In a recent interview with The Points Guy, Disney’s chairman of Disney parks, experiences and products, Josh D’Amaro was asked about the state of the soon-to-be-closed Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser.
During the interview, D’Amaro was asked about the high pricing for experiences like the Galactic Starcruiser and the $115k per person, month-long tour of all the Disney theme parks. This led to a discussion about the Star Wars-themed hotel.
Pricing was high for most people with a less than 48-hour “cruise,” starting at $4,800-$6,000.
D’Amaro indicated that they want to take risks and try new things:
“Raise the bar. Try things that the guests aren’t even asking for because they don’t know to ask for that,” he says. “I know not everything’s going to work. What did work, though, is we took creativity and storytelling to a completely new level, to a level that had never existed before. … It didn’t work commercially. And so, when we realized that, you just make a call and move on.”
After this response, the interviewer asked the question many of us were asking. What happens to the Galactic Starcruiser next? D’Amaro indicated that Disney has plans for it but wouldn’t elaborate, saying, “No hints yet, but something will happen.”
It’s unsurprising that Disney would turn the space into something else or repurpose it somehow. Given the amount of money they spent on the location. They may not even know what to do with it yet but are currently working on plans for it.
I like D’Amaro’s honesty about the Galactic Starcruiser not succeeding commercially. Throughout the interview, he admits that the company doesn’t always “get it right.”
No one has a crystal ball and can predict how people will react. However, with the Galactic Starcruiser, they should have seen it coming somewhat. Not long after its announcement, rumors were out about the pricing that turned out to be close to the actual pricing. People were not happy about it and questioned it then. Disney had time to reverse course but didn’t.
They also relied heavily on Disney’s Star Wars trilogy, which was a mistake. They likely would have fared better with classic characters.
Another aspect that likely scared guests off is the LARPing element of it. Disney encouraged guests to dress up in costumes and become part of the story. For many, that level of engagement is off-putting.
The hotel is shutting down at the end of September, but we now know that Disney does plan on using it for something.
What do you think? Comment and let us know.
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