I’ve seen plenty of Disneyland’s changes over the years, experienced new ride openings and celebrations, and utilized many strategies to maximize my time in the parks as a former annual passholder. But after the price increases over the last few years, my family and I could no longer justify the cost of renewing, especially since we aren’t Southern California residents. Now, my husband, two young daughters and I make it to the parks once, maybe twice annually, and it’s something we look forward to and plan for all year. We’ve always been huge fans of not just the rides, attractions, treats, and shopping at Disneyland, but of the magic that is Walt Disney’s first theme park. We’ve been to Hong Kong Disneyland and Walt Disney World, but neither could ever compare to the classic charm that is Disneyland, even on a crowded day.
Like many of my generation, I grew up with the Star Wars films, and much to my delight, my daughters have also become huge fans of the franchise. So when news of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge was announced a few years ago, we were excited. We even delayed our Disneyland trip until after Rise of the Resistance was open for business so we could get the complete Star Wars Land experience. Obviously, the ride was going to be massively popular and understandably crowded, so I studied up on how to nab that all important boarding pass right at rope drop. Without standby or Fastpass, we knew it was the only way to get on the ride, so we were ready and anxious.
Being accustomed to rope drop, we just had to tweak our usual morning plan to get there about 30 minutes earlier than usual to ensure that we would be through the Disneyland gates in plenty of time before the 8 am opening. We arrived at about 7:15 am and stood in the massive line, but were undeterred since we’d heard the lines move fast once they start letting people in.
Once through the gates at 7:45 am, we made our way to the Baby Center just off Main Street so we could get away from the massive crowds congregating around the Hub and Railroad station while still ensuring a good signal for our phones. We‘d read that we shouldn’t use the wifi since it could be unreliable.
At 7:58 am, my husband had the job of counting us down to the second. My 11 year old and I had both our phones at the ready to get a boarding pass. Despite all the tips we’d researched, the “Join Boarding Group” buttons on our apps never turned orange at the stroke of 8 am or even after. I got frustrated since we knew passes were known to be gone by 8:02 am and every second counted. My daughter had the good sense to close the app completely and then get back in to refresh it. Low and behold, she nabbed a pass for boarding group 87. It was only 8:01 am but it was technically a backup group since they were supposed to cut the groups at 82 that day.
We were noticeably relieved. My 11 year old recalled it as being incredibly stressful, but she was determined to try her best despite knowing that we might not get a boarding pass at all. It was a lot of strategizing for first thing in the morning, and we hadn’t even been on a ride yet!
Despite a breakdown of the Rise of the Resistance ride at around 10 am, delaying the boarding groups by about an hour, we were delighted to have our boarding group called at around 2:30 pm. We were so excited to finally be going on the ride that some have said is the best attraction Disney has ever created.
We went through the first room with Rey and BB-8. We even boarded the ship with Lieutenant Bek. And we were even “captured” by the First Order and went through the room with the rows and rows of intimidating Stormtroopers standing in front of us. We stood in line waiting to be “interrogated” so we could eventually board the ride vehicles. We were thrilled.
After waiting for about 10 minutes, we then started moving quickly. But instead of being taken to where we would enter the final part of the ride, we were instructed to take a right turn and exit the building. What?! What was going on? The only thing we heard was a cast member telling us, “Please remember to show a cast member your tickets so you can return later.” I was frankly still a little confused because we were never told that that ride had actually broken down and we couldn’t get on. The cast members were obviously used to dealing with confused and disgruntled visitors and weren’t terribly sympathetic to anyone’s frustrations about being taken off the ride, but we were sure not to take our disappointment out on them.
We were compensated with a special Multiple Experience Fastpass, which would allow us to re-enter the ride at a later time, but didn’t want to waste valuable time at the park waiting too long for the ride to come back up. Coming in from out of town and not being a passholder, we didn’t have the luxury of time or flexibility. And a cast member also confirmed that despite a published park closing time of 11 pm that day, Rise of the Resistance would not be running after 9 pm at the latest.
Despite getting a boarding pass first thing in the morning and getting our boarding group called by afternoon, we didn’t plan for the unreliable nature of the ride itself. We were frustrated that we weren’t able to finish what we started, especially since we had already been through two-thirds of the ride.
Besides getting in the long standby line for Smuggler’s Run or having a reservation to spend money at Savi’s Workshop or Oga’s Cantina, there wasn’t much else for the kids to do. We missed the shows and activities that used to be in Tomorrowland like Jedi Training, Launch Bay Meet and Greets with Kylo, Darth, Chewie and Ray, or even Captain Phasma’s march across the land with her horde of Stormtroopers. For us, Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge was missing the magic. It lacked the welcoming nature that is the soul of Disneyland.
We ultimately decided to use our Multiple Experience Fastpass for something that would be a sure thing, so we went on the Millenium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run attraction, which was a blast. And it turned out to be a good decision since Rise broke down yet again later that day. Despite continuing on with the rest of the park and getting onto most of the other rides we wanted to, the day left us a bit deflated.
We returned two days later vowing not to make getting a Rise of the Resistance boarding pass a priority, returning at rope drop as always. But for an early Wednesday morning, the park was packed due to the hordes of people trying to nab that elusive Rise boarding pass. Rope drops in the past always had that magical air to them before all this boarding pass madness. It was a time we could take everything in, enjoy a quieter Main Street, and get in as many rides as we could before the crowds started coming through at around 11 am. Since we were already there, we did try for a boarding pass without putting any pressure on ourselves. We nabbed boarding group 119. A backup group. We didn’t hold our breath.
Good thing we didn’t. The ride broke down multiple times throughout the day and after the last breakdown at about 8 pm, they decided to shut it down completely and it never came back up. They stopped the boarding groups at 109.
As a whole, my kids took it all very well, but it was incredible how stressful and unpredictable the boarding pass process was overall. We were also disappointed at how unreliable this brand new ride was. And we always expect the Disneyland standard of customer service to trump staying in character, but at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, it didn’t. Cast members seemed jaded by the daily occurrence of breakdowns and it contributed to our growing negative impressions as a whole. It may have been immersive, but it didn’t feel inclusive. The Land lacked heart. Though we loved the shops, the interactive nature of the environment when we utilized the Disney Play app, and Smuggler’s Run, Galaxy’s Edge lacked the activities and inclusiveness that Tomorrowland used to have when it housed all things Star Wars. There just wasn’t much to do that didn’t involve shelling out more money. Add to that the increased ticket prices and it just felt like we were being taken advantage of.
Fortunately, we were able to enjoy our second day at Disneyland by sticking to our tried and true favorites and activities like pin trading, using MaxPass to ride Big Thunder Mountain and Indiana Jones, enjoying a Dole Whip while visiting the Tiki Room, and snacking on a churro as we strolled down Main Street. The magic was still alive and well.
Overall, it was a great trip, but it will always be remembered as one that left us a bit scarred. I’m hoping they can find an alternative to this boarding pass process. It’s a flawed system for folks who don’t have the luxury of coming back to the parks often. It would be a shame to have it continue to affect the fun and magic of being at Disneyland.
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Let’s Hear From You
What was your first experience trying to get a boarding pass like? Is there enough to do in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, particularly for kids? Let us know in the comments.
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