Trip Report: “Disney Parks Around The World – A Private Jet Adventure” Days 10 and 11 – Shanghai Disneyland

We said sayonara to Tokyo on Day 10 of Disney Parks Around The World – A Private Jet Adventure, transferring to the 3rd castle on our world tour, Shanghai Disneyland. This trip report also covers Day 11, since internet access was very restrictive in mainland China, representing a day and a half of Shanghai Disneyland fun.

Day 10

The top-notch service of the Tokyo Disneyland Hotel started our departure off right with a yummy bento box filled with Disney-themed pastries, fresh fruit, a well-stuffed sandwich, and a box of cookies.

In the same way that we were welcomed with a fanfare of waving Cast Members, it felt like every available person at the Tokyo Disneyland Hotel was outside to wave us off into the horizon.

Our Icelandic Air flight crew had fun with the day’s safety spiel, wearing oversized Mickey Mouse gloves as they attempted to demonstrate how to buckle a seatbelt and put on an oxygen mask and life preserver (note: the safety spiel was presented in the traditional manner on previous flights and this was a creative way to get passengers to pay attention to the important safety information again).

Lunch was served during the 3-and-a-half-hour flight to Shanghai. The trip physician, Dr. Shay, gave a few health and safety tips for mainland China, sharing that tap water should be avoided there, even when brushing your teeth. And Becky Cline gave an insightful presentation with a streaming visual aid about Walt Disney’s connections to China, showcasing some of the Chinese publicity art for early Mickey Mouse shorts and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. As we got closer to landing, we were given our pin of the day. It features Mulan and the Chinese Mandarin word for hello, nĭ hăo.

Landing in Shanghai was an adventure. Our travel visas were pre-arranged, and Guests were grouped by last name, which required families with different surnames to be separated as we went through immigration and customs. Our Adventure Guides did their best to outline how the process would work before we deplaned, but government officials changed the procedures when we landed, so things didn’t go according to plan. But once we were through and all 75 Guests were together again, we split up into busses. Some went on pre-selected tours of the city while we chose to head to the Shanghai Disney Resort.

Check-in was a breeze, with a ballroom set up to expedite check-in. Some rooms weren’t ready, but the Shanghai Disneyland Hotel had a nice rest area set up for our group with a variety of themed snacks and beverages.

The hotel is done in an art nouveau style, with Mickey Mouse and his pals prominently featured in the decor of both the lobby and guest rooms, often with musical instruments in hand. We upgraded to a Magic Kingdom Suite, which had a full and half bathroom and a sitting area in addition to a king-size bed.

Once we were settled, we ventured into Shanghai Disneyland on our own. The tickets we were given for the day included 6 Premiere Access passes (this resort’s equivalent of Lightning Lane), which works differently there. Rather than a Genie+ style add-on with one of each attraction (minus an Individual Lightning Lane experience), the park bundles select attractions under different price scales. We had Premiere Access for Soarin' Over the Horizon, Roaring Rapids, TRON Lightcycle Power Run, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, and Voyage to the Crystal Grotto.

A group dinner was held downtown at Din Tai Fung Restaurant, which featured an acrobat show. We chose to stay in the park and enjoy dinner on our own, but our fellow adventurers raved about both the meal and show. As a fan of all things Duffy and Friends, we enjoyed the Mickey & Pals Market Café Duffy and Friends Summer Afternoon Tea. It included a hot tea, a character-themed milkshake, and an assortment of sandwiches, tarts, and cakes.

We caught the parade, Mickey’s Storybook Express, which included a Duffy and Friends pre-parade with a water feature. Each of the adorable plush characters was equipped with a water launcher. You haven’t lived until you’ve been soaked by Stella Lou and Lina Bell.

The train-themed parade used the song “Casey Jr” from Dumbo to connect floats themed to Toy Story, Tangled, Finding Nemo, Frozen, and Aladdin.

We took advantage of our free time to do some shopping. Among the unique merchandise items was a plush of the chicken mascot from Al’s Toy Barn in Toy Story 2, a plush collection featuring Chip ‘n’ Dale as bees and Clarice as a flower, and Daisy Duck in an outfit that looks more like Donald’s.

Back at the hotel, a reception was set up in the Magic Kingdom Club, with lots of snacks and desserts available. It was a perfect place to watch ILLUMINATE! A Nighttime Celebration, the nighttime fireworks spectacular. And the day ended with Mickey Mouse making a sleepy appearance in his pajamas.

When we returned to our room, we found a special gift from the Adventures by Disney team, a stamp and ink set with each of our names in Chinese.

Day 11

The morning began at 7:00 am in the lobby of the Shanghai Disneyland Hotel. We boarded coaches that drove us to the park. We proceeded as a group to the Enchanted Storybook Castle.

A breakfast buffet awaited us in the Royal Banquet Hall on the castle’s second floor. Tables were decorated with handmade Disney and Duffy characters made out of pipe cleaners. Butter was also shaped like various characters. Head of Food and Beverage, Darlene, welcomed us all and shared that the buffet includes Western breakfast items in addition to traditional Chinese breakfast mainstays.

The buffet featured lots of Disney-themed dishes. My personal favorite was a pastry that looked like the Little Green Men from Toy Story, which was cream filled.

The buffet was decorated with hand-carved watermelon artwork of Disney characters.

A candy maker was also making intricate lollipops in the shape of characters that Guests could take.

After breakfast, we proceeded to the front of the castle for a group photo. That segued into the reveal of the pin of the day, which features the Enchanted Storybook Castle.

