Galaxy Edge – family vacation design

Some of the most loved characters from the Star Wars movies are droids like BB-8 and R2-D2. Now, Star Wars fans have the chance to build a droid at Disney World’s Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. Here’s my complete guide to building a droid at Disney World. Find out how you can create your very own sidekick for adventures in a galaxy far, far away. I’ll talk about the experience, including reservations, costs, and more at Droid Depot, and how you can make it the most rad experience on the planet of Batuu! What Is Droid Depot? Droid Depot is a special experience from the Walt Disney Company where guests can build their very own droid. It’s located in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge (aka Star Wars Land) in Disney World’s Hollywood Studios theme park in Orlando, Florida. It is close to Savi’s Workshop and the Ronto Roasters restaurant, just before you get to the Millenium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run attraction. The Droid Depot is designed like an industrial depot in the Black Spire Outpost. The “workshop” is stocked with chips, other tech items, accessories, and manuals... Essentially everything you need to build your own unique droid. There is also a Disneyland Droid Depot in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at the Disneyland Park in Disneyland Resort, California. The experiences at both Walt Disney World and Disneyland are similar. What Does Build-A-Droid Disney World Involve? Building a droid at the Droid Depot in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is a unique and exciting Disney experience for fans of the movies. It’s a chance to build a custom astromech unit or droid that you get to name and take home with you! The best thing about the Droid Depot is that it’s beginner-friendly -- technically, there are only 2 steps to building your droid: First, choose between a BB-series or R-series droid. And next, you select from a colorful variety of droid components that help to build the final product. I’ll talk about the details below, but strictly speaking, it’s that simple! There are tons of different parts and options to make a droid exactly what every Star Wars fan wants it to be. I understand that the Droid Depot options can feel a bit overwhelming, but cast members are on hand if you feel stuck, which is awesome especially if it’s your first time. Once you’ve got all your droid parts from the shop’s conveyor belt, all you have to do is assemble your sidekick at the build station, activate it, and give it a name. And voila, your very own droid! You’re ready to take your droid home in its carrying box (the free box is included in the cost of the experience). You can swing by the Disney Droid Depot with family or friends and create an indispensable sidekick for all your future Outer Rim adventures. How awesome! Steps In Building Your Own Droid At Walt Disney World As noted above, guests need to first register a choice between the BB-series or R-series droids. A Disney cast member will help you do this. Following this, you will proceed to the various droid building stations. Station 1: Parts The first is the parts station which is a workshop stocked with droid parts. A Disney World cast member will provide you with a basket for the parts as well as a blueprint for your droid. When you get to the parts station, select the components of your droid from the conveyer belt according to your personal preference. If you feel overwhelmed by the sheer variety of options, ask a cast member for help. The key components to building your own droid are as follows: BB-SeriesDomeConnection plateBody sphereMotivator R-SeriesDomeBodyCenter legSet of side legs Station 2: Assembly Next is the building station or assembly station. This is where you’ll put together your droid. You can follow the instructions on the graphic monitor displays or the placemat at the build station to construct your droid in the proper sequence. Then it’s on to the activation process. Once you have paired with a remote control device, watch your droid come to life! This is definitely the wow moment of the whole experience at the Galaxy’s Edge Droid Depot. Station 3: Customization The customization station and the activation station is where you’ll complete the droid-building experience. You can add decals and other accessories to your droid. But that’s not all. You can add a personality chip to customize your droid. The various personality chips can give your droid sounds and determine how it will interact with elements - it’s super fun! They are easy to insert - there’s an empty slot on every droid. Note that the chips cost extra, over and above the basic Droid Depot cost. There are instructions and graphics at each station to help you along. How To Enjoy Your Droid Depot Experience Congratulations, your work at the Galaxy’s Edge Droid Depot is done! Cast members will help you get your droid merchandise and audio animatronic droids lined up in a carrying box, and you can be on your way with your customized droid. Now all that’s left to do is enjoy the interactions between your Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge droid with various elements in the park, other droids, and other Star Wars fans. The BB series and R series units use Bluetooth technology to communicate with other astromech droid units and other elements in Star Wars Land and other Disney Parks. Note: Remote control usage is prohibited in the Disney Parks. However, you can carry your customized droid around the parks and watch it interact with other elements in the land. Once officially connected, your customized droid is the ultimate travel companion. If you find you are struggling with your personal droid (R series or BB series unit) when you get back to your hotel or home, there are informative instruction manuals available online. How To Make A Reservation For Droid Depot To make a reservation for Droid Depot, you may check available dates on the Disney app. Reservations for Droid Depot can be made up to 60 days in advance (this was 180 days in advance pre-COVID, I think). I highly recommend that you make advanced reservations for this very popular and fun experience. You can try your luck without a reservation (they accommodate walk-ins based on availability - just use the walk-ins queue). But, be prepared for a long line and long wait time. You can also try same-day reservations through the Disney app. On the other hand, an advance reservation ensures you can access the experience at a predetermined time with little to no wait time. Take