Steps for How to Use the Virtual Queue in Star Wars Land at Disney World

Many Walt Disney World planners had confusions and questions in response to our Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Virtual Queue post. Here, we’ll answer those and share everything you need to know about the My Disney Experience app boarding group system that Disney’s Hollywood Studios is using.

Now that Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is open to the general public, we’ve been able to use this virtual queue system ourselves, and have screenshots, photos from the in-park signage and entrances, and other ‘know before you go’ info that should help give you peace of mind before visiting Star Wars Land.

The first thing to know is that this virtual queue is being used instead of a physical line outside of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. There was a concern/fear that the entirety of Muppet Courtyard and Grand Avenue would become the de facto waiting area and line for Star Wars Land. Fortunately, that is not the case…

Note that you can only join the Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge virtual queue if you are inside Disney’s Hollywood Studios. With that said, your entire party does not need to be in the park. So long as one person in your group is in the park and your accounts are linked on My Disney Experience, that person can join the virtual queue for everyone in your party.

In other words, this system basically revives the good ole days of the FastPass “runner.” Except instead of one person in your family running to a kiosk, one will get up at the crack of dawn, take a bus to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, fight the crowds, and join the virtual queue…while everyone else sleeps soundly. (Feel free to omit this tidbit of planning info when telling your family about this if you would be the designated virtual queue “runner” in your group!)

Steps for Using the Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Virtual Queue

Download the My Disney Experience app before arriving at Walt Disney World and be sure you’re updated to the most current version. Functionality for the Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge virtual queue and boarding pass system was actually added to the app code last month, so if you’ve updated in the last couple of weeks, you’re good.

If you don’t have a smart phone, see the Guest Experience Team located throughout Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and they can assign you to a boarding group.

If you already have reservations for Oga’s Cantina, Savi’s Workshop for Handbuilt Lightsabers, or Droid Depot, you do not need a boarding pass.

Simply go to the left side of the Grand Avenue entrance area where you see the sign pictured above. No boarding pass necessary!

To join a virtual queue boarding group, launch the My Disney Experience app and click the “Find Out More” button under “Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge – Status & Access” window.

This will show you whether the status of the land is “Open” (in which case you can walk right in) or “Access by Boarding Group Only” (in which case you’ll need to join a group).

From here, all of the steps are self-explanatory, so I’m going to share step-by-step screenshots for joining a Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge boarding group:

We highly recommend enabling push notifications on your mobile device for the My Disney Experience app so you will be notified when it is time to enter Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

When it was our time to enter today, I received a notification on both my Apple Watch and phone.

If you don’t enable notifications, you’ll need to incessantly refresh or check the MDX app or digital signage in the park to see when you’re up.

Once your virtual queue boarding group is called, you’ll have up to two hours to enter Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

To enter, you simply walk up to the Grand Avenue entrance (near MuppetVision 3D).

There, you’ll find a sea of Cast Members with iPads will scan your MagicBand or linked park ticket.

If you don’t know where this entrance is located, fear not, as there’s a pop-up that’ll offer walking instructions to get where you need to go.

Additionally, if you receive a feedback prompt, please take the time to rate it. My personal belief is that this system is approximately 18384% better than baking in the Florida sun while waiting in a physical line. Hopefully with enough positive reviews, Walt Disney World will embrace virtual queues like this in the future.

Ultimately, I think that should answer every question readers asked in response to our last post about the virtual queue for Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Walt Disney World. (At least I hope–I’ve been up since 2 a.m. and am not sure how coherent all of this is!) It’s a super painless process, and intuitive once you’re inside Disney’s Hollywood Studios, so don’t fret or stress out if you’re still confused. Unlike a lot of Walt Disney World IT, this actually works really well.

We’d also advise you not to worry about the virtual queue too much if you’re visiting next week or even next month. Disneyland only ended up using the virtual queue for one day (so far). It’s highly likely that Walt Disney World will need it for longer than that (and again during the holidays), but if you arrive to Florida in mid-September or October, don’t be surprised if the status of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is pretty much always “open.”

If you’re planning on visiting the new land, you’ll also want to read our Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Guide. This covers a range of topics from basics about the land and its location, to strategically choosing a hotel for your stay, recommended strategy for the land, and how to beat the crowds. It’s a good primer for this huge addition. As for planning the rest of your trip, we have a thorough Walt Disney World Planning Guide.

YOUR THOUGHTS

Are you planning on visiting Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge now that the boarding pass system is debuting? Do you agree or disagree with our preliminary strategy for best experiencing Star Wars Land at Walt Disney World? Any questions? 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!

43 Responses to “Steps for How to Use the Virtual Queue in Star Wars Land at Disney World”
  1. Rachael M. April 12, 2021
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