Star Wars Resort Coming to Disney World?
In a rumor that should be filed under “it makes perfect sense,” Walt Disney World is currently surveying guests about their level of interest in a Star Wars hotel that would be built near Disney’s Hollywood Studios, offering an immersive experience and exclusive access to Star Wars Land.
WDWNT.com broke this rumor and has the full details (and concept art). Per the rumor, the Star Wars “Starship” resort experience at Walt Disney World would entail guests being immersed in a 2-day story set in the the Star Wars universe and taking place both at their resort and within Star Wars Land. Over the course of their 2-night stay, guests would have personalized interactions with Star Wars characters and performers throughout the Starship resort, have an all-inclusive Star Wars meal experience, and engage in story ‘quests’ and missions throughout the Star Wars Starship Resort and Star Wars Land.
It is worth noting at this point that the Star Wars Starship Resort is very much a rumor. Disney surveys guests about a multitude of things that never come to fruition. In fact, most rumors that are derived from survey questions do not happen. However, there have been rumblings about a Star Wars resort since Star Wars Land was announced, and building it seems like a no-brainer. Then again, I predicted Disneyland Resort would purchase the property behind Cars Land and build a Wheel Well Motel with similar “no brainer” justification 4 years ago, so what do I know?
I cannot speak to the veracity of these specific rumors, but I think this is very likely to happen. Even at the rumored all-inclusive price point of $1,000 per person (for what it’s worth, I’d take that number with a grain of salt), the response to this rumor has basically been a loud chorus of “TAKE MY MONEY, DISNEY.” Whereas other recent rumors of expensive upcharges have been met with negative reactions among fans, the response to this is notably different.
Among all guests to Walt Disney World, fans like us are the most difficult to please. If even we are clamoring for this, I have little doubt that the general public will eat it up. Moreover, as a boutique resort focused on the experience, it stands to reason that this would be a modestly-sized resort, meaning that it wouldn’t take much demand to fill the resort, even at higher prices.
If a Star Wars resort hotel project goes forward, it will be interesting to see whether it ends up taking the rumored “immersive experience” form. This sounds a lot like a live action role playing game, something Disneyland previously tested (to a totally different extent) with Legends of Frontierland.
Given what was discussed recently about Star Wars Land at Star Wars Celebration, this makes sense and sounds plausible. Serious Star Wars fandom has gone incredibly mainstream (just read some reports about Star Wars Celebration), and there’s undoubtedly a market for an immersive experience like this.
On the other hand, it’s still something of a gamble that seems at odds with the commando touring style many Walt Disney World visitors embrace on vacation. Building a Star Wars hotel that has themed rooms and common areas (think Art of Animation, but Star Wars) seems like a lot safer of a bet for Disney. It’d probably have higher profit margins, too.
To that end, if Disney goes through with the Star Wars Starship Resort as an immersive, storytelling boutique hotel, that is a bold and laudable move. It’s the kind of envelope-pushing experience for which Disney was once known (and seems to be returning to). Even though it seems pretty low risk given the demand for anything Star Wars, it’s certainly higher risk than just building a tower of family suites, throwing some Ewok-fur comforters on the beds, a BB-8 lamp, and calling it a day.
The one thing that surprises me, and causes me a bit of hesitation here, is more is not already known about this (potential) Star Wars Starship Resort. If it’s only at the survey stage of development, it has not yet been greenlit, and has a ways to go in the development cycle before construction would begin. This means that it’s unlikely the resort would open simultaneous to Star Wars Land.
There are two potential explanations for this. First, that the concept itself has already been greenlit, and the survey is only to hone the details and for Disney to get a feel for the pricing they could charge for such an experience. Second, it’s being deliberately built after Star Wars Land, with the goal of working out whatever hiccups Star Wars Land might have upon opening, and giving serious Star Wars fans a reason to visit again after the opening surge for the land. (Not that they will need a reason to visit again and again.)
Another possibility is that the gondola system connecting Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and several resorts moving forward was a necessary precursor to this resort being viable from an infrastructure perspective. As we’ve been reporting, we anticipate another hotel construction boom at Walt Disney World, and that gondola project is critical to facilitating more hotel growth. Without the gondolas, bus and roadway infrastructure would be insufficient.
Irrespective of the details, I would put money on a Star Wars resort being built at Walt Disney World. Star Wars is one of the most lucrative franchises on the planet, and Star Wars fandom is currently enjoying an unprecedented level of mainstream popularity (even for it…and it’s always been pretty popular). I think a better question is probably whether the final project takes the form of an ‘interactive’ resort like this, or if it ends up being a regular resort hotel, just themed to Star Wars. In any case, it’s an interesting rumor, and one we’ll be following closely. This is the type of announcement we’d expect at the D23 Expo this summer; we’ll see if additional info leaks out before then.
YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think about the potential addition of a boutique Star Wars Starship Resort to Walt Disney World? Does this make you want to yell “TAKE MY MONEY!!1!” to Disney, or would it not appeal to you at the rumored price point? Would you prefer an immersive 2-day experience like the one rumored, or would you prefer a more conventional hotel stay? Let’s hear some of your thoughts about this news in the comments below!
Would you be able to just visit the resort like for half a day or do you have to stay for 2 days?
I love this idea, especially since I have been a huge Star Wars fan for 40 years now. I would definitely go. If I take my kids will be up to them, as both will be teenagers. That is my one concern, is that it will appeal to all ages, to keep it cool enough for the adults and teenagers, instead of little kiddish. I think the Star Wars stuff at Disney is fun, but at these prices, I would hope for a more authentic experience, and not so geared towards young kids, that teenagers are bored. That said, I hope they build this. If it is good for teenagers and lifelong Star Wars adult fans, then I’ll gladly pay the money – even though it is pricey.
