Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge (Disneyland)

[Ryan]

For me, this comes down to the fact Star Wars is a huuuge IP to have (perhaps the biggest?) and despite all these factors with one ride open/black-out dates etc, people should still really want to go and see it.

There should have been long lines waiting to get in to the land because after all - it’s Star Wars! The fact there isn’t should be a cause for concern. Doesn’t mean the land is a failure or they’re not making their money back, but there should’ve been crowds.

Reservations sold out in May in two hours, which had several thousand people everyday for nearly a month. The land was at capacity in two hours' time. People literally had to wait.

Do you folks need a physical line to see this point, because that's not how Disney made it work unlike Universal with Hagrid's.

 

[rhino4evr]

Do you ever post anything positive? All you seem to do is complain about Hagrids/Universal.



Makes sense opening it in phases though. If they waited for RotR then the rest of the land would just be sitting there for months

Actually yes I do, I’ve had all sorts of positive things to say about Universal and Hagrid until recently. You can check my post history. I don’t defend mistakes or try to act like “it should be expected” like other folks on here do. I’m sorry for the dose of reality.

Back on topic...I’m interested to see what happens when AP holders are let loose.

My main concern is that Disney Orlando will look at this situation and decide not to implement any of these crowd control procedures due to lower Disneyland attendance, and the park will be mobbed.

I’m personally waiting for RotR to open before spending my time/money..,.and maybe even that Mickey Ride. I’m a FL Resident but not a local , and going to a theme park is still considered a “treat” in my household. I want the best bang for my buck.

 

[Ryan]

I’m personally waiting for RotR to open before spending my time/money..,.and maybe even that Mickey Ride. I’m a FL Resident but not a local , and going to a theme park is still considered a “treat” in my household. I want the best bang for my buck.

You're gonna wait three years?! Or do you mean WDW?

 

[rhino4evr]

You're gonna wait three years?! Or do you mean WDW?

WDW.

 

[awhen]

I would rather they not come to the conclusion that it’s a failure due to not being a miserable mass of unhappy people herded like cattle. Hopefully guest satisfaction and spending numbers add some perspective.

 

[Bobharlem]

I would rather they not come to the conclusion that it’s a failure due to not being a miserable mass of unhappy people herded like cattle. Hopefully guest satisfaction and spending numbers add some perspective.

Guest wise it's amazing, but the was open to midnight, they dropped the reservation system at 5, and the wait times for everything else were walk on and so was Smuggler's late. Business wise that's kinda horrible for a new land to do that. It'll probably flip once people realize it wasn't as crowded as everyone thought it would be, but virtually no hard core fans showed up, that's troubling.

 

[Ryan]

I would rather they not come to the conclusion that it’s a failure due to not being a miserable mass of unhappy people herded like cattle. Hopefully guest satisfaction and spending numbers add some perspective.

Iger's already saying he's blown away by the spending capita at the moment.

 

[UNIrd]

Eh.. except this had a month-long "soft opening" that took care of a lot of Star Wars diehards, vloggers, APs, instagrammers, theme park junkies, etc. Those are the people that usually show up opening day and make things unbearable. (See Hagrid's)

Plus, I know when I want a relatively quiet day at Disneyland, I need to plan around when APs are blocked. I'm sure Disney knows that too.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

I don't think we should consider this underperforming in the slightest. People are buying $200 lightsabers and $100 droids in a space where the biggest income driver was a modestly attended BBQ restaurant. Same thing happened with Diagon. It was underperforming because lines weren't out the door to get in. But the people that WERE in were buying $50 wands, $115 robes, and literally trading in their cash for "Gringotts money." Ultimately, the additional money spent per guest is where they win.

It’s not about lines to get in, it’s about how DL sand DCA were empty otherwise. To compare it to Diagon, USF and IOA were still full to the brim.

 

[UniversalRBLX]

Star Wars Land is a success., anyone who says otherwise is just trying to grasp on to something.

The land was crowded. Not empty. The rest of the park was empty because the majority of people were there for SW. Disney did a good job on making sure everything went well without chaos and a line wrapping around the entire resort.

Once Rise opens, that's when we will see Disneyland get back to chaotic levels of crowding.

...and saying that the land is a failure because of the new trilogy is just plain foolish.

