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Construction Update June 13, 2011
Well, this is quite an update.
In order to take the aerial photos of Hong Kong Disneyland below, my local hiker friend Michael and I had to trek for seven hours over mountains on hiking trails that ceased to exist. We had talked about doing it for two years, but only the expansion gave us the final reason to go. This was the real Jungle Cruise, and together with the thunderstorm suprise we got up there I can say it's the scariest thing I have done since putting a needle into a plug when I was a kiddo! You can't see the trail whatsoever (no one must have walked there for years) and there are some perilous cliffs on both sides of the mountain. Without exaggeration, our toe nails were bleeding/falling off after that hike. Don't try to repeat it. I mean it. It wasn't funny.
You get a great view of the Disneyland expansion area: Toy Story Land with its U-shaped orange shuttle coaster and green 'Toy Soldiers Parachute Drop' attraction in the foreground, the world-exclusive and probably terrific dark ride 'Mystic Point' in the middle, and the 'Grizzly Trail' mountain roller coaster (featuring bears and dynamite) in the background. I am anxiously looking forward to this expansion since I believe it will change Hong Kong Disneyland forever.
Update October 10, 2008
Little photo update: 'It's a Small World' is now open and a Halloween Special with ghost houses where real life ghosts surprise/attack harmless visitors was (temporary) operating as well. A hit with the locals, I never saw the park so full.
Review March 07, 2008
I love Hong Kong Disneyland. There are no thrills, no ghost trains, no flume rides and apart from 'Space Mountain', which is not really the best version of itself, no roller coasters. BUT the potential of Disney's Hong Kong venture is huge! The resort is nestled between two mountains and the sea, the most beautiful setting of any Disney park in the world, and plenty of space is left for expansion.
Hong Kong Disneyland is designed to resemble the original Disneyland park in California, created and opened by Walt Disney himself in 1955. The castle looks the same, the park structure is similar and it contains roughly the same number of attractions. Highlights of the park for the time being: 'Space Mountain', a roller coaster in the dark; 'Jungle Cruise', a great new version of the classic Disney river adventure featuring amazing elephant animatronics; 'Stitch Encounter', an entertaining interactive attraction; 'Mickey's PhilharMagic', a brilliant 3-D movie featuring Disney characters on a screen that ‘magically' changes in size.
The park's current size is too small but the existing rides, landscaping and surrounding lakes are all superbly done. Visit Hong Kong Disneyland if you have kids or if you are a Disney fan and you will enjoy it a lot. However, if you're looking for thrills, don't go just yet. Wait a few years. This is the moment when you should buy stocks: the park is underrated and will flourish in years to come.
The two Disney hotels, by the way, are absolutely brilliant: you get better rooms, better service, better pools and more peace of mind than anywhere else in Hong Kong for this budget.
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