Hong Kong Disneyland
Topic: China Approves Disney Theme Park in Shanghai

#	Author	Message
1	Malin Wed 11/4/2009 11:16a	Now that the Chinese Govement have approved for Disney and Shanghai to go ahead with plans for a new $3.5 billion Themepark, can I ask if LaughingPlace.com could either combine the HKDL section of the boards with Shanghai Disneyland or give the proposed new park its very own section. Plenty to discuss on the annoucement like the timing and is it connected to Obama's upcoming trip. The location is also interesting with the park being located about an hour away from Shanghai by car. How much will Shanghai have to pay out on new transportation options like trains and viecle access, as Disney usually holds it as a clause before coming to terms over a deal. According to an article in the NYTimes the park will be the same size as both Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Paris. It sounds like lessons have been learnt over the whole Hong Kong Disneyland flop. With a park this size what possible attractions will the park use, like the once proposed Pirates land. Will the park be character lite or will Disney try and force the characters on to the Guest like the current other parks seem to be doing more and more lately, and exactly how much of the park will incorporate Chinese stories and history. 300 million people will have easy access to the park, will this cause an operations nightmare during the Chinese national holidays like New Year or Golden Week like it did for Hong Kong when Guest stormed the gates and hopped over. With the park looking more and more like being a locals park, will it really need too many hotel rooms and how will the Mainland Guest react to events like Halloween and Christmas. Finally how will this impact other parks, namely Hong Kong Disneyland and Tokyo Disney Resort who is seeking to attract more foreign visitors in the upcoming years thanks to a declining population in Japan. One thing for certain is that with a new park proposed for Shanghai, expansion for Hong Kong, plus 2010 opening of Universal Studios in Singapore, Asia is the destination to watch out for in the upcoming years.
2	TDR_Fan Wed 11/4/2009 12:29p	<<According to an article in the NYTimes the park will be the same size as both Tokyo Disneyland and Disneyland Paris. It sounds like lessons have been learnt over the whole Hong Kong Disneyland flop. With a park this size what possible attractions will the park use, like the once proposed Pirates land. Will the park be character lite or will Disney try and force the characters on to the Guest like the current other parks seem to be doing more and more lately, and exactly how much of the park will incorporate Chinese stories and history.>> Everything I've read suggests that this park will be more heavily character based than the previous parks. The reasoning being that Disney wants to cement the Disney franchises into the minds of the Chinese audience. I would also guess that Mulan will have some sort of presence in the park given her ties to Chinese history (I still feel that Hong Kong should have taken advantage of that fact). <<300 million people will have easy access to the park, will this cause an operations nightmare during the Chinese national holidays like New Year or Golden Week like it did for Hong Kong when Guest stormed the gates and hopped over. >> I am worried more about guest behavior to be honest. With most of the guests being from the mainland, will this pose a problem in any way? Even Hong Kong Disneyland, with its share of guests from the more cultured city, has problems with rude and selfish guests (to a far greater degree than the U.S. or Paris). Will the Chinese guests be able to respect the park and its fellow guests, or will we see much of the same behavior that especially plagued Hong Kong Disneyland in its opening months. <<With the park looking more and more like being a locals park, will it really need too many hotel rooms and how will the Mainland Guest react to events like Halloween and Christmas.>> That is an interesting question. The resorts in Tokyo and Hong Kong rely mostly on the locals, yet their respective hotels are always performing well (especially in the case of Tokyo's). Will guests from the mainland be willing to spend the night in a pricier (compared to non-Disney hotels) room just for the location and magic? And that being said, will they feel the need to visit multiple times or will one day be sufficient for them? The answer is a no-brainer for the fanatic and sometimes obsessive Japanese, but the answer is not so clear for the mainland guests who may not share the same enthusiasm for Disney.
