Welcome! We're so happy you're here! We're Kalyn and Caela, two besties that can usually be found together in Walt Disney World or Target. We're here to bring you reviews, tips and tricks, funny anecdotes, and our favorite shopping finds. Our style is all about being cute, practical, and comfortable. We hope our blog brings you magic and joy!
Hi friends! We know that feeling of dread when we can’t get a boarding group for Rise of the Resistance in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, so we put together a quick guide on things that have helped us snag boarding groups in the past! This is obviously not guaranteed, but we have found it them to speed up our process and have been successful on multiple occasions, all from the comfort of our hotel room!
Make sure your party is all linked up in My Disney Experience prior to your trip
Before you head on your trip, familiarize yourself with the My Disney Experience app. On the home page about halfway down is a photo of two AT-ATs and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance – Request Access with Virtual Queue written underneath. This is where you will go to Join the queue!
About 10 minutes before the Virtual Queue opens up (7am EST currently for WDW) get your phone out and start preparing. Find somewhere you can relax and settle in. It can be a bit nerve wracking to obtain the coveted boarding group, so for us, 10 minutes gives plenty of time to collect ourselves
Clear your phone of all apps, then pull up My Disney Experience
Click around within My Disney Experience on WiFi, and then turn off WiFi and do the same. Choose whichever internet connection seems faster. For this, I typically will pull up the calendar and click around and see how fast the page loads. I will also click “Join” on the ROTR Boarding Group page just to see how fast that specifically loads up.
Find an analog clock – I use my Apple Watch. You can have someone else watch the clock on the home screen of their phone. You can also use 24timezones.com, although I’ve never personally done this!
About two minutes before the Virtual Queue opens, head to the main screen of the My Disney Experience app and find the Join button
Watch the analog clock very closely the last minute and right as the second hand is about to hit the 12, click Join!!!
You will then be taken to a page where you select your party. If you followed step one and linked your party and everyone has valid Park Reservations for Hollywood Studios, the guests in your travel party should be automatically selected. Scroll quickly to the bottom of the page and hit Join again. NOTE: I typically do not even look at the guests listed. I scan very quickly, and usually it is just Kalyn and I traveling, or we are with a small group. I suggest you not spend much time reviewing who is selected as every second counts (literally!)
You will receive an assigned boarding group number and an estimated return time. Once your boarding group is called, you have one hour to return to the ride.
Additional comments:
You have to be very familiar with the app, and technology in general. The Virtual Queue fills up in less than a minute typically and there is very little time to waste. Fast fingers are super important! Multiple members of your party can attempt to get passes at the same time – just make sure you are able to watch the clock. If you do not get a morning group, don’t fret! They do another drop in the afternoon (1pm EST currently for WDW), however for this one you have to be INSIDE the park. If you do get a boarding group, the ride may go down and your estimated wait time may be extended. Make sure to check back periodically to the Check Status portion of the My Disney Experience app!