Elsewhere in Discoveryland, we're presented a vision of the future by George Lucas with Star Tours. An X-wing fighter is poised for take-off just outside the Starport, where a fleet of Starspeeder 3000s await to take us anywhere in the galaxy.
The detailing around the entrance to the Starport is straight out of the Star Wars universe, specifically the original trilogy (the only Star Wars films there were when this attraction was built back in '92). From the "used technology" look of the signs and columns to the Jabba's barge-like sails shading the Fastpass distribution area, an atmosphere is created that transports you to that galaxy far, far away.
Here in Disneyland Paris, it's not just the film references that are original. The attraction itself is the original version of Star Tours, with Captain Rex in the cockpit for your trip to the moon of Endor. While the U.S. Disney Parks updated their Star Tours attractions in the past year, the international parks have not yet taken that step.
Once inside the Starport, there are unique elements only found in Paris, such as the planetary chart (above). There are also plenty of familiar sights, like the StarSpeeder maintenance bay with C-3PO (voiced by Anthony Daniels speaking French) and R2-D2, hard at work on a heavily battle-scarred ship (In Star Tours: The Adventures Continue, this scene features an earlier-generation StarSpeeder 1000 in brand new condition).
Next up is the Droidnostics Center, a robot repair room where the baggage services scene is found in the newer versions of the attraction. Look closely amongst the junk these droids are sorting through, and you may spot some remnants of Imperial Speeder Bikes, actual movie props from Return of the Jedi.
Next, it's "Welcome aboard," and we're on our way to the Endor moon without any further delay.
Okay... with Rex at the controls, things do go "horribly wrong," but we soon find ourselves docked at L'Astroport: Services Interstellaires. This interplanetary rest stop serves as a post-show of sorts to the Star Tours experience.
You're welcomed at the information booth by RXN. You can call her Roxanne. She invites everyone to stay a while, offering tips on what to do during your visit. In all honesty, there's not much to do here. Beyond these details, L'Astroport is a fairly standard video game arcade.
One last fun thing to look for on your way out, though, is cases like this. Looks like someone's luggage from our flight that maybe fell out of the ship's hold during battle!
TAND
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
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