It has been hailed as a game-changing technology for the
theme park industry. It has been reviled
and feared by many who don’t want changes to “their” theme park experience. It is something that I have been slow to
speak on, as I don’t know that I fully appreciate it for what it can and will
do yet or not. At the very least I’m being cautious before making any public judgments
on the system, waiting to reserve personal judgment on it. But no matter, my thoughts or feelings Walt
Disney World fully announced last month that their new MagicBand bracelet is
here, and will enable guests at Walt Disney World to enter the parks, purchase
food and merchandise, unlock their hotel rooms and access certain rides with a
wave of their wrists. A similar system is supposed to be unveiled at Disneyland
next year.

Dennis Speigel, president of International Theme Park
Services, a Cincinnati-based theme park consulting company, stated, “It’s going
to reshape how the customer interfaces with the park. Disney always sets the bar for our industry.
… This is the future.”
Within the official announcement, made by Tom Staggs,
Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, was this statement by Staggs, “Imagine booking guaranteed ride times for
your favorite shows and attractions, even before setting foot in the park, with
MyMagic+, guests will be able to do that and more, enabling them to spend more
time together and creating an experience that’s better for everyone.”
So what exactly IS MyMagic+?

As presented by Staggs, FastPass+ is purported to enable
guests to book not only their dining reservations in advance of their vacation,
but also other experiences, including reserving times for certain attractions
and shows well in advance of their actual park visit. Additionally, guests are supposed to be able to reserve viewing
areas for fireworks and parades, as well as schedule meetings with Disney
characters long before they ever set foot inside the theme parks. And the MagicBand bracelets provide access to
all the FastPass+ experiences selected and will serve as a connection to Disney’s
PhotoPass program, which enables guests to take, store and share their photos
from the theme parks. In order to allow flexibility, the new system is supposed
to also give guests with smartphones the ability to change their pre-made plans
while they are actually inside the parks.
The system certainly sounds impressive, but at the same
time it does give a very real feeling that the theme park experience will no
longer be a spontaneous one. When
FastPass was first introduced in 1999, and with the advent of pre-planning
meals up to 180 days in advance the spontaneity factor was certainly
diminished. This only augments it even
further. I know from personal experience
I have a hard time figuring out where I want to eat six months in advance of a
trip – and now I’ll need to make sure to figure out which characters I want to
see, as well as which attractions I want to ride so far in advance!! Sounds crazy to me, but Disney certainly has
the research behind their programming to indicate that many guests LOVE this
type of experience… planned down to the last moment. Thank goodness for the in-park flexibility of
being able to make changes. Hopefully
this new system will actually allow for enough vacancies at attractions and
restaurants in order to actually mean changes can be made easily! Again, only time will tell.
Initially the new MagicBand will be made available to
select Walt Disney World Resort hotel guests, as the same technology is being used within the resorts themselves. All room entry locks are in the process of being converted to the new locks as shown above. Guests simply pass their Key to the World card - or the new MagicBands - near the Mickey shape, and when it lights up green, they are able to enter their room.. Other guests will be able to use their standard ticket to access the
benefits of MyMagic+, such as making FastPass+ selections on the My Disney
Experience website. MagicBand bracelets will be distributed in lieu of the
paper tickets currently used. The bracelets will also serve as an optional
payment technology when linked to credit card information, if guests choose to
use it. Eventually all paper tickets
will be completely phased out as this new technology completely replaces it in
all of the theme parks within the Disney universe.
MyMagic+… the future is now, and coming true within the
Disney theme parks in 2013 and beyond!