10 Tips for visiting Shanghai Disneyland
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| Shanghai Disneyland Castle ©Corbin
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This week we have a Guest blog post about Shanghai Disneyland. Three students who were on a University Study Tour visited the park in late November 2018. Their names are Corbin (21 years old), Clare and Fumiko (also in their early 20's). They went to Disneyland as part of a small group of fellow study tour students during their free time.
These are their tips:
1. Where did you stay in Shanghai. Can you recommend?
Corbin: I stayed at the
Tianping Hotel which was a nice hotel with a really good location.
Unfortunately, our particular room's air conditioner didn't seem to work
properly so it was really hot. Other than that, it was nice.
Clare and Fumi: Tianping
Hotel Shanghai, Xujuahui, Xuhui (near the French Concession). It was a very
clean area which felt safe at any time of the day or night. There were also a
lot of malls within walking distance, many only just completed/about to be
completed. Only downside would be that it was a little far from the Bund,
however the Metro is convenient and there were two stations within walking
distance.
2. Any info here on Shanghai, getting to
Disneyland Shanghai and getting around??
Corbin: I would advise
using the Shanghai metro and walking as the main ways to get around. The taxis
are comparatively cheap and easy to use but can sometimes be difficult if you
lack knowledge of Chinese. Furthermore, some taxis may attempt to charge a higher
rate for foreigners if you do not ensure the meter is running. The Shanghai
Metro was very easy to use and was very convenient. There is a direct metro
line to Disneyland which is an approximately 30-minute-long trip for 6 yuan. It
was easy to get a ticket and there were options in English.
I would recommend, if
someone has an iPhone, that they use Apple Maps as it is not blocked in China.
It is convenient as it is in English whereas local alternatives like maps on
Chinese search engines like Baidu are in Chinese only.
Clare and Fumi: Metro Line
11 takes you direct to Disney Resort, which is only a short walk to the park
entrance, for less than $5 AUD. However, be aware that not every train on line
11 goes all the way to Disney. Our train terminated three stops before Disney
and we were all shuffled off onto the platform to wait for another service. It
wasn’t a real problem though as we only had to wait around 10 minutes for a
train to arrive that was going all the way to Disney.
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| ©Corbin |
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| ©Corbin |
3. What were your favourite rides and why
Corbin: It is really hard
to say as I enjoyed all the rides I went on. I didn't get to go on too many
rides due to limited time. I personally really enjoyed the Seven Dwarfs ride
due to the immersion and the sense of childhood fun. It also felt like a very
well-designed roller coaster. I also enjoyed the Toy Story Car Racer Ride as I
absolutely loved Toy Story as a child. The Tron ride was unique and quite cool.
Despite all being quite fast rides with many turns, I did not feel sick at all
despite being someone who has felt quite sick on rides before. The Pirates of
the Caribbean ride used special effects and they worked really well as they
provided a good sense of immersion. All of the rides at Shanghai Disneyland
were well designed and I did not feel nauseous on any. My personal favourite
was the Seven Dwarfs ride but that did also have the longest line sadly.
Clare and Fumi: The Pirates
of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure definitely lived up to its expectation as one of the go-to rides
for Shanghai Disneyland. It truly felt like we were living out our own Pirates
of the Caribbean adventure, from entering the line-up with the dark and gloomy
aesthetic, to hopping onto the boats that transported us across the water
passing by shipwrecks and treasures including escaping canon blasts. The use of
the impressive animatronics and cinematography to allow Captain Jack Sparrow,
Davy Jones and other famous characters and settings come to life also made it
all the more realistic. As there were many seats on the ride and being a quiet
day, the lineup was only 10 minutes meaning we were lucky enough to ride it
twice!
