Walt Disney World in Florida has announced it intends to close its $2,400-a-night Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser hotel, only 18 months after it was opened.
Guests who have made bookings for the hotel beyond 30 September this year are being invited to bring forward their trip, but with the additional inconvenience and potential expense of changes to other elements of travel plans, this is likely to be of little comfort to those who have forked out for a once-in-a-lifetime stay.
Though it might be hard to live up to the expectations created by such high nightly rates, the hotel’s guest satisfaction ratings are among Disney’s best. It also has been recognised by the Thea Awards, for outstanding achievement in the themed entertainment space.
According to Disney’s promotional materials, the hotel’s extraordinary price tag included “part live immersive theatre, part themed environment, part culinary extravaganza, part real-life role-playing game.” Guests take on the role of a starcruiser passenger, meet legendary Star Wars characters such as Chewbacca, and choose which side of the Force to be on.
Also thrown in are all food and soft drinks, valet parking services and access to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. But, with a weekend stay for a four-person family coming in at a minimum of $6,000, questions might be raised about who exactly the hotel was aimed at.
While no explanation has been forthcoming about why the immersive hotel experience is facing extinction, the news follows a statement earlier this year from Disney’s CEO, Bob Iger, who said that the entertainment behemoth needed to cut costs by $5.5 billion. However, the 100 Starcruiser hotel rooms make up less than half a percent of the company’s Florida holdings.
The company’s statement indicates the hotel might not be the last of its kind. “This premium, boutique experience gave us the opportunity to try new things on a smaller scale of 100 rooms,” it said, adding “as we prepare for its final voyage, we will take what we’ve learned to create future experiences that can reach more of our guests and fans.”
The hotel’s closure comes as Disney is caught up in a legal dispute with conservative Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Disney has clashed with Florida lawmakers over their efforts to censor school study programs and is claiming that damaging contractual changes introduced by the State’s new tourist board are in fact revenge for Disney’s support for educational freedom.
Disney, which employs 75,000 people in Florida, has now reversed plans to move an additional 2,000 California employees to its $86-million Florida site.
