No matter how you feel about the MyMagic+ system as a whole, it’s undeniable that the advent of MagicBands and FastPass+ has fundamentally changed the way that guests spend their vacation time at Walt Disney World.
Even though this system had a somewhat troubled rollout back in 2013, Disney has been steadily making some really interesting changes to MyMagic+ over the past few weeks, including some new features on the My Disney Experience app and the rollout of an updated MagicBand style.
1. My Disney Experience gets new features, including easy housekeeping opt-out ability
Image: Jeff Christiansen, Flickr (license)
Disney is always making tweaks and adjustments to the My Disney Experience app, and after a recent update there are some new features that guests may find useful:
- Service Your Way shortcut: Guests can now opt-out of housekeeping services for part or all of their stay through the My Disney Experience app in exchange for a Disney Gift Card, with amounts varying depending on length of stay. This option was previously only available via the front desk, but now guests can not only opt-in to this service via My Disney Experience but also can get their gift card delivered electronically with this new addition.
- Direct-To-Room ability: With this new My Disney Experience feature, guests can bypass the front desk after checking in online, and will get a notification on My Disney Experience with their room number when their room is ready. After the notification is received, guests can use their MagicBands or phone to unlock their room.
Image: Disney
2. Disney website updates with discount information on merchandise sites
Image: Disney
Disney has updated merchandise location pages on its official website with information about specific discounts (Annual passholder, DVC, etc.) that are available at a given shop. However, in something of a weird turn of events, this discount information is not on the My Disney Experience app, and is also not available for other items eligible for discounts (food, party tickets, packages, etc.) either on Disney’s website. Hopefully these additions will be added in the future, as this is a handy guide for merchandise discounts, but having a single resource where guests can see discounts on other items would be much more useful!
3. New “Slap Bracelet” MagicBands now available
Image: Disney
The core MagicBand design has gone through a few changes over the years, and now Disney is offering guests a new, trendy way to wear a MagicBand: the ’90s-inspired slap bracelet! The slap bracelet designs released so far feature the Orange Bird, Olaf, Stitch, and Mickey Mouse and friends.
Each slap bracelet retails for $24.99. Guests get a themed bracelet with an icon slider that matches, which can be removed and used on your Apple Watch, fitness tracker or other smart wrist devices. There are also Limited Release bands that sell for $29.99.
It’s too soon to tell if this is a popular new style of MagicBand or not, but if it catches on hopefully we will see a wider rollout of this new style of MagicBands in additional colors and styles in the future, and perhaps even some customizability as well!