3	WorldDisney Wed 11/4/2009 4:34p	Maybe not the same enthuasiam and not the same spending habits as the Japanese either. Although, yes, China and Shanghai in general certainly has higher spending habits over the last few years (and I personnally have a few Chinese friends from Shanghai in the higher income bracket), I'm not so sure if they will shell out the cash to go to a theme park as often as Americans and Japanese do. I mean, if we look to the-theme-park-that-could HKDL, then thats obviously not a great sign. Disney built that park with the idea it would have a huge local base with at least a third of mainlanders coming in for vacations there...and it doesnt seem to be working that way. The locals there dont seem a quarter interested in HKDL as people from Tokyo and L.A. are into their parks (of course, part of it might be due to the fact its a small, crappy park with nothing to do after 3 hours ;)), so unless Shanghai thrills people out the gate and the admission prices will be roughly HKDLs fees and maybe a little smaller, not sure if it will work. And I only been to Shanghai once for a few days, so I wont pretend to know if locals will be swayed to stay in ultra Disney hotels if they live within an hour of the place and can find really nice normal 4 star hotel for what I'm guessing will be much cheaper. Thats kind of the one thing HKDL has going for it though, that the hotels seem to always be full for a city that the average commute to the park is 25-30 mins. But HK hotels are already pricey, the really nice ones anyway and HKDL hotels are actually comparable price-wise UNLIKE the Disney hotels in America and Japan, so I'm guessing the lowered price (and there's only 2 hotels anyway) creates more interest. Who knows, but its going to be interesting to watch (again ;)). I'm just PRAYING Disney doesnt screw this up as badly as HKDL. I guess we will have an idea once all the pretty artwork comes out ;). But wow, once again, its an exciting time to be in Aisa for theme parks. Universal Studios Singapore will be open within 6 months now and there is a lot of talk of Korea finally getting an American theme park as well in 2012-2013. With Disney getting Shanghai, in 4 years time, there could be 7 world class American theme parks in the region all within 2-5 hours of each other on a plane. Wow!!
4	WorldDisney Wed 11/4/2009 4:48p	Oh yeah, I also agree the two sections need to be combined. I mean, this section is completely dead 90% of the time. Its the first time I been here in weeks and was surprised to see there have bee no postings since I been back. I think LP should just put both parks under one banner like 'Disney Parks China' or something. Because lets face it, the only the SAME people who bothers to talk about HKDL will be the exact same people who will talk about Shanghai as well anyway...and its very few regardless ;).
5	Witches of Morva Wed 11/4/2009 6:14p	ORDDU: My sisters and I believe that both parks should have separate sections, so as not to confuse future guests who come here. ORWEN: And if Paris, Anaheim, Tokyo and Orlando can have their own individual sections, why can't Shanghai? ORGOCH: Got directions?
6	Mr F Wed 11/4/2009 6:46p	The fact that Disney is making deals with a communist government just proves that they are evil. Working for Disney is very much like working for a communist dictatorship, Disney and communism go hand and hand.
7	Sport Goofy Wed 11/4/2009 7:08p	<< The fact that Disney is making deals with a communist government just proves that they are evil. >> Actually, I think it proves that they are very naieve. The Chinese government has no real interest in Disney making any money there. They are just interested in the prestige of having a Disney park in their country. The whole Chinese embrace of limited capitalism is a sham.
8	WorldDisney Wed 11/4/2009 8:40p	<<ORDDU: My sisters and I believe that both parks should have separate sections, so as not to confuse future guests who come here. ORWEN: And if Paris, Anaheim, Tokyo and Orlando can have their own individual sections, why can't Shanghai? ORGOCH: Got directions?>> Dont get me wrong witches (and wow long time for both of us lol) normally I would agree with that! But, IMHO, HKDL board barely gets any activity as it is and this board has been around 4 years now. I mean, the only new posts are now about Shanghai lol. And while yes, INITIALLY there will be a lot of interest in Shanghai too, I think it will just dwindle down as well witin a year. And then the reality is that 90% of people who bother to talk or visit this park will be the same people who talk and visit Hong Kong. I could be wrong, but I'm guessing both sections will be pretty quiet end of the day. You put them together though and you will get a scant more activity at least. But its not the end of the world if they keep it traditional and Shanghai gets its own section too ;). I guess I would like these boards to be more busy and you put them both in the same place that will happen. And lets not kid ourselves, until LP DO make a section for Shanghai, majority discussions of that park will be here anyway.
9	FerretAfros Wed 11/4/2009 8:49p	Isn't that what the "Other Disney Destinations" section is usually for? Other than maybe the DVC resort in Hawaii (which I would put on the DVC boards) and Adventures by Disney, I don't really know what else would go there. Given the lack of action over there, at this point I don't really see a need for a seperate board for Shanghai. I don't think HKDL got one until well after it was announced by Disney (I remember it having a website with concept art before LP had its own section for it), so we still have a while before Shanghai needs its own spot.
10	Spirit of 74 Wed 11/4/2009 10:12p	I think Shanghai deserves its own board and have already stated as much. But, if not, then it has a place on the other Disney Destinations Board. It shouldn't take over the HKDL board, IMHO. And usually I'm not anal about where things should be discussed.

All times are Pacific Time (US)

Note: Information on the discussion boards is sometimes based on rumors or incorrect information and should not be assumed true. Messages do not necessarily reflect the opinion of LaughingPlace.com or its editors.

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