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Credit: Theme Park Tourist, FlickrIf you are an international Disney World guest, AKA you are traveling from outside of the United States to visit the most magical place on earth, we have an update regarding MagicBand purchases.
MagicBands are wearable devices used at Disney World that serve as a magical key to unlock a variety of experiences and services throughout the theme parks and resorts.
These bands are equipped with RFID technology and are linked to a guest’s Disney account, containing information such as park tickets, hotel reservations, dining plans, and Disney Genie+ selections. With a simple touch, guests can enter the parks, access their hotel room, make purchases, and redeem Lightning Lanes!
MagicBand+ takes this concept a step further by introducing enhanced features and capabilities.
It offers interactive experiences throughout the parks, allowing guests to engage with attractions, entertainment, and other elements in new and exciting ways. For example, guests can use their MagicBand+ to participate in themed challenges, unlock special effects at certain attractions, and even interact with characters in unique ways in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
While guests checking in used to receive a free MagicBand delivered to their home, or waiting for them at the resort, that is no longer the case. MagicBands are no longer complimentary for Passholders or Disney Resort hotel guests, but you can purchase them at a discount. To view the available discounted MagicBands, hover over the “My Disney Experience” tab on the top right of the Walt Disney World website and click on “My MagicBands and Cards”.
While these discounted options are available for American travelers, they are not available for international guests. Guests traveling to Walt Disney World from out of the country do not have the option to purchase a MagicBand at a discount, as it will not ship to them. They can purchase one when they arrive, however the discount will not be included. This then entirely eliminates the MagicBand offer that once proved to be such an exciting part of the vacation for guests, much like other now-removed complimentary services, like the Magical Express.
One international guest recently shared a “psa” online, stating: “You will no longer be able to purchase magic bands through your resort reservation to be shipped to your resort. I called them this evening trying to purchase magic bands to be shipped to my resort, and they no longer sell them to non United States addressed customers for discounted magic bands delivered to your resort. You will now have to purchase them through shop Disney or at Walt Disney World.”
While the MagicBand experience certainly felt like a special add-on to the Walt Disney World vacation, it’s not something you need to visit Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, of Disney’s Animal Kingdom — your phone or a regular ticket works the same. My Disney Experience allows guests to use Magic Mobile, which can use all of the same features and functions your MagicBand has, with the same tap movement. Additionally, Disney can place all of your tickets and room key information on one card, if you prefer to use something physical.
Now, Magic Mobile can even detect where you are in an attraction, placing PhotoPass pictures directly onto your app without needed to scan the touchpoint to claim them. That being said, MagicBands are used as a fun fashion piece, much like Minnie Mouse ears, as they have unique designs and colors on them. On top of that, they do help immerse the guest into the Walt Disney World experience, as using a MagicBand will only ever make sense after one passes through the Walt Disney World Resort gates.
International guests should also remember that their old MagicBands will also still work, as long as their battery is not yet dead. They will not be able to light up in accordance to Happily Ever After or Fantasmic like the current iterations, nor will they be able to activate the various statues across the theme parks, but they will still have their tap functions.
Are you sad to hear that MagicBand discounts are no longer being offered to international Disney guests?