elizabethadventuresblogThe long awaited Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge finally opened the summer of 2019 at Disneyland! I had been waiting years to explore this new land. As a Disney lover I was excited for the park to expand, but as a Star Wars fan I couldn’t wait to be immersed in the experience Disney is so great at creating. The new land has two rides as well as multiple stores and restaurants. At opening day only one ride was ready to open- Millennium Falcon. The second ride, Rise of the Resistance, was slated to open in the fall.
We planned the trip with my parents who are also big fans. Summers at Disney are really crowded and with a new land opening we decided to just wait until a slow week to go. Plus we wanted to make sure we went when both of the rides were up and running. You can google what weeks are on average the slowest at each park! It is so helpful to plan a trip if you go when the park is less crowded.
You can also find out when Disney is having special shows. Some are just a few nights and others last a month like the Lunar New Year. We chose to go the day after the Lunar New Year Celebration ended and just before the Christmas festivities began.
Well, just our luck there was a delay to The Rise of the Resistance ride opening until mid-January. Luckily we could easily change our reservations because we stayed at my family’s timeshare. We were honestly a little nervous the ride would be delayed again, but thankfully it opened on time! A few weeks later and we were finally taking off to experience the long anticipate new land.
We had two days planned for the trip and we made sure to arrive at the park an hour early. I had been reading up daily on what to expect and everyone kept saying the lines into the park were long. The thing about the new Rise of the Resistance line is that it is run with a queue system. That means the only way you can get on the ride is if you get a reservation spot.
In order to get a reservation, you have to download the Disneyland app. If you go to my Disney Tips post, you can learn more about the app. Reservations for the ride open exactly at the park’s opening hour. The trick to this is that you have to be INSIDE the park gate when that hour hits!
If you are still waiting in line to get into the park when it opens, you probably won’t get on the ride. If you know you want to get on the ride, I would highly recommend getting to the park no latter than 30 minutes before opening. The lines move quickly but if they are long it could take a while to get inside.
Thankfully, Disneyland always opens up Main Street early so people can wander the shops and get ready for the various lands to open. I always love waiting for the rope to drop and getting on a ride quickly. This time everyone around us had their phones out ready to hit that reserve button. You will need to make sure that you make a ticket party and link all the tickets for your group into the party on the app. If you try and all reserve a spot separately, you may all end up in different boarding groups or worse, some of you may not get on at all.
It is also important to not have the app open until the park itself opens. I forgot this little tidbit and we had to quickly reload the app so it knew that we could reserve on the ride. Because of this, we ended up in group 70, which made us a little nervous. If you are above 100 there is a good change you won’t get on if the ride breaks down a lot. We knew we would probably get on, but figured it wouldn’t be until the evening. Thankfully the second day I was much quicker and we got into group 32! Talk about an exciting improvement!
The nice thing about the queue system is that you can go about your day enjoying rides. The app will notify you when your timeframe to go on the ride is up. You will have a 2 hour window to return to the line and show the workers your reservation to be scanned. I did hear that once your boarding group number is called, you can go anytime after that. So lets say you can’t get back within the two hours, you will still get on the ride. Although I don’t know why you would want to wait! The ride is so good!
We were honestly shocked when our boarding group was called in the early afternoon! We quickly worked our way over only to find out the ride had just broken down again. If you’ve read anything about this ride, you’ll know this is a regular occurrence. And when it breaks down its usually for at least an hour at a time, hence the concern of making it on if you’re in a higher number. If the ride has a good day, a lot more boarding groups can make it on.
We decided we didn’t want to walk to another ride and then have the ride open again, so we just explored Galaxy’s Edge. After about 45 minutes, we finally got to hop in line and it was really short since it just opened back up. But, just our luck the ride broke down yet again right as we were approaching the first doors. So we spent another hour sitting on the cement ground waiting for it to open again.