I consider changing careers to be able to afford this/go there more often.
This is just about the most awesome thing I have ever heard (maybe except for the discovery of the Higgs boson).
And I want the immersive experience.
I want to live Star Wars, I want to BE Star Wars.
So does my daughter.
Also, thank you guys for the great info on Disney Parks, I used your site to prepare for 1.5 days at Tokyo Disneyland and it was amazingly helpful!
I love star wars and disney, so when the land was announced a few years ago i was super excited to take my family to see it. However, this resort idea has me worried. Let me explain. Besides this new hotel rumor, i have also heard a rumor that Disney is floating the idea of adding an additional fee, an upcharge, for guests to attend the new Star Wars land in California (i assume if they are doing it there, florida will be the same). That means a single person would need to buy their daily ticket to get into Hollywood Studios along with their $50 + ticket to see star wars land. I really hope this rumor isn’t true, but how Disney has been adding charges lately it wouldn’t surprise me. The rumor stated that this would help with crowd controll, and it might, but come on, its just another way for Disney to get more money. This hotel has me worried because in this hotel rumor it states, “with your stay, you would get exclusive access to star wars land”. So is that another hint Star wars land will be an additional upcharge? Yuck. Disney has every right to do this, but with all these upcharges, disney is really making it hard for the average person to visit. With my family of 5, its already expensive and these upcharges might just make it so we can’t visit and that makes me sad. I hope i am just reading into this too much, but what do you think? Could you see Disney making Star Wars land an additional ticketed upcharge?
No, I could not see this happening. I think there will be various upcharges within the land and perhaps hard ticket events for ‘after hours’ with lighter crowds, but it’s highly unlikely the land itself will be separately ticketed.
I really hope so. :). Thanks!
Great point Tom. I think Disney has learned they can fill up ticketed special events to get extra money without people feeling left out.
Having said that, if they ask for $200 for a one day ticket to SWL, I will pay it.
Disney usually gives exclusive access based on resort guest stays. Extra Magic Hours are an example. So I can see it being exclusive access to Star Wars Land in the morning or at night or something, and even that would be a couple days a week only.
I do not think they will make it an upcharge for the Land itself. I think Hollywood Studio tickets (and Park Hopper upcharges) will be pricier though, which would be fair I think.
My thing is I don’t mind paying a bit more for these incredible experiences, but Disney needs to avoid what Universal does where it lets people pay for extra Fastpasses. That really annoys me. Once someone gets in the park, they should be on the same level as everyone else, and not feel like their income level is preventing them from experiencing the attractions (other than expensive restaurants I suppose). If Disney starts selling fastpasses, then I will be pissed. Some people have nearly broke the bank to be there at all, they shouldnt be second class once they are there.
There is a way they could make it both a “Star Wars themed hotel” where there are different wings for different planets, etc, and ALSO make it immersive like Star Wars Land will be.
Hang on to your hat…
So outside DHS there is this landed Starship hotel where guests can walk right into Star Wars Land. But this starship is also a gondola hub, where guests can take “escape pods” or “transport ships” or whatever to other planets in the star wars universe. This would mean they could revamp awful (my opinion, don’t go ballistic) resorts like All Star Sports to a Tatooine theme, for instance, and have it still completely immersive, because you have traveled through space to get there from the ship outside star wars land. The gondolas could be themed inside to look like a ship to complete the illusion.
It wouldnt be like in DHS where you look right and see Tatooine Traders and look left and see Endor. These could be separate hotels for the best effect, or separate parts of existing hotels if Disney wants to save $.
And if the entire All Star resort was transformed, I can imagine there could be 3 separate locations there. These locations could perhaps have clue areas similar to A Pirate’s Adventure: Treasures of the Seven Seas in Adventureland, or the Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom game. If Disney wanted to really juice it, they could make these clue locations only available to resort guests. Of course these would all tie in to whatever adventure game the guest has going on in the Star Wars Land proper, but wow, this idea would really expand the Land to a whole universe by introducing other worlds.
And if they wanted to get nuts, they could run the gondola over to Pandora to really mess with people.
Disney would never get rid of AllStar Sports resort. Too many kids stay there for diferwnt sportihg events going on in WDW. Those resorts are always sold out. And they arent big enough for all the sports guest
What might be the possibility of both resort options happening? A normal resort, Star Wars themed, yet with a few buildings reserved for the uncharged all-immersive larp-type experience? It would appeal then to both the “Star Wars is all right” crowd, and the “OMGSTARWARSSS” devotees.
Perhaps they could share some of the same infrastructure, make it Star Wars Super Awesome Fest Resort … and Star Wars Villas?
My immediate response was: TAKE MY MONEY, DISNEY.
My second response was: I REALLY hope they do this, and then Universal copies them and does it with Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Although I do greatly enjoy Star Wars, my biggest fandom (aside from Disney in general) is Harry Potter.
I’m thinking it might be better to have a different theme for the resort and have Star Wars themed rooms like the Royal Guest Suites or Pirate rooms. Or even add a Star Wars themed restaurant, but keep the resort with an Live action-adventure theme or something like Art of Animation where there are different wings with different theming. I’m a mild fan of Star Wars so maybe that is why I don’t see quite the draw of a full Star Wars resort. A lot of the Marvel IP could also be used in a more broadly themed resort and might have a more timeless appeal.