 

[Bobharlem]

Is anyone claiming it's a failure? There's a difference between a successful land and a blockbuster that Disney wants. Is it as successful as Disney was planning on or not? In other media, Disney has shut down studios even when the product was successful, just because it wasn't as successful as they wanted. (Disney Infinity, animation studios, other game studios and other subsidiaries as an example) SWGE isn't going to have that, but it does show how much Disney emphasizes blockbuster performance.

I do think crowds will increase once word gets out about it. DHS opening is a complete wildcard, and it could go either way. It's not a sure bet like Potter was.

 

[rhino4evr]

Iger's already saying he's blown away by the spending capita at the moment.

I doubt he would be critical of their newest attraction this early. If the numbers fall below expectations, he'll have a lot of explaining to do. This expansion cost Disney a mint.

If the next SW film does "Solo" business, the brand will officially be "in trouble".

 

[shiekra38]

Is anyone claiming it's a failure? There's a difference between a successful land and a blockbuster that Disney wants. Is it as successful as Disney was planning on or not? In other media, Disney has shut down studios even when the product was successful, just because it wasn't as successful as they wanted. (Disney Infinity, animation studios, other game studios and other subsidiaries as an example) SWGE isn't going to have that, but it does show how much Disney emphasizes blockbuster performance.

I do think crowds will increase once word gets out about it. DHS opening is a complete wildcard, and it could go either way. It's not a sure bet like Potter was.

Potter was a surprise to Universal, they knew it was going to be successful, but not as big as it was.

Right time, right place

Star Wars is not at the peak of its popularity right now, something to consider.

But, overall, I would say that this is successful in its intent. I just hope that they don't pull an Eisner and start cutting project budgets because this land didn't re-define the theme park genre.

That's kind of the issue that we're running into, everything is trying to be a game changer.

 

[Mad Dog]

Mice Chat just put up an article about the low park crowds. It's a pretty good read, and a couple of good photos... Mice Chat;"almost all of the Anaheim area hotels are suffering from low occupancy. The shops and restaurants of Downtown Disney are in a similar plight from under-performance". Mice Chat recommended a partial lifting of cast member and some AP level blackouts.

 

[shiekra38]

Mice Chat just put up an article about the low park crowds. It's a pretty good read, and a couple of good photos... Mice Chat;"almost all of the Anaheim area hotels are suffering from low occupancy. The shops and restaurants of Downtown Disney are in a similar plight from under-performance". Mice Chat recommended a partial lifting of cast member and some AP level blackouts.

I also feel Cali and Orlando have different fanbases that react differently to everything

 

[rhino4evr]

Didn't they just raise the AP ticket pricing to super high amounts. Is it possible the pricing/demand is finally working?

 

[Mad Dog]

I also feel Cali and Orlando have different fanbases that react differently to everything

Yes, for one, Disneyland attendance is so AP heavy that any restrictions on AP's creates attendance disparities.

 

[rhino4evr]

PHOTOS: Kyber Crystals Now Sold Unpackaged with Jedi and Sith Holocrons Due to Merchandise Shortage at Dok-Ondar's Den of Antiquities in Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge - WDW News Today

regarding merch...

 

[SailwiththeTide]

Didn't they just raise the AP ticket pricing to super high amounts. Is it possible the pricing/demand is finally working?

That seems like a factor. Everything but Signature/+ is blocked from Disneyland. Also I would say with current day ticket pricing has priced out some people. 150 for 1 park or 199 park hopper may not be worth it for a lot of families. Go down the road and get a season pass at Knott or MM for 100.00.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

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Disney set up temporary turnstiles and ticket stations yesterday. They were expecting much larger crowds than they got. This isn't a death knell nor does it mean they handled everything perfectly. They got less than they expected, and I think many Disney fans are disappointed they don't have an IOA Hogsmeade photo of their own so they're falling back to "exactly what they wanted!"

I believe SWGE can, itself, be hitting or surpassing the goals they set, but the rest of the park is empty and likely not hitting their financial goals. The fact many people who follow and study these things are FREAKING OUT about them lifting block outs so quickly is telling.







I wonder if the same people praising the lack of lines as a genius move on Disney's part will then turn around in September and point to hours and hours long waits as also a success. My guess is they totally will because it's not about guest satisfaction or doing things right, it's that what Disney is right, even if the goal posts or expectations change minute by minute.