Jedi Training?

KatieCharlotte

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My daughter just announced that she really wants to do Jedi Training when we're at DL this summer. Help! This was not on my must-do list. My kids have not been interested in this before. Do we need to sign up the minute the park opens? Should we try on our Magic Morning, or the morning when DL has no MM (we plan to be there at park opening)? Do we have any choice in our time? If my preteen wants to do this, will she feel out of place with the younger kids, and will they quiz her on whether she's 12 or under?
 
My daughter just announced that she really wants to do Jedi Training when we're at DL this summer. Help! This was not on my must-do list. My kids have not been interested in this before. Do we need to sign up the minute the park opens? Should we try on our Magic Morning, or the morning when DL has no MM (we plan to be there at park opening)? Do we have any choice in our time? If my preteen wants to do this, will she feel out of place with the younger kids, and will they quiz her on whether she's 12 or under?

They will ask the kids their ages. The suggestion is to get there at opening, and they do allow signing up during MM. I personally would sign-up on a different morning and use your MM for ride time. They give you a time choice, so the earlier you sign-up the more choices you have. I'm sure someone knows for sure, but I think they pick around 30 kids per show to participate.
 
My daughter just did this for the first time on Thursday! She was actually an alternate because she didn't decide she wanted to do it until 9:40 (park had opened at 8, MM at 7), but she got called up for the 11:35 show. (I was sure she wouldn't actually have a chance when we signed up so late!) So fun!

They said they had been full and taking alternates for "awhile" when we got over there, so I'd definitely go over early to get your spot, but I don't think you have to rush - for instance, I might grab a FP or even do a ride in Tomorrowland, and then head to sign-ups.

The kid(s) must be with you to sign up! They do ask them their ages and a few other questions. On Thursday, there were mostly younger kids (5-8?), and a couple of older ones. One very tall boy looked a little sheepish at points; I think he may have felt out of place with so many littles.
 
My daughter just announced that she really wants to do Jedi Training when we're at DL this summer. Help! This was not on my must-do list. My kids have not been interested in this before. Do we need to sign up the minute the park opens? Should we try on our Magic Morning, or the morning when DL has no MM (we plan to be there at park opening)? Do we have any choice in our time? If my preteen wants to do this, will she feel out of place with the younger kids, and will they quiz her on whether she's 12 or under?
Aren't your kids 14 and 16?
 

Aren't your kids 14 and 16?

:confused3
No, they are not. I'm pretty sure I haven't ever given my kids' ages. Because I know many extremely devoted Disney fans who probably read these public boards and I sometimes ask questions that could cause my kid/s embarrassment (relating to their conditions and difficulty with motion on rides), I don't really want to be identifiable. I have been intentionally vague about my kids' ages and at times probably misleading about how many kids I have. (I'm even more glad now that I've been vague. :rolleyes1)

I do have one kid who is the age range you mentioned, but he will definitely not be doing Jedi Training. I have at least one kid within the proper age range, so no need to worry. :thumbsup2
 
They will ask the kids their ages. The suggestion is to get there at opening, and they do allow signing up during MM. I personally would sign-up on a different morning and use your MM for ride time. They give you a time choice, so the earlier you sign-up the more choices you have. I'm sure someone knows for sure, but I think they pick around 30 kids per show to participate.

I'm glad you said that, because I really want to use my MM for Fantasyland dark rides, not signing up for Jedi Training. I think we'll just give it a try at parking opening on our non-MM day.
 
:confused3
No, they are not. I'm pretty sure I haven't ever given my kids' ages. Because I know many extremely devoted Disney fans who probably read these public boards and I sometimes ask questions that could cause my kid/s embarrassment (relating to their conditions and difficulty with motion on rides), I don't really want to be identifiable. I have been intentionally vague about my kids' ages and at times probably misleading about how many kids I have. (I'm even more glad now that I've been vague. :rolleyes1)

I do have one kid who is the age range you mentioned, but he will definitely not be doing Jedi Training. I have at least one kid within the proper age range, so no need to worry. :thumbsup2
In July 2015 you said your daughter was 11. You also mentioned riding with older siblings at Universal. If your trip is still in August, she's too old for Jedi Training.
 
My daughter just announced that she really wants to do Jedi Training when we're at DL this summer. Help! This was not on my must-do list. My kids have not been interested in this before. Do we need to sign up the minute the park opens? Should we try on our Magic Morning, or the morning when DL has no MM (we plan to be there at park opening)? Do we have any choice in our time? If my preteen wants to do this, will she feel out of place with the younger kids, and will they quiz her on whether she's 12 or under?

Let's get back on track and try this again...

