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Full Spoilers: Rise of the Resistance Ride Details

Full Spoilers: Rise of the Resistance Ride Details

At last, all the Star Wars fans can get out of the edge of their seats and rush to Batuu to go experience Disney’s flagship attraction Rise of the Resistance. There is one at Walt Disney World Hollywood Studios as well as a carbon copy in Disneyland’s version of Galaxy’s Edge. I would like to caution everyone that ahead detailed spoilers of just what to expect throughout the entire attraction. So if you would like to keep the ride unspoiled then I highly recommend closing this browser immediately!

What to Expect of Star Wars Rise of the Resistance

Again we are about to break down all the details of the ride Rise of the Resistance. So if you want to stay spoiler-free stop reading! 

Your Misson

The whole adventure starts with none other than BB8 and Rey passing along the intel on how you can help them in the fight against the First Order. The good news is Finn has infiltrated a First Order Star Destroyer but the bad news is he discovered they are on the way to the Batuu system! So it is no longer safe but we are on our way our General Picard’s Secret Base where Rey will meet back up with us.

Launch to Space

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Now it’s time to leave your debriefing room and head off to the transport that is supposed to take you safely to General Picard’s base. Unfortunately during our trip, we run into a little trouble. Some Tie Fighters catch up with us and the ship was under attack. Despite Po’s and team’s best efforts, we get captured by the First Order. 

The takeoff and movements on this portion of the ride are extremely smooth. While there are screens it’s not like you Star Tours simulator at all. In fact, to give you an idea there are no seats on this part it is standing room only.

The Interrogation 

Stand clear of the door because the first order is about to board and integrate you! Somehow they know we have the location of General Picard’s secret base and they aren’t stopping until they find it out. From here you are yelled at to get off the ship and to wait in line to head into your interrogation room.

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This is where we enter into the spectacle of the hanger of stormtroopers! It’s massive, really no pictures do this room any justice. When we arrived the line was backed up in this room. We were free to take pictures and explore. My husband thought the coolest thing in this room was the full-sized Tie Fighter that was docked up on the wall. 

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After a short wait, we were lined up into smaller groups to be taken into detention cells for questioning. You will be assigned a color don’t forget this color you will need to know it later. Once ready they will lead you into this creepy empty room. It has no windows and no doors, which leaves you this chilling challenge, to find a way out! Oh, wait, sorry that’s the Haunted Mansion. Here you will face Kylo Ren and General Hux who are insisting you reveal the location of the secret base to them. 

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Escape from the Star Destroyer

Time is of the essence so get moving into the next room! Remembering your color you were assigned you can hop into the transport assigned to you. You get to pick your seat to feel free to grab whichever aboard the vehicle. We wanted the best view so we were sure to sit right up front in the first row of seats.

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Get ready because once you take off you are actually going to be leaving the room backward. Off you go down the corridors to find a way off this ship. Of course, you don’t stay undercover for long. A run-in with some Storm Troopers blows your cover. That’s when things get really interesting. Notice the holes being put in the walls as they open fire. 

One of the most wow moments on the ride is entering into the room where they have these massive AT-ATs stored. The scale is just so impressive you could hear an audible wooooah from our entire car. I almost spent too much time looking at the AT-ATs that I almost missed Finn in this room. 

You leave the room by taking a trip up on the ship. Think of it like a very fast elevator ride up. I was in fact I think most shocked at how fast they were able to move us. Now we get to peek in on Kylo Ren and he isn’t happy he knows that the ship is about to get attacked by the resistance which we get to watch out the window they are looking. The star destroyer instantly goes into full attack mode.

We haven’t gotten rid of Kylo Ren though he begins to come after us as we try to run away. We get into a locked room but watch out as Kylo Ren uses his lightsaber to break in. We manage to narrowly escape into the room that is sending off basters at the Resistance. Ultimately Kylo Ren catches us once again though and grabs us with the force. But a timely blaster hole in the ship sucks him out and lets us escape into the escape pod before the ship is destroyed. 

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How to Use Rise of the Resistance Virtual Queue

Disney is doing something new for the opening of the Rise of the Resistance, a virtual queue via boarding passes. Getting in line for the ride is something at the moment that can NOT be done in advance. You must have scanned your ticket into Hollywood Studios in order to reserve your spot in a boarding group. It’s important that your entire group has scanned in before you book, otherwise, you won’t be able to save a spot for everyone.  

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The reservations are now being available to book at the posted opening time of Hollywood Studios, this lately has been at 7 am. This means that you don’t have an advantage like you used to get showing up at 3 am and waiting right outside the turnstiles. It seems about 15 to 30 minutes before the posted opening Disney is letting everyone in the park but no rides are open. This means there is a bunch of you waiting to book boarding groups all at once. 

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At current, there are 120 standard boarding groups assigned daily. If you in a boarding group labeled 121 and above you are classified in what is known as a backup boarding group. 

