News Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser coming to Walt Disney World 2021

[HoustonHorn]

Others talk about being picked up from their hotel with Ubers or private cars, which was never advertised (AFAIK) as a service.

Oh Penguin, you reminded me!

I should have included this in the review. My buddy and I did a 1-night prestay at Beach Club. The morning of our arrival, we had a voicemail telling us that we could get a cab voucher for a free ride to the Starcruiser. You're absolutely right - not advertised and unexpected. The bell service manager knew exactly what we were asking for and it was completely hassle-free (other than the cabbie having know idea what was happening or where we were going).

With everything else going on, I forgot. I would put that in the "Great" category in my review - a really nice perk that was unexpected.

 

[mergatroid]

Understood. On the one hand, leaving any cabins on empty, Disney is leaving money on the table. On the other hand, there could be a magic number of cabins, that when filled, they show it filled on the calendar?

I don't know. Maybe they are literally filling every cabin when the calendar show a cruise is full?

We will never know. Like the attendance numbers in the park, they will never tell us.

It would be interesting experiment to call Disney a day before a cruise day where you see it's full on the calendar and see if you can get a cabin.

Guest: Hello Disney, I was wondering if there was wondering if there are any rooms available for that Star Wars hotel tomorrow?
Disney: Did you check the booking calendar?
Guest: What's a booking calendar? Could you please check for me? My son Melvin really wants to stay there to meet Han Solo and Luke.
Disney: Well, Han and Luke.... er nevermind... Let me check.. Great News it looks like we have a cabin just open up.
Guest: What's a cabin? Anyway, Yes please book us for a party of three please.

They could do that of course but then again any hotel could, I'm not sure why the Galactic Starcruiser should specifically be accused of that? Personally I think as Disney is so keen to make money that the idea they would leave money on the table to 'look busier' doesn't seem likely. Again it's just a guess though.

 

[brideck]

Yes, you are funneled into one of the storylines that will determine your missions on Batuu and your experiences the second day when you return. But no, it isn't wholly random - if you show up in a shirt that says "Bounty Hunter Services," you're probably going to be sent into the Rogue storyline (which I was).

Just got back from the 4/14 cruise and had an absolute blast with the whole experience. I'd be surprised if there were any mechanism that took into account your apparel absent other input. There are a couple general Datapad questions early on with 4 possible responses (the way they sync up with the paths is transparent). Combined with that, you have the ability to approach the various face characters early in the first day and be physically scanned into particular missions that will help determine your path. My spouse and I combined to cover most of the Rebellion and Scoundrel stuff, working closely with the corresponding face characters. I could not be more impressed with the cast for the entirety -- they learned our names and how to recognize if we belonged to their faction in such a short amount of time.

If you completely ignore the Datapad on Day 1 and don't engage with the story moments, I suspect your Day 2 itinerary would look pretty empty. There certainly was a non-zero number of people just wandering around the ship with drinks in hand at all hours, so maybe that's what those people did. Not my idea of money well spent, but to each their own.

I should also say that the Resistance/First Order split on our cruise was really pretty good. The First Order did an exceptionally good job at recruiting from the large pool of children on board, to the point that jokes were made about that in the final sequence.

Others talk about being picked up from their hotel with Ubers or private cars, which was never advertised (AFAIK) as a service.

They got us a taxi to head to the All-Star for the rest of our stay at WDW and covered the cost. Wholly unexpected, but very appreciated.

 

[mergatroid]

Just got back from the 4/14 cruise and had an absolute blast with the whole experience. I'd be surprised if there were any mechanism that took into account your apparel absent other input. There are a couple general Datapad questions early on with 4 possible responses (the way they sync up with the paths is transparent). Combined with that, you have the ability to approach the various face characters early in the first day and be physically scanned into particular missions that will help determine your path. My spouse and I combined to cover most of the Rebellion and Scoundrel stuff, working closely with the corresponding face characters. I could not be more impressed with the cast for the entirety -- they learned our names and how to recognize if we belonged to their faction in such a short amount of time.

If you completely ignore the Datapad on Day 1 and don't engage with the story moments, I suspect your Day 2 itinerary would look pretty empty. There certainly was a non-zero number of people just wandering around the ship with drinks in hand at all hours, so maybe that's what those people did. Not my idea of money well spent, but to each their own.

I should also say that the Resistance/First Order split on our cruise was really pretty good. The First Order did an exceptionally good job at recruiting from the large pool of children on board, to the point that jokes were made about that in the final sequence.



They got us a taxi to head to the All-Star for the rest of our stay at WDW and covered the cost. Wholly unexpected, but very appreciated.

