First time in HK Disneyland. Any help appreciated.

[travelbug25]

Hi everyone,

I've been lurking these forums for a while and am a massive Disney fan. Really hoping someone here can help us with our upcoming Disney trip

I've just booked our trip for April 9th and 10th and was wondering if anyone has any feedback on crowd levels during our visit. Its mid week so I'm hoping its not too bad but the lady I spoke to when we booked our hotel mentioned that occupancy is rather high which got me worried.

Also would appreciate any guidance on meal prices in the parks. Am looking at the 3 in 1 meal voucher and wondering if it makes sense. We'll be 2 adults and 2 kids (3 and 5)

Our kids just started pin trading and love it. Can anyone confirm if pin trading is still available in HK Disneyland. I've seen in some previous posts that most cast members wear lanyards but just wanted to check that this is still practiced as they were quite disappointed that pin trading wasn't available in Tokyo. Just want to manage expectations.

Thanks in advance for all your help

 

[PrincessInOz]

Welcome to the Disboards and Happy Planning!

Hi everyone,

I've been lurking these forums for a while and am a massive Disney fan. Really hoping someone here can help us with our upcoming Disney trip

My information is from 2012; so you may need to factor in some increase in price etc.

I've just booked our trip for April 9th and 10th and was wondering if anyone has any feedback on crowd levels during our visit. Its mid week so I'm hoping its not too bad but the lady I spoke to when we booked our hotel mentioned that occupancy is rather high which got me worried.

You're there about the same time I was in 2012. In early April, there is the Ching Ming festival. I checked the calendar and it falls on the 4th - 5th April. The year that I was there, it was rather busy in the park because this meant that Mainland China was on holiday. I don't know if it is the same this year or not; but you would think that the 9th and 10th was far enough away from the Ching Ming days for it not to affect your trip.
In any event, this time of year corresponds with Aussie school holidays and you may find that the occupancy rate might be higher as a result.

Also would appreciate any guidance on meal prices in the parks. Am looking at the 3 in 1 meal voucher and wondering if it makes sense. We'll be 2 adults and 2 kids (3 and 5)

I took a quick look at the 3 in 1 meal voucher. It was HK$208; and includes lunch, dinner (both with drinks) and a snack. Personally, I think that's line ball on the slightly pricey side; but that's me. I remember buying lunch (rice or noodles) at Comet Cafe for about HK$60. The food at Clopin was very similar to Comet. We weren't interested in hamburgers; so I don't remember checking out the Starliner menu. The food at Tahitian was a little higher; but not much more.

This will come down to whether you think you will eat lunch and dinner in the park; or if you may head back to the resort to eat there instead.

For What it's Worth. We ate breakfast at Walt's and paid around HK$180. As it was a rather filling meal, we probably did a snack at noon and then had either a late lunch or early dinner in the park for about HK$60. I think we did snacks from the resort for one of the nights we were there. Can't remember how much.

That deal doesn't include breakfast. And your kids are younger. Not sure if you have to buy them the meal deal as well.

It's completely up to you; but for me, I would keep the cash and use it how I wanted rather than tying yourself to the park counter service places.

Our kids just started pin trading and love it. Can anyone confirm if pin trading is still available in HK Disneyland. I've seen in some previous posts that most cast members wear lanyards but just wanted to check that this is still practiced as they were quite disappointed that pin trading wasn't available in Tokyo. Just want to manage expectations.

Thanks in advance for all your help

I don't pin trade so I can't comment on this. There are some posts on this subforum which indicates that they do.




Have fun with your trip!

 

[travelbug25]

Thanks so much PrincessInOz. I think we will do what you said and just buy the meals in the park itself since it sounds like its not that much of a discount. I'm really hoping that we won't be too affected by the Qing Ming crowd being there mid week. I only barely managed to sell this trip to hubby as I convinced him there were no holidays in HK or China and therefore should be fairly quiet. We were in Disney California in January and it was packed. Fingers crossed.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Thanks so much PrincessInOz. I think we will do what you said and just buy the meals in the park itself since it sounds like its not that much of a discount. I'm really hoping that we won't be too affected by the Qing Ming crowd being there mid week. I only barely managed to sell this trip to hubby as I convinced him there were no holidays in HK or China and therefore should be fairly quiet. We were in Disney California in January and it was packed. Fingers crossed.

Just remember that there is no where else to eat except at the Resorts or in the parks; unless you head out of the HKDL area.

If you are staying on-site, you could look at CL pricing and work out if that is a good deal for you or not. I understand that they do offer a decent enough breakfast and offer snacks in the evening; plus drinks during the day. If you were thinking about locking in some of your food, this might be a better option. At the very least, it could be a better option than accommodation plus the 3-in-1 deal. Plus; if you looked at getting one of the APs, you might end up with a decent discount on the accommodation to make it worthwhile. It would be worth running the numbers to check out if any of the options would be better for you and your family.


I enjoyed my holiday in Hong Kong. If you are heading into the city as well, I wish you a happy holiday....and low crowds. Hope you'll update us on how it went on your return.

 

[Minnie222]

This year's Ching Ming Festival falls on April 5th. Your dates of April 9 and 10 should not be affected. Crowd should not be too high on those days.

Pin trading is available in HK Disneyland. CMs wear lanyards and also have pins on the bags they wear. You can trade with them. There are not too many visitors wearing lanyards with pins though.

While pin trading with the CMs, you can ask the CMs for free stickers. They have many different styles to give out. The CMs at the shop cashier has stickers too. Just ask (even if you are not buying something). Don't miss out on this!!

Regarding food, I suggest to just buy your meals directly at the park (not vouchers). The voucher price doesn't save you anything. The restaurant at Mystic Point is a very nice quick service restaurant with great food. I suggest that for lunch.

 

[bswift]

Does the festival mean mainland China will be on holidays for the whole week (before the 5th)? I'll be there on the 1st and 2nd of April. I figured we'd be safe since it's midweek.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Does the festival mean mainland China will be on holidays for the whole week (before the 5th)? I'll be there on the 1st and 2nd of April. I figured we'd be safe since it's midweek.

You might be okay. Have a great trip.

We were at HKDL before Ching Ming. It was busy on one of the days but we were a lot closer to Ching Ming (like 1 or 2 days before) than you are.

 

[dee slack]

Does the festival mean mainland China will be on holidays for the whole week (before the 5th)? I'll be there on the 1st and 2nd of April. I figured we'd be safe since it's midweek.

we'll be there the afternoon of the 31st March and also full day 1st April. We are staying at the Hollywood (31st March and 1st April, check out 2nd April) - are you also onsite?

 

[bswift]

we'll be there the afternoon of the 31st March and also full day 1st April. We are staying at the Hollywood (31st March and 1st April, check out 2nd April) - are you also onsite?

No I'm tagging along on my Dad's business trip so we're staying at the Prudential Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui.

 

[travelbug25]

Thanks Minnie222 for the tips on the stickers. I'm sure the kids will really love that too. They can't seem to have enough stickers Am really glad to hear that CMs wear lanyards with pins. The kids started it for the first time this Christmas while in California and it added such a fun dimension to the holiday. Thanks again everyone for the great advise and feedback. Really excited about our trip.

 

[bswift]

Just saw that the train is now closed until they open the Iron Man Experience. I was looking forward to a relaxing ride on the train!

 

[YukiPhnx]

Just saw that the train is now closed until they open the Iron Man Experience. I was looking forward to a relaxing ride on the train!

When I went on the train ride in the beginning of Jan, we were not allowed to take a round trip ride. We got on at Main Street and had to get off at Fantasyland =(

 

[travelbug25]

Thanks all for your advise. We just got back from our trip and loved it. Have posted a short trip report. Haven't downloaded photos yet so unfortunately its a text post