With Shanghai Disneyland reopening today, after almost four months of being closed, I thought I would celebrate with another Top 5 Reasons. Check out a previous post: Top 5 Reasons Why I Love Hong Kong Disneyland.
So here are the Top 5 Reasons why I love Shanghai Disneyland!
1. TRON Lightcycle Power Run
One of Shanghai Disneyland’s big E-ticket attractions, TRON Lightcycle Power Run is not only an amazing ride experience, but it brings a kinetic energy to Tomorrowland. This unique roller coaster has track both indoors and outdoors, weaving its way through Tomorrowland and creating a fun atmosphere. Instead of typical roller coaster seats, TRON features ride vehicles that are very similar to the lightcycles from the film. Guests straddle the seat like a bike and lean down, almost onto their bellies, before taking off through The Grid. Though fast, TRON doesn’t have very many big drops, making it fun for all ages. Because a portion of the ride is outside, make sure to ride TRON both during the day and at night for two different ride experiences.
2. Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure
Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure is one of Disney’s best all-time rides. The storytelling is amazing, despite the pirates speaking only Mandarin it is very easy to follow what is going on, and the ride is extremely immersive. Guests feel like they are actually a part of the battle alongside Captain Jack Sparrow. The technology and visual effects are stunning, and there are many fun nods to the original attraction in Disneyland. My favourite are the skeletons of the pirates in the jail cell trying to lure the dog with the key over. The entire experience is just full of surprises and it certainly lives up to all the hype. The queue is even incredibly detailed and tells a story in its own.
3. Peter Pan’s Flight
Shanghai Disneyland is home to an updated version of this classic attraction. Not just a duplicate of similar Peter Pan attractions found around the world, this version has some different and additional scene. Again, this ride greatly benefits from advanced technology and visual effects to strengthen what Disney does best—storytelling. One of my favourite small details is near the end when Captain Hook’s pixie-dusted pirate ship floats away into cloud, similar to in the 1953 film. Peter Pan’s Flight had a much shorter line when I was in Shanghai Disneyland than expected for this popular ride. I took advantage and rode it multiple times since this is never the case at Disneyland or Magic Kingdom. Another unique feature of this Peter Pan’s Flight are the many statues around the showbuilding, including one of Peter similar to the one in Kensington Gardens in London, as well as a model of Neverland.
4. Mickey Avenue
Shanghai Disneyland is the only Magic Kingdom-style park (meaning the one with the castle in it) that doesn’t have a Victorian era Main Street as their opening land. Tokyo Disneyland’s is called World Bazaar, but it’s very similar to the other parks. Shanghai Disneyland opens with Mickey Avenue, which is almost like a classy Toontown. This colourful land is full of Disney history. There are so many nods to the classic Disney cartoons such as the original Mickey Mouse cartoons and the Silly Symphonies. For any Disney fan, it’s so much fun to take in all the details knitted throughout the shops and restaurants along Mickey Avenue. I highly recommend dining at the quick service location Mickey & Pals Market Café which displays hundreds of caricatures of Disney characters drawn by animator Eric Goldberg.
5. Gardens of Imagination
Gardens of Imagination is another land unique to Shanghai Disneyland and is definitely worthy of the mention. This beautiful land is located in front of the castle, making Shanghai Disneyland the only park with a land like this. Having such a large center land really opens the park up and allows an easy flow of crowd movement. Gardens of Imagination was built with large crowds for the fireworks in mind, giving guests a fantastic view of the castle projections during the show. Another reason I am such a big fan of this land is because it is so gorgeous—it really lives up to its name. Winding paths are surrounded by beautiful flowers throughout and I love the Fantasia Carousel which is especially stunning at night with its fairy tale-like lights.
Have you been to Shanghai Disneyland? What is your favourite part of the park?
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