Guardians of Galaxy Cosmic Rewind to Use Virtual Queue & Sell Individual Lightning Lane
The big new attraction opening at Walt Disney World in Summer 2022 is Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind in Epcot. This ride guide covers how to experience it since there will be no standby line when it debuts–strategy for successfully scoring spots in the virtual queue and buying an Individual Lightning Lane for the Marvel blockbuster.
After Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance ended its boarding groups last fall and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure stopped its virtual queue this winter, there are currently no attractions at Walt Disney World utilizing this much-maligned system. Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind bucks that trend, potentially for a couple of reasons.
These mainly involve crowds, but reliability/downtime and physical queue space could be other issues. Both arriving to the park ever-earlier, as was the case with Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance in its first few months, and at rope drop. If you’ve navigated the construction walls around the Giant Epcot Dirt Pit™️, you’re likely aware that getting between Spaceship Earth and World Discovery isn’t easy. It’s a recipe for potential problems, and could get downright dangerous at rope drop as guests stampede to be among the first to ride Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind.
Before we get into the details of the virtual queue, we’ll start with the news that Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind will be an Individual Lightning Lane attraction. This should be zero surprise. Previously, we “predicted” that there was a greater than 99.999% chance that Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind will be an Individual Lightning Lane attraction. It was probably closer to 100% than that. 😉
It’s really a question of how much Individual Lightning Lanes will cost for Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind and how quickly they’ll sell out each day. Will Cosmic Rewind be the first Walt Disney World attraction to break $20? $25? $30?!? My money is on $25. I think Disney could easily get $40 per person, but might not want to risk the backlash. They still haven’t raised prices on Rise of the Resistance, despite daily sell outs early in the morning.
The other big question is whether Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure will move to Genie+ or if Epcot will be the only park with two Individual Lightning Lane attractions. We could see it going either way–the Rat Ride is less than one year old but Genie+ could definitely use more capacity at Epcot if more people will be visiting the park and, presumably, purchasing that service.
I’d put the odds on Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure remaining as an Individual Lightning Lane attraction at first, and then moving if Genie+ experiences inventory issues due to Epcot’s increased popularity. Sort of like what happened with Frozen Ever After (etc.) during last year’s holiday season plus this spring break and summer.
That Cosmic Rewind will use a virtual queue is the much more interesting news, so let’s turn to that…
Here’s the info directly from Walt Disney World’s page on virtual queues:
When Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind opens on May 27, 2022 a virtual queue will be in place. Guests will need to use the My Disney Experience app to enter the attraction. A standby queue will not be available. Each Guest can enter the virtual queue no more than once per day.
Check for Updates – Virtual queues continue to be helpful with the launch of popular attractions and the debut of new experiences and offerings, so we may use them again from time to time for select experiences in the future.
Check the My Disney Experience app just before your visit—and again before 7:00 AM on the day of your visit—to learn whether a virtual or standby queue will be required or available for any attractions or experiences when you’re here.
Get Ready to Join the Virtual Queue! – On the day of your visit, you may have the opportunity to join the virtual queue at daily distribution times, which are subject to change or cancellation as availability allows. Distribution schedules will be available in the My Disney Experience app.
Follow these steps to join the virtual queue:
- Step 1 – Check Availability: Log in to the My Disney Experience app at one of the distribution times. Select “Virtual Queues” on the home screen to view the current status and next steps for joining a virtual queue. The app will indicate when there is no availability for a specific distribution time, or if a backup group is available.
- Step 2 – Enroll Your Group: As long as your Disney account is linked to your group’s park tickets, and everyone has valid admission and park reservations for the park you will visit, you can enroll everyone in the virtual queue at the same time (subject to availability).
- Step 3 – Enjoy the Experience: If your boarding group is called to return, you’ll receive a notification via the My Disney Experience app. Then, head over to the entrance of the experience within your designated return window.
If you’ve ever used the virtual queue for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance or Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, you’re undoubtedly familiar with this process–and to a greater degree than what Disney describes. If you haven’t, that probably didn’t do enough to familiarize you with the virtual queue process.
