Immersive two-night vacation experience invites Walt Disney World Resort guests to live their own Star Wars stories in an entirely new way
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (Feb. 25, 2022) – When “Star Wars: A New Hope” blasted into theaters 45 years ago, the film created a monumental cultural event, setting the imaginations of generations to come ablaze with tales of heroism, villainy, adventure, mysticism and romance. What is it like to travel to a galaxy far, far away? What is it like to fly on a starship? To make friends with an alien? To wield a lightsaber? To engage in a space battle?
What is it really like to see, feel and live Star Wars?
The answers to these questions and many more will be answered March 1, 2022, when Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser debuts at Walt Disney World Resort. This first-of-its-kind immersive adventure is a vacation experience going beyond anything Disney has created before. Guests become the heroes of their own Star Wars stories during a two-night adventure aboard the Halcyon starcruiser, a vessel known for its impeccable service and exotic destinations. Passengers relax in well-appointed cabins, enjoy exquisite dining and out-of-this-world entertainment, experience Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in new ways, and explore the ship in search of hidden secrets and new opportunities.
Throughout the voyage, guests’ choices determine their personal stories as they interact with characters, crew and other passengers, becoming part of the action and the broader Star Wars saga. They may be asked to keep a secret, deliver a covert message, take part in a high-stakes heist, defend the ship, hide an ally … the possibilities are seemingly endless. Decisions guests make affect how these tales unfold, intertwining with those of other passengers and well-known characters such as Chewbacca and Rey as momentum builds on an action-packed adventure that may determine the fate of the galaxy.
From Walt Disney World Resort to a Galaxy Far, Far Away
Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser debuts during “The World’s Most Magical Celebration” honoring the 50th Anniversary of Walt Disney World, adding to the abundance of new experiences across the resort during this historic milestone.
- The adventure begins when guests arrive at the Galactic Starcruiser Terminal near Disney’s Hollywood Studios and check in for their two-night experience.
- Guests enter a Launch Pod to begin their Star Wars Through viewports, they see their world fall away as they jump to hyperspace and draw closer to the magnificent Halcyon starcruiser.
- When the Launch Pod docks and the airlock opens, guests step into the ship’s main deck Atrium to begin their journey through a galaxy far, far away.
An Experience Going Beyond Anything Disney Has Created Before
Star Wars infuses every moment onboard the Halcyon starcruiser, where each detail of the experience is meticulously crafted to create a compelling, complete, all-consuming story.
- The immersive experience features thrilling onboard activities, such as:
- Learning the ancient ways of the lightsaber and facing off against a training remote, where guests may discover their own connection with the Force just as Luke Skywalker once did.
- Visiting the starcruiser’s Bridge to learn about its systems and how to operate them, including weapons and shields – skills that may come in handy during a journey through this adventure-filled galaxy.
- Playing holo-sabacc in the ship’s Sublight Lounge, where guests can try their luck against other passengers in this game of skill, strategy and chance.
- Passenger cabins feature a viewport out to space that continuously changes throughout the journey. Other special touches include sleeping berths reminiscent of those seen on other famous Star Wars ships such as the Millennium Falcon.
- The Halcyon starcruiser design draws inspiration directly from the Star Wars universe, including Dryden Vos’ First Light yacht and Leia Organa’s Tantive IV starship … with a bit of Imperial-era aesthetic mixed in.
- Guests can explore the starcruiser and perhaps discover hidden spaces perfect for uncovering secrets or holding clandestine meetings.
Dynamic, Interactive Storytelling Unfolds in Real Time
A visit on the Halcyon starcruiser invites guests into a two-night, interactive story that interweaves with crew members, other passengers, droids and familiar Star Wars characters such as Rey, Chewbacca and Kylo Ren. As they choose alliances and chart their own courses, guests may encounter, among others, the starcruiser’s strong and charismatic captain, a plucky mechanic, or a charming scoundrel with an ulterior motive, among others.
- Characters may engage with guests throughout the voyage, everything from simply asking about their homeworlds to inviting them to protect valuable information or take part in a mission.
- Passengers can deepen their engagement with characters and storylines by using the Play Disney Parks mobile app on their smart devices.* Through the Star Wars: Datapad inside the app, guests can access a plethora of functions:
- Events – Updates guest itineraries continuously, evolving with new invitations and secret meetings as guests interact with different characters and complete various missions
- Comms – Receive and send information relating to missions and adventures, which could impact how stories unfold during the voyage
- Map – Provides the layout of both the starcruiser and Black Spire Outpost on Batuu; passengers use these maps for navigation as they go on missions during their adventure
- Tools –Become active when a particular job calls for them, especially while on a planetside excursion in Black Spire Outpost
- Profile –Shows passengers’ affiliations as they continue through the story
- Guests can choose to interact with D3-O9, the ship’s Logistics Droid, via vidscreen and have real-time conversations about their adventures while onboard the ship. When D3-O9 is activated by pressing the Droid Link button, recordings of sounds detected within the cabin, including voices, will be created to improve personalized interactions. At this time, D3-O9 will be only available for a limited test period.**
Dining Is Part of the Show in Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser
Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser boasts a robust and imaginative dining program developed especially for this vacation experience. Passengers aboard the Halcyon starcruiser discover menus full of familiar tastes but unexpected colors and textures, deepening the immersion of their galactic voyage.
