At Hollywood Studios you can enjoy a premium event that includes drinks, desserts, character interactions, VIP showing of an evening show, and more. The event is called A Galactic Dessert Party, and it is available on select nights at Hollywood Studios.
Here I'll discuss the dates and pricing for the event, what you can expect if you book this event, my tips for getting the most out of this dessert party, and my review of the experience.
While you can make reservations for a dessert party up to 180 days in advance, Disney often releases the dates for dessert parties just a few weeks to months in advance. So if you are booking a trip and want to add a dessert party, but there are no dates available keep checking back.
The cost for this dessert party is currently $89 per adult (10 and up), and $53 per child (3-9). Children under the age of 3 do not require any payment to attend with you, but you will need to make sure that they are included on your reservation for seating and safety reasons.
Note that when you make your reservation for this event you will be charged in advance. If you are unable to attend you can cancel your reservation and you will be refunded. You must cancel at least 24 hours in advance. If you need to cancel the day of contact Guest Services to cancel.
When you arrive at the party you'll check in at a podium next to the Star Wars Launch Bay entrance. There you'll receive a themed lanyard letting Cast Members know that you are a part of the dessert party. The lanyard is a fun little souvenir, and also your ticket in and out of the party. If you'd like to step out to explore the Star Wars Launch Bay you can use that lanyard to get back in to the party.
You'll make your way in to the party, and a host will bring you to an assigned seat. There is a chance that you may be seated with another group.
While you are there you will receive unlimited drinks (both alcoholic and non alcoholic). You can expect water, soda, juices, beer, wine, and fun specialty cocktails. Only guests who are over the age of 21 can order alcoholic beverages. Make sure to bring your ID with you.
You will also find a full buffet of mostly sweet treats that include cupcakes, cookies, mini cakes, truffles, and more. There are also savory snacks available like pita bread and hummus and charcuterie cheeses and meats.
Many of the desserts are beautifully themed for the Star Wars party, like the blue milk panna cotta and the freeze dried hazelnut mousse.
In addition to the food and drink, you'll have an opportunity to interact with Star Wars characters like Storm Troopers. They will be patrolling the party to make sure all guests are kept in line.
Next you'll receive a souvenir Darth Vadar stein as you make your way to the VIP viewing area for the evening show at Hollywood Studios. The stein is fun, but it's plastic and very large. So keep that in mind when packing for your trip. You may have to make room for multiple steins depending on how many people are in your group.
The VIP viewing area for the show is at the Center Stage area in front of the Chinese Theater. You'll have a front row view of both the Wonderful World of Animation show and the Star Wars: Galactic Spectacular show. They are played one after another with only a brief break in between, and both are about 15 minutes long.
When you book the Star Wars Galactic Spectacular dessert party you'll be given a time to check in for your reservation. The party is held in the Star Wars Launch Bay over in Animation Courtyard at Hollywood Studios. You'll want to head over to the Launch Bay 30-45 minutes before your party starts. You can get in early and this will give you an opportunity to enjoy the buffet before it gets crowded.
Also I suggest you get ready to mingle. You'll be seated at assigned tables, and there is a chance that you'll be seated with another party. So be ready to chat and make new friends!
Lastly I suggest you make sure you have free hands to carry any food or drink outside to the show with you. You are allowed to bring any of the desserts or drinks with you, so keep a free hand and grab drink to go!
I surprised my sister with a reservation at the Star Wars Galactic Spectacular Dessert Party at Hollywood Studios. Our reservation time was for 6:30pm, so we decided to show up at about 6pm for our reservation.
We were quickly checked in at the podium outside of the Star Wars Launch Bay and we made our way inside. The host informed us that we would be seated with another couple perhaps from a different planet, and that we should get to know our new table mates.
The funny thing was, not only were our table mates not from another planet, they coincidentally lived in the same city as us! We had a lovely time talking about our time at Disney, things we enjoy doing in our home town, and sharing stories about families.
The buffet had a ton of options. Both my sister and myself had not eaten dinner that night, and as much as I love desserts I needed something more savory before I jumped in to the sweets. There were items like pita bread and hummus. There were also charcuterie cheeses and meats.
Those items were just ok.
The real stars were the desserts.
If you are a fan of the blue milk in Galaxy's Edge you'll want to try the blue milk panna cotta. It was delicious and the texture was perfection. The new friends we made at our table couldn't stop talking about it.
My personal favorite part of the dessert buffet was the freeze fried hazelnut mousse. You watch as a Cast Member scoops fresh hazelnut mouse and drops it in a vat of dry ice and water. It's then topped with chocolate or raspberry sauce (or in my case both!). It was fun to watch and amazing to eat.
While we ate our desserts, Storm Troopers came by and harassed guests. These fun interactions are always a highlight for me when I'm in Hollywood Studios! So this was a fun perk for us. The troopers are only at the party for a limited amount of time, and for our party they were there starting before the actual start time of 6:30pm. So this is another reason to check in to the party before official start time.
After dessert a Cast Member came by to let us know we'd be heading out to the viewing area for the show in a few minutes. We grabbed a couple of drinks to go and made our way outside. On the way out we were given our souvenir mugs. While these mugs are cute, they are very big. The sound of plastic mugs falling out of the bags and hitting the ground was something we heard over and over again during the shows. I'd suggest bringing an empty backpack to toss the mug in if you can.
We made our way to the VIP viewing area for the two nighttime shows at Hollywood Studios. The VIP area is located at Center Stage, which is right in front of the Chinese Theater. We liked the VIP area a lot. We didn't have to fight for a spot to see. There was no one in front of us. If we had wanted, we could have even sat down and been able to see the show.
I greatly enjoyed this dessert party. I am not a big fan of holding a spot for an evening show for any period of time. I often find myself running up to less than desirable spots at the last minute because of it. So having a front row seat for TWO evening shows was amazing.
My only criticism was the price. For the $90 price tag, there are other extra events that I would rather do. An after hours event at Magic Kingdom is only $30 or so more than this, and it also includes all you can eat desserts. But it has the added bonus of rides with no wait. Or for $85 I can get a ticket to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party, where you can get endless candy, go on rides with no wait, meet a ton of characters, and more.
So I would recommend this add on if night time shows are a high priority for you, and you want a fun way to enjoy the Hollywood Studios evening shows. If you are looking for the best bang for your buck, I would consider this event, but definitely look at the other options I mentioned above.
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See you at the parks,
-Julie
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