How Diagon Alley Led to the Galactic Starcruiser

Matthew

Mar. 6, 2022

What Does This Mean for the Future of Theme Parks?

With the opening of the Galactic Starcruiser Hotel, we see the culmination of a trend in themed entertainment that has been steadily growing since the opening of Diagon Alley or even the original Wizarding World expansion at Universal Orlando.

What is the Galactic Starcruiser Hotel?

The Galactic Starcruiser hotel is an immersive experience that places the guest at the center of a Star Wars themed adventure that takes place over a 2 night stay aboard the Halcyon. The experience includes themed transport, dining, merchandise, and cabin rooms. The entire experience is covered thoroughly by the press that attended the Media Day but the most important part is that the price of admission to the Halcyon comes out to a maximum of $4,000.

How the Halcyon continues a growing trend

The Galactic Starcruiser hotel proves that guests are not only willing to pay for more immersion, it proves that guests are willing to pay a premium for just the experience. This confirmation is a result of Disney doubling down on a trend started by Universal Orlando in 2010. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter Hogsmeade introduced a new level of guest immersion by placing fans of the books and movies inside of locations straight out of the silver screen. The Wizarding World was the first major theme park expansion to include full theming, in dining, rides, shopping, and even restrooms. Guests could feel like they were a part of the story and they were fighting the forces of evil right along with Harry.

This immersion was doubled with the Diagon Alley expansion which opens in 2014. Even today, Diagon Alley is one of the more popular areas of Universal Studios Orlando even though it only has a single ride. Both Diagon Alley and Star Wars: Galaxy’s edge (Opened in 2019) operate on two basic principles that make them the most popular area of each of their parks.

• Prioritize the Guest experience

• Make the guests involved in the story

The Starcruiser is the ultimate combination of both of these tenants and manages to be a surprisingly filling experience despite the absence of a real ride. Even with an included ticket to Hollywood Studios, guests are still willing to pay a $3000 difference between the Halcyon and a park hopper+ ticket.

Going forward, we might see more of a focus on immersion and experience over a lightly themed ride because of the likely success of the Starcruiser Hotel. Both Universal and Disney are capitalizing on this growing trend through their newer projects like Avengers Campus and the Epic Universe expansion which both feature similar immersive environments. By placing guests at the center of a story, theme parks can give guests the freedom to choose their own path through it or, like the Halcyon, a whole new ending based on your performance.

Whatever the case, the Galactic Starcruiser hotel has set a very high bar for guest immersion and established the idea that people will flock to experience just as much as thrill. Without a doubt, the next groundbreaking attraction or land will be one that seamlessly combines both thrill and experience.