Glad you had such a great stay, thanks for posting.

 

[DCBaker]

Disney has announced a new activity for passengers that is available beginning May 2nd -

IMAGE DESIGN – SPECIES

Enhance your character with a personalized, galactic makeover right in your cabin! Our talented “image designers” are ready to create your out-of-this-world look in the style of fan-favorite alien species so iconic to Star Wars. Choose from a selection of eye-catching, face-painted designs for a look that inspires your unique story aboard the Halcyon starcruiser. Plus, appointments are limited, so jump to hyperspace and reserve yours as soon as possible!

Look for the blue “Batuu Approved” symbol in the species design examples if you’d like to wear a look in the parks, where only partial face covering is allowed.

The makeover experience will take place at the entry area within your cabin.

The cabin door will remain open during the transformation.

This is a face paint experience and does not include any costumes depicted in sample images.

Guests should arrive at their cabin 15 minutes prior to their service time.

Transformations take approximately 30 minutes.

The full price of the service will be charged if cancelled within 48 hours of the appointment time or for no-shows.
Participating Guests must be 7 years of age or older.

A parent or guardian must be present during the entire experience for all participants under 18 years of age.

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/star-wars-galactic-starcruiser/addon-activities/#block5?CMP=ILC-DPFY21Q4wo0421220427220007E

Here are some examples -

 

[mergatroid]

Disney has announced a new activity for passengers that is available beginning May 2nd -

IMAGE DESIGN – SPECIES

Enhance your character with a personalized, galactic makeover right in your cabin! Our talented “image designers” are ready to create your out-of-this-world look in the style of fan-favorite alien species so iconic to Star Wars. Choose from a selection of eye-catching, face-painted designs for a look that inspires your unique story aboard the Halcyon starcruiser. Plus, appointments are limited, so jump to hyperspace and reserve yours as soon as possible!

Look for the blue “Batuu Approved” symbol in the species design examples if you’d like to wear a look in the parks, where only partial face covering is allowed.

The makeover experience will take place at the entry area within your cabin.

The cabin door will remain open during the transformation.

This is a face paint experience and does not include any costumes depicted in sample images.

Guests should arrive at their cabin 15 minutes prior to their service time.

Transformations take approximately 30 minutes.

The full price of the service will be charged if cancelled within 48 hours of the appointment time or for no-shows.
Participating Guests must be 7 years of age or older.

A parent or guardian must be present during the entire experience for all participants under 18 years of age.

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/star-wars-galactic-starcruiser/addon-activities/#block5?CMP=ILC-DPFY21Q4wo0421220427220007E

Here are some examples -

View attachment 635456View attachment 635457View attachment 635458View attachment 635459

For those who want that sort of thing I suppose it's great, adds a bit more to the experience of role playing I guess.

 

[kingdead]

That looks 1. so cool 2. like it should be available outside the hotel (for a hefty fee that is not $6000?) I just can't imagine taking an hour out of the experience for facepainting, especially if it then means that you have to remove the paint before going out to the parks.

 

[brideck]

I just can't imagine taking an hour out of the experience for facepainting, especially if it then means that you have to remove the paint before going out to the parks.

If you scored an appointment early in the first day, I could see this working out for people. Otherwise, it's a little weird changing your look so dramatically partway through the cruise.

I wonder which looks aren't allowed in the park. We definitely had 2 or 3 passengers on our cruise who wore face paint the entire time, including on the Batuu excursion, but it's possible that the woman made up as a blue Twi'lek wasn't allowed in looking like that.

 

[DCBaker]

If you scored an appointment early in the first day, I could see this working out for people. Otherwise, it's a little weird changing your look so dramatically partway through the cruise.

I wonder which looks aren't allowed in the park. We definitely had 2 or 3 passengers on our cruise who wore face paint the entire time, including on the Batuu excursion, but it's possible that the woman made up as a blue Twi'lek wasn't allowed in looking like that.

Look for this image below in the examples Disney provided on the website for approved looks in the parks.

 

[brideck]

Look for this image below in the examples Disney provided on the website for approved looks in the parks.

View attachment 635474

Thanks, I didn't see that tag on any of the images posted here and failed to scroll through the pictures on the website.

Interesting. The guy playing a green-skinned Mirialan was definitely in violation of this, but I also definitely saw him on Batuu. I wonder if they'll enforce that a little more closely once this service gets off the ground.

 

[corran horn]

That looks 1. so cool 2. like it should be available outside the hotel (for a hefty fee that is not $6000?) I just can't imagine taking an hour out of the experience for facepainting, especially if it then means that you have to remove the paint before going out to the parks.

Did they ever open Pirates League back up again?

 

[Disstevefan1]

I cant wait till they convert the Starcruiser to a DVC

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

Feel free to link up all the bad reviews from paying guests to back up your assertion then?

Well to be fair it’s not like all the reviews have been great, and the bookings are filling up, and the people who have actually experienced the hotel love it….. oh wait a minute…

 

[mergatroid]

Well to be fair it’s not like all the reviews have been great, and the bookings are filling up, and the people who have actually experienced the hotel love it….. oh wait a minute…

Having posted a lot of reviews in the review thread I know most are great. I've actively looked for bad reviews and struggled to find them? I've only posted reviews from paying guests since the freebies finished too. Please post all the bad reviews from paying guests .......... the one's who've experienced it?

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

Having posted a lot of reviews in the review thread I know most are great. I've actively looked for bad reviews and struggled to find them? I've only posted reviews from paying guests since the freebies finished too. Please post all the bad reviews from paying guests .......... the one's who've experienced it?

That was my point. Both my boys loved it. Even my non-sci fi liking wife liked it enough to say she enjoyed it. My point was sarcastic. It seems for the most part the people complaining are the ones with no personal experience

 

[mergatroid]

That was my point. Both my boys loved it. Even my non-sci fi liking wife liked it enough to say she enjoyed it. My point was sarcastic. It seems for the most part the people complaining are the ones with no personal experience

Sorry thought you were one of those who keep insisting this is terrible

 

[Wendy Pleakley]

It's very telling there are little to no negative reviews.

Anyone who reads this or other forums know that the people who have a complaint or a gripe with something tend to be the loudest voices.

Which is fine. One can only say how much they love the Haunted Mansion so many times. Negative experiences are going to be vocalized more often as people want to get things off their chest.

If someone paid the high amount for this experience, and had a bad time, I'd think they'd be shouting about it from the rooftops.

 

[monothingie]

The reactions are a classic illustration of confirmation bias. How can you cite a positive guest review as meaningful when there is no objectivity in that review? Guests going have a high degree of information and expectation ahead of time about what their experience will be, coupled with the thousands of dollars spent, a negative reaction is extremely unlikely. These are mostly the diehards who would pay anything to experience this.

What is telling and likely alarming for Bob and Company is the vast majority who have mocked and dismissed this creation. Looking at the future bookings, they drop off like a rock from August through the end of the year. This would strongly suggest that once they quickly cycle through the die hards, there is a major problem quickly approaching. No amount of non-objective positive reviews will change that.

 

[MisterPenguin]

The reactions are a classic illustration of confirmation bias. How can you cite a positive guest review as meaningful when there is no objectivity in that review? Guests going have a high degree of information and expectation ahead of time about what their experience will be, coupled with the thousands of dollars spent, a negative reaction is extremely unlikely. These are mostly the diehards who would pay anything to experience this.

What is telling and likely alarming for Bob and Company is the vast majority who have mocked and dismissed this creation. Looking at the future bookings, they drop off like a rock from August through the end of the year. This would strongly suggest that once they quickly cycle through the die hards, there is a major problem quickly approaching. No amount of non-objective positive reviews will change that.

How do you propose getting a neutral point of view?

​

Picking out people randomly from the general population and sending them there?​

​

And if they like it, will you or others then ad hominem, too: "Well, of course they liked it, they didn't pay anything to go!!"?​

​

There is no population that one could choose to get "an honest review" that, if positive, couldn't be ad hominemed into proclaiming their review was tainted in some way by whatever characteristic they may have (or imagined to have).​

​

The worst ad hominem so far is the one you just gave which boils down to: "Well of course they liked it, they're Star Wars fans!!!" As if people who didn't care for the IP would sign up for an IP-heavy event.​

WRT to sold out rooms. The number of sold out rooms keeps increasing, albeit at a slower rate than initially. Adding three months worth of new inventory would tend to spread people out and reduce the frequency of dates that become fully booked.

 

[nickys]

When I emailed the U.K. / International Disney site as to whether we could book from the U.K., and why there was no information up on the website for us, I got a response to the effect that they put info that they “consider most appropriate to our guests from the U.K.” onto the website.

I took that to mean they don’t want to book international guests onto it. Which is fine. If & when we decide to go ahead I’ll just ask a US based TA to book it for us (almost certainly the site sponsor Kingdom Konsultants).

Seems short sighted to me but if that is their attitude then I’m not giving them the custom.