Hong Kong Disneyland Construction

[Witches of Morva]

ORDDU: It's good to hear that things are finally looking up for HKDL. Maybe they'll be a success after all. They certainly need to keep adding the attractions for this little park. My sisters and I can still remember when we had read that the original plans for HKDL involved creating the largest Disney theme park ever built.

[TimmyTimmyTimmy]

Now that it semes Shanghai will offer a park with cheaper prices HKDL better start to build some real E-tickets. The number of 45% visitors from mainland China in HKDL will surelly decrease after Shanghai opens it superior park.

[Witches of Morva]

ORDDU: Hello, Timmy, duckling. It's good to see you again. Competition between the two Asian parks just might turn out to be a good thing!

[TimmyTimmyTimmy]

ORDDU: Hello, Timmy, duckling. It's good to see you again. Competition between the two Asian parks just might turn out to be a good thing!

I just hope that it wont be that one park will be like Disneyland in LA and the other park will be like Magic Kingdom in Orlando (not as good).

[SirEdge]

Now that it semes Shanghai will offer a park with cheaper prices HKDL better start to build some real E-tickets. The number of 45% visitors from mainland China in HKDL will surelly decrease after Shanghai opens it superior park.

Hey Timmy! It's great to see you posting again!

It's gonna be an "empty park" once the mainland tourists stop visiting in droves. Because if the price is much lower, no one will even give HKDL a second look.

I hope HKDL can find its niche in making more rides like BGM and MM.

[wishyouwell]

It's gonna be an empty park once the mainland tourists stop visiting in droves. Because if the price is much lower, no one will even give HKDL a second look.

Well, did people stopped going to Disneyland after they opened DisneyWorld?
There are 1.3 billion people in China, also Hong Kong and Shanghai is 750 miles apart.
I seriously doubt HKDL will be empty just because SHDL opens.

[TimmyTimmyTimmy]

Well, did people stopped going to Disneyland after they opened DisneyWorld?
There are 1.3 billion people in China, also Hong Kong and Shanghai is 750 miles apart.
I seriously doubt HKDL will be empty just because SHDL opens.

HKDL will never be empty. Not even WDS is empty and that is like the worst Disney park ever.
But alot of the visitors that come to HKDL from the mainland will chose Shanghai insted. HKDL is dependent on people from the mainland. There is no doubt that this will effect HKDL in a negative way. Fewer visitors... less cash. ...if HKDL doesn´t add something big to counter the competition from Shanghai.

HKDL is way too expensive for many in China. It has a bad reputation for being small, lacking rides and only serving the youngest guests when it comes to rides. Shanghai Disneyland will be the first park placed in China where the mainlanders don´t have to travel far to get there and stay over night. The mainland park will have a huge advantage if the price will be lower. Only a price cut of 20% of the HKDL price would mean a great deal to many.

One can´t compare the parks in America to the one in Hong Kong. People have other viseting habbits when it comes to Disneyparks outside the US.
and don´t forget that 1.3 billions only resultet in about 5 - 6 Million visits to HKDL last year. Most of them from the mainland.

---------- Post added 01-19-2012 at 02:19 AM ----------

Hey Timmy! It's great to see you posting again!

[SirEdge]

Well, did people stopped going to Disneyland after they opened DisneyWorld?
There are 1.3 billion people in China, also Hong Kong and Shanghai is 750 miles apart.
I seriously doubt HKDL will be empty just because SHDL opens.

Sorry if my tone was unclear.

I meant it as an exaggeration, but given the focus that they put in marketing HKDL to mainland tourists, the decreased attendance is a point of concern. Especially since it's a confused little park when it comes to its target market. Is it catering to HK locals? Mainland tourists? Southeast Asian tourists? Australian tourists? Disney enthusiasts? (You can cross the last one out already.)

The park is seriously tiny, which time and time again is the biggest complaint. I arrived at 1pm on my last trip and was able to go through all rides and most shows (save for Lion King) and still left before closing.

If SHDL opens and it will be bigger, cheaper, and theoretically, more complete. It will take a big hit from the opening of SHDL. All it takes is to have the label "bigger" to attract people's attention. And it will probably not be just the mainland Chinese who will go to SHDL, but admittedly that one's more focused.

In fact, what you've cited is precisely what I hope would happen to HKDL. I want it to be the Disneyland of Asia and Shanghai Disneyland to be the WDW.

There problem with that analogy is that when the Magic Kingdom opened, Disneyland was already a mature theme park with a loyal base surrounding it (not to mention groundbreaking E-tickets like HM and PotC). Plus perceived distance between the parks were much greater then, which made it less of a competitor, because these two China Disney parks will be considerably closer to each other than the US parks. Granted there should be a market to fill up both.

But the question is, will they come to HK just for Disneyland when there's a bigger, cheaper, and theoretically better one in the mainland?

My belief is that once SHDL opens, assuming HKDL remains with its current operations - plus MM & GG, there should still be a dip in attendance. I just hope all this goads HKDL to do more not just in the building of attractions, but also in adjusting to a potential shift in guest demographics.

[Asa]

I have just looked at all the Magic Kingdom style Disney parks size figures.

HKDL (after current expansion): 68 acres with 17 acres (the 7 hectare that they always quote) yet to be build upon. So total is 85 acres plus some area that we can think of, like the plot behind Fantasy Gardens.

DL: 85 acres
DLP: 140 acres
TDL: 126 acres
MK: 107 acres

So is HKDL small? Not really if it is built out completely. It can be as big as DL just by building up the 7 hectares. What it really needs is just more attractions.

