Phil's Adventures in Hong Kong Disneyland - April 2016 *new June 29th - link to PTR added*

[MarbleBob]

Love the photo with Woody tipping his hat as you enter Toy Story Land.

The RC Car ride looks a little strange from the distance, but I guess it's supposed to resemble those Hot Wheels tracks that we had as kids? Looks like fun though. There's a ride similar to that at Six Flags in St. Louis that has a similar effect when you are coming back down in the rain. Pretty cool.

The sidewalk on your close up photo of the rc ride looks like a slot car track. That's pretty cool!

Love that they did the videos for the Army Men ride in 8-bit style. Looks fun!

To be honest, I've never really paid much attention to HKDL, but the most I've known about it that Mystic Manor has the reputation of being incredibly awesome. The architecture on the outside of the building is just beyond amazing! Cool that you got to ride it twice in a row! I have to admit, I'm bit envious of you right now.

What, no dancing on the ride?!??!





That lunch looks pretty good, especially the tandoori chicken! The tray reminds me of what they used to serve us lunch on back in elementary school.



As always, looking forward to the next installments!

 

[TinkerbelleAbbysMom]

I'm following. I'm super excited to go to HKDl at the end of May after a week long grad school trip! Any quick tips you wish you had known before arrival aside from the different lands opening later? We will definitely only have one day at the end of the week. I'm just excited to squeeze a little Disney into the year!!!

 

[cheshiregoofy22]

Gosh I'm wicked late. Amazed as usual! So.very.cool! Maybe someday.....(yeah, right)!

 

[SarahDisney]

Toy Story land looks incredible! I think I'd be terrified of both rides (I'm not great with heights), but it sounds like just walking around and looking at the details is absolutely worth it.

Mystic Manor sounds amazing! I kinda wish they would bring it to the US ... but I'm also kinda happy with all of the parks having their own unique attractions. I'm really torn on that one.

That Indian themed room at Explorer's Club looks cool! I love the idea of having the different rooms themed to the different cuisines, that's really interesting.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Awesome tour of Toy Story Land and Mystic Manor.

It actually kind of gets me excited about what is to come in DHS. I'd like to see RC and the Green Army Men rides come over to DHS so I could try them out, but I'm also excited that they're focusing on making new attractions instead of just doing retreads of things they've already done.

Mystic Manor just looks awesome. I've heard of it, but I've never really seen what the premise was or seen any pictures from the ride. It does look pretty incredible. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks - they are definitely neat little lands, but they are rather small. Collectively the three lands (these two plus Grizzly Gulch) add a nice section to the park though. It does get me excited as well for Toy Story Land in DHS - though I suspect (and expect) it to be bigger ... the level of detail is great though. I am glad as well they are doing new rides - plus while these are nice/cute rides I don't think they are that amazing that they need to be everywhere

Mystic Manor on the otherhand is an amazing attraction. I like the parks being unique so not sure if I would want the exact same ride in the US, but something similar with that trackless system would be cool

Toy Story Land! It looks so cute! Makes me excited for the upcoming land at DHS. The 2 rides sounds like they were fun, especially the RC Racers.

The outside of Mystic Manor is so beautiful. I liked hearing your description of the ride and how its not just another Haunted Mansion. Sounds really cool!! Glad you got to do it twice.

It's definitely a cute and well themed land - and if they keep to this level of detail I think it will be great for the Toy Story Land coming to DHS (though I hope it is bigger, this was a pretty compact "land"). The RC Racer was pretty cool and something different - definitely a bit more "thrilling" than I was expecting.

Mystic Manor is great inside and out - hope my description made sense. I am glad we did it twice and that my co-worker was up for that! No wait helped matters

It is interesting to see Toy Story Land, especially since it is now coming to Florida. It does look very detailed from your pictures. Are there only two rides there? The one ride reminds me of the big ships that go back and forth at carnivals.

Looks pretty awesome from the outside!

Toy Story Land was really well detailed, though also quite compact and I expect the DHS version to be bigger. There was a third ride which was a slinky dog spinner but didn't seem like much fun in the rain

The RC Car ride is sort of like that pirate ship ride - or at least the result is a similar effect. The car is on a track though and it uses the magnet-launch system to increase your speed each way as you go higher each time

Mystic Manor is really cool from the outside - really draws you in!

I had the pleasure of seeing Mystic Manor in 2014. It's my favorite Disney attraction anywhere. It really shows what Imagineering is capable of particularly when they are free to create an original story. For a Disney Parks fan, it really is worth the trip.

I also loved the quick service next door. All the regional rooms are so unique. I remember eating in the India section. Loved the food. Loved the atmosphere.

Also the gift shop for Mystic Manor is very impressive. For anyone wanting attraction specific merch this is Mecca. I picked up a Mystic Manor music box - like the one Alfred opens. You open it and it plays the MM score. I love it!

We're heading there once again in the Oct 2017 ABD. I'm also looking forward to the new Iron Man experience as well.

Fully agree about Mystic Manor - just great creativity and new technology and combining fun and some thrills. The restaurant is great too and I liked that it was unique and lots of options but also pretty approachable - not super crazy stuff

That's cool you got the music box. I got a couple of plush Alberts for my kids, but there was a lot of neat stuff there!

That is awesome you are going on that ABD trip - really looks amazing. I had hopes Iron Man would be open for my trip, but no such luck. Really is going to make Tomorrowland even better once it opens! Cool that it is another unique attraction as well

 

[TheMaxRebo]

I'm really enjoying your report! This is a park I doubt I'll ever get to experience myself, so I'll have to visit vicariously through you!

Thank you! I never thought I would get there either so you new know but it was really neat and I am glad I got to experience it!

Hee hee hee - had to re-read this sentence again SLOOOOOWLY - I thought it said "The Iron MAIDEN" experience!

That would be an equally cool - yet rather different - experience

Love the photo with Woody tipping his hat as you enter Toy Story Land.

The RC Car ride looks a little strange from the distance, but I guess it's supposed to resemble those Hot Wheels tracks that we had as kids? Looks like fun though. There's a ride similar to that at Six Flags in St. Louis that has a similar effect when you are coming back down in the rain. Pretty cool.

The sidewalk on your close up photo of the rc ride looks like a slot car track. That's pretty cool!

Love that they did the videos for the Army Men ride in 8-bit style. Looks fun!

To be honest, I've never really paid much attention to HKDL, but the most I've known about it that Mystic Manor has the reputation of being incredibly awesome. The architecture on the outside of the building is just beyond amazing! Cool that you got to ride it twice in a row! I have to admit, I'm bit envious of you right now.

Yeah the Woody statue is pretty cool and he says lots of different things which is pretty neat. yeah, I think that is the idea with the RC ride - wouldn't have been my first choice or attractions to make based on Toy Story but it turned out to be cooler than I thought it would be. You can see the track from other lands though which I am generally not a fan of

I loved the 8-bit style video for the Parachute ride - just something unique and a little different and just fun!

Mystic Manor is one of the few things I knew about HKDL as well and glad to say that it totally lived up to the hype - really just a well done attraction!

What, no dancing on the ride?!??!



That lunch looks pretty good, especially the tandoori chicken! The tray reminds me of what they used to serve us lunch on back in elementary school.

As always, looking forward to the next installments!

At least Disney is consistent about not wanting dancing on their attractions

yeah, the trays were kinda fun - and did make it seem a little less fancy and more like a cafeteria ... but hey, the food was good and quick!

Thanks!

I'm following. I'm super excited to go to HKDl at the end of May after a week long grad school trip! Any quick tips you wish you had known before arrival aside from the different lands opening later? We will definitely only have one day at the end of the week. I'm just excited to squeeze a little Disney into the year!!!

Thanks for joining. That is great you are getting to HKDL! So I likely won't be done with this TR by then so some thoughts off the top of my head:

- Lots of character meets in Town Square, and that is where they are in the unique outfits. Lines are long, but it is one thing you can do before the rest of the lands open and they stopped meeting at 5pm (at least when we were there) so something to consider if you get there early to do first
- The show Mickey and the Wondrous Book we missed because they wound up not having the later two shows listed on the printed times guide so if you are interested I would go check the times on the sign out front earlier in the day. Also, we did try to make the last show and got there ~15 mins before it was to start and they were already full so get there early
- The Jungle Cruise (coming up next update) was kinda neat, but the skipper didn't speak great English and only had a few puns so the ride just didn't work for me - the ending is cool though (different from US parks). The line was kinda long to so if you are pressed for time probably one to skip (it's not bad or anything, but if you are prioritizing)
- If you an go on a weekday do so as I understand lines are longer on the weekends
- Autopia had some of the longest lines we saw - it was a neat version using electric cars, but again, if you are pressed for time might not be best use of your time
- Space Mountain is awesome and we never saw longer than 5 minute wait!
- Plan to line up a bit early for Paint the Night and then you can wait to watch the projection show/fire works. You don't need to be there hours early like at California Disneyland, but ~20 mins or so is good
- I liked eating at the Explorers restaurant and also Fantasy Faire in Fantasyland ... both had Asian food but good versions of it and had nice setting for eating in, lots of choices and reasonable priced.
- Keep an eye out for Storm Troopers in Tomorrowland


I'll let you know of anything else I can thing of and let me know of any questions you may have

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Gosh I'm wicked late. Amazed as usual! So.very.cool! Maybe someday.....(yeah, right)!

and no worries, just getting going! It was definitely cool and just different but familiar at the same time. I never thought I would get there so you never know!

Toy Story land looks incredible! I think I'd be terrified of both rides (I'm not great with heights), but it sounds like just walking around and looking at the details is absolutely worth it.

Mystic Manor sounds amazing! I kinda wish they would bring it to the US ... but I'm also kinda happy with all of the parks having their own unique attractions. I'm really torn on that one.

That Indian themed room at Explorer's Club looks cool! I love the idea of having the different rooms themed to the different cuisines, that's really interesting.

The theming of Toy Story Land was really cool ... those would definitely not be the best rides if you don't like heights. They did have a third ride which was a slinky dog spinning ride - it looked cute but wasn't appealing in the rain.

Mystic Manor was awesome! I too like that the parks have unique elements ... I'd like to see them bring something similar with similar technology to the US parks though - but with their own twist!

Yeah, the Explorer's Club was really cool - lots of good options and very nice setting and reasonable priced .... can't ask for much more!

 

[khertz]

Thanks for the heads up that you started this report! Sorry I'm a little late, but I made it.

Toy Story Land looks really cute! DS was looking at the pictures as I scrolled through and asking why we hadn't gone there yet. lol

Mystic Manor sounds really awesome! I really liked the trackless riding system at the Ratatouille ride at DLP, so a Haunted Mansion type ride with the same thing seems like it would be really cool.

 

[AngelDisney]

Thank you! I never thought I would get there either so you new know but it was really neat and I am glad I got to experience it!



That would be an equally cool - yet rather different - experience




Yeah the Woody statue is pretty cool and he says lots of different things which is pretty neat. yeah, I think that is the idea with the RC ride - wouldn't have been my first choice or attractions to make based on Toy Story but it turned out to be cooler than I thought it would be. You can see the track from other lands though which I am generally not a fan of

I loved the 8-bit style video for the Parachute ride - just something unique and a little different and just fun!

Mystic Manor is one of the few things I knew about HKDL as well and glad to say that it totally lived up to the hype - really just a well done attraction!



At least Disney is consistent about not wanting dancing on their attractions

yeah, the trays were kinda fun - and did make it seem a little less fancy and more like a cafeteria ... but hey, the food was good and quick!

Thanks!




Thanks for joining. That is great you are getting to HKDL! So I likely won't be done with this TR by then so some thoughts off the top of my head:

- Lots of character meets in Town Square, and that is where they are in the unique outfits. Lines are long, but it is one thing you can do before the rest of the lands open and they stopped meeting at 5pm (at least when we were there) so something to consider if you get there early to do first
- The show Mickey and the Wondrous Book we missed because they wound up not having the later two shows listed on the printed times guide so if you are interested I would go check the times on the sign out front earlier in the day. Also, we did try to make the last show and got there ~15 mins before it was to start and they were already full so get there early
- The Jungle Cruise (coming up next update) was kinda neat, but the skipper didn't speak great English and only had a few puns so the ride just didn't work for me - the ending is cool though (different from US parks). The line was kinda long to so if you are pressed for time probably one to skip (it's not bad or anything, but if you are prioritizing)
- If you an go on a weekday do so as I understand lines are longer on the weekends
- Autopia had some of the longest lines we saw - it was a neat version using electric cars, but again, if you are pressed for time might not be best use of your time
- Space Mountain is awesome and we never saw longer than 5 minute wait!
- Plan to line up a bit early for Paint the Night and then you can wait to watch the projection show/fire works. You don't need to be there hours early like at California Disneyland, but ~20 mins or so is good
- I liked eating at the Explorers restaurant and also Fantasy Faire in Fantasyland ... both had Asian food but good versions of it and had nice setting for eating in, lots of choices and reasonable priced.
- Keep an eye out for Storm Troopers in Tomorrowland


I'll let you know of anything else I can thing of and let me know of any questions you may have

Thanks for the great tips!
They are very helpful indeed!!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Thanks for the heads up that you started this report! Sorry I'm a little late, but I made it.

Toy Story Land looks really cute! DS was looking at the pictures as I scrolled through and asking why we hadn't gone there yet. lol

Mystic Manor sounds really awesome! I really liked the trackless riding system at the Ratatouille ride at DLP, so a Haunted Mansion type ride with the same thing seems like it would be really cool.

Glad you are here!

Toy Story Land was very cute, but rather small and cramped - definitely hope DHS version is bigger. Just tell DS that you will get there at some point (just have to wait for it to be built at DHS)

Mystic Manor really is awesome! Very cool ride system and hope they bring that aspect to a U.S. park

Thanks for the great tips!
They are very helpful indeed!!

No problem! If you think of any questions, don't hesitate to ask!

 

[TiggerTrigger]

Late to the party, but enjoying the TR. Very happy to see the no dancing rule also applies at HKDL. Mystic Manor looks incredibly cool. Not sure if we'd ever have occasion to go to Hong Kong, so cool to see a TR. Can't wait to read more!

 

[Imagineer5]

I have done zero research into HK DL so this is all new to me! The Toy Story stuff is the same as at Disneyland Paris (though we didn't ride them - since I was preggo). Mystic Manor looks really really cool! Love both the outside and the idea of the ride. Lunch looks great too, nice they have some really great options and wonderful theming.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Late to the party, but enjoying the TR. Very happy to see the no dancing rule also applies at HKDL. Mystic Manor looks incredibly cool. Not sure if we'd ever have occasion to go to Hong Kong, so cool to see a TR. Can't wait to read more!

Thank you! It would be unfair if they were allowed to dance and we weren't.

Mystic Manor really was incredible - they did a great job!

I have done zero research into HK DL so this is all new to me! The Toy Story stuff is the same as at Disneyland Paris (though we didn't ride them - since I was preggo). Mystic Manor looks really really cool! Love both the outside and the idea of the ride. Lunch looks great too, nice they have some really great options and wonderful theming.

Well, it was pretty new to me too I had tried to do a little research but definitely not as much out there for prep as there is for the States parks.

Interesting to know the Toy Story Lands are the same. The rides were fun but I wouldn't call them "must dos" - the theming was great though!

And speaking of themeing, everything connected to Mystic Point is just top notch in that regards. Lots of great food options at Hong Kong Disneyland. A lot of it was Asian, but it wasn't all just Chinese - lot's of other types (Indian, etc.)

 

[SoarinSC]

First timer! glad to be aboard! the Tandoori Chicken and Lamb Curry NOOOM!!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

First timer! glad to be aboard! the Tandoori Chicken and Lamb Curry NOOOM!!

Thanks for comin' aboard! The food was pretty darn nom!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Chapter 5 - I don't find this punny at all!​

After experiencing Mystic Manor and having some yummy lunch we headed back into the park proper and went down into Adventureland as we wanted to head towards the Festival of the Lion King theater to see the show. We had some time and we decided to go on the Jungle Cruise as we passed it on the way

In my (somewhat limited) research for this trip, I came to understand that this ride at Hong Kong Disneyland was offered in multiple languages - but had heard that the English of the English skippers wasn't the best and that it was better to just do the Cantonese version. I had trouble believing that as I wouldn't understand anything of what was being said - but afterwards I came to understand the comment.

This was one of the longer lines we encountered (took about ~25 mins) and also where we encountered some expert line cutters. This father and son behind us were just so skilled and casual and friendly about it that we didn't really comprehend that they had cut us in line until they were fully past us. It was almost like we were too impressed by their skills to be upset by it.

Anyway, we eventually got onto our boat and they really pack you in here! The cruise started with the Skipper repeatedly telling everyone to "sit down! Thank you!"

​

He then told us to "see those people on line? Raise you hand ... now wave good bye, you never see them again" ... we then rode past the dock for the rafts to Tarzan's Treehouse and he said "see those people on the dock? Raise your hand ... now wave good bye, you never see them again" .... we then rode past Tarzan's Treehouse and he said "see those people by the treehouse? Raise your hand ... now wave, you never see them again"

​

.... and that was basically the extent of the puns. The only things else he would say was to point out the elephants and say which was brother or mother or sister or whatever and then about 20 more times would remind people to "Sit down! Thank you!"

So I don't think my co-worker got the true Jungle Cruise experience.

​

The one thing that was cool was at the end a wall of water shoots up and redirects the boat and there is this outcropping you get stopped and get to see it fire and water spray out - almost like it was coming to life:

​

After this, um, adventure, we headed towards the Festival of the Lion King theater, about 20mins or so before the next show started:

​

There is a sizable outside waiting area beyond the above entrance and we definitely got to experience the difference in views on personal space. Saw lots of people angling between people, pushing a little to get ahead. Also had these 3 fairly elderly ladies squeeze into a very small spot right in front of us and then started backing up into us and then gave us dirty looks like we did something wrong.

