Star Tours – The Adventures Continue is one of Disney’s most important bridge attractions: a classic Disney-MGM Studios-era ride that still feels connected to the modern Star Wars universe. Located in Echo Lake at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, the attraction sends guests aboard a Starspeeder 1000 for a 3D motion-simulator flight through randomized destinations, character encounters, and in-cockpit special effects. Disney currently describes it as a 3D space flight to legendary Star Wars locations, with C-3PO unexpectedly taking the controls after a premature launch and Imperial or First Order forces searching for a Rebel spy onboard.
The attraction’s history goes back to the original Star Tours, developed in cooperation with George Lucas and first opened at Disneyland on January 9, 1987. Walt Disney World received its version at Disney-MGM Studios on December 15, 1989, only months after the park itself opened. D23 notes that the original ride used 40-passenger StarSpeeder vehicles and featured R2-D2, C-3PO, and the nervous rookie pilot RX-24, better known as Captain Rex. For Disney-MGM Studios, Star Tours was a major credibility boost: it brought a blockbuster outside franchise into a park originally built around film production, behind-the-scenes entertainment, and Hollywood spectacle.
The current version, Star Tours – The Adventures Continue, opened at Disney’s Hollywood Studios on May 20, 2011, after a major refurbishment that replaced the original Endor-bound storyline with high-definition 3D visuals, updated simulator programming, and randomized ride sequences. The refresh transformed Star Tours from a fixed 1980s simulator into a modular attraction designed for repeatability. Dark Ride Database notes that the updated version introduced randomized sequences and later received the Themed Entertainment Association’s 2012 award for Outstanding Attraction Refresh.
Its modern notoriety comes from that flexibility. While Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge now dominates the Star Wars footprint at Hollywood Studios, Star Tours continues to matter because it can absorb new characters and planets without rebuilding the entire attraction. In 2024, Disney added adventures inspired by Ahsoka, Andor, and The Mandalorian, including possible transmissions from Ahsoka Tano, Cassian Andor, Din Djarin, and Grogu, as well as a visit to Seatos. Disney stated that these additions expanded the attraction to more than 250 possible storyline variations.
Today, Star Tours occupies an interesting place in the park. It is no longer the cutting-edge Star Wars headliner, but it remains one of Hollywood Studios’ most re-rideable attractions, a key piece of Disney-Lucasfilm history, and a surprisingly durable example of how a simulator can stay relevant when its story engine is built to evolve.