note that the activity is limited to the builder. This means that you need to make a reservation for each person who will be building a droid. According to Disney’s policy, one guest can accompany each builder. So, if you are in a party of 4, and 2 people want to build a droid, the other 2 people in your party can accompany them as guests. However, the guests cannot participate in the construction of the droids. If you make a reservation for all 4 people, then you can bring 4 more people as guests. You will need a valid credit card to make your booking at Droid Depot. This is to hold your reservation. Payment will need to be made when you arrive at the location. You can check availability in the My Disney Experience app or the Disneyland app (for California). Droid Depot reservations are not transferable and you cannot sell or barter them. Also, you will need a separate theme park admission ticket for Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Disney World for the day of your droid building experience. Checking In At Droid Depot You should arrive at the check-in location no earlier than 15 minutes before your reservation time at the Droid Depot in Disney World during park hours. All the people in your party must be present at the designated location for check-in. Cast members may not be able to accommodate late arrivals. Be sure to bring your reservation confirmation, the credit card you used to make the booking, and a photo ID. Droid Depot Cancellation If you timely cancel your reservation at least one day prior, you can avoid a penalty fee. Otherwise, there is a per builder cancellation fee. If you are a no-show, your credit card provided while making the reservation will be charged $99.99 per builder for the experience. Prices and cancellation fees are subject to change. Restrictions apply. Please double-check the policy while making your reservation. Using The Droid Depot Mobile App The new Droid Depot app brings a BB-series or R-series droid to life for unlimited fun at home. It was released in 2020 and is available for free on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. In addition to interacting with elements at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, this Disney experience app allows your customized droid to interact with you at home! If you haven’t gotten around to building your own droid at Disney World yet, you can enjoy a virtual experience with these indispensable sidekicks through the app. You can create a whole collection of R series and BB series droids, sync up your virtual Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge droid and join the resistance. You can customize them, program them, pilot them, and play games with them using the Droid Depot mobile app. Currently, the Droid Depot app is only available in the US and Canada. If you want a physical droid to play with but can’t make it to the Disney parks just yet, there are pre-made droids (interactive BB-8 and R2-D2 droids with remote control) available on shopDisney.com. Just sync them with the app when they arrive and you’re ready to go! FAQs How Much Does It Cost To Build A Droid At Disney World? The cost of building a droid at Droid Depot is $99.99 plus tax. This price includes a carry box and instructions (it is a cardboard carrying case). It is worth noting that if you purchase additional accessories, enhancements, personality chips, or customizations for the R series and BB series droids, they come at an additional cost. How Long Does The Droid Building Experience At Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Last? You should set aside at least 30 minutes to build a droid on the assembly line at the Galaxy’s Edge Droid Depot. Are There Any Discounts For An Annual Passholder At Droid Depot? Unfortunately, there are no discounts at Droid Depot for Annual Passholders. There may be other discounts during special events, so look out for those. How Old Should Children Be To Build An Astromech Droid Unit At Walt Disney World? Disney recommends the experience for adults and kids aged 3+ years. Younger kids might enjoy watching but not as much fun building. At least one person in the droid building party must be aged 14 years or older. Can I Go With A Friend To Watch Them Build A Droid? Yes, the experience can be enjoyed by the builder and one guest, according to the Walt Disney World website. Only the builder will be allowed to construct the droid, however. The one guest can watch but cannot build. Also, you cannot bring more than one person to watch. Is The Droid Refundable? Your new friend, the customized droid, is non-refundable. Are There Droid Merchandise Available? There is also the opportunity to purchase droid-themed merchandise. Check out the full shop for some awesome toys. They have a really cool collection of model kits, pre-built droids, premium droids, plus a unique collection of Disney artwork and upcycled objects crafted from scrap parts. That’s enough to build your own home planet! What Else Is Near The Droid Depot? After you make your own droid, be sure to explore Galaxy’s Edge and take your new droid on an adventure in the land. If you were lucky enough to join a boarding group for the Millenium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run attraction, that is definitely something not to be missed for Star Wars fans. Also, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance is a massively popular attraction with multiple ride systems. Plus, you can head over to Savi’s Workshop and build your own lightsaber. It’s located right next to the Droid Depot. What Are The Food And Drink Options Near Droid Depot? At Galaxy’s Edge in Disney’s Hollywood Studios, you can enjoy delicious light snacks, alcoholic drinks, and non-alcoholic drinks at Oga’s Cantina. My kids love the Jabba Juice, a concoction of orange, pineapple, cantaloupe, kiwi, and blueberry flavors. Like all Disney theme parks, food and beverage locations are never too far for some quick refueling. Another great option is the Docking Bay 7 Food and Cargo. This Black Spire eatery is housed in a working hangar bay and serves a range of galactic grub consisting of exotic offerings and unusual flavors. Located right next to the Droid Depot Building is Ronto Roasters, a quick service restaurant with a selection of delicious meats. A great option if you want to refuel fast and get back to having fun. Ready To Build Your Droid? Now that you know how to build your own droid at Disney World, are you ready to start building your very own R or BB unit? Let me know how building your droid went and what you called your new friend!