Today we are heading to Hollywood Studios at Disney World to experience using MagicBand+ for the 1st time. We are looking forward to seeing what the new MagicBand+ can do. But we are also trying some new restaurants and our daughter is ready to experience some new rides!
Planning MagicBand+ at Hollywood Studios
MagicBands have been out for a while, but the new MagicBand+ has even more magic. Not only do they light-up, but they interact with your Disney experience. And there is no better place to experience MagicBand+ then at Hollywood Studios. They light up during night time spectaculars, and interact with Fab 50 statues, but there’s more. In Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge you can become a bounty hunter!
So we did some research and found a 1 day itinerary for Hollywood Studios that we want to try. It starts before the park opens aka “rope drop” and continues throughout the day. And it works out with our current dining plans. It calls for an early lunch and we scored a lunch reservation at Sci-Fi Dine-In Theatre at 10:45AM. Since it’s an early lunch, we also book an early dinner at 4:30PM at Hollywood & Vine.
The other thing is our daughter wants to ride the Tower of Terror for the first time. Her best friend rode it, so now of course she has to ride it. And the itinerary says the Tower is a good option for rope drop since many people rush to Toy Story or Star Wars lands. So, we’ll plan to do this first and hopefully have time to do something else before lunch. Between, lunch and dinner is the busiest time in the park, and a good time to try MagicBand+ at Hollywood Studios. And my brother Chris and family are coming and we plan to ride more rides with them. And after dinner we should see reduced wait times when others are eating until the park closes at 9:00PM.
Rope Drop
The park opens at 8:30AM today. But resort guests can get in before us with early entry at 8:00AM. This puts us at a disadvantage. But we hope we still can get to the Tower of Terror before the lines are really long. We also heard one of the elevators isn’t working so the wait times can get longer than usual. But we are in line at 8:15AM, 15 minutes before rope drop. Though the lines to get in are long and it takes us almost 10 minutes to get through.
Once in, we look at wait times on the app and see 3 of the major rides are temporarily closed! This includes the Tower of Terror! With our plan already failing, we head toward the ride to see if it opens before we get there. But when we do, we see cast members in a line in front of the ride. They tell us the ride is closed and they don’t know when it will be open. Disappointed and still tired from waking up early, we decide to get coffee at Trolley Car Cafe. It’s a few minutes walk away though it takes time waiting in line to order.
As we are waiting to get our coffee we see the ride has opened and already has a 20 minute wait. If we would have known, we could have waited by the ride. But by the time we get our coffee, it is now a 40 minute wait so we rush to the ride. In 23 minutes it went from ride closed to 40 minute wait. But we still think this will be a shorter wait than later in the day, so we get in line.
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
Our daughter is really excited about riding the Tower of Terror for her first time. Becky and I have ridden this ride multiple times in the past. Though Becky hates it and is only doing it today for our daughter. The line starts as soon as we get to the ride and from experience this line already looks longer than 40 minutes. But we have an hour and 35 minutes until our early lunch and should have plenty of time.
After 55 minutes we look at the app to see the ride is now showing a 120 minute wait time. We’re already in line 15 minutes past the posted wait time and still not inside the building. We are debating whether to leave before lunch or stay and hope we can make it. But at this point, we are almost in the building and we see Goofy. And not only is Goofy hanging out and entertaining people in line, his son Max is with him. We’ve never seen Max before so that’s a first! This makes us feel better as we keep seeing people in the lightning lane pass us. And 10 minutes later we are finally inside, but have less than 30 minutes until lunch.
Once inside we go through a short line before going into a room. Here we get an introduction to the Hollywood Hotel by Rod Serling. And once out, there is still more line before getting on the ride. We finally get on the ride at 10:38AM, almost 90 minutes later. But the ride itself is still great and our daughter loves it. She says she wants to ride it again, but after the 5 minute ride we only have 2 minutes until lunch.
Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Lunch
We race across the park to get to the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater checking in on the app on the way. 3 minutes late, we need to hit the restrooms after all the coffee. But before we can find them, our table is called. The restaurant is designed like an old 50’s drive-in theater where you get to sit in a car. And in front is a large screen that plays mostly old sci-fi movie clips. This is Becky and our daughter’s first time, though it’s been at least 15 years since I’ve been here. You can read more about it here: Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant | Walt Disney World Resort.
We’re seated in the 1st 2 rows in a car near the back with great views of the screen. And this place hasn’t changed a bit since the last time I dined here. You can still get classic hamburgers with fries and a shake just at higher prices. But they also have other options including vegan choices. I order the Classic American Burger without the lettuce and sub onion-rings for fries for an additional $2.49. Becky orders the Drive-in BBQ Burger and our daughter gets a kids cheeseburger.
