Mouse O'Clock Travel
  • Home
  • Our Blogs
    • Park Talk
    • Good Eats
    • Resort Write Ups
    • Cruise Chatter
    • Holidays
  • WHY USE US?
  • Who we are
  • Contact us
  • Home
  • Our Blogs
    • Park Talk
    • Good Eats
    • Resort Write Ups
    • Cruise Chatter
    • Holidays
  • WHY USE US?
  • Who we are
  • Contact us

Resort write  ups

Room with a View OF SPACE!

5/18/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
Part 3 of our Galactic Starcruiser Blog series!  In our final review piece, we are going to focus on our fantastic accommodations and our experience during the private photo session.

Sailing away through far away galaxies should be done in style.  While the Halcyon doesn't boast many cabins for vacationers, it does offer a few very nice suites.  Because we planned this trip for 4 adults, we knew that the standard cabin would be a tight fit for us.  We aren't small/thin travelers and much preferred to have the extra room to move around.  If you've seen pictures of the standard cabins, you know that it's about the size of a standard cruise ship room with two over-sized bunk bed sleepers.  That's not for us...
We didn't go all the way up to the Grand Captain's Suite that sleeps 8 people, but the Galaxy Class Suite gave us a living room to be able to spread out in.  Honestly the biggest benefit was the privacy that it gave us.  Having to share a bedroom with friends isn't what we were looking for.  For a regular family of 4 the Standard Cabin can sleep 5 adult sized people, but you'll all have to be very close.
Picture
The Captain's Suite is actually a Galaxy Class Suite and a Standard Cabin combined...
Picture
Now I will say that we didn't spend a lot of time in the room.  With all of the activities and missions throughout your voyage, it's hard to find time to relax in your room.  We did kind of hang out at the end of the night, but otherwise we were only in here to shower, change outfits, and sleep.

The viewport in each room was a nice touch.  There are no "windows," you have your view of space as we travel through the galaxy.  Every time the ship jumps to hyperspace you do get that cool blur of lines before popping up at your next location.  It's a pretty cool detail to immerse you further.
Our full sized bedroom was very comfortable.  We had a nice queen sized bed, a little closet, and a table and chairs that pulled out of the wall.  There were also twin sized beds that would fold out of the wall, one in the main bedroom and one in the living room.  Not sure, why the 4th bed was added in the bedroom, but one of our friends slept on the couch rather than join us. 

If you are staying here with rambunctious little ones, there is a tunnel that opens between the bedroom and living room that they can crawl through.  We actually just used the space to hold out suitcases out of the way.  The tunnel doors do lock, so no worries about the kids crawling into your room at night. 
Picture
During our ship's muster and the safety video before boarding the ship we were shown safety procedures in case of a real emergency.  Each room has it's own "panic room" built into the wall, so if you are unable to get out, you can lock yourself in and call for help on the phone inside.
Picture
The absolute coolest feature of the room was contacting  the ships logistics droid D3-09.  When you press the call button and scan your "M-Band" you can have multiple interactions with her throughout your trip.

Depending on what path of the story you are on can drastically change how she interacts with you.
Our room had a lot of First Order loyalists aboard, so eventually D3-09 felt betrayed by our actions.  But I have seen videos of all sorts of interactions from telling you a bedtime story, to holding a vow renewal with couples.  It was VERY well done!  At one point I helped negotiate with pirates on behalf of D3-09... That was so awesome! 
​
Our suite did come with this cool little extra.  We had a supply crate with welcome snacks.  We had a couple of extra bottles of water, some cookies, chocolates, fruit, chips, and an interesting hummus type spread.

I had hoped we'd get to keep the crate, but it was removed from the room during our second day.  They did leave us all the goodies from inside though.  They were some tasty little treats and a nice welcome.
Picture
Our room had all the standard hotel room amenities you'd expect.  There was a small refrigerator and safe, but there were some nice extras like a water pitcher and a variety of glasses above a little bar sink.  There was also some odd alien plant-life growing inside a case in the wall.

Picture
The Suites are also designed to be "accessible" for anyone with mobility issues.  The bathroom was VERY roomy!  The shower could easily have two people taking separate showers at each end using different shower heads.

The double vanity was helpful for quickly getting ready the next morning.  Anyone trying to put on elaborate makeup or needing a lot of room to put on their costume won't have any issues moving around in this bathroom.

They also let you keep the cool Chandrila Case that has facial masks and cleansers.  You can buy extras in the ships shop if you can't share one.
In case you missed Angie's live session, here is her room tour video.
Overall the rooms was pretty comfortable and roomy, I would definitely consider this upgrade for anyone who needs privacy or extra breathing space.  Our next voyage will probably be in a standard cabin with our younglings.  They don't take up much space.

