News Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser coming to Walt Disney World 2021

[Horizons '83]

So they're still building this stupid thing?

Feeling a little negative today?

 

[Lensman]

If the bus travel is timed in such a way that there would be no stops required from the hotel to the exit point at GE then this could work. But if a bus driver is stopping at stop signs then the illusion will be very thinly veiled.

I'm not even sure they need to limit the stops. I was thinking that they might just need some sound effects of the ion engine for momentum changes. There might be a patent involved in getting the space simulator footage on the screens to match up with the motion of the bus itself.

I don't have a great deal of experience with what it feels like to de-orbit from a spaceship to the surface of a planet, so I think it's in the realm of possibility that I will be fooled by whatever they come up with. I mean, there will be a lurch on de-docking, some maneuvering to separate from the ship, the initial de-orbit burn and some buffeting on entering the exosphere. I'm not sure whether any Star Wars ships are heat shielded for re-entry - the ones I recall aren't, so they need to use a powered re-entry scheme to slow from orbital speed to planetary rotation speed. I don't know how busy the de-orbit landing pattern is for the Black Sphere Outpost is, but there could be maneuvering to stay in that landing pattern, and then there's the maneuvering to orient and land at the landing bay of the spaceport. If anything, I suspect there won't be enough momentum changes to be truly realistic - though I suppose the smoothness can be attributed to the Accelerator/Inertial Compensator (gravity field generator) on your shuttle. The inertial compensator on my Star Tours shuttle didn't fully compensate for the violent maneuvering there so there's precedent for at least *some* turbulence in the Star Wars universe.

I'm less sanguine about the planetside experience on Batuu, given all the regular park guests there.

 

[tomast]

Would there be transport to other parks?? like what if you want to go to MK?

 

[mmascari]

More significant than time of day is that it’s unlikely the entire guest roster is on the same schedule. So day 2 guests are on transit to ge... day 1 guests are not, etc. schedule is everything in this... so much is just really unbounded until more details or paths are clear.

I'm assuming everyone will be on the same day, more like a real cruise ship with specific departure days.

But, it's still definitely schedule that has the biggest impact. Both at the resort, and any special events at SW:GE. A special event in the park could draw large groups all at one time.

For the hotel side of the schedule, they have significantly more control. Anything from staggered overlapping activities that tie up people doing other things to special in park activities that are staggered. Because we believe the hotel is really a multi day experience more than a classic hotel. Following that thought, there should be less random times people are headed into the park and more times it's fitted into the experiences going on. If they plan those to distribute guests across time going to the park they'll need relatively low volume. If they plan those to dump the entire guest load for a 4 hour "shore excursion" all at the same time, they'll need to support a higher volume, much like a real cruise ship docking in port.

Either way, they'll have full control.


Bonus, since it's all back stage and never needs to mingle with general traffic, does it really need to meet any "road legal" requirements? Obviously, it needs to be safe and meet normal transport requirements. But, it's not going to be cruising down Buena Vista Dr.

 

[flynnibus]

I'm assuming everyone will be on the same day, more like a real cruise ship with specific departure days.

I've always thought they would do that too... with a strict schedule for in/out... but others think it will have to compromise and be more fluid. But, it's still possible to have offset schedules with the fixed start/end days.. and specific advantages to doing so as well.

When you offset schedules, you reduce the specific capacity you must have for a task.. as you can do it spread out over more frequent things.

But in this case, since guests will be most likely freely interacting with each other... it's probably best from a story perspective that everyone be aligned on the same 'departure/arrival' plot. This is the star cruiser pitch... but we have to see if Disney will stick to it. So many people here were so against the idea of a 'cruise' since they could not let go of where they were physically.. you have to expect Disney saw similar backlash as a whole. I really want them to deliver on what they originally pitched. To hell with all the people that say "I wanna goto the theme parks!!"

Bonus, since it's all back stage and never needs to mingle with general traffic, does it really need to meet any "road legal" requirements? Obviously, it needs to be safe and meet normal transport requirements. But, it's not going to be cruising down Buena Vista Dr.

