Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge (Disneyland)

[Stryker]

Green = CMs have Park-Hopper access to DLR.
Yellow = CMs have access to DCA only.
Red = CMs are blocked-out completely.

Even if Disney has lifted some blockout restrictions to CMs, I'm wondering if they'll still be able to enter the land without reservations.

 

[k_peek_2000]

I can find out tomorrow.

 

[rhino4evr]

Sounds like the reservation system actually backfired and decreased overall park attendance...someone is in trouble!

 

[Stryker]

Sounds like the reservation system actually backfired and decreased overall park attendance...someone is in trouble!

If anything, it just decreased attendance in the land, but not necessarily in the actual park. The fact that they allowed people to make reservations without having a verified ticket contributed to low attendance in the land since there were a bunch of no-shows. The reservation period is essentially a soft-opening.

 

[Tobias]

Sounds like the reservation system actually backfired and decreased overall park attendance...someone is in trouble!

I don't think it was the reservation system itself which caused the low attendance, it was the overall doom and gloom of "THE PARK IS GONNA BE SLAMMED!" "BUSIER THAN NYC ON NYE!" etc. An that scared the majority of people off, only to kick themselves on seeing the park was far more than manageable.

As others have mentioned, the real test is gonna' be later in the month when reservations are removed and it's a free-for-all. Part of me wants to say there could still be a good chunk of people avoiding that...but admittedly with everyone seeing how empty the parks have been, that might not be the case and it could be slammed.

 

[rastuso]

I could be wrong, but weren't people saying smugglers run wouldn't be on rails?
I always thought it was going to be an on rail shooter due to the difficulties of giving people total freedom.
I guess when disney hyped it up a bit when they said it was rendered in real time, but I suppose you could say that for any video game?

I was always saying it was going to be on rails.

And usually told I wasn't "in the know", and that SR was going to be unbelievable.

 

[k_peek_2000]

If anything, it just decreased attendance in the land, but not necessarily in the actual park.

Nooooo, attendance is definitely down resort wide. Local hotels are discounting rooms heavily until the 24th, Downtown Disney OPs are struggling to get customers, attractions and shops are having to send home multiple staff members (or telling them not to come in) because they predicted big crowds which never came. This reservation system was a massive detriment and management is pretty pissed.

I don't think it was the reservation system itself which caused the low attendance.

It is the reservation system because in addition to people avoiding the parks, not every single person who made a reservation is actually showing up. About half to 2/3 the reservations are actually showing up. It's becoming a big problem.

 

[Ron101]

Did Disney not learn anything from when Universal over-prepared USH for the opening of the Wizarding World?

I think the reservation period (soft openings) for GE is a good thing for the land itself as they can make adjustments on how to handle long lines and crowding in there. It seems like with each new reservation day they’re changing the way things are operating such as where people stand in line and how they queue (virtual, etc.)

After seeing the low crowds I’m sure the suits now want this reservation period to be over ASAP.

 

[rastuso]

Sounds like the reservation system actually backfired and decreased overall park attendance...someone is in trouble!

That's what you get when you spend half a billion dollars on a land, but then don't let anyone actually get in to it.

 

[SeventyOne]

That's what you get when you spend half a billion dollars on a land, but then don't let anyone actually get in to it.

That's exactly wrong. It seems mostly every AP who wanted a (free) reservation got one--hence rooms suddenly being available again after reservations were handed out, APs were cancelling their "back-up" reservations. As for non-APs--look, I won't argue a $400 hotel room is cheap, but compared to what you're expected to spend in the land, not that high a premium to be first, people routinely pay $120 for a few hours in MK. Especially for the prophesied SW fans who supposedly never set foot in a theme park before but would for this.

Still ... the rooms went unsold, then huge numbers not showing up for their reservation. And, from a plugged in source, DL down significantly from where it should have been even without the land. Either the hard-core DLR fans aren't interested in what they're seeing, or they've finally be priced out by the Mouse.

Just think--if it wasn't for all the Ritchie Rich lifestylers flying in from Orlando, this situation would've been even worse.

 

[Mad Dog]

They've instituted Virtual Lines for the Cantina, since as we all expected, the small space was getting slammed. On the opposite end of the demand spectrum, TPI is reporting that Blu/Green Milk sales have been poor.....also, I thought Disney said each land , Disneyland & DHS, cost about $1 billion, for a total of $2 Billion......and for sure now, no way Disney reverses course and uses a reservation system for DHS' first month. This has not been good for the bottom line.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

Yep, but it shows what is coming. That was just a tease. The land was built with entertainment in mind. Those stages have permanent fire effects in place. This is just one of the performance areas too.

Once crowds pick up after the reservation period ends Disney will be deploying the shows to draw guests away from other attractions in the land. Right now, they aren't necessary at all.

That’s one hell of a spin.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

That's exactly wrong. It seems mostly every AP who wanted a (free) reservation got one--hence rooms suddenly being available again after reservations were handed out, APs were cancelling their "back-up" reservations. As for non-APs--look, I won't argue a $400 hotel room is cheap, but compared to what you're expected to spend in the land, not that high a premium to be first, people routinely pay $120 for a few hours in MK. Especially for the prophesied SW fans who supposedly never set foot in a theme park before but would for this.

Still ... the rooms went unsold, then huge numbers not showing up for their reservation. And, from a plugged in source, DL down significantly from where it should have been even without the land. Either the hard-core DLR fans aren't interested in what they're seeing, or they've finally be priced out by the Mouse.

Just think--if it wasn't for all the Ritchie Rich lifestylers flying in from Orlando, this situation would've been even worse.

No, June 23rd will be the real indication of how popular Disneyland/Galaxys Edge will be. THAT is when chaos will commence. It's sort of what happened to Universal before Potter. Why go to Disneyland when I can wait a month and experience a new land as well?

 

[Rideguy70]

It's a bit scary if only about 2/3 of people with reservations are showing up, and the lines for the Cantina are still as slammed as they are?

And while I have no idea if their bottom line is being hurt, I think media-wise, having low crowds is better for their reputation than being slammed with guests and hearing all the social media outcry about it. Better for them to error on the side of caution, and frankly, I feel it's one of their smarter decisions, even in hindsight.

 

[SailwiththeTide]

I understand Disney probably scratching their heads over lost business, but it is still the right decision to have the reservation system in place. The experience of the guests in the land has been overwhelmingly positive. Once June 24th comes around I am sure we will see the dark days of 4 hour lines and packed crowds everywhere. In the meantime I wouldn't worry about Disney's bottom line. They are printing money at this point.

 

[JawsVictim]

The parks were dead yesterday. This was my third visit to DL and the place was comparatively a ghost town.

I thought GE was alright. Wish there was more entertainment and creatures roaming about the land - only saw Chewbacca for a second. Also the “villagers” are all human, which is a missed opportunity.

SR is also alright. I agree with everyone else’s reaction about seeing the MF for the first time - the scale is breath taking! The Hondo animatronic is incredible and IMO cooler than the attraction. Rode all three positions and engineer reeeaaaally sucks. Piloting is also pretty difficult. It’s a bit of a head scratcher as to why they made this attraction so dependent on the crew when most people are going to wait 3+ hours to ride.

Ogas Cantina is pretty cool (DJ Rex!) and I liked the reservation system. Still, not worth a long wait. Didn’t do the lightsaber workshop because I’m not paying $200 for a toy I’m never going to use. Same for the droids, although those looked better than the lightsabers.

Finally I thought the land itself was small. I dunno how they’re going to handle crowds after the reservation system ends. Honestly, Disney should have waited to open GE once RotR was ready because the land currently feels incomplete.

 

[rhino4evr]

Ouch!

 

[Evan]

The parks were dead yesterday. This was my third visit to DL and the place was comparatively a ghost town.

I thought GE was alright. Wish there was more entertainment and creatures roaming about the land - only saw Chewbacca for a second. Also the “villagers” are all human, which is a missed opportunity.

SR is also alright. I agree with everyone else’s reaction about seeing the MF for the first time - the scale is breath taking! The Hondo animatronic is incredible and IMO cooler than the attraction. Rode all three positions and engineer reeeaaaally sucks. Piloting is also pretty difficult. It’s a bit of a head scratcher as to why they made this attraction so dependent on the crew when most people are going to wait 3+ hours to ride.

Ogas Cantina is pretty cool (DJ Rex!) and I liked the reservation system. Still, not worth a long wait. Didn’t do the lightsaber workshop because I’m not paying $200 for a toy I’m never going to use. Same for the droids, although those looked better than the lightsabers.

Finally I thought the land itself was small. I dunno how they’re going to handle crowds after the reservation system ends. Honestly, Disney should have waited to open GE once RotR was ready because the land currently feels incomplete.

You're actually the first person I've seen who said they found the land small. I've seen lots of other critiques, but this is a first. Why did you find it small?

 

[Orlandofan12]

That’s one hell of a spin.

It's just the facts. The performance areas of the park have permanently installed effects, including fire. It's obvious they're going to be used.

 

[rastuso]

That's exactly wrong. It seems mostly every AP who wanted a (free) reservation got one--hence rooms suddenly being available again after reservations were handed out, APs were cancelling their "back-up" reservations. As for non-APs--look, I won't argue a $400 hotel room is cheap, but compared to what you're expected to spend in the land, not that high a premium to be first, people routinely pay $120 for a few hours in MK. Especially for the prophesied SW fans who supposedly never set foot in a theme park before but would for this.

Still ... the rooms went unsold, then huge numbers not showing up for their reservation. And, from a plugged in source, DL down significantly from where it should have been even without the land. Either the hard-core DLR fans aren't interested in what they're seeing, or they've finally be priced out by the Mouse.

Just think--if it wasn't for all the Ritchie Rich lifestylers flying in from Orlando, this situation would've been even worse.

You say I'm absolutely wrong, then admit attendance is abysmal because people couldn't get in regularly...