Shanghai Advice

[Spork24]

We are planning to stop in Shanghai for 2 days on our return to the States from Cambodia in March. We arrive late at night at a Tuesday, and depart Friday evening for the US. Our primary goal is to visit Disneyland, however we would like to take some time seeing the city. I am leaning towards staying at the Disneyland hotel. I am looking for any and all recommendations, but have some specific questions/requests for recommendations below.

1. any recommendations for a private transport company to pick us up at the airport? English speaking driver is preferable. We will be arriving after 11:00PM and have to clear customs. so we would need someone willing to do a nighttime pickup.

2. Any recommendations for a good city tour. We definitely need English speaking, and preferably private, but we are flexible and up for whatever would be awesome. We would like to be picked up at the hotel, but again are flexible for an awesome experience.

3. Has anyone done a private tour at Shanghai Disneyland? it doesn't seem to be too expensive compared to the US Parks? I am thinking of doing one on Thursday. As we are going to have limited time, I want to make sure we make the most of it.

4. Has anyone had trouble fitting on the tron coaster. I have a really large frame at 6 foot 3 inches (190 cm). I just barely fit in hyper space mountain in Paris. I rode it once but didnt feel comfortable trying again.

5. anyone with any other awesome shanghai tips or experiences (good or bad) to share is welcome.

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[bkmanhole]

1. We took a taxi and has no issue, we arrived around 9pm and the cab ride took about 30min to the Toy Story hotel. We lined up at the official taxi line. I've seen others on the forum use a service called Mr. Orange that they seemed happy with.

4. Regarding Tron, it's a short ride so even if you feel it's a bit tight, I would recommend trying it regardless. There are also ride vehicles outside the ride to "try".

In terms of general tips, take advantage of the early hotel entry and the guest entrance. You can buy your tickets from the hotel concierge for an extra fast pass. Lots of info in this forum from past posts for more general tips etc...

 

[iheartglaciers]

I found Disney Tourist Blog and TDR Explorer to be really helpful when planning my trip. I just took a taxi from the stand at the airport. Have fun!

 

[Nhebron]

Regarding Tron, I had issues fitting but it was more of a weight issue than height. However, they have a car on the back of one of the ride vehicles for those who are not comfortable or able to ride the normal seat. It was still fun...

 

[Nhebron]

Also, I just used a taxi as well but found it necessary to have the address in local language saved in my phone.

 

[Spork24]

1. We took a taxi and has no issue, we arrived around 9pm and the cab ride took about 30min to the Toy Story hotel. We lined up at the official taxi line. I've seen others on the forum use a service called Mr. Orange that they seemed happy with.

4. Regarding Tron, it's a short ride so even if you feel it's a bit tight, I would recommend trying it regardless. There are also ride vehicles outside the ride to "try".

In terms of general tips, take advantage of the early hotel entry and the guest entrance. You can buy your tickets from the hotel concierge for an extra fast pass. Lots of info in this forum from past posts for more general tips etc...

thanks for the response!

 

[Spork24]

Regarding Tron, I had issues fitting but it was more of a weight issue than height. However, they have a car on the back of one of the ride vehicles for those who are not comfortable or able to ride the normal seat. It was still fun...

thanks for the info, How did you indicate that you wanted to use the special seat?

 

[Nhebron]

thanks for the info, How did you indicate that you wanted to use the special seat?

I didn’t know about the special seat in advance. They made me wait when I didn’t fit into the regular seat.

 

[indoshakespeare]

3. We did the VIP tour. The guide speaks fluent English. You get discounts at restaurants. It's useful during crowded season. You may get dirty looks from the locals when you skip the queue on rides. the private viewing areas for the parades and firework shows are perfect.

 

[Spork24]

3. We did the VIP tour. The guide speaks fluent English. You get discounts at restaurants. It's useful during crowded season. You may get dirty looks from the locals when you skip the queue on rides. the private viewing areas for the parades and firework shows are perfect.

Awesome, thanks for the response, do you think it was worth the cost? did you do the 6 hour or a longer tour?

 

[GoofyMB]

I also didn’t fit on the Tron ride and they directed me to another area to wait for the car.
I purchased the fast pass package day of and was able to ride everything I wanted to. The cost of the admission and the fastpass package was about the same as one day in a US park. If you don’t have a phone with a Chinese # go to guest services and they can help you

 

[Lesley Wake]

We are planning to stop in Shanghai for 2 days on our return to the States from Cambodia in March. We arrive late at night at a Tuesday, and depart Friday evening for the US. Our primary goal is to visit Disneyland, however we would like to take some time seeing the city. I am leaning towards staying at the Disneyland hotel. I am looking for any and all recommendations, but have some specific questions/requests for recommendations below.

1. any recommendations for a private transport company to pick us up at the airport? English speaking driver is preferable. We will be arriving after 11:00PM and have to clear customs. so we would need someone willing to do a nighttime pickup.

