77% of Respondents Failed To Get On Rise of the Resistance in Disney World. Will You?

Since it first opened in December 2019, Rise of the Resistance has widely been considered THE must-do attraction in Disney World.

Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance

Given the ride’s popularity, guests are required to obtain a boarding group in order to experience the attraction, rather than waiting in an hours-long physical queue. Currently, boarding groups are made available twice during the day — once when the park first opens at 10AM and again at 2PM. 

But as with other attractions around Disney World, capacity for Rise of the Resistance is limited, which means it might not be an easy feat to snag a boarding group. After hearing from many friends that they were not able to get boarding groups or ride the attraction, we decided to poll our audience to get an idea of just how many Disney World guests missed out on riding the most popular attraction in Orlando with the current system.

Why It’s So Hard To Get A Rise of the Resistance Boarding Group

In order to get a boarding group for Rise of the Resistance, there are a few important steps guests have to follow. First, every member of the party that plans on riding the attraction must have already entered Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Each member of the party must also be linked together on My Disney Experience.

Screenshot of My Disney Experience App

Disney recently made an update to the My Disney Experience app which automatically selects anyone eligible from your friends and family to obtain a boarding group at the time you’re requesting one, which should make the process quicker, especially for those with large parties. And since every second counts when it comes to securing a boarding group, this could make a huge difference!

Rise of the Resistance Boarding Group

But while Disney has made improvements to the process of obtaining a boarding group, we’ve still heard reports about (and personally experienced) the ongoing difficulty of grabbing a spot in the virtual queue. In fact, just the other day we spotted a long line of guests who were unable to get a boarding group, waiting to speak with the Guest Experience Team.

Line for the Guest Experience Team

We’ve regularly seen the 10AM boarding groups fully distributed within a matter of minutes…sometimes seconds. And since the 2PM boarding group availability can vary based on attraction downtime earlier in the day, trying in the afternoon is certainly not a “sure bet” either.

Rise Preshow

We wanted to get a feel for the experience of our readers, so we asked our Instagram followers, “Have you tried unsuccessfully to get a Rise of the Resistance boarding group on a visit to Disney’s Hollywood Studios recently?” 

And it looks like quite a few people have run into some struggles lately! Of the first 300 responses we received, 205 said YES they have tried unsuccessfully to get a boarding group, 68 said NO they have not experienced any issues and 27 said other difficulties outside of getting a boarding group kept them from experiencing the attraction.

Pie Chart of Our Readers’ Responses When Asked If They’ve Unsuccessfully Tried to Get a ROTR Boarding Group Lately

Let’s take a closer look at some of the responses!

“Yes, I’ve unsuccessfully tried to get a Rise of the Resistance boarding group!”

Of those who responded, 68% said they’ve recently tried to get a boarding group but they were unsuccessful. Many mentioned that they were ready to go as soon as the boarding groups became available, but availability was still gone before they had the chance to complete the process. “Yes, within seconds of 10AM I got the red screen that it was full.”

Lieutenant Beck on Rise of the Resistance

Others said that technical difficulties kept them from snagging a group. “Yes, just today. Guest services said they had a major system problem this morning.” A few different types of glitches were mentioned which caused hangups for our readers. “Yes! It said that we were not in the park, even though we had scanned tickets.” We here at DFB have actually had this issue too! 

We asked our readers: Do you think Space 220 will open by the end of the year? Here’s what they said.

“No, I’ve been able to get a Rise of the Resistance boarding group without any issues!”

On the other hand, not everyone has run into trouble. Of those who responded, 23% said they’ve recently been able to snag a boarding group with no issues. Some mentioned that they were able to join a group in the 10AM drop. “Nope! We got groups 5 and 6 on two separate days last month.”

Rise of the Resistance

And others mentioned they were successful with the afternoon drop. “No. We went into Hollywood Studios two days after noon and got boarding groups on both days at 2PM.”

We asked our readers: Who is the REAL star of the Haunted Mansion. Here’s what they said!

“I didn’t have trouble with the boarding groups, but I STILL wasn’t able to ride!”

Others mentioned that while getting a boarding group wasn’t the issue, they ran into another problem which kept them from experiencing the attraction. Of those who responded, 9% fell into this category. Some received a backup boarding group that didn’t end up getting the chance to ride. “Yes and no. I was given a ‘backup group’ that was never called.”

Rise of the Resistance

And others DID receive a numbered boarding group but were still unable to ride due to delays throughout the day. “Was excited to get [boarding group] 32 and STILL didn’t get to ride.” Some respondents also mentioned that the attraction didn’t open at all on the day they visited. “I got a boarding group the day it never opened because of a lightning strike the night before.”

You can watch a video of that very lightning strike HERE! 

So, while about a quarter of those who responded have been able to grab a Rise of the Resistance boarding group without issue, the majority of respondents have run into some hurdles while trying to fight the First Order! What has YOUR experience been with obtaining a boarding group?? Let us know in the comments!

So How Can You Increase Your Chances of Getting A Rise of the Resistance Boarding Group?

Is this survey scientific? Nope. Are people who did not get on the ride more likely to respond? Very possibly. But the results are compelling, and it’s worth it to focus a little bit harder on your strategy to ensure you get a Rise of the Resistance Boarding Group these days! Especially as the parks are getting a bit more crowded in general than they were at reopening in July.

We’ve got some great tips for making sure you get the best possible chance for scoring a Rise of the Resistance Boarding Group on your visit. While we can’t control the weather or Disney’s ride systems failing, we can help you to be as prepared as possible for success!

Check out our 5 Tips to Guarantee A Rise of the Resistance Boarding Group article here! 

May the Force be With You!

Join the DFB Newsletter to get all the breaking news right in your inbox! Click here to Subscribe!

Don’t Miss Out on Any Disney Fun!

Get Your Copy of the 2020 DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining Today!

With more than 750 pages, the 2020 DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining is full of tips and planning tools developed by Disney World experts over 30+ years of visits. We’ve done the research for you, so you’ll know just which spots will uniquely suit your family’s needs!

With mini-reviews of every single restaurant, bar, lounge, kiosk and more; an entire chapter on the best snacks in Disney World; full Disney Dining Plan analysis (and how to get FREE dining); and a full chapter on discounts and deals; you’ll have everything you need to plan your best vacation yet.

Click here to order your copy of the 2020 DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining E-book with code WDW2020 to save 25% off the cover price today! Your order will include a FREE instant download of the 2019 Edition of the Guide!

Use code WDW2020 at check-out for 25% off the cover price today!

ready-to-shop-button
Our guides are backed by a 100% money-back guarantee, so you have nothing to lose. 🙂

Have you tried to get a Rise of the Resistance boarding group lately? Did you run into any issues or were you able to snag one? Let us know in the comments!

The post 77% of Respondents Failed To Get On Rise of the Resistance in Disney World. Will You? first appeared on the disney food blog.