Bob Chapek Argues 10 Hour Queues Are Not a Sign Of Galaxy’s Edge Success
Earlier this Summer, reports started streaming in the attendance was down at Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland theme park which surprised fans and investors alike when quarterly earnings were reported. Though Disney was quick to pinpoint areas where they may have inadvertently dissuaded visitors from checking out this dazzling new land (such as oversaturation of marketing and to stringent blackout dates for passholders) Disney Chairman of Parks, Experiences and Products – Bob Chapek was also quick to say staggering 10 hour lines shouldn’t be a measure of a theme park’s success!
According to a recent report in CinemaBlend Chapek had this to say, ” One of the wins that we had with the opening of the original Galaxy’s Edge is that we didn’t have the waits. The deep secret is that we don’t intend to have lines … If you build in enough capacity, the rides don’t go down and it operates at 99% efficiency, you shouldn’t have 10-hour lines. So, 10-hour lines are not a sign of success. It should be seen as a sign of, frankly, failure.”
Many theme park insiders are seeing this as a dig to Disney’s biggest competitor in the theme park market – Universal Studios where their newest Harry Potter attraction – Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure boasted staggering lines in excess of 10 hours when the attraction first opened back in June.
Though no theme park guest wants to have to wait 10 hours for an attraction that comes in at 3 minutes, Disney is slightly bristly over reports of a 3% downtown in attendance at Disneyland Resort over the Summer period. However, there is certainly something to be said about Disney endeavouring to take measures that ensure shorter lines and a better theme park experience overall.
We are certainly seeing evidence of this at the newly opened Galaxy’s Edge at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World. Via the My Disney Experience App, Disney World has introduced a virtual queuing system meaning that guests can reserve a spot to experience all that Galaxy’s Edge has to offer without having to wait in line at the gates of Black Spire Outpost. So far, the system appears to be working. After an initial surge opening morning (August 29th) wait times for the headlining Smugglers Run attraction seem manageable. As of going to print, there is a 90-minute wait for the attraction. That’s still a bit of a wait but it’s not 10 hours!
Disney’s Disney’s Bob Chapek added that the goal when they launch the new Rise of the Resistance attraction later this year is to make it “a success under the guest experiential definition. We don’t define success as a picture of a long line.”
Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance will open first at Galaxy’s Edge in Hollywood Studios on December 5, 2019, and then at Disneyland in California on January 17, 2020.
Readers are encouraged to keep following along with MickeyBlog for the latest Galaxy’s Edge news and updates!
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