Tammy Trip Reports | Day 1 (Part 1)

21 Apr

Posted at 16:46h in Uncategorized by Tammy 0 Comments

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Day 1 (Part 1) – Whoa

We woke up so excited today. We had avoided any big spoilers to that point, but I still *thought* I knew what we were getting into. I did. Kind of.

I had also bought a new camera just a few weeks before leaving, after about 10 years of good use out of my last one. I was super excited to try it, but it would have been better if I’d had some more time to get used to it. I made a few mistakes here and there! But hey. I love my new camera.

I packed all of my clothes (so many clothes) into a ridiculously large suitcase for a two night trip. But a girl needs options on a space cruise!

We weren’t supposed to arrive until around 1:00.

Gautam and Mukta stayed with me at my house, and we went to meet Kevin at Beach Club where he had stayed the night before.

Kevin had some awesome souvenirs made for us, and he gave those to us while we killed time before leaving. My camera was still in the car, so no pictures! We also worked on Kevin’s backstory because he was NOT prepared! Lol

Finally, we went out to the cars and we were off! Ack! We had been anticipating this for so long!

We pulled up to the entrance, where they checked out ID’s and we waited a few minutes to be let in. Once we pulled up, the valets came and got our cars, and unloaded our luggage.

From the outside, the hotel is a very non-descript grey building. There’s nothing remarkable about it! But there isn’t supposed to be. We aren’t going into a hotel! We are boarding a transport up to a Starcruiser!

There was quite a line, and it was hot out!

They did pass out umbrellas and bottles of water, which were much appreciated.

There was a pretty healthy mix of costumes and regular Earth attire. I knew some people would change once they got inside, and I didn’t feel out of place being dressed up at all.

Behind us there was a vlogger, who said he loved our outfits.

I think he and I both said at the same time – “We understood the assignment!” Ha!

I was glad we had dressed up, and I felt like it really added to my experience. But my recommendation is, if that’s not something you are comfortable with, don’t! Not everyone does, and you’ll still have fun.

Space Force!

The line moved steadily, at something far from lightspeed, but steadily, and before too long we were getting close to the front.

Here’s the valet taking cars:

At the front!

Everyone took turns taking pictures of each other by the sign. The vlogger behind us took ours for us:

Luggage transport:

They passed out bags containing datapads to everyone. The Starcruiser uses the Play Disney app heavily. It’s been hit or miss working on personal devices, so Disney decided it was best to give everyone datapads.

We got all checked in!

Our bags also included our amazing MagicBands with the Chandrila Star Line logo. Chandrila is the company that operates luxury star cruises, including our very own voyage on the Halcyon (the name of our ship)!

If you think I will ever use any other MagicBand from this point on, you are very wrong.

We tapped in for our transport!

We’re in! Mukta is getting her datapad ready.

Here’s mine!

Waiting for the next transport:

It’s our turn!

We watched the welcome video first.

Our transport has arrived!

Here’s a very bad picture of us onboard the transport. Launching into space!

And we’re onboard!

And I’m immediately like – Whoa.

Whoa.

Pictures do not do this place justice.

We were greeted by a crew member. She told us about our upcoming voyage, and took us to our room.

Even the hallway was amazing.

My goodness we were on a Starcruiser!

Our room was perfect. It felt like a nice sized cruise room.

There was a window! To space of course. What else would it be?

There was lots of storage! Thank goodness. Because clothes. So many clothes.

Great bathroom.

And a huge shower!

Apparently, there are no bathtubs in space. That is sad.

But there were robes! Woot!

There was also a control panel on the wall.

That control panel included a personal logistics droid who came to see how we were doing. She asked us all kinds of questions and told us to contact her whenever we needed something!

Here she is!

As well as a screen that welcomed us and tracked our voyage:

Here’s a room video:

After we dropped off our stuff and took a few pictures, we went to meet Kevin and Gautam at lunch.

They were right next door to us, so that was handy!

Mukta was ready!

The lunch buffet was in the Crown of Corellia dining room, where most of our meals were.

It was awesome inside!

Each serving was individually contained and there was plenty to choose from.

There were plenty of self-serve non-alcoholic drinks, including Coke Zero! There are no bathtubs in space, but there is Coke Zero! Woot!

There was also unlimited Blue and Green Milk. That’s a great way to try them!

This was Mukta’s tray:

I think this was Kevin’s:

And Gautam’s:

And mine!

If these crazy looking foods intimidate you, let me remind you that I am a very picky eater. I am here to reassure you that most of these are perfectly normal foods made to look fancy! I basically had pizza, fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, a ham and cheese sandwich, and a grilled cheese!

Everyone ordered drinks! I tried a mocktail of some kind. Here’s the menu:

Plus Coke Zero of course!

The dining room was fairly empty:

The middle is the Captain’s table. We did not have reservations there, which I was sad about. But it turned out to be fine. I don’t think we missed it at all!

During lunch, some of us started to get messages on our phones. The crew of the Halcyon and others would send us several messages during our voyage. These messages involved various questions for us to answer so they could determine our loyalties. Every guest could determine their path.

Were they a rebel? An Imperial supporter?

How you answered your questions made a difference!

None of us had any specific missions yet, so we went exploring.

Ship map!

These signs were all over to help navigate:

We saw some people coming out of the boiler room, but we couldn’t get in because we didn’t have a mission in there! Until we caught the door open and snuck inside…

We were rebels after all.

It was super cool in there!

I kept exploring and found the climate simulator! The climate simulator simulated Florida weather remarkably well.

The climate simulator also served as a respite for anyone who felt like they needed fresh air. All of the windows on the ship looked out into space. There were no patios or outside areas for obvious reasons. I mean, there’s no air in space!

There were several crates outside the climate simulator, and I used my datapad to try to scan some things on them to see if there was anything I should know. I didn’t have much luck, and gave up, and played with my camera.

A little boy came by and asked if I needed help! He then proceeded to show me how to scan the crates!

This was just one example of how friendly and helpful the guests were to each other. I felt like we were on a bonded, shared experience. And I think most people felt the same!

The halls were full of little nooks and crannies to explore. Some rooms were closed until they became necessary for a mission or training. And even then, if it didn’t apply to you, you weren’t getting in!

I passed Mukta at some point, and she was off on her first mission. I didn’t have anything yet, so I went back upstairs and found an empty bridge!

Yes!

This place was incredible.

A little about those windows looking into space. They were not stagnant pictures. There was always something happening! Ships flying by, space junk, and more.

The bridge looked out into the atrium:

I found Kevin!

Much like an ocean cruise, things always seemed to be happening in the atrium. I found if I was looking for something to do or see, that was the place to be! It was getting close to the muster drill, so people were gathering.

SK-620 was out and about!

Sandro was also talking to the guests.

Sandro was an aspiring musician who joined us for our voyage.

Let me add a side note here, the characters onboard were amazing. Interacting with them was a highlight of the voyage. All of the crew was.

The cast members at Disney are always great, but these were another step above. They were friendly, engaging, and helpful, all while continuing the storyline. If you let them know your backstory, they remembered things about it, and incorporated it into your interactions with them throughout the voyage. Seriously.

They were that good.