by Last updated: May 28, 2019 7 comments

First Reactions and Sneak Peeks of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge

Preview events have begun for Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge so we are starting to get our first glimpses of the new Star Wars Land opening at Disneyland on May 31 and in Walt Disney World on August 29th! We have some insider reactions and images to share with everyone so you can get your first look inside this highly anticipated Star Wars themed land.

Check out our full guide to Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge here!

First Reactions to Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge

Millennium Falcon ride at Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge

During the initial preview events there have been many thoughts to summarize but the main consensus across the board is that everyone has been BLOWN AWAY by how immersive the land is. The land has been built to handle large crowds but everything still feels pretty intimate and doesn't take away from the experience. We have had a number of inside sources reporting for Mickey Visit inside the new land. Their anonymous feedback has been compiled below.

One thought that stuck out to me from some of these insider reactions is that Star Wars fans might just collapse into tears upon walking into the land. It really feels like you are in a “galaxy far far away.”

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While there will eventually be two attractions open at Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, for the time being the Millennium Falcon attraction is the only attraction open.

Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run, the attraction that allows six people to pilot the Millennium Falcon ship, has said to be extremely fun but also challenging at times playing the different positions.

The queue leading into the falcon wraps around an upper level and looks down on the Millennium Falcon in the land from different angles. As you walk “onboard” you get the feeling you really are stepping on the smugglers ship. Greeting you in the attraction is one of the most interactive Audio-Animatronics ever built.

The Hondo Ohnaka figure is extremely fluid and realistic as he invites guests to join him in smuggling goods across the galaxy. Check out this video above from the Star Wars Celebration in Chicago.

Our source gave some tips for experiencing the flying part of the attraction. With the six different positions onboard the ship, you don't know which one you are going to get. Even if you don't get the pilot position, the gunner and engineer position are also just as good and provide different challenges. Throughout the journey, each position has different jobs that are just as interactive. One piece of advice: “If you get the gunner position consider using the auto function for targeting” as it might save you a bit of a headache. Because of these different positions guests will want to ride again and again and have different experiences. We will have more information and tips on flying the Falcon once we have been inside the land.

The actions of the groups onboard the Falcon have real impacts beyond the attraction out in the land. One group crashed the Falcon and saw literal damage in the hallway as they exited cockpit after riding the attraction.

As for the merchandise, the lightsaber experience has gotten rave reviews so far. Despite the price tag ($200 for a custom saber) most people felt that the price was worth the quality of the item and the experience.

Mostly positive reviews about Blue Milk but many guests have noted the higher expense which comes in at $7.99 per cup. The milk is fruit based in a type of smoothy form.

And yes, there will be PhotoPass photographers to get your photo by the Millennium Falcon! I expect the lines for that picture will get long as they day goes on.

There has been some disappointment that larger Rise of the Resistance attraction isn't yet open. Disney has stuck to their announcement of ‘later this year' for the opening date of that attraction. We will keep you posted on information as we hear if of when the attraction will open to the public.

Here are some more reactions straight from Twitter from folks that have visited the land!

D23 also released a large set of pictures of details from Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge. Here are some of my favorites below.

Detail of monster inside Star Wars land

Interior of the Falcon

Top view of the land speeder

Small details of Stormtrooper helmets

You can find the rest of the pictures here on the D23 website.

First Look at Souvenirs from Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge

Droid Depot at Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge

Even though many folks at the preview events couldn't take pictures (they had to seal their phone in bags before entering!) they sure could take pictures and videos of the souvenirs they purchased. Here are some of the best we've seen so far.

Celebrities inside Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge

Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge scenery

The parks will be packed with celebrities this week as the lands are opening. The official opening ceremony on Wednesday night at 8:20 pm. This is likely the day you will see the most celebrities in and around the resort.

There hasn't been any publication of George Lucas visiting the land inspired by his stories yet, so we expect him to be in the parks for the opening event on Wednesday. George Lucas visited Disneyland as a child on the second day of operation and the first official day that the park was open to the public. He visited on July 18, 1955. I can't imagine that he would miss this opportunity to see his characters become even more of an integral part of that theme park he visited as a child so many years ago.

How You Can Visit Star Wars Land

Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge opens on May 31st for a limited run and on June 24th to the public. The publicly available reservations for the preview period are now gone, but Disneyland Resort Hotel guests can still secure reservations for this time period.

Our travel partner is still holding rooms for:

Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel: June 1 – 6, 2019

Disneyland Hotel: June 1 – 7 and June 9 – 17, 2019

Disney's Grand Californian Hotel: June 1 – 18, 2019

You can view rooms at all of these hotels and discount tickets here.

After June 24th, Disneyland will implement a virtual queue system so that you can enjoy the rest of the resort while waiting to visit the new land. Check out our general guide to Star Wars Land for more information on how to visit after the land opens to the public. These systems are still changing. We will frequently update our guide and provide new information to those on our newsletter email list (access below).

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Disclosure: We have used all the products recommended on Mickey Visit. We may receive compensation when you click on links to some products featured.

About Lindsay Brookshier

Lindsay is a college English instructor and has years of writing experience through various nonprofits, charities, newspapers, and online magazines. As the content director of Mickey Visit, she oversees article content and leads our fantastic team of writers to meet guest vacation needs. You can still find her writing weekly content to help make your Disney Parks trip fantastic here on Mickey Visit and Disney Dose- you can also view her recently featured posts on Disney Parks travel on Visit Anaheim, Nerd Wallet and SFGate. Lindsay comes from a dedicated Disney family and enjoys taking her son to the Disney parks as often as possible.

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7 comments add your comment

  1. Great article Lindsay! Thank you for putting this together. I am so excited to see the new land. We might need to increase our souvenir budget!

  2. We will be there June 6th 8pm-12!!! Super excited to see it all!

    • Awesome! Have a great time. Make sure to follow along here and on our newsletter for updates after the land is open.

  3. Great article! I’m curious, what is your educated guess as to when Rise of the Resistance will be open? And please don’t say “later this year.” 😉

    • Sandra, my assumption is that the Rise of the Resistance attraction will not open until after August 29th when the Walt Disney World version of the land is open. With this in mind I bet that they will open the attraction sometime during the Halloween season. I don’t have any inside info on this. The attraction opening after the land opens is an unprecedented double opening, so we don’t have anything to base this one. So, in a roundabout way, “later this year” is pretty much all we have. The closest thing I will say to a guess is that we won’t see the new land until after summer.

  4. I heard from a really good friend of mine that it’s going to have its own separate entrance and you have to have a separate theme park ticket for the Star Wars Galaxy edge is that true or do we know yet

    • No, Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge won’t have its own theme park entrance or require a separate ticket. You will need a reservation if you’re visiting prior to June 24th.

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