Annual pass and Magic Band question

[Rick2594]

Recently ordered Annual Passes through Disney website. Will pickup at Disney in late November at beginning of two week trip. Called Disney and they said I won’t get Magic Bands until I activate tickets and when I do they’ll be mailed to me. I’d like to get them before trip so I can associate my FastPasses and dining reservations on them. Also plan to do Memory Maker and sounds much easier with Magic Bands.

Is there anyway to get Magic Bands mailed earlier? I know I can buy them but since they’re free with annual passes I’d rather not. Appreciate all feedback.

Rick

 

[kmb584]

Recently ordered Annual Passes through Disney website. Will pickup at Disney in late November at beginning of two week trip. Called Disney and they said I won’t get Magic Bands until I activate tickets and when I do they’ll be mailed to me. I’d like to get them before trip so I can associate my FastPasses and dining reservations on them. Also plan to do Memory Maker and sounds much easier with Magic Bands.

Is there anyway to get Magic Bands mailed earlier? I know I can buy them but since they’re free with annual passes I’d rather not. Appreciate all feedback.

Rick

There isn't. You need to activate the AP before they'll mail out the MB.

 

[mesaboy2]

Definitely an inelegant and clunky process, wouldn’t mind WDW figuring out a way to get MBs to new AP holders for their first trip.

 

[Fangorn]

Do you have Magic Bands from a previous trip? If so, those will work just fine for this trip - provided you have not explicitly deactivated them.

If not, then your only other option for a MB for this trip is to purchase one.

Steve

 

[Rick2594]

Thanks very much for all the feedback. Haven’t used Magic Bands before so I’ll probably just buy them so we’ll have them for this trip.

 

[jcvalenti]

The first year they did Magic Bands, they still had this ridiculous system in place. I was furious. Dropped $2000 on Annual Passes for the family, and then had to shell out another $100 to buy Magic Bands when we got down there. It's ridiculous. It's almost worth making a 1 night resort reservation for the first day of your trip, just so you can get Magic Bands sent to you (and make FP+ reservations early) - which is probably their intent. There is no logical reason on Earth they couldn't add a "send me my Magic Bands by XXX" feature on to MDE. Now of course, years later, I have a shoe box full of Magic Bands from various trips and stays.

I've used ones that are 2 years old in the park before - as long as they are associated with your MDE account, they reflect your AP status.

 

[CAS239]

The first year they did Magic Bands, they still had this ridiculous system in place. I was furious. Dropped $2000 on Annual Passes for the family, and then had to shell out another $100 to buy Magic Bands when we got down there. It's ridiculous. It's almost worth making a 1 night resort reservation for the first day of your trip, just so you can get Magic Bands sent to you (and make FP+ reservations early) - which is probably their intent. There is no logical reason on Earth they couldn't add a "send me my Magic Bands by XXX" feature on to MDE. Now of course, years later, I have a shoe box full of Magic Bands from various trips and stays.

I've used ones that are 2 years old in the park before - as long as they are associated with your MDE account, they reflect your AP status.

If you had an AP prior to magic bands being released, then you were sent an AP band automatically once they debuted.

They started out with some on site hotels then I got an email saying the bands are rolling out to AP's and I can now customize a band and get it sent. But if you bought an AP right after they sent them to current AP's then that's why you had to wait.

 

[CAS239]

The system doesn't recognize you as having an AP, because technically you don't since you haven't activated it yet. This is why you have to wait until you're there and activate your AP. Once you do it'll pop up and allow you to customize.

Although you don't NEED magic bands if you don't want to buy some, the plastic cards will work

 

[gap2368]

Recently ordered Annual Passes through Disney website. Will pickup at Disney in late November at beginning of two week trip. Called Disney and they said I won’t get Magic Bands until I activate tickets and when I do they’ll be mailed to me. I’d like to get them before trip so I can associate my FastPasses and dining reservations on them. Also plan to do Memory Maker and sounds much easier with Magic Bands.

Is there anyway to get Magic Bands mailed earlier? I know I can buy them but since they’re free with annual passes I’d rather not. Appreciate all feedback.

Rick

no, you will have to wait until you activate them and then they will mail them to you.

 

[china mom]

If your trip in on property, you will get MB mailed to you. These will work exactly like your AP bands and will be totally interchangeable once your AP bands do come.

If this visit is off site, all the replies above apply.

 

[kniquy]

Is there anyway to get Magic Bands mailed earlier? I know I can buy them but since they’re free with annual passes I’d rather not. Appreciate all feedback.

If you are staying on property that should entitle you to a MB. For my April trip I purchased an AP ahead of time, because of my resort reservation i received a MB. On my MDE account it notes that i can order my AP MB, which i am waiting to do before our next coming trip. So there was no problem with my AP once activated being linked to the MB i received for the resort reservation.