Ready to help the Resistance, escape from Kylo Ren, and go on a grand Star Wars-themed adventure? Then you might be looking to hop on Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

Rise of the Resistance

The ride debuted some time ago, but continues to be INCREDIBLY popular. Right now, there are 2 main ways to get on this ride — through the standby lane and by purchasing an Individual Attraction Selection (pay-per-ride). But, if you REALLY want to get on this ride, you might want to take a special extra step.

Right now, Disney World has suspended the use of Boarding Groups for Rise of the Resistance.  Instead, to ride Rise of the Resistance, guests can simply hop in the standby line, but that standby line can be quite lengthy!

Keep in mind though, that while the use of Boarding Groups has been suspended for the moment, Disney has indicated that the Boarding Group system could return or just be used from time to time.

Rise of the Resistance Standby Line

Right now though, if you want to ride Rise of the Resistance, you’ll want to hop in that standby lane. Want to skip the (potentially) LONG standby line? To skip the lines at Rise of the Resistance, you could purchase an Individual Attraction Selection (pay-per-ride selection) for the ride. Pay-per-ride is a NEW service that debuted in Disney World with the launch of the Disney Genie.

Experience Redemption Pass

Through pay-per-ride, you’ll pay to select a return time to visit a ride, skip the standby line, and use that ride’s Lightning Lane (the old FastPass+ lane). Guests can buy a maximum of 2 pay-per-ride selections per day. So far, the price to use the Lightning Lane at Rise of the Resistance has been $15 per person (plus tax). But, that price can vary depending on the day.

Lightning Lane Rise of the Resistance

Any guest can purchase a pay-per-ride selection, whether they stay at a Disney World hotel or not. But, staying at a Disney World hotel (or select other hotels) could be a HUGE advantage when trying to get a pay-per-ride selection when it comes to Rise of the Resistance specifically.

All guests can buy their first pay-per-ride selection on the day of their park visit when the park opens. But, if you’re staying at a Disney World Resort hotel, the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Hotels, or Shades of Green, you can actually book your pay-per-ride selection starting at 7AM! Hollywood Studios has typically been opening at 9AM each morning, so that’s a potential 2 hour head start.

In the queue for Rise of the Resistance

Why could that head start be important? Well, by being able to book your Rise of the Resistance pay-per-ride selection early, you’ll likely have a greater selection of return times to pick from. For example, one of our reporters recently booked a Rise of the Resistance pay-per-ride selection at 9AM because they weren’t staying at a Disney World hotel. When they looked at 9AM, the next available return time wasn’t until 5:50PM.

They quickly refreshed the page, and within those few seconds more return times had sold out. At that point, the next available return time was for around 7:15PM!

©Disney

Now, in the case of our reporter, that late return time wasn’t an issue. But, if you were hoping to ride Rise of the Resistance earlier in the day either because you have other plans in the evening or maybe you were even planning to hop in the afternoon and be in an entirely different park, this late return time could be an issue.

If you instead had the ability to book a pay-per-ride selection at 7AM, you’d likely have a greater selection of return times to pick from, giving you the ability to pick the one that best fits your schedule, rather than being stuck with whatever is left.

Rise of the Resistance

The other thing you’ll want to keep in mind is that Rise of the Resistance pay-per-ride selections have been SELLING OUT quite early in the morning. They sold out on the day of Disney Genie’s debut in Disney World, and the days following that. On the day our reporter tried to get that reservation at 9AM, they noticed that the pay-per-ride selections sold out around 10:10AM. That’s just an hour after park opening. That means if you can’t book your selection at 7AM, you might not have too much time after 9AM to book your pay-per-ride for this attraction.

Now, keep in mind this is what we have experienced so far. Disney has shared that more pay-per-ride return times may open up throughout the day. So, it’s possible that you will find some earlier return times available at 9AM, but it’s also possible that no earlier times will be released (like what we saw during one of our tests of the system).

Rise of the Resistance

The other thing you’ll want to be aware of is that this is what we’ve experienced right now — in mid/late October. The situation could be different come holiday time, New Year’s Eve, etc. when the crowds will likely be much larger and more guests may be utilizing pay-per-ride. In that instance, much more of those return times could sell out quicker. Having the advantage of being able to book your return time at 7AM during those peak times could be an advantage.

Thinking of skipping the pay-per-ride option and just going for the standby line? Even in that instance, staying at a Disney World hotel could be an advantage. That’s because guests staying at Disney World hotels and select other hotels can take advantage of Early Theme Park Entry and enter any Disney World theme park 30 minutes early. That early access could help you get on Rise of the Resistance with a lower wait than what you might see once the full crowds arrive.

Rise of the Resistance’s Standby Line in Hollywood Studios

So, it seems there are some potential perks to staying in a Disney World hotel when it comes to Rise of the Resistance. If you don’t stay in a Disney World hotel, remember you can still purchase that pay-per-ride selection when the park opens (but you’ll want to act fast!) and/or you can stand in the regular, standby line to get on this popular ride.

We’ll keep an eye out for more updates on Rise of the Resistance and we’ll let you know what we find.

Have you been on Rise of the Resistance? Tell us in the comments!