Shanghai Disneyland Park

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Don’t collect things, collect memories – this is one of our favorite sayings. And when it comes to travel memories, it is the visit to Disneyland and the joy of the child that will be one of the greatest memories during our trip to China.

Yes, we went to China mainly to visit the centers of the great pandas around
Chengdu. And although these were fantastic places that we have been dreaming about for several years and about which there will be at least a few posts, the trip also involved one surprise for Olive, which she only found out about on the spot.

We make no secret that it was also meant to be a bit of an attraction for us…. Disney’s fairy tales are our childhood, the Sunday matinee, our first emotion at the Lion King, singing with Pocahontas and discovering the secret life of Toy Story toys. It is known that these fairy tales had a great impact on us, and now with nostalgia we would love to watch these films again, this time with our children.

A visit to Disneyland is, on the one hand, a chance to revisit our childhood, and on the other hand, a chance to show our little ones the stories and fairy tales we used to catcall so passionately. It’s a world of magic, dreams and adventures to which I think every adult sometimes feels like escaping ;-)

So we ran away and lost ourselves in it completely. Initially, we wanted to focus on the carousels, rollercoasters and rides, but at the end of the day, Disney World drew us in so much that it was a waste of time to stand in lines for these attractions.

Because you should know that the queues are there, and they are long. Anyway, this is the case in every amusement park (well, except maybe Energylandia on Monday, when they announce rainy weather ;-)). Add to that the fact that China itself is heavily congested and you have such an explosive mix…. BUT! It is worth mentioning that Shanghai Disney Resort makes sure that too many people at once do not enter the Park. Nevertheless, queues have been, are and will be. Some reaching two hours of standing, but in our opinion there are so many other interesting attractions and things to see here that you will not be disappointed.

Table of contents

Attractions in Shanghai Disneyland – how to embrace?

So there you have it, the number of attractions and the area of the amusement park itself can make your head spin!

So we recommend preparing in advance for a visit to Shanghai Disney Resort. All materials and maps are available online, so we encourage you to look at the official site – and it’s important that it be the official site, not other blogs or intermediaries. There is a lot going on at Disneyland, there are many shows, additional attractions, and only on the official sites will information be posted in real time and the fastest.

On top of that, you can also download an app that will not only help you prepare for your visit but also help you on the spot to find what’s most interesting to you. Most importantly, in the app, in addition to your current location on the map, you can also see in real time (wi-fi is free) the queue times for all the attractions!

So browse the map, see what interests you and, more importantly, what you can use! Many attractions have height restrictions, so choose only those attractions that are for you and your children, or plan the fun so that one parent with the smaller ones goes to one attraction and the other parent goes to another attraction.

We especially recommend you various shows and performances starting from the already famous parades of fairy tale characters and the evening fireworks show by the Disney castle, to performances in theaters. And again, be sure to check exactly what time the parade full of Disney characters, music and dancing is so you can be a little early and get a good seat right next to the platform rides (even 1 hour before!).

For us it was a fantastic experience, after which the legs carry themselves and you want to continue singing songs :) We were very lucky, because we also hit the Halloween parade, so we had the opportunity to watch two, completely different parades. This time it was dark and a little scary, as there were mainly platforms with villains moving around, but it was still fun.

Also, performances in theaters make a huge impression. They are held only a few times a day, so you need to be well ahead of time to take the queue, and to fit in the already quite large halls. The performances are of a very high standard, accompanied by light and sound shows…. the only downside is that they are in Chinese, but frankly this did not bother us at all, because the whole setting is so fantastic and mesmerizing that the plot remains somewhere in the background.

So, writing in a nutshell, the key is preparation: getting familiar with the map of attractions, checking where what and is and what interests us most. It is also important to know when parades, performances and shows are taking place, as well as whether selected attractions are open all day.

Have with you maps of the park and an app on your phone, so you won’t get lost on the spot :)

Prices at Shanghai Disneyland Park

For many, this is one of the most important aspects. Yes, Shanghai Disneyland is expensive, as are other such parks.

Currently, for an adult ticket for one day you have to pay 399 yuan i.e. about 220 zł. For children, the ticket is cheaper – 299 yuan, i.e. about 165 zł(the criterion is height, a child from 1 meter to 1.4 meters catches a discounted ticket). The prices quoted are for regular days, not “peak” days such as holidays, weekends or the holiday period. We specifically planned a visit to the park between Halloween and the weekend to save about 100 złper person.