This is partly because this language appears to be boilerplate, and has not been tailored to the unique wrinkles of the virtual queue for Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic. Our expectation is that it works more or less the same as the last iteration of its predecessors–with entry times at both 7 am and 1 pm. Even though the 1 pm time isn’t mentioned, that was a positive change with the prior attractions and we’d expect it to stick around.
Ultimately, we’re disappointed by this news. Not that Cosmic Rewind will be an Individual Lightning Lane attraction–that was a foregone conclusion. That it’ll use a virtual queue. While we’ve gotten good at gaming the boarding group process (and have “speed strategy” advice so you can achieve similar success), my personal hope was for a standby queue.
Having a standby line is the more guest-friendly approach that levels the playing field, is less stressful, and results in fewer complaints. Which is exactly why we were happy to see Rise of the Resistance and Rat Ride retire their VQs even as some fans cynically complained that it was to sell more Individual Lightning Lanes (even though those sell out quickly, regardless).
The potentially bigger blow is that with the virtual queue, it means Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind almost certainly will not be open for Early Entry or Extended Evening Hours. This has NOT been confirmed by Walt Disney World one way or the other, but rather, is my expectation based on past precedent.
Early Entry or Extended Evening Hours would’ve been the easiest way to experience the new Epcot E-Ticket, and that (probably) being off the table is a big blow. If you’re able to find the silver lining in everything, this does mean that Epcot likely won’t be bonkers for those extra hours. I was dreading those crowds!
Anyway, we’ll have strategy for scoring boarding groups in the Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind virtual queue and/or buying Individual Lightning Lane return times soon–closer to when the attraction opens. (Spoiler alert: it’ll pretty much be identical to past advice for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, so you might want to brush up on that if you’re visiting opening weekend of Cosmic Rewind.)
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YOUR THOUGHTS
Are you excited for the grand opening of Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at Epcot? Disappointed that it’ll use a virtual queue instead of a standby line right at opening? What about Individual Lightning Lane v. Genie+ for Cosmic Rewind? Do you agree or disagree with our advice? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
So if we have the Park hopper Genie + ticket and have a different park reserved for that day, will we not be able to enter the 1pm virtual Queue for Gaurdians of the Galaxy?
In the first Pete’s Dragon movie the doctor is singing a song ” money money money by the pound”. This is all that concerns Disney any more. The Money.
If you are park hopping to EPCOT can you try for the 1pm virtual queue? If you can’t park hop until 2 then we wouldn’t be in EPCOT then so just curious if this is possible?
That’s why they have the times set the way they do – so you can’t park hop to get virtual rezs. It has to be the park you have a reservation for, and for the 1p queue, you had to be in the park.
You’ll need to have already tapped into Epcot in order to enter the 1 pm virtual queue, which won’t be possible if you’re Park Hopping to Epcot.
I just had the time of my life planning a non-Disney vacation. As a huge life-long fan I thought I needed Disney magic but I can’t support the greedy direction they are going in so I’m voting with my wallet. And turns out there are lots of things that are magical and fun without Disney that I had just never explored. And, I can do twice as many vacations if I’m not paying Disney’s current prices— even better!
“These mainly involve crowds, but reliability/downtime and physical queue space could be other issues.”
Tom talked about the potential for crowds and physical queue space, which may be enough on their own to justify the cue like on Remy’s Rat Ride. Does anyone want to feed me some rumors about Cosmic Rewind’s ride capability that I missed? (Also pointing out if Tom talked about it and I missed it would be useful, too.) I know I’ve been avoiding spoilers, but it didn’t sound like they were pushing the R&D boundaries *too* much.
What’s the hourly capacity of this ride compared to Rise of the Resistance?
So how does something like this work with a disability access pass. Having that is a lifesaver for my son. We are hoping to go again in September or October.
I was wonder how this will work with the DAS as well! We’ll be having our interview soon to apply for the access pass and was hoping to get one of our pre-arrival reservations for Cosmic Rewind. Would love any information on how the process for this ride will work with the disability service.
Well, as someone who has a DAS myself, it means you’re not riding. You have to get on the virtual queue, get a return time and then ride. I couldn’t do RotR forever because of that.
Would love to know how DAS will work with this, too. I have a feeling that it will just be the virtual lottery that everyone else will experience.
