PHOTOS, VIDEO: Experience the New TRON Lightcycle Run Coaster at Magic Kingdom

Katie Francis

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PHOTOS, VIDEO: Experience the New TRON Lightcycle Run Coaster at Magic Kingdom

1.819 days after construction first kicked off on February 14, 2018, nearly five years ago, we finally got to experience the new TRON Lightcycle / Run coaster at the Magic Kingdom! The new coaster is a clone of the opening day E-Ticket from Shanghai Disneyland, and we were invited guests as part of the ongoing Cast Member previews. So let’s take a full tour of the highly-anticipated attraction in Tomorrowland , which will open on April 4 to the public.

You can watch our full queue tour above. Unfortunately video recording was very strictly prohibited on the ride itself during previews, so we have attached our POV from Shanghai Disneyland alongside the new queue tour from the Magic Kingdom. The ride at Magic Kingdom may differ slightly, so stay tuned for a video from the attraction once it opens April 4.

Exterior Photos

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TRON Lightcycle / Run is located right behind Space Mountain in Tomorrowland. It’s outside the park’s berm, and is housed in a sweeping white canopy which helps hide a boxy show building.

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A walkway between Tomorrowland and Storybook Circus is also available.

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Wait time and Lightning Lane return time signage is installed but not yet online.

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The line was fairly long to get into Cast Member previews.

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Guests enter by walking up this concrete path under the canopy, known as the Upload Conduit.

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The coaster’s track sweeps under the canopy after its initial launch.

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The restrooms are located all the way in the left corner – above the train tunnel.

Outside Queue

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Umbrellas are available in the outdoor extended queue to protect from the Florida sun.

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As you approach the entrance, there are two TRON ride vehicles to the left. They serve two purposes – so you can try them out and know what to expect when you get inside and they provide a nice photo op.

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We previously reported that some Cast Members have reported issues with some guests being able to fit into the ride vehicles, so this is a great place to try them out and make sure.

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To the left of the TRON Lightcycle ride vehicles are directions on how you will board the lightcycle once you’re in the loading area.

As you can see from the diagram, guests on the left-hand side will board the lightcycles furthest from them – those on the right will take the closer vehicles.

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Here is the entrance to the attraction. Since this is a preview, you can see the board displaying standby and Lightning Lane wait times have yet to be activated. Just in front of the board is a health warning sign.

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Signage above welcomes members of Team Blue in the lightcycle games to The Grid.

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Fans blow from above to keep a breeze going in the otherwise stuffy tunnel.

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At the back of the building is a giant digitizer, used in “TRON” and “TRON: Legacy” to transport Kevin and Sam Flynn into The Grid.

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Once inside, there is a small hallway with walls that resemble a circuit board. It’s narrow therefore giving riders a sense of depth and moving deeper into the “game.”

This hallway leads you into the preshow area.

Preshow / Inside Queue

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A safety plays out above guests as they wait, helping guests learn what they need to know for safety. Like some other Disney attractions like Soarin’ Around the World at EPCOT and Avatar: Flight of Passage at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, you will get a series of instructions including how to use the locker portals to store large items or those that could easily fly off your person during the ride.

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On the way down, guests get a peek at the attraction’s launch.

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An Identity Disk is on display.

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Overhead lighting is also reminiscent of Identity Disks.

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Displays on the walls show off the teams users will be on versus Clu.

Lockers

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The lockers are numbered to help guests remember where their stuff is located.

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Lockers are unlocked with MagicBands or plastic ticket cards, MagicMobile tickets on smartphones do not work and guests must request a white RFID card from Cast Members.

Load Area

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Finally, we make the journey down into the load area.

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The video screens show off how the Lightcycle game works.

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It’s quite dark and moody in the load area, fitting the Grid perfectly.

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Guests lean over as if they’re on an actual motorcycle to ride this attraction.

Ride

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The attraction itself takes guests on a journey through the Grid. Filming was very strictly prohibited during the previews, so we were unable to capture a new video of the attraction. As we mentioned before, the video uses our POV from Shanghai Disneyland alongside the new queue at the Magic Kingdom for now.

Exit

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Guests disembark from their Lightcycles and walk out through this very unthemed exit ramp.

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Guests may then return to their lockers to pick up their belongings.

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The only languages available are English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, and Portuguese. Other languages common for visitors such as Japanese are not available.

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Presenting your key card or MagicBand will automatically unlock your locker.

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And it’s down another very unthemed hallway to the exit.

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Scrims still cover one area of the exit.

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ECV parking is located near the exit. We assume strollers will be parked near here too.

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Walking out the exit ramp also gives a very special chance to watch riders breeze by on their Lightcycles.

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The Walt Disney World Railroad and walkway to Storybook Circus are visible from some areas.

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Upon opening, TRON Lightcycle / Run will only offer a virtual queue and Individual Lightning Lane with no standby option available for now.

Are you excited to experience TRON Lightcycle/Run at Walt Disney World? Let us know in the comments below.

Check out our continuing coverage of the Magic Kingdom’s TRON Lightcycle / Run attraction:

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