A quick calculation and a family of four pays zł(for one day and at the cheapest fare) for entry alone. We realize that this is a big expense for a family, but no one said that traveling with children is cheap ;-) And seriously, being already in Shanghai, which, let’s not hide, also costs a lot, just like at least the trip here itself, it’s worth having the money already set aside and go crazy this one day ;-)

NOTE! As of January 6, 2020, the Disney Resort is introducing a new fare breakdown, so be sure to check the park’s website for up-to-date prices before you visit.

Food and shopping

Unfortunately, we have no consolation here along the lines of: don’t worry, food is cheap locally. Well it isn’t ;)

Let’s start with the fact that there are more than a dozen food and beverage outlets in this vast park, including restaurants, fast food, snacks, waffles, ice cream and so on. On top of that, you’ll find even more restaurants in the adjacent Disneytown, where you can go out and then return to Disneyland by showing your ticket. The choice of food is quite wide, and interestingly the meals and snacks served relate to Disney characters. And so, for example, we can try pizza, waffles or ice cream in the shape of the head of the world’s most popular mouse, and the restaurants themselves thematically relate to the land in which we are currently playing.

As we have already mentioned, the food on site is quite expensive. Ice cream on a stick alone costs about zł a piece (delicious, you have to admit!). Eating at a restaurant is an expense of about 150 złfor the whole family (depends, of course, on what you choose to eat).

As in any amusement park, you’ll find plenty of stores and stands where you can buy souvenirs with your favorite characters. Prices are high, of course, but Disneyland ensures that everything is original and produced in good conditions for employees.

An infant at Disneyland and getting around with a stroller

While moving between attractions with a stroller is of course hassle-free, we were surprised that we couldn’t get in with a stroller everywhere. We understand the lack of such opportunity for attractions or cramped rooms, but we were not allowed to drive our wheelchair even into a room where there were only exhibitions or interactive games. Cart parking lots are therefore ubiquitous.

Baby strollers can be rented on site, which many people use, and most of the parked vehicles are rental strollers. The cost of renting for the whole day is 90 RMB, i.e. about 50 PLN.

Another surprise for us was that we couldn’t enter a really free attraction while Philip was sleeping in the carrier. The rules are that the child must be awake. 20 minutes of waiting almostzłto waste…. almost, because fortunately the staff gave us a ticket with which we could return when the baby woke up and enter outside the queue.

And we must add here that we were able to enter many places with four of us. However, let’s agree, an infant will not have super fun here…. maybe such an almost year-old will smile at the sight of the big characters, he will like the lights, colors, sounds and even some of the rides, however, one does not come here FOR the infant but WITH the infant. It makes a difference.

It’s a good idea to bring along soundproofing headphones, as the park is noisy, especially during parades or performances.

Getting to Shanghai Disney Resort

We mostly got around Shanghai by subway, but nevertheless Disneyland is a long way from the center and we long considered taking a cab or hotel transfer. Our hotel offered free shuttles twice a day (two departures in the morning and two returns in the evening), but it turned out that they don’t take you right to the door of Disneyland, only to the metro station, from which we could get directly to the Park.

We also thought about a cab or Uber, but still, it was a rather expensive option, and there was no chance of zła vehicle with seats.

In the end, we decided to take the subway and it was probably the best choice. The road took us about 20 minutes and cost a few zł(5 RMB, or about $3). You get off at the last station of line 11 Disney Resort (and how! :)) From where you already hit the entrance without any problems.

We recommend this form of transportation. And don’t be afraid to take the subway back :-) We were terrified when we walked in the crowd heading to the station right after the fireworks show ended. Unnecessary! The organization worked great and we didn’t have to stand in line for the subway. Disney definitely knows the logistics :)

Video of our visit to Disneyland

Below is our short video report of our visit to Shanghai Disneyland:

Is it worth visiting Disneyland Shanghai?

Despite the rather high cost, we believe that it is worth saving money for other things in life to be able to afford to move to the magical world of Disney at least once. For some, it’s a trip back in time, and for others it’s fun with characters they know from current books and fairy tales.

Certainly, a visit to Disneyland with children looks very different from the adults themselves. And here we must add that not at all families are the majority of visitors ;) Most are young people who want to have fun.

We had a great time and would love to do it again!

We also recommend more texts about our traveling with a child such as: