their guest during a test of the new Next-Gen system at EPCOT. During the test of the neww MagicBands and MyMagic+, they put the device through… Read More »MyMagic, Fastpass+ and Magicband Test Preview Video