I was really hoping that we would get a firm opening date for Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland and Hollywood Studios for next year during the D23 event two weeks ago, especially since it seemed like Disney was in the mood to announce ALL kinds of good stuff at that event.
Unfortunately, they didn’t come any closer to announcing actual dates or pinning potential dates down to even a month or two month window. Currently, the best we have is “Late Summer” for Disneyland and “Late 2019” for Hollywood Studios.
However, even thought we didn’t get the firm dates I was hoping for, we did get a lot of Galaxy’s Edge information, which WAS very exciting.
Disney Parks, Experiences and Consumer Products Chairman Bob Chapek announced the names of the two major attractions that will be part of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge when it opens next year (?) at Disneyland and Hollywood Studios.
We’ve known for awhile that one attraction would involve the beloved Millennium Falcon, but we didn’t know what it would be called or much about it. Now, we know. This attraction will be called Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run. Check out the teaser trailer Mr. Chapek presented at the event below:
Doesn’t this look like fun? In this attraction, you’ll be behind the controls of the most famous starship in the galaxy in one of three unique flight crew roles.
The second opening day attraction at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge will be Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. This attraction will put you right in the middle of a battle between the Resistance and the First Order.
Bob Chapek also brought a trailer for THIS attraction as well:
Based on the VERY limited information we have so far from these trailers, and, let’s face it, the way theme park ride technology trends have been going, I suspect both of these attractions will be motion simulators. Normally, I am not a big fan of motion simulators; however, the Imagineers really worked some amazing magic with Flight of Passage at Pandora in Animal Kingdom–it’s quickly become one of my favorite attractions of all time–so I’m hoping that the Star Wars motion simulators will be the latest and greatest and just as good (or better) than Flight of Passage and will NOT make me queasy. Fingers crossed. We all know I’m riding anyway. But it would be NICE if these attractions didn’t make me ill.
Guess what? After all this amazing attraction news, Mr. Chapek still wasn’t done with his update about Galaxy’s Edge. And honestly, I’m just about as excited about this news as I am about the attractions: John Williams, who composed and orchestrated the original iconic score for Star Wars is composing new and original music for Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. You guys know how much I love Disney’s attention to theming and how there are so many tiny details that many guests never even notice that help make the overall experience so enjoyable….MUSIC is a big part of that. The music is different in every Disney park Land; the music is different at the holiday parties and special events. Certain attractions have their own memorable music, and these musical themes all contribute to your experience.
Getting John Williams to create new music, exclusively for these lands at the Disney parks is a HUGE part of ensuring that Galaxy’s Edge will be as immersive as they are planning for it to be, and it shows that no detail is being ignored. They could easily just use music already in the existing library of films and shows—there’s a lot of it, and I’m sure some familiar themes will be present…but to have the original composer create new music to add to the new world they’re creating? I LOVE THIS!!!!
In the video below, you can see and hear some of this new music being recorded…and even better, you will see scenes of the construction project for Galaxy’s Edge…much of this footage we have not seen before!
They are officially now setting our expectations that Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge will be a multi-day experience. If this is the case, this will take Hollywood Studios from usually a one day visit to potentially a 3 -4 day visit. Which may mean that future trip planning may require either skipping one (or more) theme parks on your one week vacation–or that your typical one week vacation may need to be longer.
A dilemma that we will spend much time talking about and planning for in future months, I assure you.
Mr. Chapek shared a few more highlights about Galaxy’s Edge:
- Galaxy’s Edge is an Outpost called Black Spire Outpost (we knew that already, but we’re summarizing the good stuff here)
- You’ll be able to visit the Cantina
- Someone you may remember from Star Tours, Rex, will be a familar face in the Cantina
- There will be other familiar creatures and characters in the Cantina
- There is a street market in Black Spire Outpost
- The street market has food stalls–you can buy unique delicacies like blue milk
Mr. Chapek also briefly mentioned the previously announced Star Wars resort coming to Walt Disney World resort. It sounds like they are really trying to tread new territory here. The resort will be connected to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Hollywood Studios, and Disney is calling it a fully immersive Star Wars adventure. Mr. Chapek says resort guests will be aboard a “luxury starship” that will have high-end dining, space-view cabins and all of the exciting action that we’d expect from a Star Wars experience.
Lots of good stuff to look forward to, right? I can’t wait for more information to come out. I want ALL the information! And of course, as soon as I have it, so will you!
Happy Dreaming,
Brooke
P.S. – It’s not too soon to start planning your first visit to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. Late 2019 should be safe for Disneyland and early 2020 should be good for Hollywood Studios. Contact me today and we can start building your plan! brooke@disneycastledreaming.com.