There's not nearly as much land as the app-map would make it seem. The berm for the mountains and the forest is thick, and there are some backstage buildings there that don't show up on the map...
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News Star Wars Galaxy's Edge Disneyland opening reports/reviews
- Thread starter wdwmagic
- Start date
There's not nearly as much land as the app-map would make it seem. The berm for the mountains and the forest is thick, and there are some backstage buildings there that don't show up on the map...
MoonRakerSCM
Well-Known Member
SO, tomorrow is D-Day for me. We will storm the shores of Black Spire Outpost at 8pm - 12am.
Some questions for those who might be in the know-
1) What time does Ronto Roaster, the soda stand, and the milk stand close?
2) What time does the restaurant close?
3) We hope to get one of our group in first thing to get ourselves in the virtual queue for the Cantina, do they close it early?
4) Any word on if you can see the fireworks from some of the outdoor tables at the restaurant?
Thanks!
Some questions for those who might be in the know-
1) What time does Ronto Roaster, the soda stand, and the milk stand close?
2) What time does the restaurant close?
3) We hope to get one of our group in first thing to get ourselves in the virtual queue for the Cantina, do they close it early?
4) Any word on if you can see the fireworks from some of the outdoor tables at the restaurant?
Thanks!
THE 1HAPPY HAUNT
Well-Known Member
First the ramp, now this!
Macro
Well-Known Member
1) What time does Ronto Roaster, the soda stand, and the milk stand close?
I was there on the 7th and they were open at least until near closing time. Towards midnight there were minimal lines. Things were so dead that they may have gotten smart and now close them earlier. According to Disney's website they're all still open until midnight.
4) Any word on if you can see the fireworks from some of the outdoor tables at the restaurant?
I don't know but if you watch them from near the Millennium Falcon you're so close it will rattle the fillings out of your teeth. In a fun way of course. It was very very loud. And awesome.
eliza61nyc
Well-Known Member
oh god, please don't get them started on Tokyo.....
Travel Junkie
Well-Known Member
There's a large gap of nothing in the geographic center of the land. That's poor design.
180º
Well-Known Member
There’s a large gap of nothing in the geographic center of Epcot too, to be fair. I think it’s fine. When you’re actually in the land it makes sense. The land is split into two distinct sections, defined by the edge of the marketplace and a really big arch over the main walkway. It’s picturesque.
TROR
Well-Known Member
Disneyland doesn’t have the acreage to waste like WDW does. It also contradicts the intimacy of Disneyland.
Travel Junkie
Well-Known Member
I understand what they were trying, but disagree that it works. The area looks ok, but it was a long walk of nothingness for me anyway. Even something small like a "hidden" Jedi training academy would have given some life to the area.
To be fair, it feels like 3 sections. The distinct First Order area feels different than the marketplace even if they are the same village. The marketplace feels like a buffer between First order heavy and resistance heavy areas.
That's what they were going for. The big gap is to placemake the resistance outside the town.
180º
Well-Known Member
I agree with you there; SWGE is on the scale of something like animal kingdom rather than Disneyland, and it takes up much more space than I would have personally allowed. And I’m still bitter about losing Big Thunder Ranch.
Bongocrab88
Member
I was able to visit the park this weekend so I thought I would leave my thoughts. Overall left feeling satisfied with what I experienced and VERY excited about RotR opening later. Happy to dive deeper or answer any questions.
Detail/Theme - A
Couldn't be happier with the overall structure design and layout. Tons of little details filled throughout the park and it really does feel massive. It is a mix of all three eras but it still manages to feel unique on its own which I appreciate. The sound design is incredibly, which is most notable in the Resistance forest area. Doc Ondor's is the true highlight if you are looking for Easter eggs and throwbacks, his AA is very cool but I did not see any interactive element to him while I was there.
Millennium Falcon Smugglers Run- B
I went in without watching any video content of the ride. My overall feeling is positive, the que is very interesting and it really is a great part of the experience. Honestly my biggest knock on the attraction was that I did not get to spend extended time in the most interesting sections (Hondo and Chess Room). The closer you get to the actually ride I felt very rushed during these last two sections and would have liked to have more time to take it all in. My first ride though I walked into Hondo scene while he is was mid conversation and didn't really catch what was being said or going on. The chess room was great and was able to get take two quick pictures before I was herded into the ship.
The ride itself was a bit divisive with my group. I was able to experience it with the pilot (left/right) and engineer twice. For me the ride was considerably better as the pilot, I was able to really get a handle of what was happening and felt like I had noticeable impact on what was happening. Engineers have to change focus to your buttons to the screen throughout the show and it left me a bit confused and dizzy after multiple times.
One big highlight of the ride that no one ride has matched will be the experience with the group. My wife and I were paired with strangers and some groups were a blast. We would occasionally run into them throughout the weekend or passing down mainstream and laugh about our crashes and the ride. Never experienced that with any other attraction. I can see this possibly cutting both ways because if you have 5 people who are hardcore score chasers and a new rider is paired I can see some people being jerks about it, all my experiences were very positive though.
