Just returned from an amazing trip to Asia! I haven't uploaded any pictures yet, but wanted to give a quick review about my experience at Hong Kong Disneyland.
This was the last part of our two week trip to Asia (the beginning of our trip was spent in Thailand - Bangkok and Phuket - which were AMAZING). After Thailand, we made our way to Hong Kong. We stayed on Hong Kong Island for a night to see a lot of the sights around that area, then went to Macau, and then finished our trip near Disney.
When I travel, in room wifi is a deal breaker for me, which is why we didn't stay on property at either of the HKDL hotels. Neither of them offer wifi in your guest room. So instead we stayed at the SkyCity Marriott, which was 10 minutes (or so) away from the park. The hotel offered a free shuttle to/from Disney (in addition to also offering a free shuttle to Big Buddha and the airport), which was fantastic.
I'm a HUGE Disney lover and have been to the parks in the US many times. This, however, was my first Disney experience abroad and I couldn't believe how similar, yet different it was!
I knew going in this the park would be small. Small may not even be the right word, tiny is more like it. Most of the park seems like a miniature replica of the Magic Kingdom in Disney World. Almost like it could fit inside two of the lands there. Everything was "cute."
The attractions were great. We were actually there the day Mystic Manor opened, which was exciting. I think its going to get compared to the Haunted Mansion because of it's style, but the ride itself isn't like the Haunted Mansion at all. The ride was shorter than I thought it was going to be. It looks big, but it's actually just the same room twice in a lot of instances so it can accommodate more cars. You essentially "travel" with the same four cars throughout the ride. It's the story of Henry Mystic and his pet monkey. They find a music box that brings inanimate objects to life. Overall, it was fun and we went on twice. One weird thing at the gift shop here is they sell items from rides that aren't at this park. It sort of just made me miss the "real" Disney.
I was sort of underwhelmed by Toy Story Land. I thought there was a lot of Toy Story in this park and while I like Toy Story, I don't LOVE it. The land sort of featured rides you'd find at a carnival and weren't Disney to me.
I loved the classics, - It's A Small World, Space Mountain, Jungle Cruise, etc. They weren't exactly the same, but similar enough to make me love them... and at the same time their differences kept me intrigued.
I REALLY loved Grizzy's Gulch. It's sort of a mix between Thunder Mountain and Mt. Everest. We went on it three times.
I also loved the Fantasy Gardens in Fantasyland - it was really easy to meet your favorite Disney characters here and the lines were short. In fact, the lines in general weren't bad.
A big disappointment for me was the food. I LOVE Disney World food - aside from offering food from all over the world, their selection is amazing and their sit down restaurants are not to be missed. I thought this was greatly lacking here. The food selection was slim and the dining options were "eh" at best. However, their supply of the infamous "Mickey pops" were endless and a huge win in my book. But seriously, where are those amazing specialty restaurants Disney offers?!
And, lastly, the weirdest attraction of all - myself. My husband and I felt like we were the main attractions. We were constantly being gawked at. You know the expression, "take a picture it'll last longer?"....well, they did. I was approached to take a picture WITH a couple of times, like I was some sort of celebrity, which I assure you, I am not. It was weird.
Overall, I loved this "mini" Disney. I would SO go back if it weren't for the 16 hour plane ride. However, I'm just fine with visiting Disneyland in CA and Disney World in FL... although, my next goal is to visit the Disney in Paris!
This was the last part of our two week trip to Asia (the beginning of our trip was spent in Thailand - Bangkok and Phuket - which were AMAZING). After Thailand, we made our way to Hong Kong. We stayed on Hong Kong Island for a night to see a lot of the sights around that area, then went to Macau, and then finished our trip near Disney.
When I travel, in room wifi is a deal breaker for me, which is why we didn't stay on property at either of the HKDL hotels. Neither of them offer wifi in your guest room. So instead we stayed at the SkyCity Marriott, which was 10 minutes (or so) away from the park. The hotel offered a free shuttle to/from Disney (in addition to also offering a free shuttle to Big Buddha and the airport), which was fantastic.
I'm a HUGE Disney lover and have been to the parks in the US many times. This, however, was my first Disney experience abroad and I couldn't believe how similar, yet different it was!
I knew going in this the park would be small. Small may not even be the right word, tiny is more like it. Most of the park seems like a miniature replica of the Magic Kingdom in Disney World. Almost like it could fit inside two of the lands there. Everything was "cute."
The attractions were great. We were actually there the day Mystic Manor opened, which was exciting. I think its going to get compared to the Haunted Mansion because of it's style, but the ride itself isn't like the Haunted Mansion at all. The ride was shorter than I thought it was going to be. It looks big, but it's actually just the same room twice in a lot of instances so it can accommodate more cars. You essentially "travel" with the same four cars throughout the ride. It's the story of Henry Mystic and his pet monkey. They find a music box that brings inanimate objects to life. Overall, it was fun and we went on twice. One weird thing at the gift shop here is they sell items from rides that aren't at this park. It sort of just made me miss the "real" Disney.
I was sort of underwhelmed by Toy Story Land. I thought there was a lot of Toy Story in this park and while I like Toy Story, I don't LOVE it. The land sort of featured rides you'd find at a carnival and weren't Disney to me.
I loved the classics, - It's A Small World, Space Mountain, Jungle Cruise, etc. They weren't exactly the same, but similar enough to make me love them... and at the same time their differences kept me intrigued.
I REALLY loved Grizzy's Gulch. It's sort of a mix between Thunder Mountain and Mt. Everest. We went on it three times.
I also loved the Fantasy Gardens in Fantasyland - it was really easy to meet your favorite Disney characters here and the lines were short. In fact, the lines in general weren't bad.
A big disappointment for me was the food. I LOVE Disney World food - aside from offering food from all over the world, their selection is amazing and their sit down restaurants are not to be missed. I thought this was greatly lacking here. The food selection was slim and the dining options were "eh" at best. However, their supply of the infamous "Mickey pops" were endless and a huge win in my book. But seriously, where are those amazing specialty restaurants Disney offers?!
And, lastly, the weirdest attraction of all - myself. My husband and I felt like we were the main attractions. We were constantly being gawked at. You know the expression, "take a picture it'll last longer?"....well, they did. I was approached to take a picture WITH a couple of times, like I was some sort of celebrity, which I assure you, I am not. It was weird.
Overall, I loved this "mini" Disney. I would SO go back if it weren't for the 16 hour plane ride. However, I'm just fine with visiting Disneyland in CA and Disney World in FL... although, my next goal is to visit the Disney in Paris!
