Last year I wrote an article the day after May the 4th about my experience celebrating at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, so I thought I’d do that again this year and make it a tradition. Now I know May the 4th isn’t an official holiday, but it is one of my favorites. The energy in the park on this day is always high, and almost everyone in the park is participating. While enjoying the festivities, I met people that woke up at 3 am and drove to Orlando to rope drop Hollywood Studios to do everything Star Wars, and it made me realize how special this day is to many people.

Unlike the kind people I met, I got to the park at 2 pm because I had tried to get a park reservation for the past three weeks, and there was nothing. Thankfully Annual Passholders can go to a park after 2 pm without a reservation, so I was able to get in, just later than I would’ve liked. From the moment I walked in, I saw some of the most amazing outfits and was blown away. I dressed up but not to the same caliber as many fans. I threw together a last-minute outfit inspired by the one and only Princess Leia, which was perfect because, on that day, Carrie Fisher finally got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

After entering the park, I went to the shops on Hollywood Boulevard to look for themed merchandise. I know there was a virtual queue for special merch, but I didn’t join it because I knew I wouldn’t buy anything; I was in a window-shopping mood. While strolling around the stores, I saw the ‘Been There’ Starbucks cups, and I thought those were really cool. In Batuu, the merch lines were very long, but so was the line for everything else.

Unfortunately, I could not eat snacks or treats at this celebration, so I skipped food altogether. What I can tell you is that there was a massive line at the churro stand for those special lightsaber churros. I also saw long lines coming out of Docking Bay 7 because they had a special sipper there for the day.

Since I didn’t get any fun snacks, I got some fun PhotoPass photos to document the day—the line for pictures felt like a mile long. I waited about 25 minutes for the images that overlooked the Millennium Falcon.

Later on, I got back in line for photos but closer to the Falcon, and I saw Rey walking around talking with guests. This one little girl was dressed like her, and the interaction was the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. The line for that photographer was growing fast, but thankfully, I entered the queue when it was still short. I think I waited about 10 minutes.

Throughout the day, The Mandalorian and Grogu were making appearances, and the mob of people surrounding them was larger than usual. I didn’t even try to see them because it was just too hectic. Instead, I people-watched and rated the different outfits that I saw. I spent part of my day at Star Wars Launch Bay, which was fun. Guests were playing with their droids and lightsabers, which is always fun to see. The line to meet Chewbacca was 45 minutes long, and the one for Darth Vader was 55 minutes. BB8 had a reasonably short line averaging about a 20-minute wait, and sometimes it would drop to 15.

I recommend going over to Star Wars Launch Bay when you feel like you need a break. It’s dark, and the air conditioning is on full blast, which is excellent for the middle of the day. Batuu was so jam-packed, and the heat was getting to me, but I wanted to stay in that Star Wars bubble, so I ventured over there.

I had a fun day at Hollywood Studios, celebrating one of my favorite holidays. Even though I didn’t do many things, I just wanted to be there. I didn’t need to do all the rides or meet all the characters, and I guess that’s the beauty of being a local because I know I can come back and do those things. For me, I love to witness the fans having a great time; I love to just take in all of the fantastic outfits and just be part of the celebration.

Anyway, that was my May the 4th at Hollywood Studios, and I can’t wait to see what they do for next year’s celebration. Until then, May the Force be With You.

The post My May the 4th Experience at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in 2023! first appeared on DIS.