Hong Kong Disneyland [Part 1/2]

5 years ago, we embarked on a 25-hour flight journey to the world famous Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, that’s the furthest Disney theme parks from Singapore. The experience was simply magical and unforgettable. We only wondered when we could relive those fantasies again.

2011 was a great year for TravelerFolio with the opportunities for us to visit many amazing places around the world.

2012 started off magically with a trip to Hong Kong Disneyland!

How to go to Hong Kong Disneyland

Conveniently located near Hong Kong International Airport at Lantau island, we took the Airport Express train to TsingYi MTR station and transferred to Sunny Bay MTR station for the Disney themed train.

Tips:

By Train

From Hong Kong Int’l Airport, take the Airport Express train @ HK90 / 2 pax to TsingYi MTR station;
Transfer @ TsingYi to Sunny Bay. From Sunny Bay, transfer to Disneyland @ HK13 / pax.

In total, the whole train journey takes around 45-min to 1-hr @ HK116 / 2 pax.

By Taxi

From HK Int’l Airport to Disneyland, it costs around HK140 for a 15-min ride.

Disney-themed train

When the Disney-themed train arrived, everyone was pretty excited to hop onto the cutest train we’ve ever seen! Mickey Mouse-shaped windows, grab-handles and bronze statues of Disney’s favourite characters spread Disney LOVE to the happy theme park goers!

Hong Kong Disneyland

Hong Kong Disneyland has never failed to bring out the kid in us. Leaving behind the mundane world, we were thrown into a fairy tale land full of fantasies with beloved larger-than-life Disney characters.

The park is zoned into five themed areas: Main Street USA, Adventureland, Fantasyland, Tomorrowland and its newest addition, Toy Story Land! Grizzly Gulch and Mystic Point themed areas are slated to be open in 2012 and 2013.

Toy Story Land

Fans of Toy Story can now play with Andy’s favourite toys at his backyard, or rather, we become Andy’s toys! As soon as you step into the Toy Story Land, you’ll feel like you have shrunk down to a miniature size of a toy, everything else is giant! And Woody is the friendly giant among us, standing at the playground entrance to welcome everyone in.

Happy kid!

Rex, the dinosaur’s looking cute!

Marching with the toy soldier recruits!

The RC Racer is for thrill seekers to experience Andy’s speediest toy car. Not for the faint-hearted, you are swung as high as 27-metre while seated on the racer revving up at full speed on the U-shaped track, only to be yanked down against the cool mountain air!

At first glance, it seemed pretty decent like a kiddy ride to us. The Toy Soldier Parachute Drop is surprisingly fun! Everyone becomes the “new recruits” getting ready to parachute-jump from a few storeys high. The simulated parachute drop actually sends the adrenaline pumping! We were thrilled and it’s one of our favourite rides.

For a merry-go-round, the Slinky Dog Spin is perfect for kids. It’s just too cute for a ride!

Don’t forget to pose with our Disney friends Woody and Jessie in the Barrel of Fun.

Fantasyland

Up next is the Fantasyland where kids will love it the most. One of the popular rides is “The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh”. Hop into Pooh’s colourful hunny pot and embark on a journey in search of honey, immersing yourself in a pop-up story book with fascinating effects. Along the way, we were greeted by the jumping Tigger, the cute Piglet, the pessimist Eeyore donkey and other interesting characters.

Experience Mickey’s PhilharMagic 4-D movie with scents, sudden gusts and splatters! Wear the 3D “opera glasses” and watch Mickey and Donald perform with their magical orchestras. The 12-min film takes us to the heart-warming Disney classics featuring “Beauty and the Beast”, “The Little Mermaid”, “The Lion King”, “Peter Pan” and “Aladdin”, accompanied by the all-time favourite songs like “I Just Can’t Wait To Be King”, “Part of Your World” and “You Can Fly”. My eyes were almost well-up when these classic Disney characters once again appeared on the big screen, a flashback to the childhood days when I wouldn’t want to miss the Disney cartoons on TV every weekend.

