Disney is changing its virtual queue system for the popular attraction Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance at Disney's Hollywood Studios. As of Nov. 3, guests will no longer have to be inside the park to request a boarding group for the ride when the queue opens at 7 a.m.
Instead, guests must only have a valid ticket or annual pass and a Disney Park Pass reservation for Hollywood Studios that day in order to request a boarding group. They can then make the request through the My Disney Experience mobile app.
Prior to Thursday's announcement, guests had to be within the park in the morning to request a boarding group.
Rise of the Resistance has proven to be a wildly popular attraction since its December 2019 opening at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando. Since the beginning, Disney has utilized a virtual queue system for the attraction; it also used a virtual queue system when it opened Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, the land within Hollywood Studios where Rise of the Resistance is located.
And securing a boarding group is not guaranteed;
often, the slots fill completely within minutes of the park's -- and the virtual queue's
-- opening.
Admiral Ackbar in Disney's 'Rise of the Resistance' ride at Walt Disney World. Photo Credit: Jamie BIesiada
The virtual queue system has been tweaked several times. In one of those tweaks, Disney added an additional time guests can request a boarding group, at 2 p.m. The virtual queue will still reopen at 2 p.m., and guests must be inside the park to access the queue in the afternoon.
"We're hoping this new approach will make a day at Disney's Hollywood Studios more enjoyable and relaxing, as guests no longer need to be inside the park each morning to request a boarding group for the first virtual queue opportunity," Disney said in a post on the Disney Parks Blog.
Additionally, Disney has added clear barriers between the two rows of seats on Rise of the Resistance's attraction vehicles to safely maximize the number of guests that can experience the attraction.