Hey Mark,
Welcome to planDisney! I’m glad you’re here with this great question about purchasing MagicBand+ for your upcoming visit to Walt Disney World.
MagicBand+ is a great accessory for your trip because it gives you the ability to do so many things across the resort without using your phone or separate media. You can scan into the parks, unlock your resort room door, pay for food and merchandise and so much more. Additionally, when you use your MagicBand+ throughout the resort, you'll experience special lighting and vibrational effects on your band as you interact with different attractions.
If you’d like to purchase MagicBand+ for group members not staying on your hotel reservation, the best way to do this in advance is to purchase them online at the
Disney Store. This way, you’re making the purchase outside of your
My Disney Experience app and there shouldn't be any option to link the bands with a person. Another viable option is to wait until you get to Disney World to purchase them. I’ve found the largest selections of MagicBands available at
World of Disney in Disney Springs,
Celebrity 5 & 10 at Hollywood Studios, and the
Emporium on Main Street in Magic Kingdom. However, you can also find select exclusive MagicBands at your
Disney Resort Collection hotel.
Once the MagicBands arrive, be sure to
have the users link them in their My Disney Experience app. You will also want to be sure that you’re all linked as Friends & Family in the app - this will ensure that you can do things together like book
Lightning Lane passes and dining reservations. To do this, open and log into your My Disney Experience app, then tap on the hamburger menu icon in the lower right corner (☰). Tap Profile, then Family & Friends List. Review your list to be sure that everyone is accounted for and tap Add a Guest if anyone is missing. You’ll be able to search for them or scan their linking code (which they can access from their My Disney Experience profile).
Mark, there will be so many cool new experiences at Walt Disney World this summer. You’ll get to experience the newly updated Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets, the brand new Magic of Disney Animation experience in Hollywood Studios and so much more. Keep an eye on
Disney Parks Blog for updates and information as you get closer to your visit.
I hope this information is helpful. If you have additional planning questions about your visit, please be sure to come back and visit us here at planDisney. We’ll see ya real soon.
Sakinah