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Credit: DisneyIt’s been a while since Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser’s closure, with more details gradually trickling in about how Disney came to the drastic decision.
When Galactic Starcruiser opened in March 2022, it was heralded as the beginning of a new era of immersive storytelling for Disney Parks and Resorts. While it definitely succeeded on the immersive front, guests weren’t as keen on the price tag. Two days aboard the Halcyon cost guests anywhere between $4,000 and $6,000 – steeper than a trip from America to Tokyo Disney Resort.
Initial voyages sold out quickly, but sales plummeted in the following months. While Disney attempted to salvage the situation by slashing the number of dates and offering guests up to 30% off their trip, it ultimately admitted defeat. It later announced that Galactic Starcruiser would set sail for its last voyage on September 28, 2023.
In Disney’s official statement, it declared that “this premium, boutique experience gave us the opportunity to try new things on a smaller scale of 100 rooms, and as we prepare for its final voyage, we will take what we’ve learned to create future experiences that can reach more of our guests and fans.”
Josh D’Amaro, Chairman of Disney Parks and Resorts, confirmed that “it didn’t perform exactly like [Disney] wanted it to perform. Despite the fact it was a never before seen experience and raised the bar, we thought it was time to sunset this in September.”
Behind the scenes, however, it seems like Disney considered multiple options to save its failing resort.
According to a report from The Wrap, there were conversations about retheming the entire hotel to The Mandalorian – arguably the most popular Star Wars property of recent years, with a film, The Mandalorian and Grogu, hitting theaters next year – as well as offering tours of the hotel to give day guests access to its bar, dinner show, and gift shop.
However, Disney CEO Bob Iger ultimately rejected the ideas in favor of shuttering Galactic Starcruiser for good.
The report puts much of Galactic Starcruiser’s failure down to its focus on über-premium guests, who ultimately make up a small portion of Disney’s theme park clientele. “Once you went through the one-percenters who could afford it and the fanatical ‘Star Wars’ fans who would sell their mother to do it, you were done,” a Disney insider told The Wrap. Another added, “No one connected to this came off well.”
After the announcement, Disney fans threw around similar ideas to save the hotel from complete closure, such as incorporating it into Disney Hollywood Studios’ Galaxy’s Edge. However, with Disney writing off the building and its technology for an estimated $300 million, the hotel’s farewell ultimately became permanent.
Earlier this year, Disney announced that it was converting the building into offices for Walt Disney Imagineering as it embarks upon multiple expansion projects at Walt Disney World Resort, including the Tropical Americas land replacing DinoLand U.S.A. of Disney’s Animal Kingdom, the Cars and Disney Villains lands coming to Magic Kingdom Park, and the Monsters, Inc. land controversially replacing Muppet*Vision 3D, PizzeRizzo, and Mama Melrose’s Ristorante Italiano at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Do you think retheming Galactic Starcruiser to The Mandalorian could have saved the hotel?