#DisneyMagicMoments: Strap Yourselves In for a ‘Ride & Learn’ Aboard Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge

[Disney4me]

One of my favorite scenes of any Star Wars film is when Han Solo takes the Millennium Falcon into the asteroid field in “The Empire Strikes Back” (celebrating its 40^th anniversary this year, by the way). As a kid, I’d watch the Falcon gracefully dodge those asteroids – avoiding TIE fighters at the same time – and dream of being onboard the “fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy.”

That dream came true last year with the debut of Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run inside Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland park in California and Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Florida. In this groundbreaking attraction, you walk those iconic curved hallways and then strap into the cockpit to take control of the ship that made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs.

I must’ve had some galactic dust in my eye the first time I entered the Falcon – I’m sure that’s why my vision went all watery and blurry for a moment, right? Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run is an amazing, immersive attraction that gives you a Star Wars experience like never before. That’s why I’m so thrilled to share this latest video in our “Ride & Learn” series, so you can take a virtual trip on this “bucket of bolts” and discover some fun facts about the attraction along the way. Check it out!

Still want to know more? Of course you do! Here are a few extra fun facts about Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run:

• The Millennium Falcon, docked in the Black Spire Outpost spaceport inside Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, measures more than 100 feet long.
• Hondo Ohnaka, who leads you on your journey, is a fan-favorite miscreant from the “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” and “Star Wars: Rebels” animated television series. Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run marks the first time he’s been seen in any form other than an animated on-screen character.
• You enter the Falcon through an access hatch on its port side. As you explore the ship’s main hold, you may spot all sorts of iconic Star Wars items, including the helmet and remote Luke Skywalker used in his first lightsaber training! Keep an eye out for some Porg nests, too …
• Industrial Light & Magic (the visual effects division of Lucasfilm) collaborated with Walt Disney Imagineering to create the gaming platform and interactive media for the attraction.  
• If the Falcon sustains damage – such as smashing into obstacles or taking enemy fire – and is not properly repaired, the ship’s handling is affected and its hallways will show damage after you land.
• Disney Imagineers worked with Lucasfilm to ensure authenticity in every detail of the Millennium Falcon – down to the hoses, pipes, switches and even the stickers on the exterior hull. Imagineers visited Star Wars film productions in the United Kingdom to study Falcon sets and pored over archival Lucasfilm photographs of the ship.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this flight aboard the Millennium Falcon and maybe learned a little something along the way. Keep checking back with us here on the Disney Parks Blog for more #DisneyMagicMoments!

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