Private Photo Sessions

This was a really cool add-on to our Starcruiser voyage.  For $100 you get a 30 minute private session for photos on the ship.  The photographer and her lighting specialist will go wherever you want on the ship for photos.  From taking pictures in Engineering, hallways, the Sublight Lounge, or even on the bridge...
​If you have any particular photos in mind, they will do their best to accommodate.
Picture
Photo session time slots are limited, but some of the best times are right after boarding, early the second morning, during the Batuu excursion, or during dinner times.  Because there are other guests running around doing missions, you can't have your photo session interfere with mission activities.  So if you want to take pictures in the Engineering room and its currently occupied by an activity, you'll have to pick somewhere else for photos.  These times also typically don't interfere with your ability to do missions as well.

We didn't want to miss out on anything we could do on the ship, so we opted for pictures first thing in the morning our second day.  I was even able to run off and eat breakfast before our photo session.  We shared our photo session with our cabin mates, so we all were able to get some GREAT pictures.  Here are some of the highlights from our session.
There are few photographers walking around on your arrival day, so you can get some pictures on the bridge and in the atrium, but we really enjoyed getting some quality photos when people weren't around.

Overall we had an AMAZING experience aboard the Galactic Starcruiser.  If you're a big Star Wars fan, you have to find a way to budget one of these trips in your future.  I hope you all enjoyed our coverage aboard the Halcyon, we'll be back there in December with the kids!  So I'm very excited!

Remember when it's time to plan for Disney: 
​It's Mouse O'Clock!

0 Comments

Cruising the Stars

5/5/2022

0 Comments

 
I am so excited to finally be able to sit down and give you all my firsthand experience aboard the Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser.  Wow!  There is just so much to unpack regarding this voyage.  I'm going to do my best to give you all my take while spoiling as little as humanly possible.  Today's blog will focus on the experience itself and what to expect.  So hold on, as we go to a Galaxy Far, Far Away!
Picture
Picture
I can tell you I spent the last week or so jumping around in anticipation of this vacation.  As a lifelong Star Wars fan, this just felt like a dream come true, but I was anxious that it wouldn't live up to my expectations.  From the moment you are waiting to check-in you are greeted with the classic score from the films, which only kept me riled up while I waited.

Our shuttle was finally ready to take us up to the Halcyon.  Watching the view ports while our craft was taken up to dock with the ship was SO COOL, Disney did not miss out on the details!  Once onboard we were given a brief tour and explanation of the ship, then guided back to our room.  I was just awe-struck by the visuals and details all around me.
The Halcyon is a ship after all, so it's laid out similar to a cruise ship.  As guests we have access to decks 4 through 7, so there isn't any fear of getting lost.  Most of the action happens on deck 4 throughout various rooms or up in the Atrium on Deck 6.

The Atrium is also where you will encounter most of the characters you will engage with throughout your story.  These characters were so well crafted, they just felt like real people.
From alien musicians to officers of the First Order, you will meet a wide variety of characters on the ship.  I highly recommend having unique outfits for yourself as I felt we were interacted with more often than the guests in normal clothing.
You can have interactions a plenty!  The Galactic Starcruiser is not just a hotel for you to enjoy, it's a full on experience!  The more you engage the characters and follow along with your personal story, the more you will get out of this experience.  You get so much more by talking to them.  But in person interactions aren't the only way to further your story.
Picture
In the Disney Play App, you will find events for you to participate in, but also this is where you will get communications from some of these characters.  They will send you messages and based off your responses will change your story.
It's a big if/then scenario system, so if you take too many jobs for the First Order, you may find yourself working for the bad guys.  There are at least 4 different story arcs that you can participate in, though it is possible to be involved in more than one.  I myself was smuggling goods while also helping out the Resistance.
With everything there is to do with the story, you really start to get sucked into what is happening on the ship.  Not all of the activities are specifically attached to the story.  You will get the opportunity to train on the ships bridge, learning how each station operates.  From firing off weapons, to manning the defenses, and even repairing ship systems:  There is a lot to learn here.  Though my favorite activity had to be the lightsaber training.
Picture
My inner jedi came out strong for this!
Picture
There were also optional activities to entertain yourself and the younglings throughout the trip.  I participated in a very short Sabacc Tournament.  I watched some kids involved in a Droid racing competition.  There was the Star Wars equivalent to bingo, and few other activities I didn't even get to see.

There really was a lot you could do on board!
Even the engineering room was it's own system of mini-games.  Some missions needed you to gain access to other-wise restricted rooms.  You had to follow along and develop your story to gain access to some of these rooms.

The Star Cruiser was such an intense experience our two night voyage really felt like a full 5 days!  I have a few more blogs to write to be able to cover this full experience.  Including a food/drink review, a complete room tour, as well as our excursion day to Batuu in Galaxy's Edge!

Follow along as we guide you through the rest of our adventure aboard the Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser!
Picture

When it's time to plan for Disney:  It's Mouse O'Clock!

0 Comments

    Author

    Angie & Gabe Garcia-Lavin make up the Mouse O'Clock Travel team. Married for more than a decade, they share a love of each other and a love of Disney that runs deep. ​

    Archives

    April 2025
    October 2024
    June 2023
    April 2023
    September 2022
    May 2022
    November 2021
    September 2021
    March 2021
    December 2020
    September 2019

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Picture

​Contact Angie & Gabe to book your next Disney adventure with Mouse O'Clock Travel.
Contact Us