One of my daughters just announced that she really wants to do Jedi Training when we're at DL this summer. Help! This was not on my must-do list. My kids have not been interested in this before. (I really really don't want to hassle with this during prime ride time and cringed when she showed interest.) Do we need to sign up the minute the park opens? Should we try on our Magic Morning, or the morning when DL has no MM (we plan to be there at park opening)? Do we have any choice in our time? If my preteen also wants to do this, will she feel out of place with the younger kids and will they quiz her on her age, making her feel embarrassed?
 
We were there in March and my 12, 10 and 7 year old all did it. The 12 year old was not embarrassed at all, they did question her age as she is tall, but Hubby had her passport just in case and offered it up (they declined). She is the kind of tween though that really does not care what others around her may think and she went out there (knowing it would be her last time to participate) and had a great time! As for signing up it is going to depend, if it is a must I would get there right away on your non MM and sign up..... we strolled down Mainstreet and got a starbucks the 1st time we were going to take the kids and when we got there it was full for the day! We learned our lesson and made that our first stop the next day and made the late morning show!

Have a magical time!
 
We were there on President's Day, so it was pretty busy. We got there to sign up at 11 and every time slot was full, but we got on the wait list and managed to get a spot on the first try. They called about 12 kids from the wait list that time, in fact. It was also easy enough to come back because we were spending most of our time in Tomorrowland anyway. If you're mostly going to be further away, it's worth getting there sooner.
 
My son has done the Jedi Training Academy 8 times since they restarted it last December. Here are my tips:

1. You sign up across from Autopia. And it's a RACE in the morning, especially if it's a weekend or busy time of year. We always try to get to the rope drop and then run to the sign up area on a Magic Morning. You'll see a huge amount of people run for Hyperspace Mountain, and another big group make the turn for Jedi Academy sign up!:D They are able to take alot of kids, but there still gets to be an incredible line first thing in the morning. Moves quickly, but I don't like spending precious early morning ride time waiting to sign up.

2. Your child MUST be with you. A parent cannot sign up a child alone. The CMs ask a few questions of the child (can you follow directions, be on stage, fight the dark side, etc) and then ask the parent what time you'd like to return for Jedi Academy training. They give you a little pass to hold on to with the return time. And you're done!

3. Some training times are better than others, but of course any time that works for you is still awesome!:-) Depending on the time of year, the early morning training can have the kids staring directly into the sunlight...squinting to see Darth Vader does take some of the fun out of it. Also the noon-ish times can have the kids baking in the direct sunlight over head. The Jedi robes are thin, but still! I've seen little ones wiping brows and looking like wilted little Jedi ready to be done half way through. My son's favorite time is the last show of the day. When the sun starts to go down, the lightsabers the kids use glow. Making it much more realistic and fun. Of course in the summer it's still light out, but at least the sun is usually below the Galactic Grill making it less hot and sunny.

4. If you don't get to the sign up area in time, you may get put on the alternate list. This means that you may come back before each show to see if one of the ticketed children do not return. Then your child may take their place. There are sometimes several alternates waiting for each show, so first come first served. The CMs do try and accommodate as many alternates as possible, but if it's during the summer or a super busy time you may not get in.

5. You will get a Photo Pass card at the return area after you drop off your child. It will have photos of the whole group and photos of your child battling the dark side. These photos are incredible! And a super fun keepsake. Make sure you ask for the Photo Pass card if you don't happen to get one handed to you. There's no way to get the photos after the fact.

6. The children get into Jedi robes. The parents go to the viewing area in front of the stage. The kids march in with the Jedi. And the "training" begins. They learn 5 moves. "Cut to the Left Shoulder, Cut to the Right Shoulder, Block, Duck, and Cut to the Head." The "cuts" are swinging the light saber. It does go very very fast, and the Jedi are also telling stories at the same time. Not too much "training"...

7. You will either battle Darth Vader or the Seventh Sister. And you can't choose which. It all depends on how the kids are standing in lines, and the CMs determine that. If Darth Vader is not there, sometimes Darth Maul is the substitute!!! He's amazing!!!:D (Edited: this may change with ending of the Star Wars Rebels show?)

8. Audience participation is HUGE. The louder (whoops, yells, cheers, claps) the crowd is, the better the show. So cheer and have fun from your seats. It makes it better for your kids and the actors really get into it when they feel the crowd reacting. Make the show great, you can!!:yoda: LOL

Hope that helps! We LOVE Jedi Training Academy. It's such a fun experience!!



I posted this awhile ago to give someone details on the Jedi Academy. We are going in June, and I've heard that the sign up location may change? I believe it was because they were possibly adding the Autopia Fastpass machines back in ahead of the MaxPass rollout...think that was posted on the Disneyland Parks Blog? Does anyone have any info on whether they are changing things with Jedi Academy? Thanks!!:teeth:
 




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