Somehow the DL in Anaheiml just feel so much more jammed with attractions and rides. It is very strange when you know that land prices (per sq m) in HK is so much higher than SoCal. You would have expected the exact opposite.

[HongKongDisneyland]

But HKDL still has a currency exchange advantage over SHDL, Lower ticket prices in mainland are being offset by the higher Renmenbi To HK$ exchange rate.

[SirEdge]

So is HKDL small? Not really if it is built out completely. It can be as big as DL just by building up the 7 hectares. What it really needs is just more attractions.

Somehow the DL in Anaheiml just feel so much more jammed with attractions and rides. It is very strange when you know that land prices (per sq m) in HK is so much higher than SoCal. You would have expected the exact opposite.

I think we all agree that the potential of HKDL is great, and I love it. Excited beyond belief. I want, and I think a lot of us feel this way, it to be developed to its full potential.

More attractions, definitely. The general lack of attractions is the basis of the definition of tiny.

If they can develop it by 2015, then great. The better question could be, how developed will HKDL be by 2015? If its development stops at MM next year with a bunch of new shows here and there, then I fear it might not be enough.

Shanghai is opening too soon, and possibly with attractions I had initially hoped had come to HKDL. I can't help but feel a little betrayed by Disney.

However, every now and then HKDL pulls something wonderful out of the hat and that keeps me excited. Especially with your frequent updates Asa.

Oh yeah, michael20183 just uploaded a new video! I'm going to miss those updates of his when they're done. But that would mean they'd be open by then.



And some pics of the construction as well.

It's a bit surreal to see the Grizzly Peak rise in HKDL. A good kind of surreal. It seems to look more like the Grizzly Peak itself than when it was still in its original artwork and models.

[keithlee83]

Thanks for updated! I do believe hkdl can do well if they keep expansion until shdl opening. If they add two more rides in fl, one more in tl, one more land or attraction in al , the park will be a complete park .

I don't worry much about shdl , one in northern , one in southern , hkdl targets on south east asia and hk local and oversea,of course southern area of china such as guangdong. But shdl mainly target northern part of china , so not the same market. And china people come hk because of the city but not hkdl , so although shdl open, the visitors of hk will not be reduced. And the visitors of hkdl will not be a big different.

[RandySavage]

A neat part of Michael's updates (thank you!) are the super-high-res photos linked on his youtube page.

You can see some Grizzly peak details coming together:
http://static.panoramio.com/photos/o...l/65146360.jpg

Great bark detail on the cut logs and nice big living tree:
http://static.panoramio.com/photos/o...l/65146277.jpg

Natural arch & railroad ties looking good:
http://static.panoramio.com/photos/o...l/65146263.jpg

Mystic Manor queue cover (left) and staircast to manor (right):
http://static.panoramio.com/photos/o...l/65146334.jpg

[Witches of Morva]

ORDDU: Very nice pictures, duckling. Now, isn't the Grizzly Gulch mine car ride supposed to have a cannon like propulsion type system that shoots you down the tracks right from the start of the ride--like DHS's Rock 'n Rollercoaster? My sisters and I seem to have read something about that, anyway.

[tloolgb]

Shanghai Disneyland will be the first park placed in China where the mainlanders don´t have to travel far to get there and stay over night.

Well the "no Visa needed" policy will help Shanghai over Hong Kong, but anyone over two hours drive out will be in the "overnight" visitor category regardless of being mainland or not. There are still mainlanders who have to travel far. Travel time and overnight stay will be no different than Hong Kong...if you're four hours out you are four hours out regardless of it being Hong Kong or Shanghai. And there are more people in the Pearl River Delta region than the Shanghai region.

So the perk that Shanghai will really hold is that mainlanders will not need a Visa. That is a big plus.

But, international visitors need Visas...so they better hope they can convince the locals it is a good value and a good park the first time around.

Hotels in Shanghai can get expensive (for the typical Chinese salary) and I don't expect Disney to offer a significant value just because the average Chinese cannot afford it. Tokyo is cheaper than Florida's parks (tickets) but it isn't cheaper to live in Tokyo than Florida. The average Floridian cannot afford Disney's base prices, but that doesn't stop them. It will be a balancing act to lure the locals and keep them coming, and lure the folks from the bigger cities who can afford to come out.

If SHDL opens and it will be bigger, cheaper, and theoretically, more complete. It will take a big hit from the opening of SHDL. All it takes is to have the label "bigger" to attract people's attention. And it will probably not be just the mainland Chinese who will go to SHDL, but admittedly that one's more focused.

But the question is, will they come to HK just for Disneyland when there's a bigger, cheaper, and theoretically better one in the mainland?

See above. Thinking that the average Chinese can't really afford the flight from Shenzhen to Shanghai, nor, when most of them only get off national holidays, can they actually get all the way to Shanghai (trains were sold out on trips as early as last week out of Shanghai and the CNY holiday doesn't start until next week), so there are 55 million people in the Pearl River Delta region made up of a huge % that will continue to go to HKDL because the process of getting a visa and paying RMB to HK$ exchange rate will still be easier and more achievable than getting to Shanghai for a Disneyland.

I think there is a very strong lure for both of them, for similar and different reasons. I do hope Shanghai pushes HKDL to keep developing, but HKDL won't die when Shanghai opens, even will the label of "bigger" and in theory "cheaper". Beijing, Hangzhou, Qingdao, Dalian, Shanghai, they will all go to Shanghai Disneyland over Hong Kong, but the Shenzhen and Guangzhou folks might not. There is plenty of market for both, and the US parks give good precedent for same-country parks to not only not canibalize each other, but to breed fans that want to go to both (see all of us on MiceChat).