Coaster fans rejoice!
TRON Lightcycle Run (presented by Enterprise) at Disney World’s Magic Kingdom will “soft open” to the general public from March 20 – April 2, 2023, via a Virtual Queue (in the My Disney Experience app) for guests with valid admission and a theme park reservation.
The official grand opening remains slated, as originally scheduled, for April 4.
TRON Lightcycle Power Run – a semi-enclosed launch steel motorbike roller coaster – originally debuted at Shanghai Disneyland in 2016. On the heels of its instant popularity, just one year later at the D23 Expo, Disney Parks announced it would be launching its sister coaster TRON Lightcycle Run right here in Orlando, FL.
And coaster fans have been eagerly awaiting its arrival ever since.
Construction originally began in February 2018 but was delayed due to, well, ya know, 2020 things.
Disney announced the official grand opening date earlier this year and has been allowing special Cast Member previews since early February.
They also allowed some extra lucky annual passholders – myself included – to get an advance sneak peek in early March just a couple of weeks before the soft opening.
So if you’re curious about what to expect from the ride – you’re in luck. In fact, I’m ready to spill the tea and tell you all about exactly what to expect from Magic Kingdom’s fastest coaster.
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TRON Magic Kingdom opening fate
TRON soft opening: March 20, 2023
Disney theme park guests with valid admission and a Magic Kingdom park reservation will be given the opportunity to ride TRON beginning March 20 via the My Disney Experience app’s Virtual Queue system.
Individual Lightning Lanes will reportedly be unavailable until the ride’s grand opening on April 4, 2023. No word yet on when the TRON coaster will be available via Genie+.
Guests who wish to enter the Virtual Queue will need to do so via the My Disney Experience app the day they want to ride at either 7 am (guests do not need to be inside the park at 7 am but do need to have reservations to Magic Kingdom), and then again at 1 pm.
Guests will be required to be inside Magic Kingdom to enter the 1 pm Virtual Queue.
A word of warning: If the TRON Virtual Queue is anything like Guardians of the Galaxy – expect slots to fill up quickly.
My advice – plan your day around being somewhere with a good internet connection and open that app right at 7 am or 1 pm to grab your spot in line.
Also expect to have to wait 3-4 hours for a callback notification even if you enter the Virtual Queue right away. But also remain flexible. In my experience, we usually get callbacks about an hour before the originally estimated time.
I suspect this is due to people missing their callbacks and losing their place in line.
Don’t be that person. Keep your phone nearby at all times.
TRON grand opening: April 4, 2023
Virtual Queues will also be available when the ride officially opens to the general public on April 4. Guests will also be allowed to purchase an individual Lightning Lane entry after the grand opening.
As always, Virtual Queues are limited to one ride a day and are subject to availability. Lighting Lanes are also limited in availability and are subject to change and/or closure.
No word yet on if (and when) regular standby lines will be made available.
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TRON ride Disney World height and weight requirements
Guests must be at least 48 inches (or 4 feet tall) to ride. There are no posted weight restrictions at this time. I’ve read about guests over 300 lbs being able to ride without issue – but keep in mind that every person’s body is different.
I will note, even as a fairly petite woman – due to the nature of the bike-style seat – I noticed that the front of the bike pushed against my chest a bit. I would imagine a more well-endowed woman, or someone with a larger body type could have an issue. So be sure to give those tester seats – located outside the ride – a try before you board.
I do, however, have a bad back and was a bit worried about leaning so far forward during the ride. But I personally found the actual seat to be surprisingly comfortable despite the backward positioning.
Admittedly, comfortable might not be the right word. But I would at least say more comfortable than it looks.
We’ve also heard reports of some guests experiencing issues with the calf restraint which has limited capacity.
I suspect, if you can ride Hagrid’s Motorbike at Universal Studios Islands of Adventure or Avatar Flight of Passage you’ll likely have few issues on TRON.
But there is some good news for those who need special accommodations – Disney has installed a normal “upright” coaster seat in the last car with lap bar seating. While availability for those seats will be obviously limited – it is at least, an option.
What is it like to ride TRON? What do you need to know?
As a coaster lover, I can confidently say that TRON is officially among my new favorite thrill rides at Disney World.
The ride is largely based on the movie “TRON Legacy” and features a thrilling race through a digital frontier.
It is located between Space Mountain and the Tomorrowland Speedway.
The ride queue
The queue is partially covered (THANK YOU DISNEY) and goes by fairly quickly considering the popularity of the ride.
There are also restrooms available at the halfway point in the queue. (Disney – implement this feature on every ride, please and thanks.)
We waited about an hour during season pass holder preview days. I suspect guests can experience a similar wait when the virtual queue opens.
All riders enter the queue as a member of Team Blue.
And also, there is no option to ride as Team Orange at the time of this writing.
You’ll spend the majority of your time in line outside under the partially covered canopy before finally entering the actual TRON complex.
Upon entering, you’ll be greeted via a small screen and a quick intro before the walls around you virtually disappear and you find yourself staring directly at a train of two-wheeled Lightcycles whipping past in a fully immersive digital realm.
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Ride lockers
Lockers are made available right before boarding begins. Unlike other Disney rides – you must stash your larger belongings for this one.
It’s a similar process to Universal’s Velocicoaster locker system minus the metal detectors.
The lockers are free to use and each was spacious enough – at least for us – to fit two medium-sized backpacks, a baseball cap, a YETI thermos and a DSLR camera.
Use either your Magicband or your park ticket for locker access.
There is a small compartment onboard where you could ideally stash a phone, wallet or sunglasses, but I wouldn’t personally count on making your things fit at the last minute. Just get a locker.
Ride boarding
Before you know it you’ll be straddling your bike and ready for launch.
The ride itself is fairly quick – with roughly a minute in total ride time. It begins indoors before launching outside as you zip past people waiting in queue below.
I am also happy to report that it is as smooth as Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, without the dizzying spins.
Does TRON go upside down?
Finally, we end this article with the burning question on every scaredy cat’s mind: Does TRON go upside down?
You will be happy to hear that TRON Lightcycle Run does NOT go upside down.
It is however fast – very fast.
In fact, Disney claims that TRON is one of the fastest coasters at any Disney theme park in the world. And while it’s no Velocicoaster, it’s also no kiddie ride. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Welcome to the grid.
Have you ridden the new TRON ride at Magic Kingdom? Let us know about your experience in the comments below.
