May the Force be With You

Fans dive into an immersive Star Wars experience with a stay at the Galactic Starcruiser in Orlando

By Jamie Davis Smith

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, Star Wars was simply a sci-fi trilogy. Since then, it’s grown into a cultural phenomenon unlike anything else. The Star Wars universe now includes a dozen films, multiple television series, comic books, novels, animated shows and theme park rides on three continents.

In 2022, that universe expanded even more with the introduction of the Galactic Starcruiser, a two-night, completely immersive Star Wars experience at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Some call the Starcruiser the “Star Wars hotel,” but it is so much more.

A stay on the Galactic Starcruiser is unlike any other experience. From the moment guests step out of the vehicles, they are transported to the same world inhabited by Chewbacca, Rey and Kylo Ren. None of the staff will admit to having heard of Star Wars because in this universe, the story is reality.

My family started preparation for our journey almost as soon as we booked. Some passengers simply arrive and let the story unfold and have a great time. My family wanted to delve a little deeper, so we came up with a basic background story that we were travelling from the planet of Coruscant. Each of us came up with some details about why we were going. My daughter and I had simple costumes, while my husband and sons wore clothing in earth tones to fit into the Star Wars universe. Other passengers went all in with elaborate costumes and fullbody makeup.

The attention to detail aboard the Galactic Starcruiser is incredible. The basic storyline is that passengers are all aboard the galaxy’s most luxurious ship for a vacation. The ship has all the trappings of a luxury cruiser. There is plenty of delicious out-of-this-world food, live entertainment from the galaxy’s biggest superstar, Gaya, and activities planned by the cruise director, including lightsaber and bridge training. Things start to go awry when the First Order boards the ship and starts questioning the loyalty of the crew.

From there, each passenger determines the course of their own Star Wars story by interacting with characters and completing missions on data pads. Questions determined my older son was a combination of First Order sympathizer and Scoundrel while my younger son was Force Sensitive. My husband and I were Resistance supporters. This meant we all had different missions to complete. We enjoyed being on different paths because we could later share information with each other. We each did things we enjoyed.

If families want to stick together for the entire voyage, they can answer questions the same way to ensure they are on the same path. My youngest son, 7, was also invited to participate in special Loth Cat activities, including a Droid race.

© DISNEY/LUCASFILM

Like all cruises, this one also has a port of call. When we arrived at Batuu in Disney’s Hollywood Studios, my family made optional stops at Oga’s Cantina to complete a mission, grab snacks and visit the Droid Depot. We also went on Batuu’s Star Wars-themed rides and completed additional missions available only to Starcruiser passengers. Once we returned to the ship, each of us was invited to additional “secret” meetings before the grand finale.

Everything about this experience was phenomenal. The attention to detail and the talented cast of the Galactic Starcruiser made every moment memorable. Even with varying degrees of fandom in my family, everyone had a great time from start to finish.