A First-hand Look at the Rides, Food, and Magical Moments Inside Hong Kong Disney Park.
Written by Kaelie Piscitello
As the Disney adult trend persists, some Disney enthusiasts have decided to make their lifelong travel goal a dream to see every Disney Castle in the world. Influencers analyze the differences between each park, praise the cute food options, and spend hundreds of dollars on fast passes to ensure they board every ride.
I visited Disney World in Orlando twice as a kid, but over ten years have passed since then! This summer, I could not wait to go to Hong Kong Disneyland, my first international park.
Disney fans know the Hong Kong location as the smallest park. People can easily get there by using the Hong Kong subway system, which has a stop at the gates. From social media, I knew each park has unique land themes and rides in addition to well-loved classics featured everywhere, such as Cinderella’s Castle and Dumbo the Flying Elephant. Going into the day, I felt most excited to see Frozen Land!
How Long Do You Need?
I found the perfect amount of time for me at Hong Kong Disney one day. However, like all destinations, it depends on the person. Some tourists opt to combine Disneyland with the famous Tian Tian Buddha, another attraction on Lantau Island.
However, people looking to meet all of their favorite characters need another half a day because some of the character lines last up to an hour long each. A family can spend up to two days exploring Hong Kong Disneyland, especially if they want to repeat their favorite rides at the end.
Hong Kong Disneyland’s Food: An Honest Review
Hong Kong Disney offers a perk many Disney parks do not: everyone can bring food through the gates with them. While Hong Kong Disney has lower prices than Orlando, guests still pay more than they might in the city. So, bringing in food allows everyone to save.
I ate breakfast before going to the park, and opted to eat lunch there. I finished the Iron Man Experience around lunchtime, and many of the neighboring food stands had Marvel and Star Wars themes. I ate at the Comet Cafe and ordered the Iron Man burger with a side of mozzarella sticks and a chicken tender basket with fries.
The food quality and taste felt standard for Disney, and I enjoyed my burger and chicken. However, because I was in Hong Kong, I wanted to try more authentic cuisine and opted to eat dinner at a restaurant in the city.
Rides: Beloved Classics and Unique Takes
Hong Kong Disneyland offers most of the crowd favorites, including It’s a Small World, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and the Jungle River Cruise. These rides resembled those in Florida, but i could not resist going on my favorites! I appreciated how the creators followed the ride’s original style instead of updating them to look more modern.
The park also has unique rides for people to partake in. Mystic Manor brings a magical spin to The Haunted Mansion. To honor Chinese culture and beliefs about ghosts, Disney redesigned the beloved ride to focus on a magical monkey and his charming wealthy owner instead of spirits haunting an old home. Disney did a great job reimagining the beloved classic, making the experience charming overall.
I also enjoyed Hyperspace Mountain, an indoor coaster modeled after the classic Space Mountain. I have never ridden the original, but I enjoyed rocketing through space on this version.
However, I learned about its Star Wars theme after riding it. Nothing in the lines or during the ride made this obvious, and I would have appreciated seeing more Star Wars tributes while waiting in line or during the coaster.
Frozen Land
Frozen took the world by storm in 2013, and quickly became one of the favorite movies for children worldwide. Despite its popularity, Disney World in Orlando only has one Frozen-related attraction, Frozen Ever After. Hong Kong Disney, meanwhile, has dedicated a whole section of the park to the beloved movie and two rides.
In Frozen Land, I loved seeing Elsa’s snow castle in real life. Frozen Land has an adorable square modeled after Arendelle with a place for people to sample Olaf soft-serve ice cream and meet Elsa. Elsa did not have a line, and instead, visitors could come up and say hello to her on their own. However, she had a large crowd of fans trailing behind her, snapping photos, which seemed disruptive to the little girl talking to her.
Frozen Land also offered two rides, including Orlando’s Frozen Ever After and a new experience: Wandering Oaken’s Sliding Sleighs. These two attractions had the longest waits in the park. I recommend Fast Passes for these rides to anyone wanting to time,
Who is Duffy?
Before I went to Hong Kong Disney, people told me Duffy (a character Western park guests might remember from 2012) has more popularity than Mickey Mouse in Asian parks. I couldn’t believe it and felt surprised to see the truth of the rumor in person.
As a child, I remember everyone wearing Mickey ears at Disney World, but in Hong Kong, everyone dons Duffy ears. Furthermore, if anyone wants to meet Duffy, they must wait 1.5-2 hours according to the park app!
I found the hype surrounding Duffy interesting because he lacks lore from a television show or movie, which typically helps people become invested in characters. While I missed Mickey’s presence, I do have to admit, Duffy is pretty cute!
