Hong Kong Disneyland
Topic: Cancelling Visit in Oct. '08

#	Author	Message
1	Bob Paris Thu 2/28/2008 1:15a	My partner and I are planning a visit to Japan and TDR in Oct. of this year and had previously decided to stop over in HK for a couple of days. This WAS going to include a visit to HKDL as kind of a theme park appetizer for my partner who has never been to ANY theme park before. I felt that after he visited this half day park, TDL would seem EVEN MORE magical. Something happened at work the other day however which made me change my mind. I was speaking with a girl who recently visited HKDL(her ONLY ever visit to a Disney theme park)and she was really disappointed. She said there was virtually nothing to do and the place was tiny. Her opnion of the park was VERY negative and I must stress, this was somebody who also has NEVER been to ANY Disney theme park before, so it wasn't as if she was comparing this one to DL or TDS! This more than anything made me decide to stay the hell away from this blight on the Disney theme park name for AT LEAST ten years. At the moment, I am MUCH more excited about Dubai and the new US going into Singapore which is apparently going to be a "best of" park. A trip to Singapore after 2010 is something that WILL be happening. As for HKDL, when they decide to spend considerable amounts of money here, I MAY decide to spend my share.
2	Mr X Thu 2/28/2008 1:55a	I would still recommend it as a half-day, MOSTLY because Hong Kong is such an amazing city. But you're right, there is very little to do there and the park can be seen fully in a matter of hours. There definitely isn't anything special there that you won't find (or something comparable) at TDR.
3	WorldDisney Thu 2/28/2008 2:35a	Well Bob, although I agree about the crappy park, I still wouldn't cancel a trip to Hong Kong. I been going there years before they ever opened the park and take my word for it, its an AMAZING city. I was even thinking about moving there a few years back and hell, still might ;). Anyway, I know people here do more traveling in the theme park sense, but even if you could spend 2 days there JUST to see Hong Kong, you should think about it. I have a ton of tips and places to see if you change your mind ;). And forgot about Universal coming to Singapore in 2010. Another excuse to get back.
4	SuperDry Thu 2/28/2008 8:08a	My two cents: Even if you skip HKDL, don't hold it against the city. HK is such an incredible place to visit. Especially since you can do it as a stopover on the way to Tokyo, it would be a shame to miss it just because of what happened with HKDL.
5	Mr X Thu 2/28/2008 8:09a	Sounds like a consensus on Hong Kong!
6	FerretAfros Thu 2/28/2008 8:51a	I can't help but wonder if HKDL has some of the same problems that DLP had when it opened. I heard stories (don't know if they're true or not) that a lot of early DLP guests missed out on a lot of attractions, since they were used to all rides being outside. Because of this, they would skip over things like Phantom Manor and Pirates, because they thought that they were just walkthroughs or museum-type experiences. While HKDL does not have a ton of stuff to do (unlike DLP when it opened), a good portion of what's there is inside, and could be easily passed over if you didn't know what was there.
7	WorldDisney Thu 2/28/2008 11:44a	Dude, I normally might agree with that, but take it from me, SD, Mr. X, TDLFAN and everyone whose been there and basically experts and did every inch of this park in 5-6 hours, some things two or three times and was STILL bored before the sun went down, its not the same case. One because well, with the exception of SM, Pooh, Philharmagic, Lion King, Golden Mickey's and Buzz, all the other attractions are primarily outside anyway. Really, there are very little inside attractions compared to the other parks. Also, when there are no crowds in the place (like all 3 times I been there), you can breeze through that park seeing every possible show and attraction in 3-4 hours timespan tops. NOT exaggerating here either. Most of the time, you only manage to spend the day longer than the 4 hours just waiting around for the shows to start ;). Yeah, it suuuuuuuuucks! Hong Kong is amazing though, you shouldn't miss out on that place, EVER!
8	FerretAfros Thu 2/28/2008 11:54a	"...with the exception of SM, Pooh, Philharmagic, Lion King, Golden Mickey's and Buzz..." With the exception of those attrations, there's not much left. Teacups, Carousel, Dumbo, Astro Orbiter, Jungle Cruise, and Train. If that's all you see, it's going to make the tiny little park seem even smaller. I don't know if it's a problem or not, but I do know that when I was there, I had a significantly shorter wait for Space and Buzz than the Jungle Cruise. I don't know if it was due to capacity issues, but the JC queue was about half full both times we rode, and Buzz was a walk-on the one time we did it, and Space was a walk-on both times. Pooh, however did have about a 15 minute wait (which I think was the longest wait all day), and the shows both had crowds gathering for a while before they started. I'm not trying to make excuses for the park, but it does seem like a lot of the guests were missing out on some of the attractions (from what I could tell).
9	Mr X Thu 2/28/2008 12:02p	**Because of this, they would skip over things like Phantom Manor and Pirates** No such worries in Hong Kong, these rides don't exist. It's an interesting conjecture Ferret, but seriously...the park only HAS like fifteen or so attractions (that's being generous and counting things like city hall!). Can't be compared to Paris in any way shape or form! Anyway, trust me. I knew (as did WD who was with me) exactly how many attractions were available and we did pretty much everything in just a couple of hours. For real. AND it was even fairly busy that day, with some waits for stuff like Space Mountain and Pooh as it was the height of the Christmas season (and I THINK it was a weekend too?).
10	FerretAfros Thu 2/28/2008 12:11p	But if they don't know that there are attractions inside, how will they ever get to experience the joy of City Hall? Sure, they will be able to spend hours exploring the complex intricies of Snow White's Grotto, but a trip without City Hall is no trip at all. That must be the real reason that HKDL isn't doing well. People just don't know about the hidden magic within City Hall!

All times are Pacific Time (US)

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