Over the past few years at Walt Disney World, new attractions open with a virtual queue instead of a regular standby line. We frogs have gone through some trial-and-error to learn the virtual queue system and get some quick amphibian fingers to snag a Boarding Group.
Currently, both Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at EPCOT and the new TRON Lightcycle Run at Magic Kingdom operate with a virtual queue. While TRON officially opens April 4, it soft opened March 20 and is available via virtual queue.
Virtual queues at Disney World do free up time to enjoy the rest of the park (no standing in a six-hour line!). The difficulty is that virtual queues have historically been known to fill up in seconds, so not all frogs will be able to experience these in-demand rides.
We've gathered some tips and tricks on how to join a virtual queue to get you prepared and ready to give it a shot — crossing our froggy fingers for you!
All About Virtual Queues at Disney World
Virtual queues at Disney World act as a replacement for a regular standby line. Instead of waiting in a physical queue, you join a virtual queue on your phone via the My Disney Experience app (this is the same place where you link tickets and hotel reservations). Virtual queues allow you to spend the rest of the day enjoying rides and shows, rather than waiting in a line for half the day.
Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance at Disney's Hollywood Studios was the first to debut the new system, followed by Remy's Ratatouille Adventure at EPCOT. Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind and TRON Lightcycle Run both are operating with a virtual queue at this time.
The best way to find out which attractions are operating with a virtual queue is by using the My Disney Experience app. Any attractions utilizing the virtual queue system will have a module on the homepage with details (and of course, your froggy friends will be keeping this post up to date as we know more!).
Pay to Ride with Genie+
For an additional cost, Disney Genie+ allows guests to use the Lightning Lane (the old FastPass+ line) for most attractions. For certain popular attractions, you will pay per attraction — and this even includes rides with virtual queues, such as Guardians and TRON. This means you can pay to ride and not worry about getting your own Boarding Group (Don't worry — the virtual queue still remains a free option as it always has!).
Guests can purchase these a la carte rides once per day, with a maximum of two different rides per day; you'd then use the Lightning Lane to skip the line. You can hop over to our Disney Genie post for our tips and tricks on navigating this new service.
How to Navigate Disney World Virtual Queues
When Boarding Groups are in use, you’ll need the My Disney Experience app as part of the virtual queue. We recommend downloading the app from your smartphone's app store the night before so you can have it ready to go first thing in the morning. If you already have the app, update it to the latest version. You don’t want to lose any precious time before the virtual queue opens at 7 a.m.!
It’s also very important to add your entire party to your Family and Friends list within the app so that everyone can join the Boarding Group at the same time. Each member of your party must have a My Disney Experience account and be linked in your Family and Friends list, or be a guest (such as small children) that you already manage on your account. Only guests with valid admission and a Disney Park Pass reservation for the correct theme park are able to access the virtual queue system at 7 a.m. on the day of their reservation.
Head to the Virtual Queue section on the Home Screen and tap "Join" at the designated times. For Guardians, you can try to join the virtual queue at 7 a.m. (from anywhere) and 1 p.m. (from EPCOT). For TRON, you can to join the virtual queue at 7 a.m. (from anywhere) and 1 p.m. (from Magic Kingdom)
- A valid ticket and a Disney Park Pass reservation are required to join a virtual queue. That means you need an EPCOT reservation for Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind or a Magic Kingdom reservation for Tron Lightcyle Run to join the virtual queue.
- You can only join each ride's virtual queue once per day.
- You cannot hold a Boarding Group for multiple attractions at the same time.
- For the 7 a.m. drop, you can be anywhere and do not need to be in the park (as long as you have the appropriate park reservation for that day). For the 1 p.m. drop, you must have entered either EPCOT or Magic Kingdom to give it a whirl. (Sorry, park hoppers!)
- On the nights with Extended Evening Hours, guests staying at eligible deluxe hotels may attempt to join the virtual queue for either Cosmic Rewind or TRON (beginning April 4) at 6 p.m. from anywhere. You must have valid admission and either have the correct park reservation or have park hopping abilities and already hopped to your first park.
- Boarding Groups do not guarantee you will be able to ride (the attraction gets through a different number of boarding groups each day due to ride closures, technical difficulties, etc.)
- If utilizing the Disability Access Service (DAS), all members of the party must join a Boarding Group first. Then speak to a cast member at the attraction for the rest of the process.
Disney recommends selecting one member of your party to access the virtual queue. If multiple people try simultaneously, that may complicate your ability to secure a Boarding Group. We personally have tried using different My Disney Experience accounts on different phones at the same time to increase the chances. There aren't any penalties that we've experienced, and usually, after the first person secures the Boarding Group, the second person will stop trying. But we wouldn't recommend using the same account on different phones so you don't risk any issues.
