In anticipation of large crowds in Disney’s Hollywood Studios for the Rise of the Resistance attraction, Disney has announced that Boarding Groups will be in effect throughout the day. This is different from the original Boarding Group concept in that the virtual queue will be specifically for the new attraction, and not the land as a whole.
If you plan on going out to experience it, no matter if you’re partial to the Light side or the Dark side, entering a virtual queue is required to help reduce your time in line. This will give you more time to enjoy the rest of the theme park.
For those going to Disney’s Hollywood Studios today, the first step is to make sure you download the My Disney Experience app if you don’t already have it. Once you enter the park, open the Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge section and go to “Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance – Access by Boarding Group.” Click on “Find Out More.” The next screen will share the current boarding status of Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. If boarding groups are available, you may be able to tap “Join Boarding Group.” There will also be a display indicating which boarding group may now enter the attraction.
Additional information about virtual queue:
- If “Join a Boarding Group” is grayed out, that means the boarding groups are full for the day and are no longer available.
- As long as your My Disney Experience account is linked to park tickets for you and the others in your group, you’ll be able to enroll everyone in the virtual queue at the same time.
- Make sure push notifications are turned on for My Disney Experience so you will be alerted if your boarding group is called to return.
- You’ll have up to two hours from the time of the alert to go to the entrance of Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, so there’s no need to rush right over. Once there, you can expect to wait and spend some time getting immersed in the story and soaking in the rich details before experiencing the attraction.
- Please note that joining a boarding group does not guarantee the ability to experience Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance.
If you have any questions or need a hand with the virtual queue, the members of the Guest Experience Team are available throughout the park to assist.
Anxious to see how this works out!!
A question for my upcoming Feb trip to Batuu: do you need to be physically in DHS to join a boarding group? If so, then that means you should arrive early to the Studios?
What if one person in the group went to park, joined a later boarding group, and the returned later in the day? Do you think that would work?
Only people who enter the park with an active ticket can join the boarding group.
Do you have to be in the park to get into the virtual queue?
Yes and you can only join AFTER you scan your park ticket.
Do you need to turn on Locations Or could do it from your home or hotel room before entering the park?
If I am in a group, does everyone need to be in the park to join the boarding group, or can one person enter the park and add their whole group?
Everyone has to be in the park.
Their instructions state: “To join the virtual queue for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, you—and all members of your party who would like to use the virtual queue—must have entered Disney’s Hollywood Studios.”
This is probably a smart thing! It makes me think that it was a test at first when they opened the land to see if it would actually work. I think we may see more of this type of thing at attractions instead of FastPass+. Don’t know that for a fact, but it might make the lines shorter in general for the bigger attractions.
If this is so smart, why not use this for Flight of Passage, sometimes 3hr+ wait. Could be shopping or dining during that time instead of stuck in line.
Because FOP has a fast pass line. RotR does not (yet).
Thanks. But been an Annual Passholder for almost a year and been able to get a fastpass for FoP exactly 0 times. Even staying on property 60 days out, no dice. If anything cried out for VQ, it’s FoP.
Do I need to take my own car to the park in order to get there early enough to get a boarding group, or does Disney have super early shuttles?
If you are staying on a Disney resort, their shuttles typically get you there in time for rope drop. We’ve successfully rope dropped every park from Caribbean Beach and the Polynesian. Got there in plenty of time to ride the big ones like FoP and Slinky Dog. You just have to be on the first bus out. However, I don’t know specifically about how fast boarding groups go…but I’d assume that if you rope dropped, you’d get one as long as you got on the app as soon as you cleared the park entrance scans.