Magic Bands fitting properly/ do you carry hard ticket back up

[clm10308]

When my Son lost his magic band in a park, we went to guest services and they gave us a card. Since the ticket is in MDE, losing the band was not a big deal. Later that e ending we went to the front desk of the hotel and they gave him a new band. His original band did turn up in lost and found the next day.

 

[kiford]

I have very small wrists too. I've not lost an MB yet (5 and counting - 3 v1.0 and 2 v2.0). I just click in as many of the points as possible and I've not even had any of them pop out.

 

[mydisneyanytime]

We always carry an extra band, especially for my son. We have extras so that makes it easy.

 

[Tallis]

If fastened properly, it would take a situation to make them come off. They won't just come undone while you're walking around or on rides.

We are FL residents who go all the time and never lost one. Even my grandchildren, who lose everything, have never had them come off.

 

[Fangorn]

I, personally, do carry my tickets as back-up. That's not because I assume the Magic Band will pop off my wrist and get lost. It's because I don't trust Disney IT.

Ok, I can't let this one go by and not comment on it...

While I totally get the not trusting Disney IT thing, you do realize that the tech in the bands and the tech in your hard plastic credit card type tickets is EXACTLY the same, right? There is fundamentally no difference between the two other than the form factor. Nothing is stored ON either the band or the card except an access code that is associated with your MDE account. Bands (and cards) are merely keys that open your account and allow the tap stations to see the data in your account. You can have multiple "keys". Assuming you have tickets and FP that show up in your MDE account, you could show up at Disney with neither a band nor a card, and Guest Services or a ticket booth could still find you through your email address/MDE account and quickly attach another card or band to your account and send you on your merry way.


Steve

 

[minniebeth]

Ok, I can't let this one go by and not comment on it...

While I totally get the not trusting Disney IT thing, you do realize that the tech in the bands and the tech in your hard plastic credit card type tickets is EXACTLY the same, right? There is fundamentally no difference between the two other than the form factor. Nothing is stored ON either the band or the card except an access code that is associated with your MDE account. Bands (and cards) are merely keys that open your account and allow the tap stations to see the data in your account. You can have multiple "keys". Assuming you have tickets and FP that show up in your MDE account, you could show up at Disney with neither a band nor a card, and Guest Services or a ticket booth could still find you through your email address/MDE account and quickly attach another card or band to your account and send you on your merry way.


Steve

This wasn't necessarily our experience. For some reason, my son's tickets were not showing up on the Magicband (and MDE account). They still wanted to see proof of ticket purchase (email or hard copy) WITH an ID AND the credit card it was purchased on. Which pretty much defeats the point of the Magicbands, right? We had the email and ID but not the credit card. They "let it go" because everyone else in our party had the correct ticket info. I'm not sure why it was so hard, but it was less than magical. That's why I make sure to have proof of ticket with me, we carry a bag for the parks, so it's no big deal.

 

[AngiTN]

Personally, I don't worry about a back up of the band since if I did loose my band I could always go buy a new one, connect it to MDE and continue right on my way. Wouldn't take any time.

This wasn't necessarily our experience. For some reason, my son's tickets were not showing up on the Magicband (and MDE account). They still wanted to see proof of ticket purchase (email or hard copy) WITH an ID AND the credit card it was purchased on. Which pretty much defeats the point of the Magicbands, right? We had the email and ID but not the credit card. They "let it go" because everyone else in our party had the correct ticket info. I'm not sure why it was so hard, but it was less than magical. That's why I make sure to have proof of ticket with me, we carry a bag for the parks, so it's no big deal.

I know of one other person that has issues with a child's ticket and nothing they can do will get the ticket and the MB to connect.
They have to fix it every single trip. It defies all logic
A plastic ticket will, and does work. Registered to the same MDE account and assigned to the same child. Just that scanning a MB won't show the child in questions ticket. It's almost like the child exists on 2 different accounts or there's 2 instances of the same child in the 1 account. Though the parent in question has only got 1 account and no other person has the children on their account and there are not 2 instances of the child showing up. So whatever is going on, it's on the background somewhere.
All that to say, it's not unheard of for someone to have a MB and it not work but to have a ticket and have it work. It shouldn't happen but can/does.

 

[bumbershoot]

Either trim it until it fits (don’t forget to file down rough parts) or take off the backing. No need to spend even more money on this.

