After what feels like an eternity (announced in 2017!), TRON Lightcycle / Run is now open at Magic Kingdom! In a park with an undeserved reputation for being “just for kids,” the addition of a new, thrilling, futuristic roller coaster is definitely set to shake things up a bit. Read on to learn about all the TRON coaster now open at Magic Kingdom!
Basics of TRON Lightcycle / Run
We’ll start with the basic things to know about the ride before getting into how you can ride it.
What is the name of the TRON Roller Coaster?
The TRON coaster is officially named “TRON Lightcycle / Run.” This is a slight deviation from the “TRON Lightcycle Power Run” name at Shanghai Disneyland.
When will the TRON roller coaster at Magic Kingdom open?
TRON Lightcycle / Run officially opened April 4, 2023!
Where is the TRON Roller Coaster?
The ride is inside Magic Kingdom, the most popular theme park at Walt Disney World and the world. TRON is located next to Space Mountain, behind Tomorrowland Speedway. If you’re looking at Space Mountain from the front, TRON is down a short path to the left.
The remote location means the ride doesn’t quite perfect add to any sort of “skyline” in the park, but fantastic views abound. It’s wonderful to see as you walk up to it, and you’ll have great views from PeopleMover. You can even pass under the structure via the Walt Disney World Railroad.
Where does TRON rank among Disney World’s roller coasters?
We have a post ranking Disney World’s roller coasters, where we’ve ranked it 5th among Disney World’s nine coasters.
That might seem a bit surprising, but keep in mind this coaster has existed for over 5 years, just not in the United States. Number 1 on our list is Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind, an actually brand new coaster at Epcot. Number 2 is Expedition Everest, which is still a fantastic thrill ride despite its age. Disney doesn’t do many coasters, but they still do them pretty well.
What is TRON’s height requirement?
TRON has a height requirement of 48 inches / 122cm. This makes it the tallest height requirement in Magic Kingdom (previously Space Mountain, 44 inches). You can read more about Height Requirements at Disney World.
What is the TRON ride experience like?
The most important thing to know about TRON is that it uses a “cycle” style ride vehicles. This seat is sort of like the Flight of Passage ride vehicle (but, you know, on a coaster instead of a screen ride).
If you’re unable or unwilling to ride in the cycle position, you’re in luck! There’s actually a standard coaster-style car at the end of the train. This is a traditional, seated with a lap bar, option.
Without spoiling too much, the ride has a fast start with a wonderful outdoor portion. The outdoor portion is overall better at night, but it’s also not a huge part of the ride (by time, at least). The majority of the ride is indoors, in the dark with some classical TRON lighting, as you “race” against Team Orange, capturing “energy gates.”
While Disney says the ride is 4 minutes long, most people would consider it to be closer to 60-90 seconds, as Disney seems to include some of the loading and even wait time in that count. While I’d put TRON up there as far as intensity goes—alongside Everest, DINOSAUR, and Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, I wouldn’t say it clearly surpasses any of those rides.
Riding TRON Lightcycle Run at Magic Kingdom
As of its debut, there are two ways to ride TRON. The first is the free virtual queue, available to select guests. The second is the paid Individual Lightning Lane, available to all guests but still subject to capacity limits that don’t impact everyone equally. These are the only two ways to ride. There is no way to just show up and wait in line for this ride at this time.
Let’s break the two options separately before discussing which is the best way for you to ride.
Note: Many of the data points we discuss below can be found over on Thrill Data. If you’re visiting soon, we recommend spending a few minutes looking at some recent data there.
TRON Virtual Queue
Here’s the absolute simplest breakdown of how to use the virtual queue for TRON Lightcycle Run, before we get into all the very important details:
Use the My Disney Experience app to try to join the free virtual queue
Get assigned a group number if you’re able to join the virtual queue
Wait for your group to get called
Go back during the one hour return window assigned to your group
If that was all you knew about the virtual queue, you’d know how it works but you probably wouldn’t actually wind up getting on the ride. Here are some of the important finer points…
The virtual queue opens twice, at 7AM and 1PM, to select groups of guests. At 7AM, only guests with park reservations for Magic Kingdom can join the queue. At 1PM, only guests in Magic Kingdom can join the virtual queue. You cannot join the virtual queue twice. If you get in at 7AM, you cannot also get in at 1PM.
The 7AM “drop” usually lasts only a few seconds. After that, you’ll see a message saying the queue has reached capacity and to try again at 1PM. The 1PM drop varies. By mid-April, there were days when it remained open past 2PM. This meant people could park hop from other parks (hopping starts at 2PM), tap into Magic Kingdom, and be able to join the virtual queue.
It’s worth talking about the 1PM drop a little more. Yes, some days it is widely available for an hour or more, and on those days there’s probably little worry about missing out on the ride. But if the 1PM drop even lasts just a few minutes, there’s a lot of risk you somehow miss trying to join it. You can set all the alarms you want, just trust me that there’s always people who mess up the AM/PM. Or the volume. Or you’re on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad when the alarm goes off. Or you gave your phone to your kid to watch Reels for a few minutes. Things happen.
