6 Tips for visiting Hong Kong Disneyland

1) Avoid China holidays

With the easy access of Hong Kong Disneyland for tourists from mainland China, many will travel over during the peak holiday seasons. Check the China calendar to make sure you don’t go during their peak travel periods, like Chinese New Year (Jan/Feb) or Golden Week (Oct)

You might have seen pictures of the insane crowds at tourist attractions around China during these peak holiday periods, and they’re no joke. Best to avoid these periods and go during a lull period. Nothing is better for a Disney fan than no queues for rides and open spaces to take those insta-worthy photos! 

2) Download the Hong Kong Disneyland app 

The app has tons of information, from the ride wait times, to entertainment show times. You can also buy park tickets, book your hotel stay, make dining reservations, get standby passes, and buy Disney Premier Access on the app. The park map on the app is a big help in navigating the park and finding the shortest route to your next ride or attraction. 

3) Getting to Hong Kong Disneyland

If you are travelling from the airport, the easiest way is to take a taxi or Uber directly to the park or your Disneyland hotel. Our UberX ride one-way cost about HK$154, which is about SGD26. This is in a regular-sized vehicle which seats up to 4 pax, so if you split the cost it is actually quite worth it. It only takes about 15-20 minutes depending on traffic. 

Alternatively, you can also take the train, also known as MTR in Hong Kong. While possible, it is not exactly convenient as you would have to take the train that actually goes past Disneyland, going further east to Tsing Yi Station, before changing to another train that brings you back westwards to Sunny Bay Station, where you can then change to the Disneyland Resort Line. This takes an estimated 1 hour or more, depending on the train wait times. 

There is currently no airport bus that goes directly to Disneyland. You would have to take a bus to a nearby neighbourhood and change to another bus. This is just too inconvenient, especially with your luggage, so it’s not recommended. 

From the city areas

If you are travelling from the city areas such as Tsim Tsa Tsui, you can take an Uber, or take the MTR. You can take the Tseun Wan (red line) to Lai King and change to the Tung Chung line (orange). Alight and change to the Disney Resort Line at the Sunny Bay Station. This takes about an hour. 

4) Stay on property 

As a Disneyland fan, we’d definitely recommend you to stay on property to get the full immersive experience at Disneyland. There are three on-site hotels:

• Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel

• Disney Explorers Lodge

• Disney’s Hollywood Hotel

Each one is uniquely different and I’d say it’s worth trying out all three of them just to experience the different environments. So far, we’ve stayed at the Disney Explorers Lodge twice and it’s been amazing! 

5) Getting around 

There aren’t really any other sites to go to at Hong Kong Disneyland besides the park itself and the three Disney hotels. To travel between the hotels and the park, there are free shuttle buses that pick up and alight passengers at the Hong Kong Disneyland Bus Terminal. It is just beside the Disneyland resort MTR station. 

6) Language 

While the local language spoken is Cantonese, nowadays, many cast members (park staff) speak English and Mandarin. Of course, there is a wide variety of proficiency levels, with some being very fluent, some knowing the basics. Nonetheless, it’ll be useful to pick up some of the local phrases to help you along. While you shouldn’t have a problem at the Disneyland resort area, if you go to the city areas or the neighbourhoods, it might be more challenging. 

Are you planning to go to Hong Kong Disneyland soon? What else would you like to know?