I would expect it to be treated like the trams, etc. Expectations of road worthiness and safety, but not a regular commercial vehicle.

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

So they're still building this stupid thing?

Not the target market, I presume?

 

[Hawg G]

I would use an electric based bus and have a very slow drive from the hotel to the land. With the electric motors, you can really control the speed and make is smooth and slow moving, allowing you to create a better sense you are in a shuttle and not in a bus. If the illusion is effective, extending the time it takes to go between shouldn’t be a problem for guests. And the distance isn’t that great to begin with, so if it would normally take 3 minutes to drive between, doubling that to 6 to 7 minutes, should be doable. Just my thoughts.

The issue is capacity. Slower transports means fewer people moved in the morning rush.

 

[mmascari]

I've always thought they would do that too... with a strict schedule for in/out... but others think it will have to compromise and be more fluid. But, it's still possible to have offset schedules with the fixed start/end days.. and specific advantages to doing so as well.

Of all the things they might compromise on, my guess is start/end days are the least likely. There's to much story impact without having the consistent start and stop of the entire experience. It's really an operational efficiency thing too. That's why I'm assuming they'll keep this.

When you offset schedules, you reduce the specific capacity you must have for a task.. as you can do it spread out over more frequent things.

Exactly. That's the point I was trying to make. They'll have so much impact on each guest's schedule, they can easily spread the volume out.

But in this case, since guests will be most likely freely interacting with each other... it's probably best from a story perspective that everyone be aligned on the same 'departure/arrival' plot. This is the star cruiser pitch... but we have to see if Disney will stick to it. So many people here were so against the idea of a 'cruise' since they could not let go of where they were physically.. you have to expect Disney saw similar backlash as a whole. I really want them to deliver on what they originally pitched. To hell with all the people that say "I wanna goto the theme parks!!"

I think this is where the biggest compromise will come from. I'm still in the camp that they'll have some type of normal bus transport from the front of the hotel to the other parks. I do think they are designing it so that people will not want to use that transport, but I think it will be there as a hedge. There's big difference between making it so exciting that you'll never want to go to one of the other parks and requiring you to get a Minivan or Uber if you want to. It could be as simple as 6 buses, 2 for each park going back and forth for however long that trip takes. Mix in a water park and Springs with a park each. If nobody ever rides it because the rest is so attractive, they can cut back.

 

[build_it]

The issue is capacity. Slower transports means fewer people moved in the morning rush.

Unless you add more transports. So instead of one transport moving each direction, you have two or three. If you had a holding area to board, you could have an entire transport boarded fairly quickly. Unloaded and loaded in a couple of minutes.

And I agree with other posters, where I think there will be some scheduled items that will help spread out the journey between the hotel and land. I don't think they will be as limiting as a cruise ship, but something that would entice you to complete it before you head to your transport.

If you have an 'itinerary' for your journey for your two or three days, I would think they would stagger 'itineraries'. Decrease demand and equal out capacity.

 

[danlb_2000]

Feeling a little negative today?

"today"?

 

[Hawg G]

I've always thought they would do that too... with a strict schedule for in/out... but others think it will have to compromise and be more fluid. But, it's still possible to have offset schedules with the fixed start/end days.. and specific advantages to doing so as well.

When you offset schedules, you reduce the specific capacity you must have for a task.. as you can do it spread out over more frequent things.

But in this case, since guests will be most likely freely interacting with each other... it's probably best from a story perspective that everyone be aligned on the same 'departure/arrival' plot. This is the star cruiser pitch... but we have to see if Disney will stick to it. So many people here were so against the idea of a 'cruise' since they could not let go of where they were physically.. you have to expect Disney saw similar backlash as a whole. I really want them to deliver on what they originally pitched. To hell with all the people that say "I wanna goto the theme parks!!"



I would expect it to be treated like the trams, etc. Expectations of road worthiness and safety, but not a regular commercial vehicle.

If there isn't a night time ERT session that hotel guests are allowed to wear costumes to, that will greatly diminish my desire to stay there. Also, there has to be access to and from the park all day. If you have a cranky kid, and let him sleep in, are they going to tell you you can't ride the shuttle, and instead have to leave the hotel and ride a bus over, destroying the hotel experience?

These busses will need to run either direction, without the need to turn around, or the transports will make a lot of movements. I can't see there being more than 3 running at a time. I still think capacity will be a major issue at certain times. Especially with the inevitable wheelchairs and stroller to deal with.

 

[flynnibus]

If there isn't a night time ERT session that hotel guests are allowed to wear costumes to, that will greatly diminish my desire to stay there. Also, there has to be access to and from the park all day. If you have a cranky kid, and let him sleep in, are they going to tell you you can't ride the shuttle, and instead have to leave the hotel and ride a bus over, destroying the hotel experience?

THIS IS NOT A HOTEL

This is a multi-day immersive experience. The original pitch was SW:GE was something you did AFTER your stay.. but we don't know what they are doing in terms of blending the two during your stay. But you should have a full agenda in front of you as part of your experience. The only people looking to goto the theme parks are those who are effectively 'opting out' and losing out on what they paid for.

 

[Hawg G]

THIS IS NOT A HOTEL

This is a multi-day immersive experience. The original pitch was SW:GE was something you did AFTER your stay.. but we don't know what they are doing in terms of blending the two during your stay. But you should have a full agenda in front of you as part of your experience. The only people looking to goto the theme parks are those who are effectively 'opting out' and losing out on what they paid for.

If that's the case, why is there an integrated transport to the parks? Going to SWGE is ABSOLUTELY a key part of the resort stay.

Again, if it doesn't include ERT with costumes and very small lines for everything that is normally a mob scene, that puts massive expectations on the resort part. People aren't paying $1000 a night for an extended dinner theater.

 

[flynnibus]

If that's the case, why is there an integrated transport to the parks? Going to SWGE is ABSOLUTELY a key part of the resort stay.

Because visiting batuu was the final bit of the stay (my 'after' term was not the best). The idea was a starship... you board.. you travel, you have a starcruiser experience.. you visit batuu.. you return.

People aren't paying $1000 a night for an extended dinner theater.

That is what it was pitched as... a self-contained cruise ship experience. The entire experience was NOT DEPENDENT on SW:GE. The sales pitch was actually one that made it sound like it could be done anywhere... middle of iowa.. It was only the 'top your trip off with a special GE experience..' that basically anchored it to Orlando.


But now that we've seen what they built.. and how thin it looks.. they may have changed to relying on stuff in GE more than they originally pitched.

 

[michmousefan]

Dulles drives these all around the tarmac to this day... they have windows but most people don’t even look at them.
View attachment 366953

Hey, at the end of this (wonderful, btw) vintage Eames clip the mobile shuttles are used to get passengers to spaceships, so... why not?

 

[flynnibus]

Hey, at the end of this (wonderful, btw) vintage Eames clip the mobile shuttles are used to get passengers to spaceships, so... why not?

They used to load airplanes directly from them too. Take a batch of people from terminal directly to the plane and vise versa. The older design actually have a lift to adjust the height of them for that purpose. But now, they just use them to isolate international passengers en route to CBP, and provide transit on routes not served by the automated trains. They are pretty big beasts

 

[HauntedMansionFLA]

4/23

 

[SWGalaxysEdge]

Would there be transport to other parks?? like what if you want to go to MK?

...walk out of the park like anyone else, I assume. Or if you are at the hotel, they may have "Magic elevators" that bring you back to earth and you take a regular bus./shuttle to the parks.

 

[RobotWolf]

This will very likely be a nightmare for Disney. But if they pull it off in any significant way, I'll be very interested in what comes next in this vein considering what they will learn.

 

[Hawg G]

This will very likely be a nightmare for Disney. But if they pull it off in any significant way, I'll be very interested in what comes next in this vein considering what they will learn.

I have to believe a Potter Hotel will be part of Fantastic Worlds, or whatever the new park is.