For most of my life, I didn’t understand Star Wars fandom. I had seen the movies as a kid, but they never really resonated with me. So as I was watching Disneyland construct Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in the years before it opened, I didn’t care all that much.

But when it opened, and I was slated to write a story for Forbes about the new land, I knew I had to watch the movies in order to fully appreciate what I’d be seeing. I binged 8 movies in three days, and at the end, I was hooked – which made the experience of seeing the Black Spire Outpost, on the remote planet of Batuu, even more memorable.

I really can’t say enough good things about Galaxy’s Edge, especially about the genre-defying Rise of the Resistance ride, which is every bit as good as everyone says it is, and just as hard to describe. Because demand is so high, the only way you can get on the ride right now is to get to the park when it opens and hope you get a spot in a boarding group, which are all distributed in two or three minutes for the entire day. It’s a gamble, but it’s absolutely worth it.