For some, building a droid from Star Wars is a dream come true. This was my experience at Galaxy’s Edge Droid Depot.
Before we begin please note that this is purely my opinion about the Droid Depot at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in Walt Disney World. I cannot speak for others’ experiences building their own droids.
Ever since I was introduced to Star Wars as a child I was fascinated with the droids, specifically R2-D2. There was something adorable and fun about these tiny pieces of machinery with unique personalities.
More from Disney
- Seasons of the Force and new Star Tours coming to Disneyland
- Galaxy’s Edge delights fans revealing three new roaming droids
- New Young Jedi Adventure trailer gives first look at Bell Zettifar
- Interview: John Jackson Miller discusses transition from EU to Disney
- Ahsoka Tano is coming to Disneyland’s Star Tours
I never knew that years later I’d be building my own droid in Walt Disney World. My husband and I decided almost immediately that we wanted a droid of our very own.
I jumped at the first opportunity to schedule a droid building experience. The earliest time happened to be in the evening.
The Droid Depot was easy to spot, as earlier that same day we passed the location while waiting on line for the Smuggler’s Run ride.
Upon entering the Droid Depot, a cast member helped us queue in and guided us to our line. There was a second line of guests waiting for a spot to open to build their droid. While we waited I took the time to observe the room.
Like everything else in Galaxy’s Edge, the attention to detail is everywhere! Above the conveyor belt were several nonfunctioning droids and droid parts. From the ceiling, droids and droid parts were moving around the room, including a C-3PO torso.
The sounds of droids coming to life for the first time echoed constantly. It was probably the most magical sound I heard in Galaxy’s Edge.
We both agreed on building a droid that closely resembled R2-D2. Building one droid cost $99.99 plus tax.
The cast member handed us our basket which displayed the parts we needed. We made our way to the conveyor belt watching the droid parts in all colors and shapes pass us.
Prior to our vacation, we decided what parts we were searching for and thankfully we found everything we wanted almost immediately.
Another cast member guided us to a line to wait to put our droid together. Once it was our turn, we followed the “placemat” instructions to assemble our droid.
With our droid assembled, the cast member behind the counter began the activation process. Before our eyes, our droid was brought to life! My childhood dream of owning a droid had come true!
The cast member explained how to use the remote control and made sure we tested each button before we left. Sure enough, our droid was alive and well.
We decided to keep the default personality of our droid. Our droid was placed in a very sturdy box and we decided to take a look at the merchandise before leaving. However, that was easier said than done.
I will say the downside to this overall pleasant experience was the location. The Droid Depot is situated with half the room designated for building the droid while the other side is reserved for merchandise.
The merchandise ranges from accessories for your droids like personality chips and items to take home like magnets and Christmas tree ornaments.
The problem with having both the droid building area and the merchandise in the same room is that it becomes too crowded and chaotic. You have guests trying to assemble the droid with others trying to be directed to a line to the main counter.
In the meantime, other guests are either browsing while waiting to build their droid or wanting to shop around. This means you have two kinds of crowds trying to get by each other in an already cramped room.
Maybe one room should have been solely used for building a droid, and another room should be for merchandise? That way once the droid is complete, guests can go into the next room to buy items for the droid. In that same room, guests browsing for themselves have the space to look without the feeling of being overcrowded.
To give your droid a proper test run there is a small area nearby where they can roam around. We didn’t have time to see how our droid would interact with others but we will have the opportunity to test that with our friends’ droids.
Overall we had a wonderful experience at The Droid Depot. Thank you to the cast members who made this experience as easy as possible. It was well worth the wait and excitement!
The price may seem hefty for some, especially if guests plan on building more than one. However, this is currently an experience you cannot have anywhere outside of Disneyland and Disney World.
If it’s affordable and something you would like to experience I highly recommend it! For more extensive details about the experience, pricing and instruction manuals visit the Walt Disney World Droid Depot website here.
Since bringing our droid home our friends and family of all ages love it and have been asking how and where we built it. It brings more joy than either of us expected and we will treasure it forever.
What was your experience like at The Droid Depot? Leave your answers in the comment section below! I’d love to read them!