2. Any recommendations for a good city tour. We definitely need English speaking, and preferably private, but we are flexible and up for whatever would be awesome. We would like to be picked up at the hotel, but again are flexible for an awesome experience.

3. Has anyone done a private tour at Shanghai Disneyland? it doesn't seem to be too expensive compared to the US Parks? I am thinking of doing one on Thursday. As we are going to have limited time, I want to make sure we make the most of it.

4. Has anyone had trouble fitting on the tron coaster. I have a really large frame at 6 foot 3 inches (190 cm). I just barely fit in hyper space mountain in Paris. I rode it once but didnt feel comfortable trying again.

5. anyone with any other awesome shanghai tips or experiences (good or bad) to share is welcome.

Thanks in advance for your help.

1. For transport, I used Mr. Orange. The driver had a sign at the arrivals terminal airport and immediately took me to the car. Going back to the airport, the driver met me in the hotel lobby. The drivers didn't speak much English, but the destinations and everything was all paid online ahead of time. I'd absolutely use them again. I think it was ~$35 each way.

2. I didn't go into city, sorry!

3. You can also look at Concierge service. It will give you an anytime FP for all of the major rides (basically any you can buy them for), as well as reserved viewing for the parade and night show. I wish I had looked more into this, as I just bought the FP sets, but would have liked the reserved viewing areas too. I had no problem using all the FPs and I liked being able to do them on my own schedule.

4. I am 5'8", 275 lbs (US Women sized 22). I didn't have an issue fitting, but my calves were pretty squished in that restraint. When I wore jeans it was easier to slide my legs into a better position, but when I was in shorts, it squeezed really tight. But it was worth riding and didn't stop me from going 6 times!

5. Have fun! I really really liked Shanghai Disney. I had great interactions with both guests and CMs. Buying the FPs (or some type of skip the line method) was key, as it helped me avoid most standby lines. If you have time, try out Lumiere's at the Disneyland Hotel. It was a great buffet with lots of options.

 

[jgl130]

1. Like @Lesley Wake we used Mr. Orange. They were great, on time and dropped us right at the Toy Story Hotel.

2. We used The China Guide for our day tour of Shanghai. We did a private tour and they took us to the key highlights in the city. We were switching hotels the day we did our tour, so were picked up at the Toy Story Hotel and were dropped off at the second hotel at the end of the tour. The guide spoke English very well. She also tailored things to us on the fly, as we were dealing with jet lag. I'm not sure how much the Shanghai tour was because we did a "combined" custom tour package where we also did two days in Beijing.

3. Didn't have experience with this, but did buy the extra fastpasses when we got into the park. (we went in November 2018)

4. My dad is 6'3" and if I recall he was a bit cramped, but he's all leg, and a short torso. Depending on your leg length, it may or may not be an issue.

5. Have a great time! We really enjoyed both Disneyland and Shanghai the city.

 

[Spork24]

I appreciate everyone's advise, but alas it wasn't in the cards. We just canceled our hotel for Shanghai. I just don't see any way this Corona-virus is locked down to the point I would go to mainland China in a month.

I'm thinking of re-booking through Tokyo instead, but I haven't re-booked my flights yet. I want to see how this thing spreads and make sure my entire trip doesn't get canceled first. but as a planner having no plan currently on how I'm getting home from Cambodia is driving me nuts........

 

[distravel]

Tokyo Disney is fabulous and will be a great substitute for Shanghai. I am leaving in mid February for a 7 week Southeast Asia vacation with my daughter and just decided to buy face masks for the trip. There is a lot of price gauging now. Hoping the situation doesn't get so bad that we have to cancel. Enjoy your trip!

 

[China Expat]

I appreciate everyone's advise, but alas it wasn't in the cards. We just canceled our hotel for Shanghai. I just don't see any way this Corona-virus is locked down to the point I would go to mainland China in a month.

I'm thinking of re-booking through Tokyo instead, but I haven't re-booked my flights yet. I want to see how this thing spreads and make sure my entire trip doesn't get canceled first. but as a planner having no plan currently on how I'm getting home from Cambodia is driving me nuts........

Can you fly Cambodia to Singapore onward?

 

[Spork24]

Can you fly Cambodia to Singapore onward?

yes, I could do that, but it would cost me a bit more. If it doesn't worsen in Hong Kong or Tokyo I am likely going to swing through one of those cities instead of shanghai. But for now I wait.

 

[Daisybell911]

This is a great thread! I’m thinking about a Shanghai trip and I have no idea where to even begin. I love reading the tips!

 

[gelatoni fan]

yes, I could do that, but it would cost me a bit more. If it doesn't worsen in Hong Kong or Tokyo I am likely going to swing through one of those cities instead of shanghai. But for now I wait.

Hong Kong Disneyland is closed also. Right now, 3 people on an evacuation flight back to Japan have the virus and there is confirmed transmission between employees of the tourism industry. A number of companies in Japan are starting to cancel events so while Disneyland is still open, it may not be in March.