Much has been spoken on this site about Disneyland’s massive “Stardust” initiative to streamline and expand park access, capacity and ease of operation in advance of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. And while most of our readers have focused on the visible things such as garden reshaping and curb lowering, there’s a lot more that’s in the works that has a far reaching impact on park operations, capacity and demand management.
Virtual Queues On The Way
We’re not talking MaxPass here, but rather a whole new way to think about queues and access to things like Galaxy’s Edge.
We all know that Disneyland opted to do reservations for the first month of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge (more about how that went below), but what happens when the reservation period is lifted? Well, rather than allowing the new land to be overwhelmed by guests, Disney will be trying a new tool to limit access the land . . . Virtual Queues.
What is Virtual Queuing?
Once you enter the park, you’ll be able to open the Disneyland App or use a kiosk (in locations which have yet to be defined) to check on the status of Galaxy’s Edge. It will either be “Open” for guests to simply walk straight to and visit OR it will require you to join a “Boarding Group” (a virtual queue). Once in this boarding group, you’ll be able to enjoy the rest of the park while you are virtually waiting in line to enter Galaxy’s Edge. Once there’s room for you, you’ll get a push-notification on your phone letting you know you can visit. Then you’ll have up to 2 full hours to make your way to Galaxy’s Edge. Plenty of time to finish up dinner, ride Space Mountain, or just about anything else you need to do in the park.
To make sure your friends and family can join you, you’ll be able to add them to your boarding group in the Disneyland App as well. The process is simple to do on your phone, but you can still get assistance from cast members at stations set up throughout the park if you have trouble or questions. Guest Relations stations will be adding digital signage to display important park and Galaxy’s Edge information.
Keep in mind that once you are in the land, you’ll be able to stay as long as you’d like.
Beyond Galaxy’s Edge
If the virtual queue for Galaxy’s Edge is successful, you’ll likely see it tried elsewhere as well. We can imagine it being used for any high demand attraction or special event. Where can you envision virtual queues being preferable to Fastpass?
Reservations about Reservations
Disneyland opened reservations for Star Wars land last week and promptly sold out all dates and time slots from May 31st through June 23rd. On the plus side, the Disneyland reservation system stayed up and efficiently processed tens of thousands of reservations in a very short period of time. On the negative side, we read hundreds of online complaints that some guests either weren’t able to add guests to their reservation, or didn’t see the button to do so.
If you didn’t get a reservation, there is still one legal way to do so, book a stay at any of the three Disneyland Resort hotels. Hotel guests staying on property during the reservation period will be granted access to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.
If you are feeling left out and tempted to buy Galaxy’s Edge reservations on Ebay, think again. Disneyland is aware and taking steps to prevent the resell of Galaxy’s Edge reservations.
That leaves you with just one more option, waiting until June 24th or later to visit when reservations are lifted. However, be advised that virtual queuing will likely be in effect. To make sure you get a spot in a virtual queue, you’ll want to arrive early to Disneyland to get yourself into the queue.
Overall, the reservation system achieved its goal of scheduling just enough people to visit Galaxy’s Edge to keep the Millennium Falcon ride full, without overcrowding the rest of the resort with guests hoping to get into Star Wars and creating lines hours long.
With perhaps just a bit of tweaking to make the “Add Guests” process more foolproof and adding a confirmation page before completing the transaction, this could be a good system for the park to use again when the Rise of the Resistance attraction opens later this year (or any big new ride, show, or attraction).
Did the reservation system work for you?
Cast Training and Engagement
I was able to attend a cast training session for Galaxy’s Edge earlier this week inside Stage 17 at Disney California Adventure. It was a high production value event which included video segments, scripted performances, an opportunity to view merchandise, droid making, some food and beverage, toys, etc and to meet some of the cast who will be working in those facilities. There was even a video from Hondo (which I assume is from the pre-show for Galaxy’s Edge).
Much of this information was not new to me, but it was wonderful to see it all assembled together in a fun way for the cast members of the resort. The sessions are offered to all resort employees, not just the ones headed for work in Galaxy’s Edge.
I learned that the Falcon is part of a smuggling operation run by Hondo. He’s assembled so many ships and missions that he needs more pilots. In fact, experience isn’t required . . .
But that isn’t all the resort has done to engage cast and crew:
- When Galaxy’s Edge construction reached its highest point, all 30,000 employees of the resort were invited to sign the beam, which would be installed in that high spot. One resort VP wrote “May the force be with us.”
- The cast-only “Costume reveal event” was held in Tomorrowland and over 6,000 cast members showed up.
- A Star Wars film festival is on the way so cast members can rewatch all the films and prepare for the opening of their own Star Wars world.
- Internal communications has ramped up for all teams, and countdown clocks have been placed backstage to remind everyone how close to opening the new Star Wars land is.
- Cast previews will be held May 20-22, and again on May 26th & 27th.
- Approximately 1,600 Castmember will call Galaxy’s Edge home
Adding Quick Capacity
Lots of little things are being done to increase the overall capacity of the resort. In addition to Galaxy’s Edge, this summer we’ll see:
- Relaunch of Disneyland Forever fireworks
- Lion King Celebration
- Philharmagic
- Hyperspace Mountain will run through the summer
Project Stardust
Most of the big Stardust projects will wrap up later this month before Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opens. But that doesn’t mean the work will completely end. There are a few projects which have been delayed for scheduling/logistic reasons and there’s a whole bunch of stuff the parks will need to reevaluate and adjust as time goes by.
The big projects completed during Stardusting were:
Some attraction queues were modified to minimize walkway obstructions. New shade was added for guest comfort. Examples include Dumbo, Matterhorn Bobsleds, “it’s a small world,” and Peter Pan.
But there are still queues which create significant issues, such as Pirates of the Caribbean, which can overflow into walkways and bridges in New Orleans Square.
Some Stardust projects were about enhancing the show of the park. The addition of the Tropical Hideaway added seating capacity and food and beverage, but it also linked the storylines of the Tiki Room and Jungle Cruise and added story elements such as Rosita, the Animatonic Tiki Bird who has flown the coop.
Castle scrims are just starting to come down. The tallest spire is now poking out from the top of the construction area, while new blue turrets can now be spotted on the sides of the project.
New blue in the front:
You can see the new paint scheme below. Lighter on the bottom, darker on top. Some of the old bricks still wait to be painted on the right:
When Disneyland first began giving up retails space for seating and stroller parking we were shocked. Disneyland essentially gave up revenue generating space to ease guest flow and comfort. They have since gone on to claim space from some queue areas for seating as well (Mark Twain dock, Star Wars Launch Bay patio).
A temporary sign for Adventureland has been installed across from the Tiki Room. A revised version of the old archway will go up shortly.
Projects continue near Jolly Holiday to open access to the parade overflow walkway behind Main Street.
The gardens near the Plaza Inn were reshaped to allow for a wider walkway.
They were awaiting new railings when these photos were taken.
The new lowered curbs around the hub are noted by the colorful new bricks.
We assume that a new digital signboard will be installed here to assist with Galaxy’s Edge boarding groups.
The Frontierland project to make the pathway along the Bonanza Outfitters wider continues. Frontierland is a main artery for nightly Fantastic shows.
The Pixar Pals parking lot is close to completion. Paving is going in now.
Do you like the idea of virtual queues? Where else could they be used in the park and could they be a replacement for some of the Fastpass queues? Considering the size of some of the Stardust projects, were you surprised by how difficult it was to tell what changes were made once they were complete? Let us know your thoughts below.