All the Ways MagicBand+ Can Make Your Trip to Disney World Easier and More Enjoyable

MagicBand+ is Walt Disney World’s latest version of wearable park technology. It adds interactive park features and works as a pass throughout the parks. I’ve made multiple Disney World trips without one and considered it unnecessary. Why spend at least $35 on a wristband I wouldn’t wear anywhere but the parks?

But on a recent trip, I picked one up and gave it a try.

I found that MagicBand+ added convenience while enhancing the magic of Disney World. Although I could still go without it, I’m glad I have a band, and I enjoyed the functionality and fun it brought to the parks.

Here’s a look at what the MagicBand+ does, how it compares to using a mobile wallet, and everything I did with my band while exploring Disney World.

What Is a MagicBand+?

A MagicBand+ is Disney wearable tech that functions as a park pass, resort key, payment method, and entertainment device. It looks like a watch without a face or screen, but it lights up, vibrates, and uses radio frequency technology to interact with elements throughout the parks, resorts, and Disney Springs.

You can use it to enter the parks and Lightning Lanes, open the door to your Disney hotel room, and pay for purchases if you’ve enabled charging to your room. Though you could do all that with a previous MagicBand version, the MagicBand+ adds lights, gentle vibration effects, and interactive features that sync with some in-park experiences.

You have to charge MagicBand+ using the provided charger. If the battery runs out, it will still work for payments and park and Lightning Lane entry functions, but the lights, vibrations, and interactivity won’t.

Hot Tip:

Though a MagicBand+ can work as a park pass, it’s not your only option. You can use a provided Disney card or add your pass to your mobile wallet for free.

Is a MagicBand+ Worth It?

I’ve been a MagicBand+ holdout, considering it an unnecessary expense I could trim from my Disney World budget. Everyone in my family except me got an upgraded MagicBand+, and they’ve enjoyed them, but I wasn’t sure it was worth the $35 to over $50 just to tap into parks and rides when I could use my phone or Disney card for no additional cost. That’s Lightning Lane money!

I was annoyed that I bought an original MagicBand years ago and would need to buy another. Resort guests used to get the bands for free, but now they’re a separate charge (although you can buy them at a discount as a resort guest). I also felt weird about wearing a watch on one arm and a band on the other or a watch and band on the same arm — awkward!

While my family used MagicBand+ throughout the parks, I used my mobile wallet to get into the parks and Lightning Lanes and figured that was good enough for me. But now that I have a MagicBand+, I can see the appeal. It made park and line entry easier, allowed me to interact with elements you can’t access without a MagicBand+, enhanced rides and shows, and made payments easier.

You can definitely live without a MagicBand+ at Disney World, and I’ve done so on multiple occasions, but it was nice to have and enhanced my visit.

A MagicBand+ is good if you:

• Are traveling with kids and don’t want to juggle multiple cards or passes in your mobile wallet
• Frequently tap into Lightning Lanes
• Want to reduce phone use in the parks for less screen time and more battery life
• Would like to interact with park features, such as bounty hunts and character statues
• Like the band designs

You might want to skip getting a MagicBand+ if you’re only visiting for a day, want to save money, or are happy to use your phone to access the parks and Lightning Lanes.

Hot Tip:

Use your Disney^® Visa^® Card or Disney^® Premier Visa^® card to buy your MagicBand+ and get 10% off with your merchandise discount.

How I Used a MagicBand+ at Disney World

Here’s a hands-on look at MagicBand+ features from a recent trip to the parks.

Unlocked Our Resort Room

I used my MagicBand+ to unlock my room door at Animal Kingdom Lodge. I didn’t have to look for a key I buried somewhere in a bag earlier that morning or fumble with an app while I was ready to get in and relax. I just held my arm to the key reader and was in.

Hot Tip:

Resort guests who check in using the My Disney Experience app can bypass the front desk and go straight to their room, opening the door with a MagicBand+.

Got Into the Parks

At the entrance to each park, I tapped my MagicBand+ to the touch point and scanned my fingertip, then waited for the green light and happy chime signaling I could head into the park. It was easy and took just seconds.

The park entry feature is where I was most skeptical about the benefit of using a MagicBand+. I previously used my mobile wallet for park entry, but it wasn’t until I used my MagicBand+ that I realized it was much easier to use the band.

