Electronic Rider Switch - Information Thread

Walt Disney World
1

This post was last edited on 17th Sept with current information

I know we’ve had a thread discussing the imminent implementation of this, but it has now officially been rolled out to all parks.

So, in order to help people with plans, I thought it might be useful to have an information thread. There are only a few reports in, so some things are still unclear. I’ll update things as I see them, and obviously the point is that liners post about it too :rofl:

The main difference from a planning viewpoint is the specified return time for RS.

There is also some doubt about the way it works with a child who is tall enough to ride but is too scared. Best advice here is to plan accordingly, with staggered FPs, especially with younger children, otherwise you may all have to wait in line.**

So here’s what has been reported so far:

  • Everyone needs to report to CM.

  • Only the first riding group need have FPs, they scan in as normal and ask for a rider swap.

  • The rider swap (RS) is then added to the magic bands / plastic ticket of the second riding group.

  • The RS is good for a specified time period. The start time will be specified on the RS.

  • You can only hold one RS at a time.

Questions

  1. Do all riders need a fastpass?

In general, no. Only group 1 need to have a FP booked.

There was one case for FoP where the CM insisted everyone needed an FP (although 2 from group 1 were allowed to ride twice).

Note: FoP and 7dmt CMs previously (sometimes) required all riders to have FPs. The vast majority of reports on RS since the new system has settled find that not everyone needs to have an FP.

Please post as a reply if you have experienced everyone needing a FP, giving details of the ride in question.

  1. Can someone from group 1 ride again with group 2?

Yes, up to 3 people can ride in group 2, so the RS will be added to those 3 magic bands/RFID cards.

  1. Is there a time limit on RS?

Yes.

ETA return times and a note about flexibility.

Universally there is a one hour specified time period for the RS. In general this appears to start from when group 1 are expected to actually ride. So for many rides it starts around 10-15 minutes after scanning in, for others it may start up to 30-45 minutes later, such as for FoP.

For people riding stand-by with RS, the start time is around the SB time posted at the ride.

There are reports that CMs are willing to work with you if you have ADRs or other reasons to get a later return time than the automated time given. Be polite and explain, hopefully they can accommodate you!

  1. Will a rider swap be issued when a child is too scared to ride?

ETA: This is still to be confirmed by enough people to be considered definitive.

Without getting into debate about the reasons, it seems that if you are planning to use RS with a child (or adult) who is tall enough to ride, either be prepared for everyone to have to wait in line or get everyone a FP and plan accordingly.

Please post a reply if you experience this either having to wait in line or being allowed to wait elsewhere.

Please reply to this if you use RS over the next few weeks. I’ll try and update this first post with new info. Also feel free to ask questions, and when we get an answer to it I’ll post it.

But please note that I really don’t want to wade through debates over how it used to work, should work etc. So if it does start becoming a general discussion thread, then I simply won’t be able to keep it updated,

9 Likes
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What a great thread! I look forward to following this. I will be interested to see if they will add it if the child is “tall enough” but is afraid.

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Some of the info here is contradictory to what I’ve seen on chat. I didn’t pay a lot of attention, but the first report from FOP was that the window for the second group began 30 minutes after tapping in, and it was an hour window.

Actually it may just be that info.

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Thanks, question added.

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Thanks, Updated.

I know this was rolled out a few days ago on some rides, it’s now in force everywhere. Clearly initial reports will vary, so I’ll try to be less specific until / if there seems to be a consensus.

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This is a great thread! Thanks!

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I also thought that a couple of the experiences confirmed that members of the first party can indeed get the RS pass to ride again.

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I saw that on chat as well.

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Hi again.

I’ll update post 1 with what I’ve seen so far.

Sorry for not being on the ball. Suffice to say things have come crashing down around me recently, and I haven’t the heart, let alone time, to post much at the moment. Although maybe distraction is a good idea.

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I am so sorry @Nicky_S!

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Hope eveything turns out ok!

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Does anyone know if a rider switch time is able to overlap with a pre-existing fast pass reservations?

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Yes that’s fine.

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Oh, this would have been great in April when DH lost my RS ticket to EE :confused:

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He lost your RS? Oh no! :sob:

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Yeah, I gave it to him to put in his wallet while we rode KS and then we’d dbl back. he only put it in his pocket and when he checked it was gone. Whomp Whomp .Oh well for our early, no wait line and then a RS later on in the day for me and DD8 haha I just passed and will go on it next time.

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We rode FOP on 6/19 and used RS because my son was too short. Although we all had FP+, only the 3 in the first group were scanned. My husband was given an hour time period starting about 30 minutes after the first group entered the FP queue. All of this was done at the FP+ checkin, my husband and son did not have to wait in line. We did EE the same day during EMH and a similar situation occurred. However, the Cast members saidthey would be happy to work with us on the RS return time.

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In case anyone is interested, here is my recent experience with rider switch return times. For the most part, CMs told me that the rider switch pass was good for up to one hour after the listed return time. There was one exception, which was Kali River Rapids, where they said it was good for the rest of the day. We didn’t test this as the kids wanted to ride again right away. My experience was that a rider switch pass continued to show up in my FP+ listing in MDE for the rest of the day and sometimes into the next day if I hadn’t used it yet. I figured it would disappear or something when/if it expired. Unfortunately, I did not get a chance to test it and see if I could tap in at the FP line and get a green light.

On Big Thunder Mountain, they were giving out rider switch cards that they hand wrote one morning at rope drop. I can tell you that they did not let me use that one 8 hours later. I figured it was worth a try.

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That was the same experience we had, the 2 exceptions were Test Track and on one occasion 7DMT.