- Guests find refreshment each day in an enticing supper club known as the Crown of Corellia Dining Room. This dynamic and welcoming hall offers breakfast and lunch buffets during the day, and then comes alive each night of the voyage with a lavish multi-course, table-service menu of both otherworldly and familiar origins.
- The first night’s dinner features a live performance from Gaya, the Twi’lek musical superstar who captivates her audience as she moves throughout the room singing her biggest hits. The Crown of Corellia transforms with lighting and movement as Gaya is joined by a musician named Ouannii for accompaniment in a show that inspires the entire room to get up and dance. (Passengers may find listening to Gaya’s performance brings insight into more of the goings-on around the ship, as well.)
- The second night offers the “Taste Around the Galaxy” dinner experience, where each course hails from a different planet. Highlights include:
- Smoking cheeses and bread reminiscent of molten planet Mustafar
- Blue shrimp from the dense jungles of Felucia
- Beef and seafood native to the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk
- The Sublight Lounge, located just off the ship’s Atrium, offers a stylish locale for passengers to socialize and enjoy casual refreshments, including an assortment of ales, wines and signature cocktails from across the galaxy, along with light snacks.
Merchandise Enhances Immersive Play Onboard the Starcruiser
An extensive merchandise collection for Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser enhances this role-play vacation experience, inviting guests to further immerse themselves in a galaxy far, far away. The Chandrila Collection boutique offers a wide assortment of apparel and accessories guests can purchase and wear during their voyage.
- Passengers can dress the part with robes, tunics and other authentic fashion apparel evoking Star Wars characters such as Padme Amidala, Leia Organa and Alderaanian officials, among others.
- Headwear helps guests transform into an alien species, with Twi’lek “lekku” head tails or the striped, horned montrals of a Togruta.
- Premium garments and accessories featuring the ship’s logo are also available.
Other merchandise options include a remote-control SK droid, a light-up model of the Halcyon starcruiser, and the Legacy Lightsaber Training Hilt and Legacy Reflective Shield, as well as commemorative Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser items.
New Stories Come to Life in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Storylines from Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser continue to play out when guests travel to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge on the second day of their voyage.
- Passengers board a special transport shuttle for their planetside excursion to Batuu, traveling to Docking Bay 3 in Black Spire Outpost (located near the First Order TIE echelon ship at Docking Bay 9).
- Starcruiser passengers can participate in new missions throughout the land based on characters they’ve met onboard the starcruiser.
- Actions guests take while on Batuu may then have ramifications when they return to the Halcyon starcruiser, helping determine how their stories play out.
- As part of their secret missions, Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser guests receive one-time entry to the land’s two signature attractions – Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance and Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run. Lunch at Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo (or other select locations) is included.
- Guests on a starcruiser voyage can also request reservations at Oga’s Cantina, Savi’s Workshop – Handbuilt Lightsabers, and Droid Depot. (Food, beverages and merchandise at these locations are not included in a Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser vacation.)
Fun Facts – Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser
- The artwork hanging on the Mezzanine level in the Atrium is named “The Unified Galaxy,” an artistic representation depicting the Core Worlds all the way out to the edges of Wild Space. The piece was commissioned by Leia Organa and presented as a gift to the Halcyon starcruiser crew when she and her husband, Han Solo, honeymooned onboard the vessel following the battle of Endor.
- The Hyperspace Compass on display in the Atrium honors the legacy of the instrument’s original owner, Chandrila Star Line founder Shug Drabor.
- A display case at the entrance to the Sublight Lounge holds a bottle of Chandrilan champagne from the same vintage as the year of the ship’s maiden voyage 275 years ago. The bottle did not break during the ship’s christening, so it was preserved as a symbol of good fortune.
- The Crown of Corellia Dining Room is named for Corellia, the planet known galaxy-wide for the shipyards that created not only the Halcyon starcruiser, but also the famed Millennium Falcon.
- Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser was developed at the same time as Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and the two experiences were designed to integrate from the outset.
For more on Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, visit WDWNews.com or www.starwarsgalacticstarcruiser.com.
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