Since Rise of the Resistance opened in December 2019, Disney visitors have had one crucial question on their minds: how do I get a boarding group?
Some say the boarding group “lottery style” system is much better than potentially standing in an 8-10 hour line all day, but the obvious drawback is that you could end your carefully planned (and probably expensive) Disney vacation without experiencing the coolest ride the parks have ever seen. When my family rolled up to the gates of Hollywood Studios in February 2020, we were afraid exactly that would happen to us. But thanks to a series of tips and tricks we researched from every corner of the internet, we snagged one of the 102 boarding groups handed out that day.
While nothing can guarantee you a Rise of the Resistance boarding group, there are some tricks that can help you increase your chances to ride. Here’s everything we tried to end up in Boarding Group 7 and have the most epic theme park experience of our lives.
1. Practice getting a Rise of the Resistance boarding group before you arrive at the park.
This might sound silly at first, but it’s actually a game changer. Knowing what each screen in your My Disney Experience app will look like before you actually try for a boarding group helps you tap through each step of the process faster.
Open your app and you’ll see a box for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance right at the top of the home screen. Tap “Find Out More.” This will open up a Star Wars screen where you can normally see which boarding group is in line, view a map of Galaxy’s Edge, and read about the attractions. At the top of this page, tap “My Status.” At exactly 8:00 you’ll be able to select “Join a Boarding Group.” From there the app will ask you which members of your party will be riding. Tap “Select All” at the top of the page.
If you do all of this at 8:00 sharp a few days before your vacation, the app will simply send you an error message because it can detect that you aren’t inside the theme park. But on the day you visit, after completing these steps you will officially join the virtual queue for a boarding group.
2. On the day of, wake up early and arrive in the parking lot one hour before Hollywood Studios opens.
We aren’t typically a “rope drop” family who arrives at the Disney parks the minute they open the doors, because we like sleep too much. But even if this is you, make an exception on the day you visit Hollywood Studios. I recommend arriving at the park about one hour before the official opening time. Since the Disney cast members are well aware of the Rise of the Resistance craze, they let guests in the front gates starting at 7:00 even though the park opens and rides and shops start functioning at 8:00.
Your whole party must be INSIDE the park gates by 8:00 in order for your my Disney Experience app to grant you access to a Rise of the Resistance boarding group. If you try from your hotel room or even from the parking lot, the app will send you an error message and you won’t be able to ride at all.
Arriving early gives you time to park your car, walk inside the gates, and get into position inside the park.
3. If you’re running behind, consider paying for Preferred Parking.
Normally the parks would be pretty empty at 7:00 a.m., but that’s not the case anymore thanks to Rise of the Resistance. If you have trouble getting your family up and out the door on time (understandable, you’re on vacation), save yourself some steps and time by parking in the Preferred Parking lot right beside the front gates to Hollywood Studios. It will cost your $45 for the day, but I will vouch that riding Rise of the Resistance is worth every penny.
4. Walk through the park towards Toy Story Land and stop at the entrance.
You might mistakenly assume that once you’re inside the Hollywood Studios gates, you can plop down on the nearest bench and wait for 8:00 to roll around. But when the My Disney Experience app on your phone has to compete with thousands of other visitors in the park for limited boarding group space, it pays off to be standing in exactly the right spot.
There’s a cell phone tower located right at the entrance to Toy Story Land on the path between An Incredible Celebration and Animation Courtyard. While cast members won’t let you enter Tot Story Land yet, you can hang out near the entrance for the best cell phone service. This also puts you in a great position to line up for other popular rides after you’re finished getting your Rise of the Resistance boarding pass.
5. Turn your WiFi completely OFF.
If you have a fast, reliable cell phone network like Verizon or AT&T, don’t bother to compete for space on the Disney World WiFi. Turn your WiFi completely off in your phone settings just to be sure your phone doesn’t connect to it automatically.
6. Make sure the app knows your party is inside the park.
One glitch some families have encountered is that the My Disney Experience app can’t always tell everyone in their party has entered Hollywood Studios even after they have scanned their magic bands and walked inside. To prevent this, some people adjust a FastPass+ reservation for their party. But since FasyPass+ reservations are hard to come by, I don’t necessarily recommend doing that if you don’t have to.
Check the map within the My Disney Experience app on each person’s phone and see if their location is reported inside Hollywood Studios. If so, you’re probably good to go. If the app does unexpectedly report that some of your party members are missing when you try to get a boarding group, don’t panic. Reserve a boarding group for as many party members as possible. Once you succeed and you have your boarding group number, go find a Disney cast member and show them that your whole party is in fact present at the park. They will help you update your boarding group and get on the ride together.
7. Have every member of your party try for a Rise of the Resistance boarding group on their own phones.
Think of your cell phones like raffle tickets. The more phones in your party tapping into the My Disney Experience app, the better odds you have to score a Rise of the Resistance boarding group. Once someone in your party succeeds, the rest of your group can exit that screen in the app and wait for your assigned boarding group to show up in their plans.
8. Tap to join a boarding group at exactly 8:00.
Whatever you do, don’t mistakenly assume you can tap into your app at 8:01 and casually grab a boarding group. There are so many people accessing the app at once, groups are typically gone within seconds. We set an alarm for 7:58 and then watched the clock for two minutes. About 60-30 seconds before 8:00, you should open your app and tap “Find Out More” on the home screen. The millisecond that your cell phone reads 8:00, tap “Join Boarding Group.” From there, it’s all the luck of the draw. You’ve done everything in your power to have the best possible chance at joining a boarding group.
With a steady stream of visitors vying for a spot on Rise of the Resistance, it takes a lot of extra effort to wake up early and stress over whether or not you’ll get a boarding group. But this I can promise you: the Rise of the Resistance experience is absolutely, completely worth it.
I hope these tips help your family board the greatest theme park experience in history! Good luck, and may the force be with you.
If you are curious about what to expect on Rise of the Resistance, check out the photo gallery below. If you are looking for more Disney World planning tips, check out this link.
If you want to show off your love for all things Star Wars with a new pair of glasses themed around beloved characters like Princess Leia, C-3PO, R2DR, and Chewbacca, check out DIFF Eyewear’s collaboration with Star Wars.
Rise of the Resistance Photo Gallery
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