We were then split into smaller groups for a tour with Walt Disney Imagineering that would culminate in a group ride on Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure. Our tour was led by Art Directors Leia, who has been with Imagineering for 15 years, and Ice, who began her Disney career 7 years ago at Magic Kingdom.

Leia was involved with the creation of the Gardens of Imagination and Fantasyland, so that’s where our tour led us. She pointed out lots of details in the castle and told us the story of the attraction Voyage to the Crystal Grotto, which connects to the story of the castle. As the legend goes, a young boy once saw a golden dragonfly, following it through a winding river that led to an enchanted crystal cavern. In order to protect this magic, the people built a castle over the grotto, which houses all of the royal stories. When you walk through the level, you’ll notice one of the magical crystals is at the center of a giant chandelier, with the ceiling reflecting constellations that tie into each princess’ story.

Ice led the tour into Treasure Cove, the only pirate-themed land at any Disney Park. As the story goes, the island was a popular pit stop for pirates, leading to multiple battles over buried treasure; thus the land has many damaged areas. Its residents are still under constant threat of pirates.

Our first ride on Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure would not be our last, with the most talked-about Shanghai Disneyland attraction living up to its hype. It’s a full-circle moment, a ride based on the film franchise that itself was inspired by the classic Disneyland attraction. It’s a technological marvel, with each boat on an underwater track with the ability to speed up, slow down, rock, and turn around. The experience features animatronics, projection mapping, and all manner of Imagineering wizardry. There are even two possible endings you can get.

Our next stop was the stunt show Eye of the Storm: Captain Jack’s Stunt Spectacular. Our group was brought into the preshow first, where Head of Entertainment Steve Brown, and Creative Production Leader, Danny Newell, explained what we were about to see. The entire show is in Cantonese, but the Teatro Fandango was founded by Don Diego, who stars in every production they put on. The lobby is full of commissioned artwork depicting past performances of classic plays by the likes of William Shakespeare. But today, the troupe is debuting an original show based on the legend of Captain Jack Sparrow, who has allegedly hidden treasure in this very theater.

After the pre-show, we were escorted into the theater for the main attraction. As predicted, while the show is going on, the real Captain Jack Sparrow sneaks in and interrupts things. Local authorities are on to him, and a spectacular battle ensued, featuring a sword fight on a spinning catwalk and a crowd-pleasing wind tunnel battle.

The show ended at noon, and we were released for an hour of lunch on our own with Yuen, which was provided at check-in the day prior. We chose to visit Tribal Table in Adventure Isle because it was hosting a “A Celebration of Duffy and Friends.” It was a glorious celebration of all things Duffy but mostly Lina Bell. Each meal included a dessert, and as a Dole Whip aficionado, the Lina Bell pineapple raspberry cone did not disappoint.

We made it through lunch quickly, so we went to the Gardens of Imagination to experience the two rides that are in every Disneyland-style park around the world. The Fantasia Carousel is a fun Disney twist on the ride that inspired Walt Disney to create his own theme park. Each horse is a character from the “Pastoral Symphony” sequence of Fantasia. The benches feature the hippos, alligators, and ostriches from “Dance of the Hours.”

A leader in the area named Zhang went above and beyond, overhearing that we were next planning to ride Dumbo, which had a 20-minute wait. He asked us to follow him and escorted us directly to the attraction, bypassing the queue and treating us to some nice stickers.

After the break, we reconvened with our fellow adventurers at the Walt Disney Grand Theatre to see Mickey's Storybook Adventure with reserved seating. The show stars Mickey and Goofy as they flip through the pages of a giant book that reveals musical numbers from beloved characters, including “I Wanna Be Like You” from The Jungle Book, “How Far I’ll Go” from Moana, and “Try Everything” from Zootopia, the first portrayal of Gazelle in a Disney show.

After the show, we stayed in the theater for a talk back from one of the stars, Whitney, and Costume Development Manager Grace Wong, who was accompanied by assistants who brought examples of costumes and accessories. Fun fact: there are 495 costume pieces used in the show by 23 performers.

After the show, we were sorted into groups of 8 and assigned a VIP Guide for priority access to all attractions. We experienced the following during our 4 hours with the guide:

Dinner was held in Club 33, which was also made available as a cooling station for those that needed a break from the hot, humid day. Shanghai Disneyland’s Club 33 features artwork from “The Nutcracker Suite” segment of Fantasia in the main areas, with restrooms featuring background artwork from The Jungle Book and alcoves themed to Bambi and Aladdin.

Each place setting included a pair of Club 33 mouse ears as a souvenir. Club 33 merchandise was also available for purchase.

A few special guests stopped by. Shanghai Disney Resort Vice-President of Sales Joe Schott not only welcomed the entire group but also came to each table with a gift – a trio of pins depicting some of the “Distinctly Disney, Uniquely Chinese” icons of the park.

The other special guests were Duffy and ShellieMay. They say, “don’t meet your heroes,” but as expected, they were sweet as can be and gave very cuddly hugs. Thankfully, I dressed for the surprise occasion.

Club 33 has a balcony from which we could watch the 8:00 presentation of ILLUMINATE! A Nighttime Celebration. It was so incredible that we accepted an offer to see it again at 9:15 from a reserved section directly in front of the Enchanted Storybook Castle, ensuring that we would have a clear view of all the projections.

Now it’s time to say Zàijiàn to Shanghai Disney Resort. Next, we’re off to Hong Kong Disneyland to see our 4th Disney castle of the trip. Until then, xiè xiè for reading.

Disney fans will soon be able to travel the globe from the comfort of their homes with Disney Around the World from Ravensburger. We brought along an early review copy of the game and look forward to playing it during downtime on this adventure.

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