I discussed this with some people in my company's office afterward and they said this was likely people from mainland China and just the views on personal space and cutting lines is very different there than in other cultures, and they were somewhat interested to see how this shakes out when Shanghai Disney opens. Well, it's not even open yet and some of those stories of people vandalizing lamp posts and traipsing through planters and stuff in the area out front of the park clearly seems to show this will be an issue.

Once in the theater we got seated and they had these 3 drummers/performers entertain the crowd as it assembled. They would go to each section and have them play a repeat game where we had to clap back the beat they played on the drums or hand motions or something and try to trick us. They were really entertaining and was a fun way to pass the time:

​

Coming up next, way too many pictures of Festival of the Lion King!

 

[amberg93]

Eww, I can't say that I'm feeling all the rain. However, it looks like you did make the best of it.

Toy Story land looks really cool and RC Racers are something from DLP that have always looked fun to me, so it's nice that they have them there as well. Though, I'd have probably avoided it in the rain because it seems like the rain might hurt a little when it hits you.

Mystic Manor sounds incredible. Of course it makes me really sad that they don't have a Haunted Mansion attraction (because it is the best) but I think I'd really enjoy it too from what you've said about the cool trackless ride system and the idea behind it.

Way to go self, I posted my comment as you posted an update.

Eek, that sounds like a not fun Jungle Cruise at all, which is very sad for your co-worker.

Wow, I understand cultures being different but I don't know how well I'd handle people not respecting my personal space.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Chapter 6 - Festival of the Lion King​

Then the show started proper. I wasn't quite sure what to expect but it has a bit of a different set up than the version at Animal Kingdom. The floats are more mobile and move around more and the center part of the stage was really cool as it had different sections that could rise up to different height and also the whole thing could spin

We were seated next to the float that had the animatronic Simba on it and I thought it was cool that throughout the performance he was always moving a little (eye blinking, tail moving, he would sway a bit) - thought it was neat they kept it up and not just when the focus on was on him

Here's a bunch of pictures!

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The picture didn't come out great but they had this really nice part with a performer suspended and another used a piece of fabric to spin her around and stuff:

​

They also had cool fire performers - they also "ate" the fire which always freaks me out to see:

​

At the end all the floats were brought into the middle and it all spun around:

​

All in all I really like the show. Very similar but different enough from the Animal Kingdom version to warrant a viewing. My co-worker definitely was impressed with it too!

After that we went back to Main St. to get ready for the parade. Unfortunately the rain was too much so they did the Rainy Day Express instead - which was short, but cute and I appreciated they had something unique with the train just used for this alternate parade:

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And the characters on the last train were looking cute in their rain gear (unfortunately Mickey and Minnie were facing the other way):

​

coming up next - meeting the Big Cheese himself!

TTFN

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Eww, I can't say that I'm feeling all the rain. However, it looks like you did make the best of it.

Toy Story land looks really cool and RC Racers are something from DLP that have always looked fun to me, so it's nice that they have them there as well. Though, I'd have probably avoided it in the rain because it seems like the rain might hurt a little when it hits you.

Mystic Manor sounds incredible. Of course it makes me really sad that they don't have a Haunted Mansion attraction (because it is the best) but I think I'd really enjoy it too from what you've said about the cool trackless ride system and the idea behind it.

Way to go self, I posted my comment as you posted an update.

Eek, that sounds like a not fun Jungle Cruise at all, which is very sad for your co-worker.

Wow, I understand cultures being different but I don't know how well I'd handle people not respecting my personal space.

Yeah, the rain was annoying but for much of the time it wasn't too bad so we could still get around the park and it would clear up around 5pm or so - in time for the night time entertainment which was key!

The RC Racer was pretty fun and a bit bigger and better than I was expecting ... the rain was kinda neat but also did sting a bit.

Yeah, it is a bit of a bummer that they don't have a Haunted Mansion which I think is why some people refer to Mystic Manor as their Haunted Mansion, but it is quite a bit different. The ride is absolutely cool though!

Well, I posted another update while you were commenting so we both did awesome I guess

The Jungle Cruise was still pretty fun but just not what I was expecting and not what I love about the Jungle Cruise. Given the wait time too if you are visiting and time is short I think it would be ok to skip it ... the ending was pretty cool though!

Yeah, it threw me a bit too as far as the different view of personal space. I too get that cultures are different but hard to get used to a culture where something that is considered quite rude by most other cultures is considered ok - and even admirable to try and cut lines as it shows you are trying to get ahead, etc.

 

[Leshaface]

I'm all over this! Will be back to catch up!