MagicBands have long been popular at Walt Disney World and can provide many different functions such as opening your resort room door, entering the theme parks, charging purchases back to the resort, Memory Maker, and more.
Disney recently announced that the newest version...Magic Band+...would be available for the first time at Disneyland. At a starting price of $34.99 for a plain colored band, up to the current Steamboat Willie design offered at $64.99, the cost for a family can add up fast. So is it 'worth it'? These questions are always difficult as the value of worth on an item depends on each person's perception. To some a $5.00 cup of coffee may be 'worth it'. To others it may be a $200.00 handbag. So I won't assign worth here, just let you know my experiences and what the MagicBand+ can currently do on a Disneyland visit.
There are many designs that come and go on Shop Disney and in the parks. Some are Disney character types, park themes and even Disneyland focused. The most important thing about your MagicBand+ is realizing that, unlike other MagicBands, the MagicBand+ needs to be charged and the charging cord is on the BACK OF THE MAGICBAND+ packaging! It's amazing how often this gets thrown away. Extra charging cords can be purchased at the parks but can be difficult to find.
The bands I purchased did not come charged enough to install the required updates. So do yourself a favor and charge it. You will then need to link it to your Disneyland App. Click the hamburger in the bottom left corner of the app and you'll see a block for MagicBand+. Click on that and follow the step by step instructions. You'll be able to attach your ticket to the app.
And that is use number one. Admittance into the parks.
This works just fine even if the band is 'dead'.
Do you have a Lightning Lane reservation coming up? The band works for that. What it did not work for was the Virtual Queue for Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway. You had to show your phone for that. I did not use the Virtual Queue for World of Color but I would guess it works the same way for that.
The band is also good for linking your PhotoPass photos to your account, and there is a game in Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge that utilizes the band. Beware of this usage as that will drain your battery fast.
The most obvious use of the MagicBand+ is that it lights up and glows and has haptic vibrations at certain times. The nighttime shows all have this party on your wrist happening as well as certain other happenings such as the Bride's 'heartbeat' on Haunted Mansion and lots of action on Web Slingers. This all seems a bit silly but it really is kind of fun and adds to the park experience.
So. How did it work? The biggest issue came with what Disney calls Enhanced Park Experiences. My band worked once and then no more lights or vibrations. My traveling companion's did nothing. Mind you, I had gone through the whole set up thing in the app. Got all the green checkmarks. Charged fully.
We ended up in City Hall where it took two Cast Members trying all sorts of things: unlinking, repowering, unassigning, reassigning, tapping and tapping (tapping the Band has it light up to make sure it's working. Its a hard tap so don't be timid). In addition, both bands showed they were nearly out of charge even though they'd been fully charged and really not used. This finally accomplished the Bands working fine and then constantly charging to keep them working.
So is it 'worth it'? I found it good for getting into the park and using Lightning Lanes if I had any, and found the glowing and shaking fun. But not necessary. Hopefully in the future other capabilities will be added.
So just like Ears and Popcorn Buckets and $200 purses, it's all up to what you feel brings value to your Disneyland day.