Are you ready to join Team Blue and power up your Lightcycle? Walt Disney World’s newest roller coaster, TRON Lightcycle / Run, just opened for cast members and annual pass holders and it opens for all Walt Disney World guests next week and I am here for it!
The canopy is the most distinct feature to identify where the ride is located in the park. TRON Plaza, the area around the ride as well as the ride itself, covers about 10 acres, and the canopy on its own covers over 50,000 square feet. It’s pretty hard to miss, especially at night.
TRON Lightcycle / Run is a major expansion of Tomorrowland in Magic Kingdom. The ride follows the events of the 2010 film TRON: Legacy and transports guests (called “Users” during the experience) into the futuristic digital world of TRON. This roller coaster now takes the crown as the fastest ride in Walt Disney World and is the largest Magic Kingdom expansion since New Fantasyland, which opened at the end of 2012.
Throughout my many visits to Walt Disney World last year I always saw the canopy in construction from inside the park and while driving behind it, anticipating when I would get to finally power my way through the virtual queue to ride a Lightcycle. Some family members of mine who are members of the Disney Vacation Club and have annual passes got a preview before TRON opens to the public. So naturally, I got some insights on this new roller coaster.
Once TRON opens to the public, park guests with reservations to Magic Kingdom can request to join the virtual queue on the day of their visit. Virtual queues are a little tough since the queue is limited, and it is not guaranteed all guests will get an assigned time to join the queue. Guests can also buy an individual Lightning Lane entry for a shorter wait time because there will be no standby queue for this ride (which is expected for new attractions). To request to get on the virtual queue and to purchase an individual Lightning Lane, guests must use the My Disney Experience app. When I go to Magic Kingdom in a couple of months, requesting the virtual queue will be the first thing I do that day when I wake up!
Before getting on the ride, where guests must be at least 48 inches tall, riders drop off their bags into double-sided lockers that are unlocked by MagicBands or tickets. Smaller items can be placed in a compartment on the Lightcycle while riding. Users are scanned in the ride preview and then launched into the Grid. The Lightcycles race under the canopy with the goal of passing through eight Energy Gates to defeat Team Orange.
TRON Plaza includes not just the ride, but also new merchandise and eats, which is what I care about! Energy Bytes is a nearby quick-service kiosk serving dumplings, mochi and a watermelon refresher with yuzu and ginger. I sense some references to the Shanghai Disneyland cuisine, so I’ll definitely grab some “bytes” after riding.
As someone who grew up on Mario Kart, enjoys competition and loves everything Disney, I can predict that this ride will tailor to my love for racing. The ride opens to the public on April 4. Are you entering the Grid?
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