How Many Times Can you Book a Boarding Group?

You are only allowed to reserve one boarding pass per day per person. While some found this great loophole the first few days the ride was open unfortunately Disney block that ability. 

When Should I Arrive at Hollywood Studios to get a Boarding Group for the Rise of the Resistance Ride?

Try to aim to get there about 30 minutes prior to the posted opening for the day. For all you non-morning people my heart goes out to you, my zombie morning self was not about the cattle herding and people rushing at way too early in the morning. The times we went we arrived at Hollywood Studios at 6 am and 6:15 am. The day we arrived a little later the ride was running smoothly throughout the morning and we were on the attraction at noon. The second time we arrived early, but the ride went down for a good chunk of the morning and our boarding group wasn’t called until around 3 p.m. 

As complex as this attraction is the reality is that it is experiencing a good chunk of downtime throughout the day. It’s a big part of why they are implementing the virtual queue. 

When Do Boarding Groups Sell Out for the Rise of the Resistance Ride?

The competition has been fierce to grab a spot in a boarding group for the Rise of the Resistance. Here is a look at what the sell-out times after been for this attraction since it opened on December 5, 2019. 

Update: Disney how now made it so virtual boarding passes are only available to book once it reaches the official posted park open time. So while you may enter the park early attractions and the virtual queue do not open until the official park open time for Hollywood Studios.

Fastpass for the Rise of the Resistance

At this time there is no Fastpass option available for this attraction. You can only get on the Rise of the Resistance attraction via the virtual boarding pass system. The ride is set up with a separate Fastpass entrance so we suspect that once the initial chaos for this attraction has calmed Disney will open this option up to everyone. 

A Look at the Ride Vehicle 

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On your breakout from interrogation, you get to hop on board a transport vehicle that can hold up to 8 people. It is comprised of 2 rows with four seats in each row. If you get a chance to look around you will notice that there is no track anywhere to be seen! This is because Disney is using its new trackless ride vehicle technology. 

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FAQs for the Rise of the Resistance Ride

Is Rise of the Resistance a Roller Coaster?

No, there is no portion of this ride that is a roller coaster. The ride consists of riding in a car on a trackless system and does include a straight down drop. 

What is the Drop Like?

Yes, there is a drop at the end of the Rise of Resistance. However, I am very thankful to the Disney Imagineers that they took it easy and didn’t make it overly intense. The Rise of the Resistance drop is 17′ according to a cast member when asked. Think of it as a one-story drop on Tower of Terror or if you have been on Hagrid’s Motorbike Adventure over at Universal it’s the exact same size. 

So what makes this drop easier than others? Well, you can’t see how far you’re dropping to start. You roll into the escape pod and then dropped off the ship you go on your flight back to Batuu. Second, I didn’t really get the sensation that they were pulling us down to go even faster. There was no air time off of my seat for this ride like there is on Tower of Terror. 

My tip if you hate being dropped like me, as soon as you get into the escape pod, grab the safety bar in front of you, tuck your head down, and breathe! It was a piece of pie for me. The second you watch the screen in front of you the sensation of flight and falling gets far more intense. 

Is Rise of the Resistance Scary?

It’s as scary as you consider a Star Wars movie. There are bad guys and when you are interrogated the First Order is very serious when they question you. There are plenty of dark scenes throughout the ride, explosions and more. If these are things that would bug your little ones it’s probably best to wait on riding this attraction then. 

What characters will I encounter on the Rise of the Resistance?

There are lots of characters inside the Rise of the Resistance here is the list of characters we encountered on our mission with the Resistance. 

  • BB8
  • Rey
  • Poe Dameron
  • Finn
  • R5 Droid Unit
  • Storm Troopers
  • Kylo Ren
  • General Hux

What Kind of Ride is Rise of the Resistance?

Well, there isn’t just one word that can sum it all up it’s like a thrill ride, dark ride, drop ride all wrapped into one. 

Video of the Rise of the Resistance

Here is a full point of view (POV) video of our ride experience on the Rise of the Resistance at Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World.


 

Touring Plan for Experiencing Rise of the Resistance Ride

For now, your sole way to get a chance to ride is to book via the Virtual Queue. This is all done after you and your ENTIRE party have entered Hollywood Studios. The second you have all scanned your tickets, have your phone with the My Disney Experience App open and at the ready. There you can select and book your spot in the Rise of the Resistance Virtual Queue. 


It’s mind-blowing how good of a job Disney did at making you feel like you are a part of the Star Wars story. There are so many special effects and features that we have never seen before on the Rise of the Resistance ride. We have blasters putting holes in the walls in front of us. An audio-animatronic is actually sitting on the ride vehicle with us going thought the attraction. It’s well worth the wait to make sure you join this mission on your next trip to Walt Disney World.