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| Pirates Ride - ©Clare and Fumi |
The Tron Ride is a visually impressive rollercoaster
that feels like you’re in the middle of a game. While the lines may be long (we
heard 2hrs+ on busy days) the wait itself is quite exciting as the theme music
plays as you walk down a dark passage, lit up in the signature neon blue. The
ride itself is short, initially starting outdoors (so onlookers can hear you
scream) before moving indoors with Tron graphics making for a heart racing
experience. Would definitely recommend!
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| Tron Ride - ©Clare and Fumi |
Peter Pan's Flight and The
Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh were very memorable as riding them felt like
we were little kids again who believed in magic. On Peter Pan, the enchanted
ship we sat on was suspended on the roof which created a real feeling of flying
in the air, taking us above cities and into the stars. Winnie the Pooh on the
other hand, took us on a quest to find his honey pots, with help from friends
Piglet, Tigger, Eeyore. While these rides initially seem to be targeted to the
younger audience, we would recommend them for all ages, as they will not only
blow you away with their design but also see your childhood come to life!
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| Winnie the Pooh Ride ©Clare and Fumi |
We had read about Soaring
Over the Horizons while doing some
research online, but we couldn’t quite understand the appeal. It was described
as a 4D film where you travel around the world to iconic places such as the
pyramids in Egypt, the African Safarah and even our very own Sydney Harbour.
This may not sound super exciting compared to the thrill coaster rides, but you
really MUST give this a go. Let’s just say, your feet won’t touch the ground
the entire time!
The Rapids were touted as
one of the best rides at Shanghai Disneyland, but unfortunately it was closed for refurbishment
when we were visiting.
5. Fireworks?
How were they?
Corbin: The variety that Disneyland’s fireworks had was amazing and
made it the best fire works I have seen in my life. The show lasted about 20 minutes with various acts and started on time. My
personal favourite had to be the Aladdin performance as it probably had the
best fireworks, good use of fire and used special effects well. I noticed that
the Fireworks did have quite a lot of fire effects that were quite cool. The fire was seen as long flames and was on both sides of
the castle. It was presented together with other traditional fireworks which
emerged from the castle.
Clare and Fumi: Unfortunately,
we were catching a flight that night, so we couldn’t stay for the fireworks.
6. Where did you eat at Disneyland?
Corbin: Food was
comparatively expensive to Shanghai prices but compared to Australian prices it
was pretty decent. I cannot remember exactly where I ate but for dinner I got a
few bbq skewers which were about 110 yuan. It was quite expensive but they did
taste really nice. The food is relatively expensive but, in my experience, was
not poor quality. It was relatively good quality food that was nice. The main
issue was that quite a lot of items were sold out, particularly at stalls. I
really wanted to try a Mickey Pretzel or donut but they sadly were both sold
out.
Clare and Fumi: The main
meal we ate was a very scrumptious turkey leg at Barbossa’s Bounty in Treasure
Cove. It is highly recommended by the staff and it was clear to see as nearly
everyone in Treasure Cove was eating one. It is quite oily but they provide
gloves and many napkins therefore you’ll easily stay clean.
From what we saw it was
definitely expensive compared to local Chinese cuisine, however it would have
been in the cheaper range for Disney. For snacks they had multiple carts around
the park selling Mickey ice cream, dagwood dogs and popcorn. However, have cash
handy as many did not accept foreign bank cards.
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| The Mickey ice cream, around $5 AUD ©Clare and Fumi |
7. Queues and Lines? How did you find
them? Was it busy? Longest line up?
Corbin: The lines were not
that long. The longest ride was Seven Dwarfs which was about 60/70 minutes
whereas the shortest line was Pirates of the Caribbean which was about 10
minutes. The Toy Story ride was probably about 20 minutes and Tron was probably
about 30 minutes.
Clare and Fumi: We went on
a Thursday which proved not to be a busy day as most lines were only 10 minutes
long. The longest lines we saw were Tron and Adventure Park which were around
40 minutes long. This may have been unusual, as talking to other student
members who went on a Friday afternoon, they mentioned they had to wait over an
hour to go on the Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure.
