Walt Disney World has released the first-ever Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser resort discount for Disney Visa Cardmembers, with eligible voyage dates in Summer & Fall 2023–more that previously-released as part of other recent deals on the unique hotel/cruise-like experience.
If you’re looking for a regular resort, Walt Disney World has already released many special offers for those. Most recently, new discounts were released offering up to 30% off for residents of Florida and up to 35% off for Annual Passholders or Disney Visa Cardholders.
Outside of the targeted offers, Walt Disney World also dropped a tiered general public discount offering up to 30% off for travel dates through early Fall 2023. Those aren’t the only deals available for booking right now. For everything else, see All Current Walt Disney World Discounts for 2023. That covers everything for the general public, Florida residents, military members, and everyone else.
Here are the official details of this new promotion courtesy of Walt Disney World: Disney Visa Cardmembers can save 30% on select Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser voyages—valid for voyages on the following departure dates in 2023:
- May 1, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 19, 21, 23, 25, 29 and 31
- June 2, 4, 6, 14, 18, 20, 24, 26 and 28
- July 2, 8, 10, 22, 24 and 30
- August 3, 13 and 29
- September 8 and 16
There’s a lot of overlap here between the May and June 2023 dates and the recently-released 30% Off Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser Discount for Annual Passholders. Accordingly, our expectation is that that special offer sees an extension, or perhaps something is released for Floridians. That would make sense, especially for the August and September dates that are highly unlikely to fill up without better deals.
Important Details
- The number of packages allocated for this offer is limited.
- Savings based on the non-discounted price for the same package.
- Must use a valid Disney Visa Card or Disney Rewards Redemption Card to pay the deposit.
- Limit one cabin per Disney Visa Cardmember. Disney Visa Cardmember must stay in the cabin.
- Offer is non-transferable.
- All packages are a 2-night experience. Package includes entry to Disney’s Hollywood Studios for one (1) day on day 2 of the experience. This admission ticket expires at midnight prior to departure date. Ticket is required in all Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser packages. Tickets may not be modified, are non-upgradable, non-transferable and non-refundable and exclude activities/events separately priced. Package includes two (2) breakfast, two (2) lunch and two (2) dinner meals per Guest, with gratuity included for dinners; and one (1) quick-service meal consisting of one (1) entrée and either one (1) nonalcoholic beverage or, if age 21 or over, one (1) alcoholic beverage (where available), or, for Guests ages 3 to 9, one (1) combo meal from the children’s menu offerings, to be used in the theme park only. Entertainment and experiences onboard subject to change without notice or liability.
- Offer is only applicable for new reservations.
- Advance reservations required.
- Offer dates are subject to change without notice.
- Offer excludes Galaxy Class Suites and Grand Captain Suites.
If you’re not an Annual Passholder or Disney Visa Cardmember, there’s also the special offer to Save Up to $700 on 2-Night Disney World Resort Stays when paired with Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser. In our view, that’s a good discount for people who already had Starcruiser booked. In other words, it incentivized Deluxe Resort stays before or after, and not Starcruiser bookings.
With that said, if you’re on the fence about Starcruiser, pricing is the impediment, and you’re not eligible for targeted discounts, you might just want to wait. That’s because there’s still plenty of availability after the AP and Cast Member discounts. The same will likely be true following this special offer. Next up will be Floridians and possibly Disney+ subscribers.
However, I am skeptical that Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser will be discounted for the general public anytime soon. That’s mostly because the number of rooms is so limited–it’s significantly smaller than a standard hotel–making room inventory an issue. More targeted deals is likely Disney’s solution to this. So who knows, maybe there will be PIN codes or some other means of limiting discount eligibility before opening the floodgates to everyone.
For those who are on the fence about doing Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, we highly recommend it. The experience is definitely not for everyone, but we think it’s more broadly appealing than some might assume. Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser is an incredibly well-done, memorable, and personalized experience. Everything about it is amazing. You become emotionally invested in the outcome of the storyline and the whole thing is just immensely satisfying.
Walt Disney World has had its hits and misses in recent years, but this delivers in just about every regard. Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser is classic Walt Disney World–a true triumph of Imagineering. We’ve covered this in great depth elsewhere, and you should read much more than a few paragraphs before deciding whether to take the plunge. See our Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser Review for more pros & cons.
The main problem, of course, is the price. (For more thoughts on this expensive pricing, see Is Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser Worth the High Cost?) Guest satisfaction is incredibly high, but there’s just a tiny bit of selection bias there: it’s surveying those who could afford to do Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser. Not polled are the ~95% of the potential audience for this that either could not afford it or don’t want to invest the time in a multi-day live action role playing experience.
Basically, Walt Disney World has something that’s awesome and envelope-pushing, but has high operating costs and even higher price points for guests. The end result is something highly exclusionary that reduces a potentially large consumer pool into a very small one.
Ultimately, I really want to see Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser succeed and not end up shuttering. It was a bold bet and truly innovative idea, but also a massive miscalculation in several regards. Here’s hoping that Walt Disney World is able to right the ship before it sinks, as this will go down as a costly failure if something doesn’t change soon.
It’ll be interesting to see if the 30% off rate moves the needle enough with Disney Visa Cardmembers. I suspect it will for many or most of these travel dates, providing a stopgap solution while a broader fix is figured out. If this discount isn’t enough to move the needle, Floridians will be next, followed by other affiliation groups and, eventually, the general public. There are a lot of targeted offers that can be released to boost occupancy at Galactic Starcruiser before Disney resorts to offering aggressive general public discounts.
I get why so many fans are frustrated by the Starcruiser and are openly cheering for it to fail. It was dumb of Disney to make this so exclusionary, both in pricing and appeal. There are dozens of ways Disney could have approached this so it didn’t alienate so much of the audience. Yet they opted against all of that and remain steadfast in their refusal to fix the underlying issues. In a sense, Disney will get what they deserve if Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser fails.
However, that’s not what the creative team behind the Starship Halcyon deserve, nor do the passionate performers who poured their hearts and souls into making these characters and the whole experience come alive. It’s also not what Star Wars or Walt Disney World fans deserve–and that includes those who have bashed it. There are so many fans who have done so out of justifiable frustration, but who would actually love the Starcruiser if given a chance to experience it.
Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser is actually awesome, innovative, and a leap forward for the world of interactive storytelling. Imagineering created something outside the box that offered full immersion, interactivity, entertainment, and personalization in a highly-themed environment. It will be an absolute shame if more fans do not get to experience this, and if Disney scraps the millions of dollars in physical infrastructure and R&D. Walt Disney World needs to be as creative in fixing the current problems as Imagineering was in designing the experience–because there’s something special here, more people just need the chance to experience it.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
Thoughts on this Disney Visa discount of 30% off Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser voyages? If you’re a cardmember, is this enough of an incentive to get you to book Starcruiser, or is it still too expensive? Do you agree or disagree with our advice and assessments? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
