If you’re planning a trip to any Disney park or resort in the near future, you’ll want to download the newly launched Play Disney Parks Android app before you go. It’s worth noting that Epcot and Disney’s Animal Kingdom aren’t ready to go quite yet, but if you’re going to any other Disney park in Florida or California, this app has a number of features that you’ll want to take advantage of. You can earn digital achievements around the park, play mini-games while you’re waiting in line and even learn more about the attractions at the park. The most obvious use for the app, of course, is its utility as a map.
Choosing a park in the app will present you with a virtual map of the park that you’re in. You can check out destinations around the park within the app, then use Bluetooth to activate beacons and gain achievements. You can play trivia games, and unlock special mini-games by standing in line for attractions. Most functions of the app won’t work while you’re outside of a Disney park, which means that it uses your GPS location to figure out where you are in the park. Naturally, this has the side effect of helping you to orient yourself so that you can tell where to go to get to the next big attraction or pit stop you want to visit.
It should be noted that this interactive app is more suited to keeping you and your kids entertained as you walk the park or wait in line, and those who happen to be hardcore Disney fans will find plenty to love. For more in-depth park information, check out the My Disney Experience app, which has more detailed maps, information about FastPass use, dining arrangements, and even wait times for attractions updated live. Disney is not the only theme park to have a companion mobile app, of course; you can also find an app for Six Flags parks, and SeaWorld takes things up a notch with apps for both Busch Gardens and SeaWorld, and even a dedicated app just for the Sesame Place mini-park within Busch Gardens, as well as a mobile SEA Port app for park employees.
