In addition to the videos, some of which are hidden for fans to find, the site features character bios, descriptions of the Star Tours planet destinations and behind-the-scenes footage from the attraction. For intergalactic fun the whole family will enjoy, fans can download exclusive Star Tours crafts, printables, recipes and more, from DisneyFamily.com.

“The new ride will feature 54 different experiences, meaning visitors are unlikely to ever see the same thing when they get on the ride,” said George Kalogridis, the Disneyland Resort president. This detail was revealed during a Saturday presentation at the Destination D: Disneyland ‘55 convention by D23, the official Disney fan club. He called the new imagery “just incredible.”

In another presentation, Disney officials unveiled new droids that will become part of the ride. The Tour Droid will be called “Ace,” who is described as having “a personality as different from Rex (the original droid) as you can imagine.” Another droid is modeled after a waitress in “Attack of the Clones” and will be called “Aly San San,” in reference to the voice of the droid, actress Allison Janney.

The original Star Tours closed in July so that crews could begin installing the new ride, which will utilize 3D movie technology. The original motion-simulator ride only had one trip through space. Version 2.0 will have multiple movies with different scenes in front of seats in a carriage, which moves to give the illusion of a journey through space based on the “Star Wars” movies.

It appears that the footage used for Bespin and the forest moon of Endor are taken from the finale of the revised version of Return of the Jedi from 1997.

Also note that at the end of the Alderaan footage, the vehicle approaching the landing pad is the new Starspeeder 1000, which replaces the Starspeeder 3000 from the original attraction.

With no further ado, here is the new queue video for the upcoming Star Tours 2.0 scheduled to be complete in 2011.

This event will take place “after-hours” and as such will require a separate entry ticket. Besides the Star Tours attraction, there will be specially-themed party zones, Star Wars shows, a “Death Star Disco” and “Symphony in the Stars,” a Star Wars-themed fireworks show. Tickets to the event are on sale now at a cost $75 per person.

While the event is called “Last Tour to Endor,” the attraction is not closing for refurbishment immediately following the event but rather will close, as originally announced, this October.

He began the announcement with, “I have some bad news… Star Tours will be closed…” at which time a large contingent of Stormtroopers and Darth Vader himself flooded the stage, the dark lord himself letting Jay know that the news greatly displeased him.

Of course that was only to add some entertainment and suspense to the announcement because Jay quickly made it clear that he had not finished what he was saying as the attraction was closing only to make way for a updated version, this one in 3-D.

While Star Tours was very innovative and advanced when it originally debuted in 1987, many have felt for some time now that it was long overdue for an update. That will now take place and in Jay’s own words, they will do something with this attraction that no one has ever done before.

For a sampling of what guests might experience, those of us in attendance of his presentation were asked to put on the 3-D glasses that were given to us upon entering the Anaheim Convention Center’s Arena and were then treated to the following video presentation.

Of course the video above is not in 3-D and therefore not quite as impressive as what we experienced in the arena itself. Nevertheless, I am thrilled to see that Disney will now update this 22 year old attraction, not only bringing it up to date with all the current technology in simulation rides but adding three dimension technology as well.

If you have yet to experience this thrilling attraction, Star Tours is a simulator ride located in several Disney theme parks, including Disneyland in California, Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Florida, Tokyo Disneyland in Japan, and Disneyland Park in Paris. The ride is based on the successful Star Wars franchise of movies, created by George Lucas, making it the first of the park’s attractions that did not use Disney-designed imagery. The first incarnation of the ride appeared in Tomorrowland at Disneyland in 1987, replacing the previous attraction, Adventure Thru Inner Space.

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It has also been confirmed that Disney has applied for various government permits for the second Soarin’ movie and shooting could begin as early as this fall for a late ’09 premiere at Disney’s California Adventure and Epcot. It is assumed that the new Soarin’ film will be more of a global theme which would make sense for Epcot as well as a re-vamped California Adventure.

Related: Book your dream Disney vacation at Expedia.com!