It was such a great feeling being inside the ride as it turned back on. Everyone could sense it because the humming started again, and shortly after, the music too. Thankfully the ride didn’t break down again and we got on! The ride itself is a three part experience and hands down the most amazing interactive experience Disney has created.
The ride starts on a simulation similar to Star Tours. You then go into a waiting area but there are cast members acting as the First Order. Engaging with the cast members during this time is honestly so fun! We were joking that it would have been amazing to be stuck in this part of the ride for an hour with the cast members in full performance mode.
After the holding area, you get to go on the actual ride which is a trackless motion simulator, so you feel like you are truly flying through the set. Having read about all the ride issues leading up to our visit, I wasn’t really sure how I was feeling about the new ride. Once I stepped foot off the ride, I was in complete awe and amazement at what Disney had built. They clearly still have a lot of kinks to work out, but once they fix everything it’s going to be the most amazing experience going forward!
The other new ride in Galaxy’s Edge is the Millennium Falcon ride. This ride is an interactive simulation. The first time we went on it my husband and I were gunners. Honestly I didn’t love it. My arm was tired of awkwardly hitting the light up buttons and I was confused on what was even happening. The second time we rode it we were both pilots and it was so fun!
The engagement is much easier to follow and exciting as the pilot. You can’t really pick what job you get unless you trade people or have multiple people in your party so you can negotiate. The cast members hand you a job assignment when you enter so do what you can to be a pilot.
One of my favorite parts about the new land is engaging with the cast members. You’ll see Chewbacca, storm troopers, Kylo Ren, Rey and R2D2 wandering the streets throughout the day. The storm troopers are the really fun to engage with. You can get them to question you if you are acting suspicious around them. They will get right up in your face, too. Make sure you give yourself time to walk the streets and engage with them while you’re there. There are usually only two at a time walking the streets.
Another must for Galaxy’s Edge is Ulga’s Cantina which is located next to the Millennium Falcon. You will need to make a reservation ahead of time to even go inside. I would recommend making it as far out as you can to make sure you get in. You can book it 60 days out from the day you go. There won’t be any day-of openings unless you get lucky with a cancelation.
You can make your reservation months in advance on the Disneyland app under dining. Just search for the name and select the date and time you would like to go. You will need to put in a payment option to hold your spot.They also ask that you arrive 15 minutes before you reservation starts to check in outside. There is a fee for no-shows, so make sure you cancel if you can’t make it!
Once you go inside there is lively Star Wars music playing and it looks like a scene straight from a movie. There is a robot “playing” the music, strange contraptions behind the bar and waiters in character. This is the only place inside Disneyland where you can get alcohol as well. The menu has a lot of fun concoctions as well as non-alcoholic choices and some snacks. You will be given a time limit on how long you may stay inside. Everyone is given a 45 minute time slot to allow for more people to enjoy it throughout the day and to keep reservations moving.It was my favorite dining experience inside Galaxy’s Edge. You can learn more about reservations here.
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge also had some new and unique food options. Most of it wasn’t really items I was interested in eating, but I did get a hummus plate inside Docking Bay 7 and it was one of the best things I’ve eaten at Disney! There were multiple things on the menu inside I would have eaten as well, so I would recommend checking it out if you are hungry. The nice thing about Docking Bay 7 is that you can order food ahead on the app. You can learn more about that on my Disneyland Tips blog post.
If you have a Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge trip planned, you’re in for a real treat! It was such an amazing experience and so masterfully designed. Everything from the sounds to the cast members inside just make the experience so memorable. Be sure to check out my “Disneyland Tips” guide to make the most of your trip. I hope this helps you plan out your trip and know what to do to make sure you get a chance to ride Rise of the Resistance!
Happy Travels,
Elizabeth
[…] which adds to the magic of it all. Every detail is thought out. Be sure to check out my “Galaxy’s Edge” guide before you go too. I hope this helps you on your trip and you have the most magical […]