Is Disney's New 'Star Wars'-Inspired Hotel Turning Into A Flop?

[popy]

looks like the $6000.00/ star wars scam is up for the old flop and pop.

disneys-new-star-wars-inspired-hotel-turning-into-a-flop/ar-AAV2zHN

How do you guess it will ever end.

 

[J-Dog]

That article you cited is extremely light on anything resembling data. Literally not a single revenue or booking percentage number is given in the article. The fact that any random Joe Blow can go on the WDW website and see that availability still exists certainly doesn't mean that it's a "flop".

That said, I love Star Wars, but the thought of 2 days stuck indoors in a claustrophobic "spaceship", surrounded by other people that I can barely get away from sounds horrible to me....

 

[Buzzster]

Interesting that months that have availability now constitute a “flop”. I love the You Tubes….such insight.

 

[BrianL]

That article you cited is extremely light on anything resembling data. Literally not a single revenue or booking percentage number is given in the article. The fact that any random Joe Blow can go on the WDW website and see that availability still exists certainly doesn't mean that it's a "flop".

Exactly. Hotels don't expect to be 100% occupied 100% of the time. It's not a failure at all just because there is some availability.

We simply do not know enough at this time to make such assessments, but there are a lot of "fans" on the Internet who desperately, desperately want it to fail because it will "prove" that their narrow vision of what Star Wars is is the "right" one.

 

[Her Dotness]

However, the OP's link isn't the only one by any means.

Idle speculation at this point, IMO, with perhaps some underlying glee that long-popular Disney may have overestimated the enthusiasm of all but Star Wars zealots with disposable income they'll gladly use on a return.

My thinking is give it a year, and then we'll see how well this new venture holds up.

 

[Schneewittchen37]

Maybe someone was banking on there being a lot more extroverted, embarrassingly wealthy, Star Wars superfans than there actually are.

The rest of us casual Star Wars fans will just keep on buying used Kenner action figures on ebay while simultaneously reading questionable Cassian/Jyn fanfic and watching Revenge of the Sith on DVD in our dark holes (basements). The indoctrination of the younglings is going nicely.... DS12 has already taught DD10 how to play Sabacc and since the weather is nice they'll probably spend the afternoon in the backyard beating each other with lightsabers and nerf blasters.....

But most definitely, we're going to waste our 6k on a trip to San Juan or the Big Island or cycling the Loire Valley or a Danube River cruise. Definitely not wasting my money on 2 days of role-playing with a bunch of lame-o strangers......

 

[StageTek]

I checked the WDW site today. There are hotel rooms available through all of August and September. There are park reservations available throughout that 60 day period. I wonder if that means Walt Disney World is a flop...

 

[Karin1984]

It is way too early to tell. You first have the people who love new things. You need them to create some buzz. If their reviews are positive you will get the people who need a little encouragement and then the group who need even more encouragement. Not everyone wants to be first. Sometimes that can be good to get rid of some childhood diseases of a new product. They say with cruiseships, you should not go for the maiden voyage because rarily everything is ready.

This might be something people save up for, for special occasions. It is a lot of money and time and effort, not something you do for a casual weekend getaway. It is almost an investment.

Let's give them at least a year before we say it was a flop.

 

[popy]

I don’t about, you but, I think Disney could spent the money to make something a little more affordable to the most, instead of only the very few. So I must think they don’t care about the most,
By the way did you see the food , that shrimp? You talk about some freaky stuff, I would not eat anything that did not looked cooked, and I now know why Disney does not care for the peasants. Look at the food in that place of $6000.

 

[KYMickey]

Does anyone have a link to the actual video that the OP was discussing? Since he didn't bother putting a link in his post a search on YouTube turns up many that are knocking this resort.

 

[DaviVascaino]

A flop if every single room is booked for the next 3-4 months??

 

[TheDailyMoo]

A question for those on both sides of the debate:

However popular or unpopular the hotel is currently, would it have been better to have made this a standalone type experience away from Disney World, in fact completely disassociated with anything theme park related. Now it could've still gone in Orlando or perhaps in a nearby warm state? Perhaps built in a wooded/mountainy locale where the surroundings could've added an Endor type excursion thereby appeasing OT fans a little more than they have (and let's be real...OT was what made this all happen what would be so horrible about ingratiating themselves to that huge segment of fans). I personally feel like the whole $6000 argument would almost become non existent in a situation like this because to me it feels very much like BECAUSE it is part of a theme park that people have this feeling of "Why would I spend $6000 to roleplay basically at HS for 2 nights". Whereas you make this a standalone destination (plus a little bit more than they're currently offering) and people would flock to it. Just my 2 cents.

 

[GoingSince1990]

I’m more introvert than extrovert, and really like Star Wars, and while I enjoy role-playing along for the 15 minutes or so on RotR, the thought of participating in SW role-play for two solid days is unthinkable for me, even putting the cost aside. I have to think that Disney will burn through the extroverted, rich, fanatical SW enthusiasts relatively quickly, and I doubt that Disney will still be packing people in at the same price 10 years from now (or even 5 years from now). So what happens next? Previously I have mused that Disney could turn it into a more conventional kind of hotel, but who wants to spend time in Florida in a hotel with small, windowless rooms and no pool? I hate to say it but I think the most likely scenario is when the bookings start to fall off a cliff, Disney acknowledges that the concept was a mistake and shuts it down.

 

[Schneewittchen37]

A question for those on both sides of the debate:

However popular or unpopular the hotel is currently, would it have been better to have made this a standalone type experience away from Disney World, in fact completely disassociated with anything theme park related. Now it could've still gone in Orlando or perhaps in a nearby warm state? Perhaps built in a wooded/mountainy locale where the surroundings could've added an Endor type excursion thereby appeasing OT fans a little more than they have (and let's be real...OT was what made this all happen what would be so horrible about ingratiating themselves to that huge segment of fans). I personally feel like the whole $6000 argument would almost become non existent in a situation like this because to me it feels very much like BECAUSE it is part of a theme park that people have this feeling of "Why would I spend $6000 to roleplay basically at HS for 2 nights". Whereas you make this a standalone destination (plus a little bit more than they're currently offering) and people would flock to it. Just my 2 cents.

I'm firmly on the anti side of this. Location has nothing to do with this.

Literally, I think role playing and especially spendy role playing is foolish. But I do enjoy theme parks, for cleanliness and carefree thrills and silliness. WDW, Disneyland, nostalgia for a past that never was. I'm good with that.

I like Star Wars, I might even love it. But I never asked for a cheesy "experience". It feels icky and debased to me. I won't ever pay for this thing that would be a pale reflection of a narrative you could create in your head or dreams.

For me, Star Wars isn't about pretending to be a rebel spy in a not very luxurious hotel (without a ding dang pool, every cruise ship has a pool). It's about the universal myths that cross cultural boundaries and make us human. Or something deep like that.

Go get your pitchforks. I'm ready for your rage.

 

[Schneewittchen37]

I’m more introvert than extrovert, and really like Star Wars, and while I enjoy role-playing along for the 15 minutes or so on RotR, the thought of participating in SW role-play for two solid days is unthinkable for me, even putting the cost aside. I have to think that Disney will burn through the extroverted, rich, fanatical SW enthusiasts relatively quickly, and I doubt that Disney will still be packing people in at the same price 10 years from now (or even 5 years from now). So what happens next? Previously I have mused that Disney could turn into a more conventional kind of hotel, but who wants to spend time in Florida in a hotel with small, windowless rooms and no pool? I hate to say it but I think the most likely scenario is when the bookings start to fall off a cliff, Disney acknowledges that the concept was a mistake and shuts it down.

In a couple years, strip it bare and make it the Avengers Campus experience.... And then a couple years after that use some sort of societal crisis to close it temporarily. And then mothball it. And then YouTubers film spooky haunted hotel videos. And then tear it down and build the DVC resort "Apparitions".

 

[randumb0]

I like Star Wars and wouldn't go even if it was free. 2 days of role playing? No thanks

 

[Boopuff]

I can see the “play along” aspect being very appealing to huge fans, I honestly think the experience is over most of the “younglings “ heads. If I were a bettin’ gal, I’d think that the role-play will vanish in time and it will become just a fancy star-wars themed resort.

 

[DodgerGirl]

I think Disney really missed the mark on Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser because Disney has hardly promoted it at all with the lack of no commercials for it or anything else relating to it and I can't really understand why people would pay big money to stay there when the experience is not worth it. If people played a game show like Press Your Luck or The Price Is Right or Let's Make A Deal you can bet The Price Is Right would choose this as a Showcase prize or Let's Make A Deal would make something like this as The Big Deal prize. If Disney had promoted this the right way they should've just made a Star Wars themed resort instead complete with Star Wars themed rooms restaurants with Star Wars themed food and character breakfasts complete with meet and greets with characters such as Han Solo Luke Skywalker Chewbacca Princess Leia Rey Kylo Ren Boba Fett Darth Vader and other Star Wars characters too and have Star Wars activities throughout the day such as Jedi Training helping Mando take care of Grogu and other activities as well and it would've been a Star Wars version of the popular Great Wolf Lodge chain of hotels. But I think that Disney for a long time had a big dream of opening a Star Wars themed resort and this seemed to be that dream. But had Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser offered people more exciting things and made longer voyages rather than just two day short voyages it would've been a smash hit. I wouldn't be surprised if Disney adds a Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser to Disneyland in the future as well. But I do agree with Boopuff that Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser will turn itself into a regular resort in the future if they don't improve it more

 

[Brocktoon]

I find it more interesting to observe what will happen not from a Star Wars fan perspective, but the feasibility or business model for this type of operation. Disney knows cruise lines and they know how to run resorts. They've also done interactive entertainment with venues like The Adventurer's Club. But trying to combine all these into a 'land cruise' may not be sustainable in the long term. Trying to be a jack of all trades means you may be a master of none. I don't even know if they could turn it into a standard resort as the rooms and amenities are quite small for a resort experience ... as that isn't what it was deigned for. If this model does not end up working for a Star Wars theme, I don't think it would work any better for a Marvel or other IPs. You won't see Uni try it with Harry Potter either ... it's not an IP issue, but more a question if there's enough of a demographic for this type of experience at the price-point.

I'd still like to try it one day, but I wonder if Disney would have been better off building an actual Star Wars themed resort open to the public that included a themed 'Adventurer Club' type experience for interactive food/drink for an optional separate cost. Then again the Star Cruiser could end up being a big hit, and then Disney will follow up other IP based 'land cruise' experiences.

 

[New Mouse]

I can see the “play along” aspect being very appealing to huge fans, I honestly think the experience is over most of the “younglings “ heads. If I were a bettin’ gal, I’d think that the role-play will vanish in time and it will become just a fancy star-wars themed resort.

Except the huge fans don't typically like the new star wars.