We purchased the 'Disney Concierge Service' online which included Fastpass entry for the main rides in each section of the park. This included Tron, Pirates, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Winnie the Pooh and Peter Pan, but we could only use the Fastpass once for each ride. We also used Fastpass for the Pirates restaurant where we got the turkey leg. However, as the lines weren’t long on the day, the Fastpass didn’t really make a difference for some rides but it did for the food. We also got VIP seating for the parade as part of the Concierge Service and you could also get it for the fireworks if we had of stayed at the park later.
We purchased the 'Disney Concierge Service' online which included Fastpass entry for the main rides in each section of the park. This included Tron, Pirates, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Winnie the Pooh and Peter Pan, but we could only use the Fastpass once for each ride. We also used Fastpass for the Pirates restaurant where we got the turkey leg. However, as the lines weren’t long on the day, the Fastpass didn’t really make a difference for some rides but it did for the food. We also got VIP seating for the parade as part of the Concierge Service and you could also get it for the fireworks if we had of stayed at the park later.
8. How did you find the
language barrier?
Corbin: Shanghai
Disneyland was my very first Disneyland and I do not feel that the language
barrier took away any of the magic. I still felt like a child going in and had
a really fun time. Many of the signs were in English so it was easy to navigate
despite the language barrier. I had the advantage of knowing a bit of Chinese
as well. Although it was a bit weird hearing Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the
Caribbean speaking Chinese and Chinese only. That ride nevertheless was a lot
of fun but some rides that might have a lot of speaking, such as Storybook,
might be quite hard to enjoy due to the language disconnect. Given that I grew up with Disney being in English, some of
the Chinese did break some of the immersion. Despite that, I still had a really
enjoyable time and the language barrier will not take away any of the fun.
Clare and Fumi: Navigating
the park itself was easy as there was English signage everywhere, however, 80%
of the rides safety instructions were in Chinese and most attendants only spoke
in Chinese. For instance, when asking for number of riders or providing for
ride directions they automatically spoke in Chinese. As we knew enough Chinese,
we did not have a problem to move around rides and areas of the park, however
for those who do not, it might beneficial to have a translator app handy or
carry around an English Map which you can point too if wanting to go to a
specific area.
9 . Download the ‘Shanghai Disney Resort’ App
Clare and Fumi: Using the
app you can view an interactive version of the park map with ride wait times,
see show times and even purchase tickets. There is also free wifi throughout
the resort for those that don’t have international sim cards. However, a word
of warning, the explanation of tickets are not very clear on the app,
especially for those with limited understanding of the pricing system. We made
the costly mistake of purchasing a Disney Concierge Service (knowing we had a
very limited amount of time at the park) believing it came with a ticket, only
to be told at the gate entrance that we needed to purchase a ticket separately.
This wasn’t enough to dampen our experience, but I hope others can learn from
our mistakes! After we bought the Disney Concierge Service ticket an employee
provided us with an English map and told us what we should see first and at
what times which was helpful.
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| ©Clare and Fumi |
10. What
do you love about Disneyland?
Corbin: I loved the atmosphere, the
comparatively cheap price ($80 AUD for entrance and being about to do anything
for an entire day) and the fact that once you were in, you didn't have to pay.
Clare and Fumi: After
continuously hearing people say that Disneyland is ‘the happiest place on
Earth’, the day we had at Shanghai Disneyland really made us realise that it is
truly ‘the happiest place on Earth’.
It really feels like you’re in a magical place and every ride is unexpected in
what you may find or experience. We didn’t have time to spend a whole day at
Disney, but thankfully Pudong International Airport is only a 20 minute drive
away so we managed to squeeze it in before catching a flight that night, which
was handy because you’ll definitely want to have a Disney movie marathon after.
Well that’s what happened to us on the plane back anyway!
Thanks to Corbin, Clare and Fumi for taking the time to answering all my questions.
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| ©Clare and Fumi |
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