Other ride attractions in the Fantasyland include the Cinderella Carousel, the Merry-Go-Round, Dumbo the Flying Elephant and Mad Hatter Tea Cups.

The highlight of the Fantasyland is “The Golden Mickeys”, a must-not-missed star-studded show! Almost all the classic Disney characters make their appearance in this lively broadway-style musical: Mulan, Tarzan, Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Toy Story’s Woody and Buzz Lightyear, Lilo and Stitch and the famous Mickey and Minnie Mouse with friends Donald Duck, Pluto and Goofy. With all these superstars, you can expect paparazzi furiously snapping photos around them! See the cast dance and sing in the celebration of The Golden Mickey Award.

Adventureland

In a rainforest setting, the three main attractions of The Adventureland are the Festival of Lion King, Jungle River Cruise and Tarzan’s Treehouse. The Festival of Lion King is a theatrical show with lively performances and heart-warming music flowing through the show. Take the Jungle River Cruise and spot the animals like hippos, elephants, cobras and orangutans. Be prepared to get wet! Take a peek into Tarzan’s Treehouse and enjoy a scenic view of the Adventureland from the ginormous Treehouse.

Tomorrowland

Step into the land of the future for high speed roller coaster fun! Break loose from fear and conquer the Space Mountain. Mimicking the interstellar of the universe, the coaster ride takes you into a world of darkness and blasts through sparkling stars, comets, stardust along with very cool music and sound effects.

Warning: Highly unpredictable.  You will never know which direction the coaster is going to take you to!

Help Buzz Lightyear fight the Evil Emperor Zurg in “Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters”. In this shoot-and-score ride, challenge the partner next to you and see who can score more points. Fight your way through the futuristic world and shoot the incandescent invaders. A fun ride for everyone.

Stitch Encounter is hilarious! Don’t miss this! This is not a ride nor a musical show. No human is dressed like Stitch. It’s an interactive animation. The mischievous, witty and highly humorous Stitch speaks to the audience, asks questions and he can even reply with tongue-in-cheek! It’s amazing and can never be the same show twice. We still do not know how the highly interactive show runs. The show is presented in English, Mandarin and Cantonese. We went for the Cantonese show and couldn’t stop laughing silly!

Main Street USA

Like other Disney theme parks around the world, the Main Street USA serves as the entrance of the park. There are restaurants, bakeries and shops lining along the main street. Shop ‘til you drop for great varieties of Disney merchandise.

Catch the Flights of Fantasy Parade where all the beloved Disney characters will be parading along the street with resplendent floats and catchy songs. Wave at Mickey and Friends, and watch the Toy Story entourage making their way to you so up close and personal!

Dumbo, the courageous baby elephant.

Mickey and Friends!

Donald, Goofy and Alvin, the chipmunk!

Simba, the Lion King!

Stitch!

Winnie and Tigger.

Cute Winnie, Mickey and Minnie balloons on sales.

During the colourful parade, there are a lot of interactions with the kids too!

Performers dancing vivaciously through the parade.

Snow White!

The Toy Story entourage and Buzz Lightyear… to infinity and beyond!

Buzz Lightyear’s entourage of babes!

At the end of the Flights of Fantasy, a real life cowgirl, Jessie and Woody were parading with the happy little ones!

Right at the end of the Main Street USA stands the famous Sleeping Beauty Castle. The enchanting Sleeping Beauty Castle is the iconic landmark of Hong Kong Disneyland.

When night falls, the dream-like Castle is magically illuminated by colourful lights and the whole Disneyland experience culminates when dazzling pyrotechnics synchronized with classic Disney music emanate from around the Sleeping Beauty Castle.

It’s at this special moment when you make a wish and hope to return one day.

Disney in the Stars nighttime firework show

Stay tuned for Hong Kong Disneyland Part 2 featuring Disney’s Hollywood Hotel and dining at Disney-themed restaurants!

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