Walt Disney World Resort Rolls Out Digital Key Capabilities

In an April 2 blog post, Walt Disney World Resort revealed that it will offer guests a new digital key feature as part of its My Disney Experience app. The resort hopes that this feature will "wow" guests and enhance their experience at the park. The My Disney Experience app already offers users features like mobile order and online check-in in order to help families and friends have a more enjoyable and convenient vacation experience.

The digital key feature will be available to guests of the Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, and will allow guests to quickly unlock their hotel room using a digital key on their mobile devices. The feature is meant to provide them with another seamless room entry option that brings added ease and flexibility to their experience.

Guests can also use their digital key to unlock the hotel entrance gate and common area doors requiring a key, which may include pools, fitness centers, elevators and club level lounges. Arriving travel parties that have checked in online may even use their digital key to bypass the need to visit the front desk, giving them the opportunity to go directly to their room when it is ready and start their vacation even faster.

The feature represents the latest evolution of keyless room entry, which Walt Disney World Resorts began offering with the MagicBand, an all-in-one device that effortlessly connects the vacation choices guests make in My Disney Experience. Guests may use either or both options to enter their room during their stay.

To use their digital key, guests can opt in and activate the feature on their check-in day through a brief set up process in the app. To enter their room, guests tap the “Unlock Door” button and then simply hold their phone against the door lock. Check out the video below to see the feature in action.

Bluetooth-enabled mobile devices with the latest version of the My Disney Experience app are required to take advantage of a digital key for room entry. However, guests are still required to wear their MagicBand for all other uses including park entry, FastPass+ redemption, room charges and more.