If you’re looking for an out of this world experience this summer, and you happen to be a Star Wars fan, then you will need to make arrangements to get to Disneyland STAT. The happiest place on earth just celebrated the grand opening of Star Wars: A Galaxy’s Edge, their largest park expansion ever and the most anticipated.
Star Wars: A Galaxy’s Edge is a 14- acre immersive experience located in the back of the park, adjacent to Frontierland and Critter Country. Once you walk through the entrance, you’ll find yourself transported to the Black Spire Outpost on the far-flung planet of Batuu. The land isn’t designed only for the rabid Star Wars fan; it manages to please all levels of interstellar interest. While you will see hardcore fans shed a tear when they first set eyes on the Millennium Falcon, you’ll also witness the wide-eyed awe of Star Wars newbies getting their first real taste of the Force. It’s an incredible experience for all, and here’s why. (Photo via Josh O/ DisneylandPanda)
The Ride: At present, there is just one ride in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge — Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run. A second ride — Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance — will be gracing the galaxy later this year. But for now, the Falcon experience is more than enough. Visitors enter the Millennium Falcon common room after walking through the iconic hallways and receiving a team card with an assigned role on it. There are three positions — pilot, gunner, or an engineer — each plays a part in the assigned mission. The ride is like a combo of Star Tours and Buzz Lightyear Astro-Blasters, it’s an interactive rollicking ride. (Photo via Josh O/ DisneylandPanda)
Food and Drinks: You won’t find any burgers or fries in Batuu. The menu is far more adventurous and exotic then what’s offered in other areas of the park. You can sip on Blue or Green milk available at the Milk Stand. For a snack, head to Kat Saka’s Kettle to gobble down on a mixture of sweet, savory, and spicy popcorn. Ronto Roasters offers up Ronto Wraps, a pita filled with roasted pork, a grilled pork sausage, and topped with tangy slaw. Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but it’s also the go-to place for deserts like the Oi-oi Puff (a raspberry cream puff with passion fruit mousse) and Batuu-bon (chocolate cake with white chocolate mousse and coffee custard). (Photo via Sunny Chanel)
The Cantina: Besides the heavily themed restaurant and food stalls, there is one destination that must be high on your list — a visit to Oga’s Cantina. This richly decorated watering hole is the only place in Disneyland (besides the exclusive Club 33) where alcohol is served, which was a big decision to make, but really, how could you have a cantina that’s home to bounty hunters and smugglers without booze? They offer up concoctions such as The Jedi Mind Trick (Ketel One grapefruit and rose vodka with Bols Blue Curaco, white grape juice, and grapefruit bitter) and the Fuzzy Tauntaun (Ciroc Peach Vodka, Bols Peach Schnapps, orange juice with a tangerine and sugar foam). There are also heavy duty souvenir mugs you can buy to plus your drink; the Porg one is adorable! (Photos via Sunny Chanel)
The shopping experiences: We won’t lie to you, you will spend more of your hard earned cash than you probably intended to after walking into Galaxy’s Edge. It’s not just the beautifully curated shop hawking Star Wars this and that, it’s the process in which they manage to separate you from your money. At Droid Depot, you can assemble your very own custom “astromech unit’ using a wide array of pieces flowing down a conveyer belt. After you’ve put together your new loyal friend, and it has been activated, the droid will interact with it’s surrounding in wild ways. At Savi’s Lightsabers, Jedis young and old have the opportunity to customize and build a one-of-a-kind lightsaber. This experience, which is shrouded in secrecy and takes place behind closed doors, is an additional $199+, but you walk away with a new family heirloom. (Photo via Sunny Chanel)
The experience: Throughout your visit to Batuu, you will meet a variety of citizens of the land and the Star Wars universe. You might see Rey mingling with the masses, or Chewbacca hugging a kid in Mickey ears, and it’s hard not to get a chill in your bones when you see the Stromtroppers patrolling the land. The cast members, those serving the food, selling the stuffies, and guarding the droids, are all part of the narrative. They sprinkle their vernacular with Batuuian phrases such as “Bright Suns” (hello) and “Rising Moon” (Goodbye). To dig deeper into the world, whip out your cell phone and interact with the world via Disney’s Play app. You’ll be able to translate the language on signs and buildings, hack motherboards, and partake in special missions. (Photo via Josh O/ DisneylandPanda)
The look: Beyond all the pomp and circumstance of the lightsabers, droids, and exotic drinks served up in Porgs, what really is awe-inspiring about Galaxy’s Edge is attention to detail and breadth of place-ness. Once you walk through the tunnels into Batuu you are completely transported to another time, another place, and you completely forget you’re in Disneyland, or even on this planet for that matter. Merely being able to meander through the mud-hued walkways and soak in the ambiance is enough of a reason to visit Galaxy’s Edge. (Photo via Josh O/ DisneylandPanda)
To visit Batuu between now and June 23, you will need a reservation. Currently, the best to do that is by booking a Disneyland Resort which comes with a guaranteed time slot to visit the new land. After June 23rd, the park is open to everyone!
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