Disney’s Magic Band FAQ Link

[scrappinginontario]

We had to reschedule our October Disney World trip because I got Covid, and had already gotten Magic Bands for that trip. We're rescheduled for Dec. 17 - 21, and My Disney Experience now says:

You Haven't Ordered New MagicBands
You don't have new MagicBands associated with this Disney Resort hotel stay.
MagicBands are available for purchase at select retail locations.

Does this mean we can't use the Magic Bands we already purchased?

You can use the ones you already have. No need to order new ones.

MBs are linked to your MDE account, not a particular. When we visit we take our old ones and change up the colour each day.

 

[CarolynFH]

We had to reschedule our October Disney World trip because I got Covid, and had already gotten Magic Bands for that trip. We're rescheduled for Dec. 17 - 21, and My Disney Experience now says:

You Haven't Ordered New MagicBands
You don't have new MagicBands associated with this Disney Resort hotel stay.
MagicBands are available for purchase at select retail locations.

Does this mean we can't use the Magic Bands we already purchased?

The system is just saying you haven’t used the MB discount you could get based on the December resort reservation!

So if you want to, you can order a second set of MBs using that discount, and both sets will work during your trip.

 

[lovethattink]

Hi,

We have the magicband+ for our upcoming trip. How do my husband and kids link their magic bands to their phone? Do they all download the app and log in under my account to link theirs?

Thank you!

The only only time I’ve needed to Bluetooth my band to the phone was when I played the Bounty Hunter game at Galaxy’s Edge. Otherwise it works just like the old MB.

The rest of my family has old bands. So I don’t know the answer to your question. I’m sure someone else can say how they did it with family.

 

[denman007]

My bands are on the wrong account. Can deactivate them on the wrong account and then scan them under the new account or does Disney have to handle that?

Edit: I went through chat on the app and they switched them for me. Rep did a great job. It's a good thing I was playing around in the app and noticed the new bands weren't there.

 

[wowzadisney]

hey everyone,

i am planning a trip for my family and will be buying our WDW tickets via a third party. do i need to then buy magic bands or are those only optional.

thanks

 

[Gehrig1B]

Magic Bands are a convenience but not necessary. They do make life easier if you have kids as they can scan in for themselves... Without MBs, you will be using a smartphone or a card. You could use an Apple Watch for most functions as well.

 

[scrappinginontario]

hey everyone,

i am planning a trip for my family and will be buying our WDW tickets via a third party. do i need to then buy magic bands or are those only optional.

thanks

No, they are not needed. Post 1 of this thread answers this question and more re: MagicBands.

 

[poohj80]

I just received our first MagicBand+ bands ordered pre-arrival so they are already linked to MDE. All we should need to do is pair them with my phone to update and use them but none of them will pair. We’ve not had this issue when buying them in a store and having to link them to MDE first. Any suggestions?

 

[accm]

Is it possible to use a MB+ just as a regular MB without having it paired to a phone? My 5yr old really like the design of a MB+, and since it's on sale for cheaper than some of the regular MBs, I want to order it for him. I'm just not sure how exactly that'll work since he doesn't have a smart phone. Can I just link the band to his account and have that be the end of it? I don't care about the other stuff the band is supposed to be able to do.

 

[CarolynFH]

Is it possible to use a MB+ just as a regular MB without having it paired to a phone? My 5yr old really like the design of a MB+, and since it's on sale for cheaper than some of the regular MBs, I want to order it for him. I'm just not sure how exactly that'll work since he doesn't have a smart phone. Can I just link the band to his account and have that be the end of it? I don't care about the other stuff the band is supposed to be able to do.

Yes, the smartphone link is just for the special functions. It will work fine as a regular MB without that link.

 

[SwanVT2]

I got three new Magic Bands for our trip. It has been a few years since DH has gone In the parks with us so it didn't automatically synch his new band with him as a family member. I tried adding the band, but it doesn't recognize the code? Any tips?

 

[DisneyMama811]

I ordered pre arrival Magic Band+ for our trip. because we are in Canada they will not ship to us and I have been informed we can pick them up at the resort desk upon check in... my questions
1 - do the bands come fully charged?
2 - approx how long does it take to charge from dead and how long does a full charge last?
3- once charged is there an ability to shut them off to conserve battery when we're just hanging out at the resort?
4 - if the charging cord for one breaks or is faulty is there anywhere on Disney property you can buy just a charger?

