WDW Magic bands at DL?

[chris1212]

We have Magic bands from a few years ago at WDW, are we able to use them at Disneyland? Or are they different and don't work between them?

 

[LKing]

Disneyland only uses Magic Bands +. Do you have MB+?

 

[CoachBeard]

MB+ work, I used mine yesterday. There isn't as much interaction and most people don't use them but the new turnstyles accommodate them like at WDW (currently they scan your band with a phone). You can use for LL and it lit up and vibrated while exiting HM. I believe it gets a little wild with Fantasmic too.

 

[ilovebassets]

Only MB+ as another poster stated. And judging by our recent trip, you'll be one of only a handful of people in the park using them. We had a few other guests asking us "what are those" when we used them earlier this month.

 

[chris1212]

I don't think ours are MB+, are those the ones that need to be charged? Is there a way to tell which version we have?

We are also fine using the plastic cards if our MB's don't work. Do we get these when we check into the hotel? Right now in the Disney app nothing shows under tickets, will they once we get there and get the cards?

 

[bluecruiser]

I don't think ours are MB+, are those the ones that need to be charged? Is there a way to tell which version we have?

MB+ are the only ones that need to be charged. The "puck" shape on MB+ is a rounded square where the puck shape on MB is more oval. If you google MagicBand+ vs MagicBand you can see some examples (here's one).

 

[irlandaise]

We are also fine using the plastic cards if our MB's don't work. Do we get these when we check into the hotel? Right now in the Disney app nothing shows under tickets, will they once we get there and get the cards?

Do you mean plastic cards for park tickets? DL doesn't do that. When and how did you purchase your park tickets? They should show up in your app, but I've read comments in this forum that depending how you bought them, they may not show up until a few days before your trip. Tell us how you purchased them and others here can tell you whether they should be in the app by now.

 

[chris1212]

Do you mean plastic cards for park tickets? DL doesn't do that. When and how did you purchase your park tickets? They should show up in your app, but I've read comments in this forum that depending how you bought them, they may not show up until a few days before your trip. Tell us how you purchased them and others here can tell you whether they should be in the app by now.

I guess I'm used to WDW, does DL still use the plastic cards to scan into the park, as well as for lightning lanes?

We bought our tickets from Disney, hotel and tickets together. We are there in a week, so I would have thought we should see them by now? I can see our hotel reservation and our park reservations in the app right now, just not the tickets.

 

[brightlined]

...

 

[brightlined]

I guess I'm used to WDW, does DL still use the plastic cards to scan into the park, as well as for lightning lanes?

We bought our tickets from Disney, hotel and tickets together. We are there in a week, so I would have thought we should see them by now? I can see our hotel reservation and our park reservations in the app right now, just not the tickets.

DLR doesn't issue physical cards as its standard anymore. You may be able to get one from Guest Services if you need one. Otherwise, you'll use the app for admission and LL.

 

[MonocularVision]

I don't think ours are MB+, are those the ones that need to be charged? Is there a way to tell which version we have?

FYI: the MB+ have both NFC and Bluetooth. The Bluetooth portion needs charging and is only used for the “interactive experiences” throughout the park.

The NFC portion is used for park entrance and Lightning Lane admission and doesn’t need charging.

 

[chris1212]

DLR doesn't issue physical cards as its standard anymore. You may be able to get one from Guest Services if you need one. Otherwise, you'll use the app for admission and LL.

Thanks for the info! So what happens if my phone battery doesn't last, how do we scan in for LL's then? Sorry we have been to WDW lots and DL only once a number of years ago.

 

[brightlined]

Thanks for the info! So what happens if my phone battery doesn't last, how do we scan in for LL's then? Sorry we have been to WDW lots and DL only once a number of years ago.

Yeah, that's kind of the philosophical question for life at DLR. There's not a built-in backup - you'll have to plan for that.

Like I said - some people have success getting paper tickets at Guest Services if you think you'll need them. You can add your tickets to multiple phones, too - so if there's another adult, you could have them be the backup. Personally, I'll usually take a break midday and charge my phone during the break. (To be fair, I have an MB+ now, so it's an optional thing, but I feel better starting the late round with a fresher phone.)

 

[irlandaise]

Personally, I'll usually take a break midday and charge my phone during the break. (To be fair, I have an MB+ now, so it's an optional thing, but I feel better starting the late round with a fresher phone.)

DL has installed a number of places to charge phones, but I carry a power brick with me. Also, I got a new phone not too many months ago, so it still has very good battery life.

Like you, I used a MagicBand last time I was at DL.

 

[LKing]

You might consider buying a Fuel Rod before visiting. There are free exchange locations in both parks as well as in DTD.

https://www.amazon.com/FuelRod-Portable-Charger-Kit-Rechargeable/dp/B08CXP1H6Q

 

[neverlandsky]

Used MB+ from WDW. Was a bit of a learning curve to get them connected to the Disneyland app. Google helped a bit when one MB+ wouldn’t connect and gave step by step instructions to reset. Had to do software updates on both MB+ since it was 7 months since we used them last.

With ME from LL, was easier with phone app to redeem the ME barcode for each person.

Personally, I don’t do battery packs and we go to the parks bag free. I just put my phone on battery saver. By the time we take a break and recharge in the room my phone is in the low 60%-low 70%.

If I couldn’t get the MB+ working our plan b was to screenshot everyone’s ticket and have them put it on their cellphone background.

When we were at DL/DCA mostly everyone was using their cellphones over MB+.

 

[laugard]

Used MB+ from WDW. Was a bit of a learning curve to get them connected to the Disneyland app. Google helped a bit when one MB+ wouldn’t connect and gave step by step instructions to reset. Had to do software updates on both MB+ since it was 7 months since we used them last.

With ME from LL, was easier with phone app to redeem the ME barcode for each person.

Personally, I don’t do battery packs and we go to the parks bag free. I just put my phone on battery saver. By the time we take a break and recharge in the room my phone is in the low 60%-low 70%.

If I couldn’t get the MB+ working our plan b was to screenshot everyone’s ticket and have them put it on their cellphone background.

When we were at DL/DCA mostly everyone was using their cellphones over MB+.

I'm curious, what did you find easier about using your phone to redeem MEs? I love that with the MB+ I can just scan and don't need to pull up the my ME passes on my phone once the time arrives, so I'm just wondering.

 

[irlandaise]

If I couldn’t get the MB+ working our plan b was to screenshot everyone’s ticket and have them put it on their cellphone background.

Excellent idea in case the MB or DL app acts up. As long as your phone has a working battery, you can bring up your photos.

 

[neverlandsky]

I'm curious, what did you find easier about using your phone to redeem MEs? I love that with the MB+ I can just scan and don't need to pull up the my ME passes on my phone once the time arrives, so I'm just wondering.

Under the app when a LL schedule ride was down for your time slot, it dropped a ME pass. It had a redeem button to click and you clicked it and it brought up the bar codes to scan. It was nice where we didn’t have to reschedule a ME for a time slot like we had to do our last visit at DL October 2023.

 

[laugard]

Under the app when a LL schedule ride was down for your time slot, it dropped a ME pass. It had a redeem button to click and you clicked it and it brought up the bar codes to scan. It was nice where we didn’t have to reschedule a ME for a time slot like we had to do our last visit at DL October 2023.

Gotcha, thought I might've missed something. It's always nice to get a ME pass! Just a small tip for next time, with the MB+, you don't even need to bring up the ME pass on your phone and click redeem. Once you see you have one, anyone attached to that ME can just scan their MB+.