SDL Opening Day - I'm In!

[zanzibar138]

So we had a bit of a mix-up with my flights. DH swore black and blue that he booked that Qantas special for me while I was at work, but when I asked for the documents so I could start putting it all together, there was no sign of it, and no money had come out of any of our accounts or credit cards. Not exactly sure what he did, but it wasn't booking it lol! Luckily there was still plenty of time, and it gave me the opportunity to sneak in a little trip to Perth too! These Singapore Airlines flights are a little more expensive than the original Qantas ones, but the timing is pretty much perfect. I have yet to book my flight to Perth - will just go with whatever's cheapest, it doesn't really matter what day it is.

So Wednesday (well, Tuesday night really), I will be leaving Perth at about 1am on a flight to Singapore. Hang around in Singapore for a couple of hours, then hop on another flight to Shanghai, arriving just after lunch. Since I'll now have all afternoon in Shanghai, I'm actually considering ditching my AirBNB and booking a hotel a bit closer to town near a metro station instead so I can get around a bit easier.

My flight home will depart just after midnight on the Saturday night (so technically the Sunday morning), arriving in Singapore at about 6am. I'll have really just enough time to transfer to my flight to Melbourne, which will arrive just after 5pm on Sunday night. Then back to work on Monday...

 

[Royal Consort]

. I'll have really just enough time to transfer to my flight to Melbourne, which will arrive just after 5pm on Sunday night. Then back to work on Monday...

My dramatic Friday statement: returning to work directly following a Disney trip is like a dagger through your soul.

 

[zanzibar138]

My dramatic Friday statement: returning to work directly following a Disney trip is like a dagger through your soul.

Not so concerned about the Disney part of the trip as the 'no sleep' part of the trip with economy red eye flights at either end lol! Because of course I will be lining up for entry well before entry each day and staying until closing, and trying to fit in touring both hotels, Disney Town and Wishing Star Park in between

 

[zanzibar138]

We've got a sneak peek of the SDL menu... (all pics taken from the interwebs of course)





And here's their take on waffles...



It seems like there's going to be a much bigger emphasis on 'Disneyfying' meals than I've seen at other parks, but I'm not sure why they've chosen to forgo the classic Mickey waffle for a Donald ring-in

 

[PrincessInOz]

food looks great!

Glad you got your flights sorted.....eventually.

 

[zanzibar138]

Wow the time is just flying by!

SDL has now been opened for CM previews (you may have seen the photos/videos flying around on social media). No POV videos from rides yet, but there's plenty of buzz surrounding the Tron Lightcycles coaster which is up and running already! I've also seen photos from the explorer canoes, and Soarin'. Not sure which other rides are open yet, but it's definitely looking good for the official opening day I suspect I will have to wait longer than 10 minutes to ride Tron though

I just got off the phone with Disney reservations, where I confirmed all my hotels and tickets (the money has finally come out of my account!), and booked a character breakfast at Lumiere's at 6:45am on the Friday. Depending on what happens on the Thursday, I may ditch the breakfast in favour of being at the park for rope drop, but they're already booked out for the 6:30am slot, so I'm glad I've got it locked in. Found out some more about logistics while I was on the phone. The park will open at 12 noon on the Thursday, and 8am on the Friday and Saturday. It will be closing at 10pm every day that I'm there, so I'm gonna have some long days! I also confirmed that I will be able to drop off my luggage before going to the park on Opening Day.

I have done my visa application, but not lodged it yet. It was getting a bit hard with the AirB&B room on my first night - you need a letter of invitation if you're not staying at a hotel, and the hotels will also take care of visitor registration, which needs to be done within 24 hours of arrival. So with all that in mind, I have booked a basic hotel right near a metro station one stop away from the Maglev for about $80. It's a bit hard to figure out commuting times since there isn't much information around yet about the Disneyland extension to the metro, but I estimate it will take around 45 minutes to get there which was pretty much the most convenient I could find. There is another hotel in this same vicinity which is actually offering Disney packages (not sure if it's going to be an official 'good neighbour' hotel or anything) - the Dorsett Shanghai. I was tempted to stay there so I could do a review of it, but it was a bit over budget (around $180 per night for a basic room).

I also booked my flight to Perth today, and will have 4 nights there on the way. I wasn't planning to spend so much time there, but it was a lot cheaper to fly out on the Friday night, and since I don't need to pay for accommodation or anything, it made sense to take that flight. On the plus side, I'll have plenty of time to spend with my family!

Wow it's starting to get exciting!

 

[zanzibar138]

Visa application is done and dusted and on its way - fingers crossed that all goes smoothly!

