Hey Howdy Hey James David and welcome back to planDisney!
Thank you so much for your question and I am happy to help you navigate online check-in as well as what to do about MagicBands. Most of this you can do right from your My Disney Experience account so let's start there.
Over the past few years, Disney has put a lot of effort into developing and implementing
Direct To Room Service accessible on your
My Disney Experience account. This allows Guests that are staying at a
Disney Resorts Collection hotel check-in online as well as to put in their preferences and will be notified when the room is available via the My Disney Experience app. There is no need to stop by the check-in desk if you utilize this helpful tool and can spend more time enjoying the resort or in the parks. You should be able to do this easily from your My Disney Experience by looking under the "My Plans, Reservations and Tickets" section. You should see your hotel reservation as well as a link for "Online Check-In".
With regards to
MagicBands, let's check on the status of them through your My Disney Experience account first. Go under the "My MagicBands and Cards" and scroll down until you see all the members of your party and the MagicBands that are linked to their account. As long as you see the MagicBand you are looking for under the party member's name and the word "Active" you should be all set. You might have more than one MagicBand associated with the account as well in an active status and you can use whichever MagicBand you would like.
In the case of new MagicBands, from the same screen at the bottom, you should see instructions to "Link a MagicBand" as well as the link to start the process. As long as you follow these steps you should be all set!
If you do, by chance, happen to have a MagicBand that was inactivated and want to reactivate it for your trip, then you would have to stop by the front desk at check-in for the Cast Members to reactivate them. Just be warned that MagciBands usually last around two years. So if your MagicBand is around two years or older, you can try to reactivate it, but it might be time for a new one!
While MagicBands are great, and still my preference for navigating the resort, I wanted to let you know about
Disney MagicMobile Service. This essentially is a MagicBand set up right from your smart device. You can link your park tickets, room and set up charging privileges all from your smart device instead of needing a MagicBand. The setup is free and is just another way to help navigate the resort a little easier.
I hope this information was helpful and I hope you are having fun planning your trip later this year. If you have any further questions please let us know, we are happy to help!
Have a Magical Day,
Nick