It’s nice to step away from reality and dive into a different world on occasion. There are a few ways to do this. We can get on roleplaying forums or participate in LARPing (live-action role-playing) with a character of our own making, play a new video game, or even visit new worlds in virtual reality. These are all ways to temporarily escape the real world and enjoy an immersive experience from the comfort of our own home. However, sometimes we need to get away completely, out of the house (even though that’s been difficult due to the pandemic), or even out of this world.
Thanks to Disney’s Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge and Universal Studios’ The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, you can. The two massive worlds feature some of the best places to get away from life as we know it. Completely immersive theme parks are not necessarily a new trend. However, theme parks in which you can control your own narrative, not just explore the world around you, first began making their grand appearance over the last decade.
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Making Magic
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter first opened on June 18, 2010, with soft openings beginning 10 days prior. Budding wizards and witches from all over could purchase robes, Butterbeer and all kinds of merchandise from the magical series. There is an obvious dedication from diehard fans as you walk through Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. You might notice people running towards the back of the park wearing long, black, color-coded robes (House colors, of course) and expertly holding wands when it’s boiling outside. Universal Studios is always crowded, but during the busy season, high traffic rides (such as the Hollywood Rip Ride Rocket or The Mummy) only have a wait-time of an hour and a half or less. The real money-maker is the Wizarding World at the back of the park.
Universal’s Diagon Alley holds one of the most popular Harry Potter shopping centers as well as the famous Gringotts bank. The white dragon guards the bank and blows fire every so often to warn visitors that the gold inside is not to be trifled with. If you’re getting tired of one side of the park, you can go to King’s Cross 9 ¾’s and take the highly realistic, magical train ride to the other side of the park, Islands of Adventure. This part of the park holds Hogsmeade and is where Hogwarts and the highly coveted roller-coaster to ride, Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure, is located.
The immersion doesn’t stop with the world itself. Most, if not all employees in this section of the park are actors. Some actors even roam the streets, helping wizards and witches with their spellcasting. Yes, you can cast spells in the park. The most immersive aspect of the park was introduced in 2014 with the addition of interactive wands. This is where the immersion really hits home for the fans and encourages them to return to the park because, unless the park is virtually empty, it is near impossible to cast every spell, explore every shop or experience every ride in a single day.
From 2010 to 2014, you could buy wands that represented your favorite characters. In 2014, not only could you purchase wands based on your birthdate or a life event, but Universal added infrared sensors to the tip of the wands, which, if held in front of hidden cameras correctly, will activate mechanical devices, make plants bloom or cause water to spurt out of statues like a fountain. These are just a few examples because there are a total of 25 areas in the parks where you can test your spellcasting skills.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Universal Studios “grew 109% between 2010 and 2015 to $3.34 billion” thanks to the addition of the Wizarding World. This comes as no surprise given the massive following the Harry Potter series has. The Wizarding World enchants visitors to come for the magic and repeatedly return for the whole experience, even with the use of Hermione’s Time-Turner.
Use the Force
It’s rumored that Disney once attempted to buy the rights to build a small Harry Potter-themed mini-park in the Magic Kingdom. Obviously, Universal Studios won that battle, if true. However, Disney fired back and created the one and only Star Wars theme park: Galaxy’s Edge, which opened first in Anaheim, California, on May 31, 2019, and then in Orlando, Florida, on August 29, 2019. The parks are centered on Batuu, the outer edge of the galaxy, hence the name. The parks feature only two rides: The Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run and Rise of the Resistance.
Both rides feature the self-insert immersion that Star Wars fans have been longing after, with the latter being the best example. Smuggler’s Run will give fans the ride of their life in the Millennium Falcon, with each rider being assigned a role. The three roles are Pilot, Gunner and Engineer. Riders will either be assigned a role, ask if they can take on a role, or make a switch to take on a role.
What’s unique about the ride is that it’s a game. Riders are instructed to press buttons, pull switches and fire weapons at enemies. The end of the ride will show players their score, which comes in the form of earned “credits,” the currency of Batuu. Of course, Hando Ohnaka, the smuggler who gives you the assignment to bring the shipment in, will take a good amount of those credits earned to help repair the ship for any “damages” that may have been incurred during the job.
The other ride, the highly lauded Rise of the Resistance, is the most immersive ride Disney and the Imagineers have concocted to date. Spoiler alert! You are recruited into the Resistance by Rey and General Leia. You are transported via civilian ship but are captured by the First Order. Thankfully, the Resistance has your back and rescues you, which changes the ride from an actor-driven ride to a dark ride, or an indoor trackless ride featuring special effects and animatronics.