 

[Jelkat]

My mbs will be 3 yrs old. They are still active so should unlock my door in okw. What are the chances they won't? I won't have a car so
My question is should I get dropped straight to villa and risk my bands not working and then try figure how to get back to check in desk with luggage and kids (I'm only adult) or should i go to check in first and ask them to check magic band and ask for a lift in car park. As long as they say active on mde I should be OK, that right?

 

[fla4fun]

I ordered pre arrival Magic Band+ for our trip. because we are in Canada they will not ship to us and I have been informed we can pick them up at the resort desk upon check in... my questions
1 - do the bands come fully charged?
2 - approx how long does it take to charge from dead and how long does a full charge last?
3- once charged is there an ability to shut them off to conserve battery when we're just hanging out at the resort?
4 - if the charging cord for one breaks or is faulty is there anywhere on Disney property you can buy just a charger?

I received two as Christmas gifts. They were partially charged and I had to top them up. I haven’t charged one from fully dead, but I have heard it can take a couple hours, so if you carry a power source, you might want to plug it in when dining or resting, when you won’t need it. There is an on/off button on the back. Disney does sell chargers separately. Some people didn’t realize there was a charger in the box on release day, and threw them away by mistake! They had to buy a charger.

 

[scrappinginontario]

My mbs will be 3 yrs old. They are still active so should unlock my door in okw. What are the chances they won't? I won't have a car so
My question is should I get dropped straight to villa and risk my bands not working and then try figure how to get back to check in desk with luggage and kids (I'm only adult) or should i go to check in first and ask them to check magic band and ask for a lift in car park. As long as they say active on mde I should be OK, that right?

If you’ve downloaded the MDE app you should also be able to use your phone to unlock your room door.

 

[Jelkat]

If you’ve downloaded the MDE app you should also be able to use your phone to unlock your room door.

Never thought of that thanks

 

[Mike Marzano]

My mbs will be 3 yrs old. They are still active so should unlock my door in okw. What are the chances they won't? I won't have a car so
My question is should I get dropped straight to villa and risk my bands not working and then try figure how to get back to check in desk with luggage and kids (I'm only adult) or should i go to check in first and ask them to check magic band and ask for a lift in car park. As long as they say active on mde I should be OK, that right?

Tapping feature of old bands still work, no matter how old the bands are, as long as in MDE under Bands & Cards they are marked Active.

The "Long range" features, such as auto-linking photos on rides like Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Pirates, Frozen, might not work as the battery is said to last only a couple of years. (I've seen most say 2yrs, but others have claimed 3-4yrs).

But you can open the door and get into the parks and such using the Disney Magic Mobile feature in the MDE app on your phone now.

 

[Mike Marzano]

I ordered pre arrival Magic Band+ for our trip. because we are in Canada they will not ship to us and I have been informed we can pick them up at the resort desk upon check in... my questions
1 - do the bands come fully charged?
2 - approx how long does it take to charge from dead and how long does a full charge last?
3- once charged is there an ability to shut them off to conserve battery when we're just hanging out at the resort?
4 - if the charging cord for one breaks or is faulty is there anywhere on Disney property you can buy just a charger?

1. Not fully. They might have some charge, but not enough to update them after linking.
2. It took me about an hour or so to charge from dead to full. They last all day, unless you are doing Batuu Bounty Hunters.
3. There is a power button on the back to press/hold to turn them off. It helps hold a charge overnight or during the day.
4. While each MB+ comes with a charging cable, Disney sells the charging cables separately for about $7 or $8 in the parks, and Disney Springs.

Btw, if you carry a power bank to charge your phones in the parks, and it has a USB-A port, you can use it to charge the bands when you stop for lunch/dinner, are on the bus, or such.

 

[Jelkat]

Tapping feature of old bands still work, no matter how old the bands are, as long as in MDE under Bands & Cards they are marked Active.

The "Long range" features, such as auto-linking photos on rides like Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Pirates, Frozen, might not work as the battery is said to last only a couple of years. (I've seen most say 2yrs, but others have claimed 3-4yrs).

But you can open the door and get into the parks and such using the Disney Magic Mobile feature in the MDE app on your phone now.

Thanks for the detailed reply

 

[CyndiLooWho]

My BIL is taking my son to WDW at the end of January. Both of them went to WDW with me in late 2020, but for some reason BIL has fallen off my MDE. He started his own MDE, can he move/add his magic band there since he is the same person?

I would just have him access my MDE (we did tag to make my MDE show on his), except that he is no longer on mine.

I really need to reserve their park days, so need to know how to make this work.