If You’re Hoping to Ride Rise of the Resistance in Disney World, You’ll Need to Know the NEW Procedure for Getting a Boarding Group!

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Being the first person at Hollywood Studios won’t help you snag a spot on Rise of the Resistance anymore!

Rise of the Resistance

Since the opening of Rise of the Resistance in Hollywood Studios Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, the process to actually RIDE the new attraction has been a unique one and a bit of a work in progress. Hollywood Studios has been opening at indeterminate times and guests have been arriving in the wee hours of the morning to try to get a spot in one of the ride’s early boarding groups — which still doesn’t even guarantee a chance on the attraction! BUT NOW showing up at Hollywood Studios hours before the park actually opens won’t be all that helpful anymore!

Boarding groups will now only be available AFTER Hollywood Studios published opening time. What does this mean? Well, recently Hollywood Studios, for the most part, has had a 7AM or 8AM scheduled open. Guests have been let in usually around 6:30AM, though this has varied some. From the moment they use their ticket to get into the park, guests could access a boarding group. Now guests will have to wait until the ACTUAL open to jump in a group, regardless of what time they can physically enter. You’ll still be able to virtually queue-up for Rise of the Resistance using either the My Disney Experience app or Cast Members stationed on Hollywood Boulevard.

Rise of the Resistance Crowds

Since Rise of the Resistance opened on December 5th, people have been showing up SUPER early and getting in virtual queues BEFORE the park opened. This meant that boarding groups were often unavailable before the park was even “officially” open for the day.

Hollywood Studios Entrance

Now, guests aren’t able to get further than Hollywood Boulevard before the set opening hour. On top of that, rides are no longer opening early in other areas of the park, AND Rise boarding groups can’t be officially joined until the park opens! Does this mean the crowds of early EARLY risers will die down? We can’t say for sure, but we wouldn’t bet on it. You still have to be there at open to get a group, meaning we’d expect most eager guests wanting a spot will still plan to be there well before posted opening to ensure they’re ready to go.

Rise of the Resistance Sign

BUT, this seems like a step in the right direction. After all, they couldn’t keep opening Hollywood Studios at seemingly random times forever! We totally get them wanting to give all guests a fair shake at getting into a group for the day (without having to set an alarm for the wee hours!) but we wouldn’t bet on being able to show up at park open and just walk on in. Expect heavy crowds just getting INTO the park and plan accordingly!

Click here to learn more about Rise of the Resistance boarding groups! 

Rise of the Resistance Crowds

Disney has also announced they will distribute “backup” boarding groups which they’ll call after the initial boarding groups have been filled. If all the regularly planned boarding groups are called and there’s time for “backup” boarding groups to ride the attraction, you’ll receive a push notification via the My Disney Experience app informing you it’s time to return to Galaxy’s Edge for you turn on Rise of the Resistance — so make sure you have that feature enabled on your phone!

We’ll keep you updated with any additional boarding group changes we hear about, but for now, try to enjoy those couple hours of extra sleep!

Are you disappointed or happy with this change? Let us know in the comments! 

Related posts:

1. Dedication Ceremony Prepares Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge to Welcome Guests in Disney’s Hollywood Studios!!
2. There Are Actually TWO Ride Experiences in Disney World’s Rise of the Resistance. (Here’s Which One We Think is Better!)
3. Disney World to Extend Boat and Bus Hours for Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Grand Opening

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