On Tuesday the Disney Channel flew a number of excited young winners of the Disney Jet Set Go Contest (and their families) to Hong Kong Disneyland for a two day all-expenses paid trip where they were treated to a wide variety of experiences in a place that has been described as “The Happiest Place on Earth!”
Team MissMalini was invited on the trip as well, and here are a couple of things we experienced along with the winners. You must check them out if you plan to visit Hong Kong Disneyland anytime soon, or if you’re just a Disney lover like me!
THE DISNEY PARADE:
A parade of all the Disney characters happens twice a day – once in the afternoon, and once in the evening. They sit atop colourful floats while others dance down the street. In the hot summer months the Disney characters and the floats even spray water on you! Holi, anyone?
MICKEY’S PHILAR MAGIC
Fans of Disney’s 3D films must visit Mickey’s Philhar Magic which takes 3D one step further to a four-dimensional experience. Donald Duck is the main protagonist here and he’s in charge of setting up Mickey’s philharmonic orchestra. Unfortunately, he messes up the entire thing and the results are hilarious. The best part is that since this is a 4D film you can smell the aromas, get sprinkled with water at opportune moments, and feel wind gusts in your face when Donald gets sucked into a tornado .
MEET THE CHARACTERS
Little kids and adults alike enjoy the up-close and personal encounters with their favourite cartoon characters. They sign autographs, pull your leg, and are all too happy to give you a hug you for a nice photo-op.
You can meet them as you walk around Disneyland and if you stay at the Disneyland Hotel Resort, they join you for a sumptuous buffet breakfast. I had the chance to meet Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy, Pluto, Woody (from Toy Story) and Rapunzel.
TOY STORY LAND
Toy Story Land is a new attraction at Hong Kong Disneyland and it looks like a giant kid’s playroom. All your favourite Toy Story characters are prominent everywhere and there are numerous gut-churning rides to thrill you & chill you. The Slinky Dog ride is the cutest as it looks like he’s going around in circles trying to catch his tail.
FESTIVAL OF THE LION KING
For people who love song and dance, the Festival of the Lion King is an attraction you just can’t miss. With huge sets, exotic dances, fire-eaters, and amazing acrobatics, this show will have you riveted to your seats. The best part is they sing your favourite songs like Hakuna Matata and Circle of Life.
TAKE A RIDE ON A TRAIN, BOAT, TRUCK, METRO
The moment you enter Disneyland, you can hop onto a vintage steam engine which will take you around the park so that you get a complete view of all the rides and attractions. You may also take a tour on a vintage omnibus or a police van.
In the Adventure Land area, you can take a boat ride and encounter animals like elephants, rhinos, monkeys, and crocodiles, which are all interactive and pop out from the river and bushes along the river bank to spray you with water or scare you. Of course, they are not real.
And finally, when you want to leave Disneyland and head to the main Hong Kong or Kowloon islands for sightseeing, the Disney Metro will drop you to the closest station where you can get your connections to other parts of the city. The Disney metro car is uniquely designed with lots of Mickey Mouse motifs – right from the shape of the windows to the handles.
STAY AT THE DISNEY HOLLYWOOD HOTEL
And last but not the least, you must stay at the Disney Hollywood Hotel which is connected to the park by frequent shuttle buses. We stayed here too and thoroughly enjoyed shopping for gifts, toys, and mementos at the Disney store in the lobby. The hotel also has nice restaurants and a swimming pool.
I liked the cute detailing on the shampoo and bath gel and the napkin folded like a duckling here:
To round it off, even though this was my second trip to Disneyland (the first was six years ago to Euro Disney in Paris), I thoroughly enjoyed myself along with the rest of the winners and their families and it felt like a new experience! Each activity and attraction was new and refreshing, and now I can’t wait to check out the Disneyland in Tokyo.
Check out highlights of the trip here: