Heading to China August 2017

[simpleohio]

I have a few weeks off from work and I decided to go to China in August 2017 I booked a tour that starts in Shanghai and will eventually end in Beijing but I decided I want to go a few days earlier and go visit Disney. Once Beijing is over I was gonna fly to Hong Kong because I have a layover there anyway and visit Hong Kong for three or four nights and see the sights and also do Disney.

I land in Shanghai about 7 PM at night on a Thursday and my official tour starts on Monday so I have a few days on my own. I assume two days at Disney would be good. But I am going solo.

So here's my questions:

When I arrive in Shanghai should I go to a Disney hotel and stay there for two nights or should I go to my hotel which is somewhere in Shanghai that's part of my tour and just take public transportation to and from the park

The same thing for Hong Kong should I take public transportation from the hotel or stay at the Disney hotel for a night.

My fear is dragging my luggage around the city and getting lost with public transportation but then is it smarter to just focus on Disney then move and go to a different location and see the sights

If anybody has any advice I greatly appreciate it I've never traveled overseas by myself but I'm doing that massive tour but as I said above I'm trying to do a few days on my own on the pre-and post

 

[Agent 86]

To my general understanding, the train which runs to Shanghai Disney operates during shorter hours than the park opening hours (i.e. if you want to catch the last train, then you may need to leave Disneyland before it closes).

That may have already changed or could change as more people visit Shanghai Disneyland, but it's something you may want to consider if you want to be able to spend the maximum amount of time in the park. I think more hotels are opening around Shanghai Disney, so there may be a cheaper option than the two official Disney hotels.

Personally, I'm planning on staying at the Toy Story hotel next year when I visit Shanghai Disneyland. I want to ensure the maximum amount of time in the park and I'd also like time to spend in Disneytown.

As for Hong Kong, we had no trouble taking the train to and from the park each day. I don't recall ever needing to rush to catch the last train home.

 

[katt789]

Shanghai has more stuff opening closer to the resort, we did an AirBnB at 2 stops away (it seriously took us less time than getting back to Pop from Mk in Florida) and there was a hostel right there too. I'm not sure on the last train, we usually waited around the park at least an hour after close, or experienced Disneytown for a while and trains were always still running.

Hong Kong is FAR from the city, just know that, it might take you a while and at LEAST 2 transfers to get to the parks. HOWEVER, we were there last week and it didn't open until 10:30am and closed at 7:30pm nightly.

Either way, you would be find staying at hotels in the city and taking the train to & from the parks. Easier than lugging luggage around on the metro.

Do be advised, googlemaps is NOT the best bet when planning Shanghai, the metro expansion/Disney isn't even ON them, thanks to the firewall of China...use the Shanghai Metro app!!

 

[zanzibar138]

The problem with the train in Shanghai is if you're staying on one of the other lines (not the one that goes directly to Disney). Due to the short operating hours for trains, you may have to leave the park early to ensure that you get to your connecting station in time to get the last train departing from there. It wouldn't be a problem if you can stay somewhere along the Disney line, but there are not many hotels available along there yet (I'm sure there will be plenty popping up though!).

Both cities (ie Shanghai and HK) are pretty far away from DL via metro. If you're staying in the heart of the city, I'd allow an hour each way. However, the train systems in both cities are excellent, safe and very easy to use. I had no qualms travelling on my own (smallish blonde female), even at night.

Having said that, it is a bit of a pain lugging baggage around the stations. If you're doing SDL first, I would take a taxi straight there from the airport, and also consider taking a taxi from there to your hotel in the city. HK is not so bad, because the stations all have working escalators or lifts, but it's still worth considering getting a taxi if you have heavy or awkward luggage, especially if you're going straight from HKDL to the airport, as there is a considerable amount of backtracking involved if you take the train.

 

[BelleBway]

When I was in Shanghai earlier this month, the park closed much earlier than when it first opened so taking the train would not be a problem based on hours of operation. That said, I'd still recommend staying onsite especially if you want to visit the park for more than 1 day. I took the train back from the city to SDR and it took awhile, and was pretty crowded; I wouldn't want to take public transit round trip for 2 days in a row. But even beyond that, I thought both SDR hotels were fabulous and worth staying at.

HKDL feels closer to the city, even though transit isn't much quicker, and has shorter hours/ less need to absolutely arrive at rope drop. If you're only doing one day at the park, I'd consider it a toss up as to whether to stay in a hotel at the park or not. I spent 1.5 days at HKDL on my recent trip (and the other half day in the city) and decided to stay onsite for my 2 nights in the city because it was closer to the airport. But on other trips, I've done HKDL as a day trip and it was really easy. If I was spending most of my time seeing other parts of Hong Kong and only 1 day at HKDL, I'd probably get a hotel in the city and take public transit to the parks.

 

[simpleohio]

Here is what I decided to do

I land in Shanghai at 7 PM therefore I will go straight from the airport to a Disney hotel. Unfortunately I can't figure out booking because they're not available yet.

I figured I'll be at the hotel by 10 PM and be exhausted on a Thursday night. Disney Friday and Saturday. I will stay two or three nights at the hotel so that allows me to do two full days and then I will transfer to wear my host hotel is in the city for my tour. Basically say if I leave Disney on that Saturday by five or 6 PM then I'll just go to my hotel in Shanghai or I could just stay the night and do three nights total

Regarding Hong Kong I'm gonna do Disney Hong Kong on my very last day and stay in the city of my original hotel and do the trains. No matter how I looked at it. It's a pain to move hotels with luggage ha


Thoughts??

 

[zanzibar138]

If you're doing Disney on your last day, it makes sense to go straight from there to the airport. Going back into the city for your luggage then out to the airport again would take you close to 2 hours. Getting a taxi straight from Disney will take you about 20 minutes. If you're not keen on taking your luggage on the train, I think it would be worth getting a taxi out to Disney that morning, make your first stop their luggage storage area, then enjoy your day right up until the last minute

 

[Aviator621]

How much are taxi fares from SDL to downtown Shanghai, say, the Bund?