Reading this makes me very nervous about our upcoming trip to WDW. Been coming to Disney since the 80’s stayed on site in most of the site hotels at one time or another, and have always had a great time …. this is the first time I am a bit worried about our experience.
If you don’t have a park reservation for Epcot, could you get a boarding group/ILL and then park hop at 2pm to use it? Just wondering if the system would even let you get this if you don’t have a park pass reservation. Thanks.
I am still in love with the old magical Disney World that Mr. Walt had planned…..and have been at least 15 times, thru the years. But, I fell out of love with this new money Disney World. So, until more magical heads prevail….y’all have fun…..I can’t support it…..which makes me very sad My opinion.
As a consumer of atmosphere, if they halved the price to enter the parks and then charged for rides individually, that would restore my good will toward Disney that once upon a time was my overriding emotion within the gates,. (and not simply because I have ‘overridden’ most of what they have to offer)
Can you hold an ILL and a spot in the virtual queue at the same time?
My question exactly! And we’ll be trying for both next month. We totally would’ve waited in a standby line, too.
I personally prefer the virtual queue. I think they should bring it back for Rise due to the downtime alone. How is standing in line for 3 hours a better experience than just spending a couple minutes in the morning on your phone?
I already booked 2 Epcot days for my trip this summer in anticipation of this.
I’ve never NOT gotten a virtual queue spot in all of my tries for both Rise and Remys so I guess that’s why I’m admittedly not sour on it. I just think it’s preferable to stressing about a stampede at rope drop. And then you know at 7am and can adjust accordingly.
Positively shocking 😉
I agree that it probably won’t be available for Early Entry, but I could see it *maybe* being available for the evening hours. Logistically it seems like that might be easier to make work with a Virtual Queue than Early Entry. They could even conceivably do a standby line for the after hours, although I imagine they would have to cut the line at a certain point. I also wonder if Cosmic Rewind will follow the Rise trajectory of keeping the virtual queue for a year plus or go the way of Remy and drop it after the first 6 months. Personally I think they will keep the virtual queue through the holidays and will drop it in early 2023, although if inflation and/or a recession cuts into guest numbers in the back half of the year they might get rid of it sooner.
I remember January 2020 having to wake up super early to be IN Disney Studios prior to opening. Having then to log on Disney Exp with hundreds of people BEFORE sunrise, feel the stress in the air as “WHOOO HOOOO” s and “NOOOOOO”s were filling the air …and then immediately LEAVING the park with the same hundreds of people to get back to sleep. I remember asking my girlfriend: ”Do you realize what just happened ?!?” Surreal moment.
I think they changed it for Remy. It’s one thing to log in at 7 AM sharp to make bookings, but having to be physically in the park was an outstanding case of “jumping the shark”
Darn. I was willing to stand in line, since it’s opening on the last day of my trip. But now, I essentially have one shot and it’s based on luck. Obviously, this one is going to fill up within seconds, so do you recommend going for the virtual queue first or going straight for the ILL?
I would say if you can afford it go for the ILL. I imagine most people will try the virtual queue first, and then when they don’t get that try to buy an ILL. If you just go straight for the ILL that should put you ahead of the pack and increase your chance of success.
If you have more than one person in your party, I would recommend one going for the virtual queue and one trying for the ILL. Just confirm the second person has all of the members of the group on their acct. Good luck!
LL was a foregone conclusion, I agree. But that’s ridiculous to not have it open for extended evening hours. If deluxe resorts are gonna get the perk-give them ALL the good stuff!
Yeah, not a fan of the virtual queue. We tried to get into Rise of the Resistance several ‘times/days/multiple trips’ during the open time windows and never succeeded. Hopefully we’ll get to ride it when we come in September. I’m not hopeful of scoring a spot on Guardians…
In my opinion these virtual ques stink, we tried when rise of resistance had it ,we could not get to ride it the whole week we were there, nothing available any day we were there (we were there 9 days). So I think there will be alot of disappointed guests for awhile until they do stand by for it. I’m not paying to get in the park then an additional fee to ride rides, that’s nuts!!!
It would be great if they did a stand by line for after hours