But regardless of the size, as long as you firmly press the band closed, it should not come off.

A couple others have mentioned this.

And while it might be true that some have never had a closed band come off, it certainly is NOT true for others.

I tend to wear a backpack at WDW. Small, but a backpack. I’ve also worn a crossbody. I tend to take those off to get things through out the day. And the natural action of taking the bag off can pull off the band. It’s happened a couple times. So far I personally have noticed it before it disappears. Others don’t.

A properly closed band can, in fact, come off with normal activities.

Ok, I can't let this one go by and not comment on it...

While I totally get the not trusting Disney IT thing, you do realize that the tech in the bands and the tech in your hard plastic credit card type tickets is EXACTLY the same, right?

Thank you for not letting it go by.

That's why I make sure to have proof of ticket with me

You had the band. And they couldn’t see what was attached to it. As others have said, the cards now are just the same; they are a way to access the info on MDE

So in your case, where they needed proof of purchase, not the object being read to get at MDE, the email is better than the bit of plastic.

Because if MDE is glitching, it’s possible that no bit of plastic-that-accesses-MDE is going to help or work

 

[fla4fun]

I have to carry my card to get the AP discount. But I haven’t lost a MB yet and have enough to make a chain to put on the Christmas tree. I did buy a Magickeeper, which I change out the puck in maybe every other trip. When I first started wearing MB they sold cloth sleeves which made them more comfortable in hot weather. The sleeve doesn’t fit over the puck section of the newer bands, but it does cover the rest, including the fastener.

In my opinion, it never hurts to have the ticket on a card as backup, so if you do lose a band you can replace it at your convenience.

 

[GillianP1301]

Either trim it until it fits (don’t forget to file down rough parts) or take off the backing. No need to spend even more money on this.



A couple others have mentioned this.

And while it might be true that some have never had a closed band come off, it certainly is NOT true for others.

I tend to wear a backpack at WDW. Small, but a backpack. I’ve also worn a crossbody. I tend to take those off to get things through out the day. And the natural action of taking the bag off can pull off the band. It’s happened a couple times. So far I personally have noticed it before it disappears. Others don’t.

A properly closed band can, in fact, come off with normal activities.

"Should not" being the operative words. Nothing is impossible, really. That's why I also mentioned that a bitbelts are a good option for extra security, if you are worried about it. I would add to that if you know it's been an issue for you in the past.

I will add that bands falling off is not a huge issue or we would see them lying all over the parks. Do I see the odd one in a pool? Sure, and I bet lost and found has lots, but it's probably still a very small percentage of the total number out there. Sometimes I think people will get the wrong impression that bands falling off is a huge issue from posts like this because of a few anecdotal posts. I just like to counter that with my own anecdotal post.

At the end of he day, it's not the end of the world if you do lose it, guest services will replace it for you. A bit of a hassle, but not the end of the world. The suggestion of carrying a card ticket as backup is another good risk mitigation (bitbelt being the other one noted) and would save a person having to make their way to guest services if they are trying to scan a fastpass that is going to expire in a few minutes, for example.

 

[Louie7080]

I tend to wear a backpack at WDW. Small, but a backpack. I’ve also worn a crossbody. I tend to take those off to get things through out the day. And the natural action of taking the bag off can pull off the band. It’s happened a couple times. So far I personally have noticed it before it disappears. Others don’t.

I think this happens with me - I always carry a pack for my family and getting things out of it all day long for them and me. We bring in our own food and drinks for the whole day so I am probably in an out of my pack more than others. I do think that for me the bands I lost got pulled off due to this repeated action and that I wore them loosely because of the rash I was developing.

 

[PrincessWithABlaster]

My DD just found a MB at the bottom of the pool at the Contemporary. She gave it to the lifeguard and about 15 min later the woman returned for it. We found 3 of them in the pool last year. We've never seen one in a park. So I would say in our experience the pool is the place they come off. We carry last year's MBs in our park bag so that if someone loses one, we can go about our day until it's convenient to get it replaced. Ticket cards would work the same way. We've never lost an MB but I'm sure the time I forget (or decide) not to put last year's in the bag, it'll happen.

 

[nurseberta]

When my Son lost his magic band in a park, we went to guest services and they gave us a card. Since the ticket is in MDE, losing the band was not a big deal. Later that e ending we went to the front desk of the hotel and they gave him a new band. His original band did turn up in lost and found the next day.

