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When it comes to a Walt Disney World vacation, one size does not fit all. There are endless options to choose from to make your magical vacation uniquely yours. One way to make your Disney vacation special is to make your Disney MagicBand customized to fit your style. How can you make your Disney MagicBands custom? Read our tips for all the available MagicBand options!
What are Disney MagicBands?
First, let’s talk about what exactly Disney MagicBands are. MagicBands are your key to the world in Orlando. They open your room, help you make purchases, and add flair to your personal Disney style. All Walt Disney World resort guests have the option of being issued a MagicBand when they make their resort hotel reservation. If guests do not choose to stay onsite, MagicBands can be purchased with a credit card ahead of the trip or with cash or credit card upon arrival.
MagicBands are connected to your My Disney Experience account. This account allows guests to choose to attach a credit card for purchases, check-in to their hotel or dining reservation, utilize FastPass+, and connect Photopass photos to their online account. Purchases with a MagicBand can be made within the theme parks, resorts, or even in Disney Springs. MagicBands cannot be used for purchases, photos, or hotel rooms off the Disney resort property.
How to Make Disney MagicBands Custom
There are several ways to decorate and make your Disney MagicBands uniquely yours. There are many online shops to choose from, whether Etsy-based or standalone, that offer decals or “skins” to decorate your bands. If you’re feeling a little more crafty, there are DIY instructions for painting and jazzing up MagicBands at a minimal cost to you.
Finally, if you’re not as certain of your DIY skills like me, there is the “purchase premade” route. Before, during, or after your trip, purchase an already customized MagicBand through the Disney Store online, or at the Disney parks, or upgrade your free bands that come with resort stays for a small fee (more on that in the next paragraph). Coordinating your family’s bands are easy! You can coordinate by choosing solid colors, printed bands, or mixing and matching decals or “skins” that change the look of the bands.
Disney MagicBand Colors
What choices do guests have when choosing a MagicBand? For a few years now, only solid colored MagicBands were available for free with a Disney resort reservation. The color choices had been solid blue, green, pink, purple, red, orange, yellow, and gray. However, as of late May 2019, Disney resort hotel guests are able to upgrade their solid MagicBand colors to fun prints and styles for an extra $10 fee.
Available prints and styles have varied, but guests should be able to find a least one special MagicBand that they love. I have seen all types of fandoms represented in the choices, including Disney princesses, Marvel characters, Star Wars characters, classic Disney characters, and more. The printed options have various solid colored backgrounds with a character or design printed on top of the color.
What are Disney MagicBand Skins and Do You Need One?
As much as these printed MagicBands sound awesome, what if you don’t want to pay extra? Good news! Disney resort guests can still received a solid colored MagicBand free of charge with their resort stay.
But how can those plain MagicBands be customized? It is SO easy to do. MagicBand skins or decals are customizable stickers for your MagicBands. Head to Etsy and check out what’s available or visit my personal favorite site www.myfantasybands.com. Erin from My Fantasy Bands has been making custom decals for years, and her designs are perfectly Disney without looking like everyone else’s designs.
Is it necessary to use a skin or decal on your MagicBand? Absolutely not! This is a fun way for guests to add something extra to their MagicBand 2 style. The MagicBands will still function normally without added flair if that is not your thing.
MagicBand Decals
As previously mentioned, Disney MagicBand decals or skins are like stickers for your MagicBand. The decals give them a “limited edition” feel without the price tag. Disney Parks limited edition MagicBands can cost as much as $24.99 or more! Save yourself a little coin by purchasing decals from a trusted source or printing them yourself. I am not particularly crafty, and I do not own a vinyl cutting machine, so I’m always happy to support small businesses that make awesome decals for my MagicBands.
Disney MagicBand Accessories
If decals are not your thing, but you still want to give your MagicBand a special touch, consider the accessories line. There are several different kinds of accessories, depending on your desired fashion statement. Additionally, the center of the MagicBand 2 is removable and can be kept on a MagicKeepers Lanyard. For anyone who doesn’t want to wear it on their wrist, the lanyard is a great option!
There are no official rules for what you can or cannot do to jazz up your MagicBands. If elaborate accessories are added, just make sure they fit in with the guidelines for appropriate clothing and/or costumes in the parks.
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Check out these MagicBand puck holders that easily fits on your Apple Watch or other watch bands:
Magicband Puck Holder – Glitter
Magicband Puck Holder – Toy Story
Collecting and Displaying MagicBands at Home
Personally, I don’t display my MagicBands after my trip. I have several different colors and styles, so maybe I should change that! For those who love to display their collections, there are lots of options on Etsy. Wooden wall displays in the shape of a Mickey Mouse head or displays similar to department store jewelry counters are often popular choices. As an added bonus, the countertop MagicBand display can double as a holder for your Mickey ear headbands too!
All About Disney MagicBands
Finally,do guests really even need a MagicBand anyway? Yes and no. Physical cards, similar to the old “Key to the World” cards, are still available for guests staying off property who do not wish to purchase a MagicBand or for those who decline MagicBands with their resort reservation. However, these bands can make your Disney vacation so much easier.
MagicBands contain your Walt Disney World resort room key, park tickets, FastPass reservations, dining reservations, and more. If you’re flying into Orlando and riding Disney’s Magical Express, make sure not to pack your MagicBand in your checked luggage. For the fastest Magical Express check-in from the airport, keep that MagicBand handy for the touch point at the airport.
In order to receive MagicBands BEFORE your departure date, make sure you customize them on your My Disney Experience account at least 11 days prior to your check-in date. If they are customized less than 11 days before check-in, MagicBands will be available at the resort front desk.
Benefits of MagicBands
Because MagicBands are worn on the wrist or hang from a MagicKeepers Lanyard, they are easily accessible. Cast Members can show guests how to tap “Mickey Mouse to Mickey Mouse” at a touch point to access FastPass reservations, make purchases, unlock your Walt Disney World resort hotel room, and check-in for dining reservations. MagicBands automatically connect to rides via the RFID chip inside them, and they are able to send ride photos to your My Disney Experience account. No need to tap the Mickey at the ride exit to save those photos!
MagicBands are connected to a guest’s My Disney Experience account, which means everything can be managed online or via the Walt Disney World app. There is no need to carry around cash or credit cards if you associated a credit card as a payment option with your account. This can be a great tool until you get that final bill at the end of your stay!
Lastly, only Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida has the MagicBand technology. Though Disneyland in Anaheim, California now has MaxPass and a few digital features for their guests, it does not appear that MagicBands will be moving out west any time soon. They can make a stylish statement with your Disney Parks wardrobe, but MagicBands will not function outside of Walt Disney World.
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