Though my burger comes with bacon and cheese, they left lettuce on it, but no burger sauce. In any case I add ketchup, but it’s just ok. The onion rings are tasty, however, they didn’t settle very well later. Becky and our daughter come to the same conclusion though the kids’ meal comes with 2 sides. She gets corn on the cob which she eats and an ice cream sundae which she doesn’t. Not sure why, but we’re fueled up and ready to use MagicBand+ at Hollywood Studios!
Star Wars: Batuu Bounty Hunters with MagicBand+
Today we each are using a MagicBand+ for the first time. And there are basically 3 things you can do with the MagicBand+ that you can’t do with regular MagicBands. And the coolest thing may be in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in Hollywood Studios. Only with the MagicBand+ you can become a bounty hunter just like in Star Wars. To begin the hunt we must 1st go to the bounty board to accept a job. You can find it across from the Ronto Roasters next to the area that looks like a workshop for vehicles.
Here you will see a screen with a place to scan your MagicBand+. Once scanned in, the screen shows your bounty and the hunt is on. All 3 of us scan our MagicBands and head to the market. The way it works is the band will vibrate and light up green when you’re headed in the right direction. And it will light up red and vibrate differently if you go too far. When you find the bounty it will then vibrate and light up purple. It is hard to see the lights during the day in the Sun, but the vibrations are different which helps. And even though we all scan our 1st bounties, it sends us in different directions.
On the Disney World app it also tells us we can use the Play Disney Parks app for a more immersive experience. Becky and I both have the separate app downloaded on our phones, but it is not necessary to play.
Finding the Bounties
I wind up leaving the market where Becky finds her bounty to go to the other side of Black Spire Outpost. I wind up finding my 1st bounty near the Cantina near the Millennium Falcon. The Play Disney app really helps especially in the day time. It also provides photos and additional information, but all AR technology. When the bounty is near, you can scan it using your phone to locate it.
And once located, the app keeps track of your located targets. Once you find one, you head back to where you start. However, on the wall next to the bounty board is the Guildmaster’s Hideout. Here is where you scan your band after collecting a bounty. Eyes will light up behind a door and a creature talks to you about your bounty. He will also give you credits for your catch. What’s neat is the creature says something different each time you collect another bounty. And from here, you scan another job on the bounty board and look again. After the 1st one, it gets easier. And we each find 3 bounties in about an hour before we meet Chris and the girls.
Meeting the Cousins and Star Wars rides
We meet up with Chris and the girls in front of the Millennium Falcon. And we enter line for Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run. Since there are 7 of us, we have to split up and Becky hangs back. The rest of us head into the cockpit. Our daughter gets to pilot with her cousin Chloe where we take on much damage. One of these days we’ll figure out how to get Chewbacca to help.
Afterwards we go to check out the other Star Wars ride, Rise of the Resistance. But it is temporarily closed. So, Chris and girls go to Woody’s Lunchbox for lunch while we go to the Muppets show. For some reasons our daughter does not want to see this show but we take her anyway. Becky still loves this classic and it’s still funny. Afterwards we meet back up at Rise of the Resistance and it’s open. We are able to get on the ride and our daughter gets to sit in the front between her cousins. We love both the Star Wars rides, but we’ve done these before. But our next ride will be another first time experience for our daughter.
First Time on Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster and More
After leaving Galaxy’s Edge, we head back to the other side of the park. Our daughter is finally tall enough to ride the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster starring Aerosmith. This will not only be her first time on this coaster, but it’s probably the fastest one too. And she gets to sit up front with her cousin Caitlyn.
The beauty of having the PhotoPass with our annual passes is getting the ride photos. And after seeing it we can see she was excited. After getting off, our little daredevil with hair pushed back, says she wants to ride again! But we want to ride one more ride before dinner, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway. This is our daughter’s favorite ride and we’re able to get on, but just like lunch, we’re late for dinner. But luckily dinner is much closer at Hollywood and Vine. Chris and the girls have to meet Christy’s mom for dinner, so we say goodbye until the next time.
Minnie’s Seasonal Dine at Hollywood and Vine Dinner
Today is our first time eating at Hollywood and Vine for dinner. We have eaten here for breakfast years ago, with Disney Junior characters. But tonight is Minnie’s Silver Screen Dine with her friends. To read more about this restaurant, see Hollywood & Vine | Walt Disney World Resort.