Shopping locations- B
Very cools little market area and Doc Ondor's shop are all excellently themed. All sorts of neat details and pretty cool offerings that are unique to the stalls and not found elsewhere. One thing to note though, I visited SWGE under optimal conditions. This land (short of paying extra for extended hours) will NEVER be this tame in terms of crowds ever again. Under a normal crowd conditions I can see these being incredibly packed and a logistical nightmare. In the small creature stall for instance (which will be the most popular in the marketplace) we had roughly 10 people walking around and it felt like it hit capacity. Also they don't have a clear path for if the que to buy reaches more than 2 people it, it starts to be muddled and spill out. Doc Ondor also felt incredibly small and it was normal to see a line out front, the line was never very long though but once the general public start to visit..... I would expect a 20+ minute wait in the future.
Food/Drink - Incomplete (D+ for what I had)
Overall disappointed with the food/drink offerings. The Blue Milk is overpriced and it doesn't taste very good, not awful but it is not something I would try again. The popcorn is horrendous, I have no idea how it received the green light given the flavor. I would routinely see people purchase it and as we collectively tried it I saw people throwing away the majority of the bags. These are basically the flavored popcorn from Bing Bong's in DCA mixed in a bag. Not sure what they were thinking since I never see people purchase that popcorn anyway.
Highly was Ronto Wraps for breakfast the egg/sausage/pita combo was tasty. Mine had a little bit too much sauce and my wife didn't have enough so consistency was a bit off. I would order it again.
We walked by Cargo Bay but nothing really stood out so we opted to skip for now.
Catina was a big hit based on the theming but not the drinks/food. I appreciated the showy elements to the orders (lots of dry ice and boba) but a lot of flavors were pretty standard. The trail mix and the jello dish were fine, wouldn't order again though.
Cast Members- C-
Unfortunately I didn't have too many interesting experiences. Didn't hear any real theming or phrases that I was expecting. It also seemed that the majority of the cast I interacted with were not necessarily senior or polished. I asked my wife just to make sure I wasn't being crazy but it was a noticeable difference to the rest of the lands in the park. I also didn't really understand the tone for some, I suspect it was part of the act in the Catina and Falcon but they would be a little snarky to you. I had to explain to my wife that it is part of the act but when she I asked why, I really didn't have an answer for her. Just overall a bit odd.
Lightsaber/Droid Making/Entertainment- Incomplete
Couldn't book the lightsaber experience (honestly didn't even see it anywhere, which is a + for theming since it supposed to be a secret). The droid making had an 1+ line from the look of things, it looks really interesting and I will be making a point to try it out next trip.
In terms of walk around entertainment I only saw Chewie walking around a few times along with storm troopers on the other end. Didn't encounter Ray or Kylo at any point. Also, it looks like they have various performance areas scattered along the land that will be used. I didn't see any of it in action but I suspect something good will come from it.
Detail/Theme - A
Couldn't be happier with the overall structure design and layout. Tons of little details filled throughout the park and it really does feel massive. It is a mix of all three eras but it still manages to feel unique on its own which I appreciate. The sound design is incredibly, which is most notable in the Resistance forest area. Doc Ondor's is the true highlight if you are looking for Easter eggs and throwbacks, his AA is very cool but I did not see any interactive element to him while I was there.
Millennium Falcon Smugglers Run- B
I went in without watching any video content of the ride. My overall feeling is positive, the que is very interesting and it really is a great part of the experience. Honestly my biggest knock on the attraction was that I did not get to spend extended time in the most interesting sections (Hondo and Chess Room). The closer you get to the actually ride I felt very rushed during these last two sections and would have liked to have more time to take it all in. My first ride though I walked into Hondo scene while he is was mid conversation and didn't really catch what was being said or going on. The chess room was great and was able to get take two quick pictures before I was herded into the ship.
The ride itself was a bit divisive with my group. I was able to experience it with the pilot (left/right) and engineer twice. For me the ride was considerably better as the pilot, I was able to really get a handle of what was happening and felt like I had noticeable impact on what was happening. Engineers have to change focus to your buttons to the screen throughout the show and it left me a bit confused and dizzy after multiple times.
One big highlight of the ride that no one ride has matched will be the experience with the group. My wife and I were paired with strangers and some groups were a blast. We would occasionally run into them throughout the weekend or passing down mainstream and laugh about our crashes and the ride. Never experienced that with any other attraction. I can see this possibly cutting both ways because if you have 5 people who are hardcore score chasers and a new rider is paired I can see some people being jerks about it, all my experiences were very positive though.
Shopping locations- B
Very cools little market area and Doc Ondor's shop are all excellently themed. All sorts of neat details and pretty cool offerings that are unique to the stalls and not found elsewhere. One thing to note though, I visited SWGE under optimal conditions. This land (short of paying extra for extended hours) will NEVER be this tame in terms of crowds ever again. Under a normal crowd conditions I can see these being incredibly packed and a logistical nightmare. In the small creature stall for instance (which will be the most popular in the marketplace) we had roughly 10 people walking around and it felt like it hit capacity. Also they don't have a clear path for if the que to buy reaches more than 2 people it, it starts to be muddled and spill out. Doc Ondor also felt incredibly small and it was normal to see a line out front, the line was never very long though but once the general public start to visit..... I would expect a 20+ minute wait in the future.
Food/Drink - Incomplete (D+ for what I had)
Overall disappointed with the food/drink offerings. The Blue Milk is overpriced and it doesn't taste very good, not awful but it is not something I would try again. The popcorn is horrendous, I have no idea how it received the green light given the flavor. I would routinely see people purchase it and as we collectively tried it I saw people throwing away the majority of the bags. These are basically the flavored popcorn from Bing Bong's in DCA mixed in a bag. Not sure what they were thinking since I never see people purchase that popcorn anyway.
Highly was Ronto Wraps for breakfast the egg/sausage/pita combo was tasty. Mine had a little bit too much sauce and my wife didn't have enough so consistency was a bit off. I would order it again.
We walked by Cargo Bay but nothing really stood out so we opted to skip for now.
Catina was a big hit based on the theming but not the drinks/food. I appreciated the showy elements to the orders (lots of dry ice and boba) but a lot of flavors were pretty standard. The trail mix and the jello dish were fine, wouldn't order again though.
Cast Members- C-
Unfortunately I didn't have too many interesting experiences. Didn't hear any real theming or phrases that I was expecting. It also seemed that the majority of the cast I interacted with were not necessarily senior or polished. I asked my wife just to make sure I wasn't being crazy but it was a noticeable difference to the rest of the lands in the park. I also didn't really understand the tone for some, I suspect it was part of the act in the Catina and Falcon but they would be a little snarky to you. I had to explain to my wife that it is part of the act but when she I asked why, I really didn't have an answer for her. Just overall a bit odd.
Lightsaber/Droid Making/Entertainment- Incomplete
Couldn't book the lightsaber experience (honestly didn't even see it anywhere, which is a + for theming since it supposed to be a secret). The droid making had an 1+ line from the look of things, it looks really interesting and I will be making a point to try it out next trip.
In terms of walk around entertainment I only saw Chewie walking around a few times along with storm troopers on the other end. Didn't encounter Ray or Kylo at any point. Also, it looks like they have various performance areas scattered along the land that will be used. I didn't see any of it in action but I suspect something good will come from it.
Travel Junkie
Well-Known Member
I realize that. As I said I feel it is a mistake.
Bongocrab88
Member
After visiting right now it feels empty. I think once the RotR opens it will be a different story. I suspect that the forest area will be bustling with people and you are going to want a little separation or space that doesn't have any draw so that people can easily access other areas.
If they were to put a meet and greet for Chewie/Ray in that spot it could cause a bit of a bottle neck or confusion.
This is by far the biggest fail of the land. All the big stuff to do is all bunched together, with a long path taking up space. I think this will be a massive cluster with DHS's version opens with less space.
As for getting a reservation "wasn't really hard" They sold out in 2 hours. That's like Comicon fast. And I've never heard ANYONE say getting Comicon tickets "wasn't really hard". Even if all your friends are trying to get 4 packs of tickets.
Travel Junkie
Well-Known Member
Agreed. There are portions of the land that are jammed with stuff, while others are completely lacking. Very imbalanced.
If you were paying attention and knew what to do. Disney told you in advance where to go and when. On the day, you clicked on the link they provided and waited until it was your turn by random draw. When it was your turn you filled out the form and done. The biggest issues were for those who didn't know about the reservations in advance. If you knew when are where to go, it was an incredibly simple process.
TROR
Well-Known Member
As you said, it's a randomized draw. Lotteries are not easy.
He just doesn't get that. It's like a Powerball winner swearing becoming a millionaire is simple.
BrianLo
Well-Known Member
I'm actually not aware of one person on our forum who tried to get a reservation that wasn't able to. I'm sure there was somebody, but all our members here who wanted to go seem to be going.
It wasn't as dicey as you think it was. There were about 300k people who were allowed reservations.
That's not to say it didn't sell out quickly, but it wasn't exactly winning the lottery when there were hundreds of thousands of 'winners'.
Travel Junkie
Well-Known Member
No you don't understand how it worked. Short of having internet troubles, anyone who went to the link at 10AM got a reservation time. Anyone who pressed the link after 11 immediately got in no waiting required as the randomizer had already pushed everyone through. If you waited until 12 you were out of luck.
It's obvious you have no idea how the process worked to those who actually went through it.