I have multiple passes loaded on my phone for my family. At park entrances and Lightning Lanes, I would have to open my wallet app to select the right one before tapping in. Then, I had to put my phone away and scan my fingertip for park entry. It didn’t take long, but tapping my MagicBand+ was simpler with no phone juggling.

Entered Lightning Lanes

Like park entry, I used my MagicBand+ to tap the touch point at Lightning Lanes and quickly enter the attraction. It was easier than opening my mobile wallet and navigating to my pass to tap in.

When my kids forgot their MagicBands at home on a recent trip, I was the annoying person holding up the Lightning Lane entry as I scanned my pass and theirs, flipping through mobile wallet passes and sending kids in one by one.

Having a MagicBand+ also made getting a Multiple Experiences pass easier after a ride malfunction. I’ve been issued these when I was on a ride that broke down (like Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, which has happened so many times that we have a family joke that we are the reason it breaks). When that happens, cast members come out with iPads to issue Multiple Experiences passes that work as a flexible Lightning Lane you can use to return to the same attraction or visit another qualifying attraction.

With my phone, I had to navigate to a QR code within my mobile wallet to get my pass loaded to my account — an extra “Show Code” step beyond navigating to my main pass card. On this visit, when we got stuck on Kilimanjaro Safaris behind a broken-down truck, it was as easy as a quick boop of the iPad with my MagicBand+ — no digging for my phone or flipping through wallet screens.

Linked PhotoPass Photos

Using PhotoPass and my MagicBand, collecting photos throughout the parks was easy. When I visited a PhotoPass photographer, I tapped my band to their reader, and the photo showed up in my photo gallery in the My Disney Experience app (iOS, Android).

Another great feature of PhotoPass with MagicBand+ was that it automatically added ride photos to my photo gallery. All I had to do was wear my MagicBand+ on a ride with a photo, and I’d see the photo in the app a few minutes later.

Made Purchases

With a payment card on file for my Disney resort hotel room, I could use my MagicBand+ as a touchless payment method. I usually tap to pay with my phone, but I could keep it in my pocket while using my band. That was especially convenient when making food purchases because I could avoid juggling my phone with a food tray.

Hot Tip:

If you have a Disney Dining plan, you can redeem credits using your MagicBand+.

Enhanced Rides and Fireworks Shows

The MagicBand+ offers many functional features, but it’s also fun. I noticed my band light up or pick up haptic vibrations on certain rides. It also played along with shows, like the “Happily Ever After” fireworks at Magic Kingdom.

Bounty Hunted in Batuu

Galaxy’s Edge at Star Wars has an interactive feature you can only access with a MagicBand+. I headed to the bounty hunters panel between the droid shop and market and used my MagicBand+ to sign up for a bounty.

After I tapped my MagicBand+ to the touch point, the screen lit up with my assigned bounty and told me how much I’d earn for capturing the creature.

From there, my MagicBand+ helped guide me to the bounty, lighting up green when I was on the right track, red when I was heading the wrong way, and purple when I found my bounty. I used my MagicBand+ to tap touch points in the market to capture my bounty.

Then, I returned to a door next to the bounty sign-up panel to turn in the bounty and collect my credits. The credits aren’t worth anything but bragging rights, but it was a fun, interactive experience I could only do with my MagicBand+.

Interacted With Character Sculptures

There are 50 Disney character sculptures throughout the parks. These are fun to look at, but I could interact with them using my MagicBand+.

When I spotted a golden character, I approached it and waved my band in a circular motion near its sensor. That activated the sculpture’s sound, which was a greeting, music, or other sound. When I visited the Simba, Timon, and Pumbaa sculptures and activated them using my MagicBand+, Pumbaa snorted and Simba laughed.

Final Thoughts

Using my band made my visit to the parks easier and more fun. I had fewer moments fumbling with my phone and more chances to interact with the parks. If you’re visiting for a short time or sticking to a tight budget, you can have a great trip without a MagicBand+, but a MagicBand+ is a great way to add more convenience and magic to your Disney World vacation.

MagicBand+ isn’t a must-have for a Disney World trip, but it’s definitely nice to have. If you’re staying on-site, using Lightning Lanes, or want a more immersive experience, getting a MagicBand+ can be worthwhile.