As we are seated we already see a couple characters walking around the tables. But after our drink orders, we hit the buffet. I take our daughter up first and get her some fruit, penne pasta with marinara sauce and green beans. The kids’ section also has many other kid-friendly dishes. I then make me a small salad with some large peel-n-eat shrimp. Once back, Becky goes to the salad bar.
While Becky is at the bar, Pluto comes by to our table dressed with a top hat and special collar. Our daughter is so excited and gets up and gives him a huge hug. About 10 minutes later, Mickey comes to the table dressed in his best suit. After a few hugs and pictures, he heads on to the next table so we head back to the bar. They have many entrees like salmon, chicken and pot roast with many different side dishes. There’s also have a carving station with beef tenderloin and pork belly. All the food is high quality and very good.
As we’re finishing, Goofy comes up dressed in his suit with big shoes followed by Mickey again. But we still haven’t seen Minnie so we head for dessert. They have multiple choices as well as an ice cream machine. And then Minnie finally comes to our table giving our daughter plenty of hugs. It was a great way to end dinner.
Disney Fab 50 Quest with MagicBand+
After dinner the wait times are still a little long, so we decide to play with our MagicBands some more. And close by is the other thing we can do with MagicBand+ at Hollywood Studios. The Disney Fab 50 golden statues are spread across all 4 parks and there are 7 at Hollywood Studios. And the good thing is they are relatively close together in the center of the park.
Using your MagicBand+, it will vibrate and light up close to each golden sculpture. Then you can wave your hand in front of the statue which turns the MagicBand+ different colors letting you know you’ve collected it. It also makes each statue unlock a saying or make a sound which is a hidden feature.
Like the bounty hunt earlier, this experience is enhanced using the Play Disney Parks app. When you collect each statue, it records it and you get achievements for collecting them all. We collected them all 7 in about 20 minutes, and we’ll try this again at Animal Kingdom tomorrow. Since it’s dinner time, we expect the wait times to be lower, so we head to Toy Story Land.
Toy Story Land
We walk straight to Slinky Dog Dash, which normally has the longest wait times. And even the posted time is 60 minutes, the line looks shorter than that. Unlike Tower of Terror, the line starts inside and we’ve seen this line wrap through Toy Story Land. And sure enough, we’re on in half the time.
After riding the rollercoaster, we head back toward Galaxy’s Edge. Since it’s now dark, the lights on our MagicBands should be easier to see, making the bounty hunt easier. But on the way we stop to take a couple pictures with a Disney photographer. We love the PhotoPasses.
More Star Wars Bounty Hunting with MagicBand+ at Night
Round 2 searching for bounties with MagicBand+ is much easier at night. Not only is it cool to see the Black Spire Outpost lit up at night, but there’s a lot less people. And we each are able to find another 3 bounties in 20 minutes. Though you can find up to 20 bounties, we’ll save some for next time. By this time it’s about 8:00PM and the wait times are much lower. But instead of going back to Toy Story Land, we decide to stop at one more ride on the way out.
Star Tours, the original Star Wars ride, is only 10 minutes. But there is no one else in line and we walk right through in 3 minutes. Not only that, when we get to the end, they put us on the 1st shuttle in “A”. And we get to pick our front and center seats since there’s only one other group with us. This ride changes which worlds you visit each time. But this time we see Kylo Ren trying to stop us from taking off instead of Darth Vader. And we go to a desert planet aided by the Millennium Falcon. And then to a planet full of star destroyers that looks like Exegol. That’s the first time for us seeing both planets and makes this ride feel like a new ride. Afterwards, we stop at the shops before exiting the park 12.5 hours since rope drop this morning.
Summary of MagicBand+ at Hollywood Studios
Today was a long day, but so much fun. And using MagicBand+ at Hollywood Studios provided some new experiences looking for bounties and Fab 50 statues. We really enjoyed using MagicBand+ at Hollywood Studios and plan to use them again tomorrow. Though the rope drop experience made us rethink renewing our annual passes. We learned if the line looks longer than the wait time, it probably is and vice versa. And this park is really busy in the mornings and not so much in the evenings.
But we still we’re about do many 1st time experiences. Our daughter rode Tower of Terror and Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster for the 1st time and loved them both. It was also Becky and our daughter’s 1st time at Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater. And we had our 1st real character meal at Hollywood and Vine since Covid. All of the characters we’re entertaining and provided plenty of love which was great to see. And of course, we got to spend more time with Uncle Chris and Aunt Christy, Caitlyn and Chloe. We had a lot of fun riding some rides and look forward to next time.
Check out more of our adventures at Disney World!