This is exactly what I’m trying to avoid. I’m a little surprised that the bands don’t have a safety lock of some kind. I know most people probably don’t lose theirs but I’ve seen enough posts from People who have lost them to think it’s a least a minor issue. And who wants to go to guest services unless they really have to!

 

[nurseberta]

"Should not" being the operative words. Nothing is impossible, really. That's why I also mentioned that a bitbelts are a good option for extra security, if you are worried about it. I would add to that if you know it's been an issue for you in the past.

I will add that bands falling off is not a huge issue or we would see them lying all over the parks. Do I see the odd one in a pool? Sure, and I bet lost and found has lots, but it's probably still a very small percentage of the total number out there. Sometimes I think people will get the wrong impression that bands falling off is a huge issue from posts like this because of a few anecdotal posts. I just like to counter that with my own anecdotal post.

At the end of he day, it's not the end of the world if you do lose it, guest services will replace it for you. A bit of a hassle, but not the end of the world. The suggestion of carrying a card ticket as backup is another good risk mitigation (bitbelt being the other one noted) and would save a person having to make their way to guest services if they are trying to scan a fastpass that is going to expire in a few minutes, for example.

All very good points! Exactly why I love this forum!!! I happen to have a kid with sensory needs and mild anxiety so I tend to make back-up plans part of out daily schedule. Having to go to guest services and mess up our schedule might be an inconvenience I don't want to chance. I’m a planner and have back ups for my backups and then hopefully it doesn’t throw him off too much! With our luck, my kid is the one who loses it!!’ Lol. As long as I cAn use the hard ticket for FP that is good enough. Then I can replace a stray band at a more. convenient time!!

 

[cmwade77]

I bought a MagicKeeper and put it on a Lanyard as I hate stuff on my wrist.

 

[eva]

We always bring our hard copy tickets with us the first time we enter a park. It is just a habit of ours because we had issues the first time we used MBs. The tickets weren’t showing on the bands. So we had to go back to the resort and get the hard copy ticket. That is another reason I always buy a hard copy ticket, not a code, from a third party source. I know with MDE now I should be able to pull up the app and show them the tickets. But it gives me piece of mind to have that ticket with me the first time I walk into a park.

Note: When I say hard copy ticket that is the paper ticket we buy from UT, not the plastic card you can get from Disney at check in. That plastic card is just an iteration of what is on the MB, as Fangorn stated earlier.

 

[Searc]

We always bring our hard copy tickets with us the first time we enter a park. It is just a habit of ours because we had issues the first time we used MBs. The tickets weren’t showing on the bands. So we had to go back to the resort and get the hard copy ticket. That is another reason I always buy a hard copy ticket, not a code, from a third party source. I know with MDE now I should be able to pull up the app and show them the tickets. But it gives me piece of mind to have that ticket with me the first time I walk into a park.

Note: When I say hard copy ticket that is the paper ticket we buy from UT, not the plastic card you can get from Disney at check in. That plastic card is just an iteration of what is on the MB, as Fangorn stated earlier.

UCT sells two versions of Disney tickets...an emailed code or a hard plastic ticket.

 

[eva]

UCT sells two versions of Disney tickets...an emailed code or a hard plastic ticket.

You are right. They are plastic now. I just pulled mine out for this next trip and double checked. They used to be a laminated type firm paper. I have a number of those too. They are the old non-expiring tickets. I still have 25+ admissions of minor parks. LOL! Way back before MB were even thought of.

 

[BalooFan]

I am another adult with small wrists who removes the gray strap and uses the child-sized band. If you are concerned about doing this, you may ask around to see if any friends or family members have an old child-sized MB that you could try on. Before I took the plunge and removed the gray strap on a new MB, I removed it from one of my old MB and tried it on for size.

I haven’t lost a MB, but I did have it come off once when I caught it on something when I got off the carousel. I felt it come off, so I picked it up. I have to wonder how many MBs are lost because they aren’t fitted properly. I don’t know how many times I have seen children wearing MB without the adult band removed that could easily slip off their wrists. All that being said, I have ever seen a lost MB at WDW. I find them to be quite secure.

 

[dreamit]

We've used these on our bands, and they work and fit great.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B010OX42WO?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title