The updates are coming in thick and fast now! Looks like all rides are up and running except for the rapids ride. There are plenty of POV videos around now and some of the rides look amazing - can't wait for Tron and Pirates! The shows are all ready too, except I haven't seen any fireworks yet. The parade looks a bit lame - I won't waste too much time on that - but the other shows are looking pretty good. Haven't seen anything for the Pirates stunt show yet. It's all looking fantastic, but of course it is CM previews, so the crowds are minimal and the visitors have a vested interest in actually looking after the park. I'm kind of sad that *so* many people get to see the park before Opening Day, but I'm sure it will still be a special day with lots of atmosphere and ceremony! Having said that, I am pleased that they have given themselves so much time to iron out any major bugs before officially opening.

 

[PrincessInOz]

I'm avoiding seeing anything of Shanghai just yet. I know it'll make me wanna go!!!

 

[zanzibar138]

I'm avoiding seeing anything of Shanghai just yet. I know it'll make me wanna go!!!

Maybe you should unsubscribe from this thread then

 

[zanzibar138]

Duplicate post

 

[PrincessInOz]

Maybe you should unsubscribe from this thread then

I wanna see it through your TR!

 

[zanzibar138]

The news is coming out thick and fast from the weekend's soft opening previews for CMs. Apparently there were around 10,000 people in the park, and wait times were an hour or more on several attractions. The park's capacity is estimated to be around 60,000, and tickets have sold out for 2 out of the 3 days that I will be there (and I'd be very surprised if the other day doesn't sell out within the next month!). Plus, everyone who was at the previews would have had a vested interest in the park and been 'well-behaved'. With 6 times as many guests, wait times are certainly going to be interesting...

Having said that, apparently every attraction has FP and a single rider line. I assume FP will be the same as at DLR, in which case I will be gathering as many as possible, as well as taking advantage of single rider lines. With 60,000 guests and only a handful of major attractions, I'm guessing that FPs will go fast once the locals start to understand the system. In the meantime though, the general consensus is that many people will not understand or utilise FP, so hopefully that will work in my favour. It's also been widely acknowledged that the Chinese are less likely to use single rider, so maybe I'll do ok with rides! On the plus side, there are plenty of garden areas and shows to help even out the crowds, so although attraction/character/food wait times may be on the longer side, it might not actually feel so sardine like just walking around.

 

[Agent 86]

@ zanzibar138

I haven't been following all of the news about the expectations for local behaviour at Shanghai Disneyland, however I have been to China twice. I would recommend being prepared for ... disorganised and crowded lines. On both of my trips, the tour guide advised that the local don't intend to be, to Western appearance, rude when lining up. It's just part of their culture. In particular, they leave very, very little space between people. And if you leave a "space" between yourself and someone in front of you, a local person may try to jump into that space (i.e. what would be line cutting in a Western country) because they view it as wasted / free space. They're also very boisterous and noisy when in line and if a new line opens up, they will exercise a degree of force to get into it.

I'm not sure how they will ... tolerate dedicated Fast Pass or single rider lines which, to them, appear to be going to waste. I presume that the signage and cast members will be very clear about those lines, but you could still encounter issues. For example, on both of our trips, we sometimes got to take advantage of shorter, separate "tour group" lines. When the locals saw our tour group heading to a "new" line / entrance, they would often flock around us expecting to be able to utilise the same line / entrance.

Some of these issues, when combined with local customs (e.g. openly spitting on the ground and allowing small children to go to the toilet in public areas) can contribute to a bit of culture shock. Of course, they're all normal standards for the locals, so that needs to be kept in mind. And I would imagine that Disney will do what it can to ensure that the park runs in an efficient and fair manner.

 

[zanzibar138]

Don't worry Agent 86, I'm totally prepared for the culture shock. I've been around enough Chinese tour groups in my time to know what to expect You get a bit of it at HKDL too. TBH I'm a bit worried about the actual opening. I'm planning to get there good and early to line up as close to the front as possible, but I know that when the gates open, I'll struggle to hold my spot and will probably end up right at the back of the crowd

Good point about the 'wasted space' thing though - I hadn't thought of it that way before, it might actually help me to not feel so rude about not giving the people in front of me any personal space! And also good point about the confusion around FP/single rider lines - I will be sure to add that to the list of things to be mentally prepared for

 

[zanzibar138]

OMG I just saw a whole ride video of POTC and it looks AMAZING! It's kind of like they crossed POTC with Transformers - lots of projections as well as props and animatronics. Can't wait to ride it!

 

[zanzibar138]

For anyone following along here, I need some help! I can't decide on what to do for dining. I actually wasn't planning to waste any park time on table service, but now I'm thinking it may be the best way to meet some characters, and if I time it right could be a nice break from the crowds and the heat in the afternoon.

The character breakfast at Lumiere's is doing my head in! It made sense to me to do it Friday morning since I will already be at the Shanghai Disneyland Hotel, and I was originally thinking that I could be done in the plenty of time for rope drop. However, I wasn't expecting the park to open at 8am, and it will be a rush if I can't start breakfast until 6:45am. Also, staying on concierge means I can just grab a free breakfast from the lounge that morning, which I feel I should take advantage of having paid so much for the room! I thought about changing my ressie to a later meal, maybe mid-afternoon, but then I'd be wasting time going back and forth. Thoughts?

I'm thinking of trying to book castle dining for my last day, hopefully mid afternoon. Being actually within the park, the only 'wasted' time will be while I'm actually in the restaurant, and I think I will appreciate the break. Plus, I'm planning to Disneybound as Cinderella on this day, so that could work out well I'm still not convinced though. I've never really done proper dining on my own before either, and not sure how uncomfortable it will make me.

Definitely happy to hear any other suggestions people may have. I'm sure all the WDW regulars are all over dining logistics!

 

[PrincessInOz]

If breakfast at Lumiere is going to be a rush, I would skip it and grab the free breakfast. But I would hate to give up on food porn and character pictures in your TR....

 

[Tigerlily75]

Following along, have a great trip and I can't wait to hear all about it!

 

[zanzibar138]

I'm still trying to work out logistics... Here are some of the many thoughts buzzing around in my head right now.

* When on earth am I going to get time to explore Disney Town and Wishing Star Lake? I might have to do a 'trial run' on the train on Wednesday afternoon to have a look around.
* Having spent so much on my room at the Shanghai Disneyland Hotel, it's killing me to think that I'll get back from the park after 10pm, and be back up and out the door by 6:30am in the morning. I'd love to be able to check out the hotel in a bit more detail and actually take advantage of the club lounge.
* I'm thinking of taking PIO's advice and ditching breakfast at Lumiere's. I've heard the characters will be Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Pluto. However, if I hear that they're wearing special outfits, I'll be disappointed to have missed out!
* I'm really not that interested in princesses, but hoping that being China they might include Mulan in the rotation for castle dining. I'm thinking since this is within the park, and especially within the castle, it's probably worth doing anyway.
* I may have to rethink my idea to take a tiny bag with just enough room for my money, ticket and camera. I'm not expecting it to be warm enough for a jacket, but I may have to carry am umbrella. Perhaps a cheap disposable poncho would fit in my tiny bag. If I need a cardi, I'll have to go back to the hotel to get it.
* Why oh why are Disney not opening until 12 on the first day??? It means I have a whole 1/2 day less than I was expecting!
* Now I'm thinking I should try to experience all the major attractions twice. Once just to enjoy and take everything in, and once more to take photos for my TR. Not sure how likely it is that I'll have time for that though!

I do have one less major thing to worry about now though - got my passport back from the Chinese visa office yesterday with my Chinese visa in it

 

[PrincessInOz]

I'm still trying to work out logistics... Here are some of the many thoughts buzzing around in my head right now.

* When on earth am I going to get time to explore Disney Town and Wishing Star Lake? I might have to do a 'trial run' on the train on Wednesday afternoon to have a look around.
* Having spent so much on my room at the Shanghai Disneyland Hotel, it's killing me to think that I'll get back from the park after 10pm, and be back up and out the door by 6:30am in the morning. I'd love to be able to check out the hotel in a bit more detail and actually take advantage of the club lounge.
* I'm thinking of taking PIO's advice and ditching breakfast at Lumiere's. I've heard the characters will be Mickey, Minnie, Goofy and Pluto. However, if I hear that they're wearing special outfits, I'll be disappointed to have missed out!
* I'm really not that interested in princesses, but hoping that being China they might include Mulan in the rotation for castle dining. I'm thinking since this is within the park, and especially within the castle, it's probably worth doing anyway.
* I may have to rethink my idea to take a tiny bag with just enough room for my money, ticket and camera. I'm not expecting it to be warm enough for a jacket, but I may have to carry am umbrella. Perhaps a cheap disposable poncho would fit in my tiny bag. If I need a cardi, I'll have to go back to the hotel to get it.
* Why oh why are Disney not opening until 12 on the first day??? It means I have a whole 1/2 day less than I was expecting!
* Now I'm thinking I should try to experience all the major attractions twice. Once just to enjoy and take everything in, and once more to take photos for my TR. Not sure how likely it is that I'll have time for that though!

I do have one less major thing to worry about now though - got my passport back from the Chinese visa office yesterday with my Chinese visa in it

YAY for getting your passport back.

Breathe in, breathe out. Shanghai isn't going anywhere. It's also a lot closer to get to than any of the US parks. I'm pretty sure you'll be heading back. Just enjoy being there on opening day. Afterall, who knows what the crowds and logistics are going to be like, right?