High-tech wristbands take ‘friction’ out of theme park fun

ORLANDO, FLA. — No need to schlep around wallets or locker keys in your Speedos at Universal Orlando Resort’s new water park opening later this month.

That’s because Universal is debuting a new wristband that can pay for food, open lockers, trigger special effects, set spending limits on the kids and most, importantly, eliminate waiting in lines by sending alerts when it’s your turn for a ride.

Universal executives hope the Tapu Tapu wearable wristbands get rid of some of the hassles for visitors at the water park, which opened Thursday, and they want the wristbands to lead to a “frictionless” experience.

“It really was designed to rethink and reimagine how we take all of these friction points out and make it so you can get to the fun faster,” said Chris Crayner, the company’s chief digital officer.

Tapu Tapu is the latest effort by theme parks to eliminate waits, go cashless and track guests through technology that allows workers to greet them by name or know what food they have ordered as they arrive at a restaurant.

Disney’s parks in 2013 unveiled Magicband wristbands that let visitors unlock hotel rooms, gain entrance to parks and pay for food. Earlier this year, Universal introduced “virtual lines” at its “Race Through New York Starring Jimmy Fallon” ride, which allows visitors to relax in a lounge, watch live entertainment or explore the park instead of waiting in a line before getting on the ride.

Unlike Disney’s wristbands, Universal’s Tapu Tapu wristbands have screens on which visitors can get text alerts or see images, and they vibrate.

“The wearable we have here is more of a two-way device to display information to the guests,” Crayner said. “It’s like an Apple watch. It buzzes and you can feel it. When your time to ride is near, it will vibrate and send you a message on the screen.”

Tapu Tapu uses a combination of radio frequency, Bluetooth and nearfield communication technology, which allows electronic devices to talk to each other. When visitors get to a ride, they can swipe their wristband against a kiosk and they will receive an alert when it’s their turn to go on the ride.

Visitors can also use their wristbands throughout the park to trigger water jets or lighting effects. Unlike at the Disney parks, visitors at Volcano Bay must return the wristbands at the end of the day. The wristbands engage the guests, enhance their experiences and expedite going through the water park, said Dennis Speigel, president of International Theme Park Services, a Cincinnatibased consulting firm.

“They are helping guests spend more money in the park because they aren’t standing in line so long,” said Speigel. “The technology is driving our industry now in every sense.”

Universal executives say eliminating the “friction” at its parks is a top priority. While the Tapu Tapu wristbands won’t be used at other Universal parks since they are uniquely designed, and waterproofed, for the water park, frictionless-driven technology will show up at the company’s other parks, whether through cellphones or other devices, said Jeff Polk, Universal’s vice-president of water parks.

“The Tapu Tapu wearable isn’t the culmination of our overall technology development,” Polk said. “It’s the first step.”