When Walt Disney World first unveiled the plans for Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser it was like nothing people had ever seen. When people unveiled the price of the "Star Wars Hotel" that was also like something many had never seen. While the offer of a Star Wars experience across multiple days was something that was incredibly exciting for fans, it's been clear for some time that Galactic Starcruiser was struggling, and now comes the news that it will be closing this fall.
This morning Walt Disney World announced (via Brooke McDonald) that the final voyage of the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser will take place on September 28, 2023. All bookings have currently been paused while any reservations currently set for after that date are either rebooked or canceled. Once that's done, any additional bookings that are available through the end date will be made available, starting May 27.
The Star Wars Hotel Had Clearly Been Struggling
The writing was on the wall that Galactic Starcruiser wasn't working out the way that Walt Disney World wanted. Over the last several months the resort had begun to offer various discounts that were designed to entice people to visit the Starcruiser. Back in March, we saw the number of Starcruiser "trips" cut down, because there were obviously not enough people visiting at any one time.
One of the nice things about the Starcruiser was that even when it was full, it wasn't that crowded. This made it easier to be part of the story but certainly contributed to the high cost of what could not have been cheap to keep up and running. There likely wasn't a way to make it all cheap enough for a wider audience but profitable enough to keep afloat.
The Walt Disney Company is in the middle of a massive plan to cut costs, which has included massive Cast Member layoffs, and the decision to close Galactic Starcruiser is being called strictly a business decision, as the guest satisfaction of those that have done it is reportedly quite high. But clearly, the high cost was a limiting factor and the audience that was both willing and able to afford it just wasn't big enough.
Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser Was An Incredible Advancement In Themed Entertainment
I never got to do the full experience, but I did get to visit Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, and all that experience did was make me wish I had the money to do everything. It was absolutely incredible, not because I'm a massive Star Wars fan, but because I'm a massive fan of themed entertainment.
Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser did things that we'd simply never seen before. All theme park attractions try to make you "part of the story" in one way or another but never had one encouraged you to truly engage with it as anybody other than yourself. And by lasting more than one day the experience was immersive to a degree that no theme park could be.
The opportunity here was incredible. The ideas behind Starcruiser could be adapted to any IP. We could see a Marvel version or a Frozen version of the idea, and as standalone experiences, we could see Disney actually expand into other markets where massive theme parks simply couldn't be built.
Not all new ideas work out, and just because this one didn't does mean the entire premise is bad. Disney, or maybe somebody else, could certainly take this idea, or elements of it, and find a way to make it work.
I probably won't be able to book one of those final Starcruiser trips, though I'll certainly be considering it. I would like to experience one of the most unique themed entertainment ideas that has ever been created. I don't know when we'll see it again.
