Disney World Attraction Gone Forever In Surprise News

Did you miss out on this big Disney attraction?

The Walt Disney World Resort in Florida is home to some of the most magical theme park experiences. You can go to space on Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at EPCOT, ride the new TRON Lightcycle / Run at Magic Kingdom, go on safari at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and ride a runaway train with Mickey and Minnie at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

One of Disney World’s most ambitious and immersive attractions was revealed to be closing soon, and if you weren’t quick enough, you’ll now never get to experience it.

After a string of canceled dates, experience cutbacks, and huge discounts, Disney was surprisingly revealed to be shutting down its newest immersive experience later this year.

On May 18, 2023, Disney made the shock announcement that the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser will take its final voyage on September 28.

The Disney Resort Hotel had been criticized for its high cost, but now it seems it’s already gone forever as no more Guests will have access to the Walt Disney World experience.

The final two months of Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser quickly sold out when the announcement came out, but there were still voyages available in May, June, and July. Guests waited in hours-long virtual queues to book one of the final voyages and no discounts were available for Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser’s final launches.

Now, as of May 26, the final voyages of Disney’s immersive Star Wars attraction hotel are all sold out. The availability calendar has been removed from the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser website and no more bookings are being accepted.

It’s very unlikely that more availability will open for the Starcruiser voyages, so if you didn’t manage to snag one of these last few stays, it means this Walt Disney World experience is now gone forever. Those who have never done the Galactic Starcruiser or were saving up to afford its hefty pricetag have now missed out – this Disney attraction is now off the cards.

Disney shared a statement on the Starcruiser website, revealing the sold-out status of the Halcyon:

As of May 26, 2023 at 4:30pm ET, Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser is unavailable for new bookings.

However, availability may still be subject to change and a very limited number of rooms could become available for new bookings from time to time. Please continue to check the online calendar for the latest availability.

The Galactic Starcruiser hotel takes Guests on a (simulated) two-night voyage through a galaxy far, far away. While aboard, Guests are fully immersed in the Star Wars story. Characters such as Chewbacca, Rey, and Kylo Ren are all onboard, while Guests also go on a port excursion to Batuu’s Black Spire Outpost in Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Galaxy’s Edge.

The Halcyon only has 100 Guest rooms, including 94 Standard Cabins that sleep up to 5, four Galaxy Class Suites that sleep up to 4, and two Grand Captain Suites that sleep up to 8.

The cost of the immersive experience, however, has always been an issue for many fans of the George Lucas franchise, with prices starting at roughly $4,800 for two Guests on a two-night voyage. This is a costly price to pay for a two-night experience at the Star Wars hotel (a similar price to a week on a Disney Cruise Line trip) – and it seems this was the Disney hotel’s downfall.

Disney apparently considered turning the doomed Starcruiser into a Mandalorian experience or a one-day activity, giving Disney Park Guests “tours” of the hotel that would include access to the bar, dinner, and gift shop. Disney CEO Bob Iger turned down these rethemings of the hotel and instead decided to shut Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser down.

Unsurprisingly, it seems once Disney attracted those with enough money to stay on the Halcyon and the diehard Star Wars fans, they had no more audience to appeal to.

Though the expensive Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser only lasted a little over a year, it will be a $300 million tax write-off for Disney. It also won the 2022 TEA Thea Award for Outstanding Achievement in Brand Experience.

If you missed out on ever experiencing the Star Wars hotel, there’s always Batuu. The Outer Rim planet is both at Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park in Orlando, Florida. The Star Wars-themed land is set between Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi (2017) and Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker (2019) in the Star Wars timeline, and features two attractions – Millenium Falcon: Smugglers Run and the continually popular Rise of the Resistance.