If the 1PM drop runs out before 2PM, park hopping guests won’t be able to ride that day. You’ll have to have a reservation for Magic Kingdom in order to ride.
There’s no guarantee that all boarding groups get called. This is sort of obvious, but worth a quick discussion. A ride can break down at any time, so there’s never a guarantee everyone who gets assigned a boarding group will get to ride. That said, our impression is that TRON has done a good job of getting through almost all the groups that are assigned each day.
Cast Members are being stricter with the hour return window than in the past. Historically, Cast Members haven’t cared if people came later than their assigned times for virtual queues. However, with TRON they’re being stricter. It’s important that you try your best to return during that hour. If you have an unavoidable conflict, stop by the Guest Experience team (blue umbrellas) and see if they can help you.
TRON Individual Lightning Lane
The TRON Individual Lightning Lane operates like every other Individual Lightning Lane at Walt Disney World, so I’m not going to belabor the details. (Read more about Lightning Lanes at Disney World here.)
The Lightning Lane is available for purchase at 7AM for guests staying at Disney or select partner hotels, and at park open for all other guests. Like the virtual queue, it is subject to availability. Unlike the virtual queue, you get to select the one-hour slot during which you visit. In its first few weeks of opening, the Lightning Lane cost $20+tax per person.
The Individual Lightning Lane has usually been widely available for at least a few minutes after 7AM. By mid-April, times were available after park open (when non-Disney hotel guests can purchase). In all cases, it’s common for availability to come and go throughout the day. When it appears, though, it’s usually only available for a few seconds.
Should You Use the TRON Virtual Queue or Lightning Lane?
I don’t think there’s a “context free” flow chart to be used here. I think making the right decision requires at least a little bit of thought and depends on particular circumstance. That said, I’m happy to share that our preference is to try and join the virtual queue right at 7AM. If we fail, we try again at 1PM. We generally do not buy the Individual Lightning Lane.
Now, for context…
Immediately, I want to point out that the only way to pick your time is to pay for the Individual Lightning Lane. If you have some reason (a late flight in, an early flight out, dinner at a different park etc.) that you have to be picky with your time, the Lightning Lane is probably the better option.
Also, you can join the virtual queue and buy an Individual Lightning Lane if you so choose and are so lucky. They’re independent systems. As noted earlier, you cannot join the virtual queue twice.
Those points aside, there are two downsides to the Lightning Lane. First, it costs money, around $20+tax. I personally don’t feel that the ride is worth that amount. Of course, I’ve ridden it numerous times and will ride it many more times, so your feelings might differ. If this is a once-in-a-long-time trip for you, and you like thrill rides, then this is probably worth $20.
The other downside to the Individual Lightning Lane is that if you aren’t a guest of a Disney resort (or select partner resort), you won’t be able to purchase until park open, by which time the Lightning Lane might be sold out. Again, you can check Thrill Data to get a sense of recent availability. If it is sold out at park open, you can continue checking throughout the day (your odds depend on how glued to your screen you are) and you can try the 1PM virtual queue (your odds depend on how crowds are today).
With this context, we can quickly say that we think guests who aren’t staying at a Disney (or select partner) hotel should try to join the virtual queue right at 7AM. If you fail to get in at that point, your next marker is the park opening time, when you can try and buy the Individual Lightning Lane. At that point, if Lightning Lanes are available, it’s a matter of preference and how the 1PM drop has looked recently—will you pay now or try your chances at 1PM? Our preference is just to try the virtual queue at 1PM.
Guests who are staying at Disney hotels have a bit more flexibility. While it’s never a guarantee, it’s been the case almost every day—including many very busy days—that TRON Lightning Lanes were still available by 7:05AM. This means you’ll probably be able to make a purchase even if you fail or don’t try to get into the 7AM virtual queue drop.
Since we don’t find the ride to be worth the cost of the Individual Lightning Lane, and since we’ve had generally good success at joining the virtual queue, we prefer to try right at 7AM (before making our Genie+ picks) and then again at 1PM if we fail to get in at 7AM.
If you think you’re willing to pay, we still recommend trying the virtual queue at 7AM, then making your Genie+ pick (if applicable), then making your Individual Lightning Lane purchase. Again, this is based on our assumption that Lightning Lanes will be widely available at 7:01AM. If you’re incredibly risk averse, then the first thing you would do at 7AM is make that Lightning Lane purchase.
Other FAQ
Does TRON go upside down?
TRON does not go upside down, leaving Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster as the only ride at Walt Disney World that goes upside down.
What if I haven’t seen TRON or TRON: Legacy?
There’s some story here, but really not much. I haven’t seen TRON or TRON: Legacy and I don’t think it negatively impacted my experience.
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