After Getting a Boarding Group
Your planning and speediness paid off — you got a Boarding Group! Note the assigned Boarding Group number — Boarding Groups are notified in chronological order when it’s time to return to the attraction and enter the queue. The app provides an estimated wait time but it is not an exact number and should only be used roughly when planning out the rest of your day. Keep an eye on the My Disney Experience app to check the status of the Boarding Group progress. Once it’s your turn, you'll have one hour to return to the attraction’s entrance and check-in with the cast members to enter the queue.
You went through the process and got a backup Boarding Group — what does that mean? Backup Boarding Groups are only called if all of the initial groups have been called back and there is capacity for more riders. Don't get discouraged because backup Boarding Groups are regularly called! However, they also come with a higher possibility that your number might not be called (for instance, if the ride closes during the day for a significant amount of time).
Not Receiving a Boarding Group
If you don't get a Boarding Group at 7 a.m., you can try again later! Fewer people will be trying at the 1 p.m. distribution time so there are better odds. But even when following all of the steps correctly, there is always the possibility that you won't get a Boarding Group at either time, so setting realistic expectations is important. Now that Genie+ has debuted, you'll have an additional option to access the ride if you aren't able to snag a spot in the virtual queue and it's a must-do for your frog squad.
How to Join a Virtual Queue for Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind
As outlined above, you'll get a chance to enter the virtual queue at 7 a.m. (from anywhere) and 1 p.m. (must be inside EPCOT).
- On the My Disney Experience app home screen, scroll down to the Virtual Queue section.
- Starting one hour before the virtual queue opens, you can confirm your party. This is an improvement from the old process, which required you to confirm your party after the virtual queue opened and thus slowed down the rest of the process.
- Be sure to click over to the "EPCOT" tab. The screen has a "Refresh" button at the bottom. Once 7 a.m. rolls around, pull the screen to refresh or tap the "Refresh" button to launch the joining process. (Psst ... we actually like to get set up and start refreshing the screen a few minutes before the queue officially opens. If you start opening the app and getting the process started on the hour, you may be too late.)
- Tap Join Virtual Queue as soon as it appears.
- You'll receive your Boarding Group number if you are successful.
New to this virtual queue process, guests staying at Disney Deluxe Resort, Deluxe Villa Resort or other select hotels have the opportunity to join the virtual queue at 6 p.m. during Extended Evening Hours. Guests do not have to be inside the park in order to join at this time, but they will need valid admission and a theme park reservation for EPCOT on the same day (or park hopping abilities) to experience during Extended Evening Hours.
How to Join a Virtual Queue for TRON Lightcycle Run
Very similar to Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, you have two daily opportunities to join the virtual queue for TRON Lightcycle Run. (While TRON officially opens April 4, you may be able to join a virtual queue during the soft open from March 20 to April 2). At 7 a.m., guests can join from anywhere but must have a park reservation for Magic Kingdom. At 1 p.m., guests must be in Magic Kingdom to join.
- On the My Disney Experience app home screen, scroll down to the Virtual Queue section. Be sure you are on the "Magic Kingdom" tab.
- Starting one hour before the virtual queue opens, you can confirm your party. This is an improvement from the old process, which required you to confirm your party after the virtual queue opened and thus slowed down the rest of the process.
- The screen has a "Refresh" button at the bottom. Once 7 a.m. rolls around, pull the screen to refresh or tap the "Refresh" button to launch the joining process. (Psst ... we actually like to get set up and start refreshing the screen a few minutes before the queue officially opens. If you start opening the app and getting the process started on the hour, you may be too late.)
- Tap Join Virtual Queue as soon as it appears.
- You'll receive your Boarding Group number if you are successful.
Guests staying at a Disney Deluxe Resort, Deluxe Villa Resort or other select hotels have the additional opportunity to join the virtual queue at 6 p.m. during Extended Evening Hours. They do not have to be inside Magic Kingdom, but they will need valid admission and a theme park reservation for Magic Kingdom on the same day (or park hopping abilities) to experience during Extended Evening Hours.
Frogtastic Tips and Tricks for Disney World Virtual Queues
- Confirm your party, starting an hour before the virtual queue opens.
- In the morning, set an alarm on your phone for 6:55 a.m. and 12:55 p.m. so you don't froget later in the day! We even suggest multiple alarms to remind you, so you can avoid being on a ride when it's time to join a Boarding Group.
- Make sure you have a good signal. We recommend turning off Wi-Fi and using data if in the park.
- If possible, have more than one person in your party try for a boarding group. Likewise, you can designate someone in your party to pull up the world clock on their phone so you know how close you are — those extra seconds can make the difference sometimes!
- For the 1 p.m. timeframe, all party members must have entered the park to be eligible to join.
- Move quickly once the Join Virtual Queue button appears!
- Have your push notifications on and keep an eye on the app, as you only have a one-hour return window and may need to jump to the queue quickly.
- Bring a portable charger to ensure your phone lasts all day.
Let us know if you have any questions about Disney World virtual queues in the comments below!
Related: Everything We Know About TRON Lightcycle Run at Magic Kingdom
Keep hopping!
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