I just came back from Hong Kong Disneyland where I spent one magic filled day with my mini-me. Some people told me that one day in Disney is not enough to see and explore everything! However, with good planning, it is possible!



Starting from the Disney train, everything was a mad dash! Yumi had a fever the day before and when we were at Disneyland she was taking nothing per orem and was just vomiting liquid. However, we just made the best of the situation and enjoyed the day. So, if you are towing kids, better do Disneyland first.

Here are my tips on how to get the most out of HK Disneyland and experience all the rides and watch each of the promised shows and parades in one awesome day!

1. Take the six-minute Disney Train ride from Sunny Bay station instead of the bus. It's more dramatic and it gets you pumped up for what's to come. Using your Octopus card, it will set you back 6.7HKD for adults and 3.4 HKD for children. 

   Nope, that is not a Mickey-shaped led TV! That is the window and those are the greeneries!

2. Buy your open Disney tickets at Klook. First, you skip the long lines. Second, since it is an open day ticket you can pick out the best weather to go. Lastly, the price is way cheaper than buying the ticket on Disneyland online or at the park where the tickets sell at 4078PHP/79USD/619HKD for adults and 2994PHP/58USD/458HKD for children 3 to 11 years old. Meantime, the tickets were at 3440PHP/67USD and 2688PHP/ 52USD for children on Klook!
   
3. Be sure to be in the park 30 minutes before the gates open. The park opens at around 10am. People would usually start queueing an hour early and once the gate is open, everyone seems to be running somewhere. You can spot the veterans because they have sit-upon with them.
4. Check out the schedule for the day in the brochure and set alarms on your cell phone!
   
   Here's how ours looked like: 
1. 10:00am  Photo with Mickey and Minnie
2. 10:30am  Register for Jedi Training at Space Trader, Tomorrowland
3. 10:35am  Go to Animation Academy, Main Street
4. 12:00pm  Festival of the Lion King at Adventure Land
5. 01:30pm  Flights of Fantasy Parade at Main Street
6. 02:30pm  Jedi Training at Tomorrowland
7. 04:30pm  Springtime Processional at Main Street
8. 06:15pm  "Mickey and the Wondrous Book" at Fantasyland
9. 07:30pm "We Love Mickey" at Main Street
10. 08:15pm "Disney Paint the Night" at Main Street
5. If you've got a stable internet, download the Hong Kong Disneyland App. The free internet is spotty and almost useless!
6. Don't go on a Chinese holiday! Although Disneyland Shanghai has helped lessen the crowd, it can still get congested on holidays and weekends.
7. Don't be shy. Ask for a sticker from the staff! 
   
8. For the characters greetings,
   
   bring a pen and characters will readily sign your stuff! I've read that the characters would practice their signatures so that they'll look uniform throughout the different Disney sites.
   
9. Buy a Disney Magical Goodie Bag for pasalubong if you have a previous purchase worth 350HKD!
   
   It is worth a bang for one's buck because the actual value is around 900HKD for a 200HKD bag. The downside is you'll get random, unpopular stuff but hey, it is worth it!

   Most of the stuff we got was from Star Wars and Duffy and Friends.

10. Take advantage of fast passes you can get at the kiosks at Hyper Space Mountain, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and Iron Man Experience. This is the best way to skip the long lines but we didn't get to use ours though.
    
11. Bring your own water bottle and some snacks. Food is a bit expensive. Here is how much things are in the park: 

    Brainwashed Yumi not to drink soft drinks because they are dirty water but now forcing her to drink some because she badly needs electrolytes after vomiting the whole day!

1. Meal  790PHP/120HKD
2. Medium sized popcorn 230PHP/35HKD
3. Drinks 230PHP/35HKD
12. Souvenir items are expensive as well.
1. Mickey Bow Headband 1039PHP/158HKD
   
2. Tshirt  1434PHP/218HKD
   
3. Tsum Tsum 579PHP/88HKD
4. Tumbler 579PHP/88HKD
5. Pens 658PHP/100HKD

Don't miss the following:

• Character greetings
• Hong Kong Disneyland Railroad
• Animation Academy
• Mickey's PhilharMagic - 4D show
• It's a Small World
• Mystic Manor
• Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars
• Jungle River Cruise
• Hyperspace Mountain