Boarding Groups for Rise of the Resistance are a hot topic among Disney World visitors. We have held off on this article for a while now for a couple of keys reasons. We wanted to experience the ride a couple of times as well as get the viewpoints from a couple of our children. Also, the park policies were constantly changing at the beginning which made things difficult to report on. At one point, the policies and procedures for boarding groups changed three days in a row! Now that the ride has been open for a little over a month and the holiday crowds are gone, the park and cast members seem to have gotten into a rhythm and things seem to have settled.

Curious what we thought of the ride? Check out our review!

Boarding Groups

A boarding group is your access pass to getting on Rise of the Resistance. As it stands right now, this is your only option to get on the attraction. There are only so many distributed for each day. Boarding groups go fast, and have “sold out” every single day the attraction has been open, so you need to be prepared.

Boarding groups are obtained through the My Disney Experience app. Make sure before you go you have the app set up and are already logged in. This will save you some time. We also recommend turning off WiFi until you have your group as everyone clogs the WiFi, slowing it down. Alternatively, you can obtain a group with a Guest Experience Team or Guest Relations cast member, but that is the much, much more difficult path as there are only so many cast members available.

How do I get a boarding group?

I get this question a lot and wanted to breakdown the experience so that travelers to Batuu would know what to expect. I have personally been on the ride twice and both times I followed this procedure.

Arrived at the gate to Hollywood Studios at 5:00 am
We got let into the park at 6:18 am (varies by the day, based on crowds)
The park officially opened at 7:00 am
Boarding groups went live at 7:00 am
By 7:01 am we were in boarding group 84
Our boarding group was called at 2:08 pm
We actually got on the ride at 2:44 pm after waiting in the queue.

Adam has been lucky and got group 16 during one of his trips. It is really based on how quickly your app makes the request and hits the server.

Get There Early

If you are planning to go on Rise of the Resistance I suggest getting there early. The boarding groups don’t go live until the park opens. But the quicker you get in after scanning your MagicBand or ticket the better in my opinion. You don’t want to get stuck in the crowd waiting to get into the park when the boarding groups go active. We planned on riding the Tower of Terror first and were able to head that way as soon as we got in the park. We had plenty of time to go to the bathroom and settle in on a bench before many people showed up in that area. Once boarding groups went live we were able to get one even after experiencing so app issues.

Have a Plan

Once you get your boarding group, have a plan for the rest of your day. You can still get 3 fast passes plus the boarding group. I suggest having those fast passes made already before entering the park. If you end up like us you will have plenty of time to kill before your group is called. You can leave the park and return later. If you are on a ride or out of the park when your group is called you have a 2-hour window to check-in for the ride.

Expect Delays

Almost every day this ride breaks down for a little while or has delays. If that happens your group will get pushed back. We were boarding group 84 which if I’m guessing the time right should have been called between 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm. But there were delays due to the ride breaking down. If the ride breaks down it has to be reset and that takes time. Once the ride gets reset, the groups will begin to be called again. There is a set amount of planned boarding groups per day. On the day we went, there were 114 planned groups. If those groups get called then the park has set-up back up groups. Back-up groups are not guaranteed to experience the ride. If there is time and the ride doesn’t break down back-up groups get the opportunity.

What About DAS (Disability Access Service)?

DAS is available for Rise of the Resistance, but you still need to get a boarding group before you’re able to get your return time. Once your group is called, you’ll notify the cast members at the attraction entrance and they’ll send you through the alternative entrance instead of giving you a time to come back later. The ride vehicles do require wheelchair and ECV users to transfer into the main ride vehicle, but the vehicles do have modified boarding procedures for these cases to make boarding easier. Make sure you speak to an attraction cast member or guest services/guest relations for the most up-to-date information.

Be Patient and Have Fun

If all of this sounds scary and frustrating, don’t worry! You’re not alone in feeling this way. After he experienced opening day, it took Adam 3 weeks of planning and monitoring the changes before he was ready to try again. Now that the boarding group procedure has settled in, it is much less stressful. You don’t need to arrive 2 hours before the park opens, but be prepared to press your luck if you don’t. Good luck, be patient with the cast members (they can’t do much about the situation), and may the Force be with you!