The actor-driven portion of the ride is top-notch. If being captured by First Order forces, staring down lines of Stormtroopers and getting “insulted” by First Order officers is your dream start to any type of Star Wars narrative, then this dream is now a reality. In fact, if you wear Mickey Mouse ears during the ride, chances are, the officers will comment on your “radar dishes” and how they will not help the Resistance save you.
After your safe return to Batuu, you’ll find that Galaxy’s Edge has even more for Star Wars enthusiasts to explore. Shops, similar to those in the Wizarding World, have actors manning their stations. Jedi apprentices can build their own custom lightsabers at Savi’s Workshop and techies can build their own droids. If you’re an adult who’d like to spend a hundred credits or more on out-of-this-world mixed drinks, Oga’s Cantina, complete with an animatronic DJ, is the place to visit. While walking throughout the park, chances are Rey, Chewbacca, Stormtroopers, or even Kylo Ren will be present and they may even stop to interact with you.
Also, like the Wizarding World, Batuu is fully interactive. Using the “Play” app from Disney, kids and adults alike can interact and play games with the world around them (and to pass the time when ride wait time exceeds an hour) or take on jobs for the Resistance, the Smugglers and even the First Order using the Datapad game found in the app. There are even characters you can meet and perform small jobs for if you have enough time.
That’s not all this immersive world has to offer though. According to the Disney website, a new resort type is in the process of being built. It’s called the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser experience and the site states that it will be a “2-Night, All-Immersive Adventure” coming to Disney in 2021. The hotel is aboard the Halcyon, a luxury starcruiser, where it appears as though actors will be a staple of this resort and possibly roaming areas such as the Bridge or even the Silver C Lounge, perfect for adults looking to just get away.
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Just How Expensive Is Full Immersion?
Disney and Universal Studios realized what a gold mine full-immersion is. They’ve also realized how expensive it is. Disney’s Galaxy’s Edge cost a whopping $1 billion dollars per park and Universal’s The Wizarding World came to at least $200 million at its inception, with an addition or two, such as Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure roller coaster, which cost $300 million by itself.
Not only were these parks outrageously expensive to make, but they’re also expensive to enjoy. At Galaxy’s Edge, extreme fans need to plan to have an additional $700 or more on hand to pay for their much sought-after Star Wars merch and collectibles. For example, fans can expect to pay $200 for lightsabers (the bare minimum up-front cost and more if you’d like to include accessories such as carriers), $100 for droids (once again, not including accessories) and $14 or more per specialized alcoholic, or non-alcoholic, beverage.
It’s rumored that the Star Wars: Galactic Cruiser resort experience will cost anywhere between $1,400 or $3000 per person. Fans of the Wizarding World can expect $125 or more for their robes alone, and the interactive wands currently run $55 apiece. This does not include the much sought-after toys and sweets found in Diagon Alley, such as the famous chocolate frogs and the Weasley’s extendable ears. This is in addition to pricing for tickets, lodging and travel.
Fans will go to extremes to live their dreams whether it be in a world of magic or in a galaxy far, far away. Pricing is superficial. There are other parks that boast of similar immersive experiences, such as the smaller, but notable Evermore Park in Utah, a magical live-your-own-narrative park that currently opens seasonally.
However, these two behemoth parks take the prize for the most sought-after worlds to fully engage in. If fans are willing to meet these price points, these worlds can make it happen. People are looking to pay for immersive experiences and interactivity rather than just attractions and rides. That’s what Disney and Universal Studio’s learned from their creations, and so far, it’s paid off.
Is It Worth It?
My husband and I went to Disney and Disney’s Galaxy’s Edge and Universal Studio’s Wizarding World for our honeymoon, thanks to relatives who paid for and planned our excursion. We realized that we desperately want to return to these worlds for more fun. In fact, our agreement is to return once every three to five years, finances depending. We went back to Galaxy’s Edge three times (all half-days), but we could only spend one day at the Wizarding World. Going during the early spring (almost the off-season) was a great idea, as not every park was at full capacity and not every ride had wait times of two hours or more.
We felt as though we were actually there. We bought Jedi robes and House robes for both parks and while we couldn’t get into Savi’s Workshop or into Ollivander’s Wands by Gregorovitch, we purchased lightsabers and wands to feel fully equipped for our foray into the worlds we grew up with and cherished. The mere excitement at finally getting a chance to dive into a world where our imagination came alive with our own stories (and fanfiction produced as a result) was almost as good as the real thing. The memories those worlds produced will stay with us always and we hope our future children will come to love them too.
This article was originally published 4/28/21
https://www.geekgirlauthority.com/build-up-your-star-wars-book-collection-with-these-titles/
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