I was so so excited to be back in Disney magic, even if it was only just for a day! When we had confirmation that we were going to China for a conference, I knew I had to get back to Shanghai Disneyland and this time taking my friend for her first visit (to China). It was a whirlwind trip and there was really only time for one day – for a first visit I don’t really think this is enough, but as I saw almost everything last time, and not a huge amount had changed (Zootopia land wasn’t yet open), it was ok to tide me over until the next trip XD This time the front entrance floral display was Duffy themed and I was super happy to get a Minnie ticket to complement Mickey from last time.
The Castle
The castle was as beautiful as I had remembered, and I have to say around the front of the castle was definitely a lot less crowded than my last visit. We weren’t there right at opening and still found plenty of space to get those castle pics! One of my favourite castle views is still from the back as you’re exiting Voyage to the Crystal Grotto, such a beautiful view through the trees (and for sure one of my favourite rides in the park, going under the castle is super special^). The only things I’ve not done in the castle vicinity are meet a princess and eat at the Royal Banquet Hall – now I’m not sure I’ll be eating in the castle anytime soon, it’s an expensive option and the food isn’t so much to my taste, but I think I’ll wait out that queue and meet a princess!
Duffy and Friends
Duffy and Friends were popular last time I visited, but their popularity has definitely gone through the roof since then – plus with new friends too! I have to say, I very quickly became a Lina Bell convert (with just about every other visitor, the line to meet her was so long and her merchandise was flying off the shelves)! On our visit the park was celebrating Mid Autumn Festival, so Duffy and Friends were all in special outfits which were so pretty and detailed. To get some of the special seasonal merchandise you needed to sign up on the app and be selected, luckily we were and got a return time for the store, so could get some of the cute keychains. There was also some non-limited merchandise at the main store on Mickey Avenue, I didn’t see the limited pins here, but I did pick up one of the limited pins in the Intergalactic Imports store in Tomorrowland which was behind the counter (they had plenty and I hadn’t seen these anywhere else). Next time I think I’ll queue to meet Duffy and/or some of his friends!
Lets meet Winnie the Pooh
Winnie the Pooh has been a favourite character of mine since childhood and I knew I wanted to meet him again on this trip! Of course I also rode both the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and Hunny Pot Spin, and when I got off the hunny pots, the queue was open for the upcoming meet time for Pooh. It was around 15 minutes until the meet started so I decided to join and thought it wouldn’t be that long – of course, I hadn’t factored in the heat, so Pooh could only come out for around 15-minute time frames before needing a little rest. I think I probably waited between 45-minutes and an hour, but they definitely don’t rush you in these meets. When I joined the queue there were maybe around 20 groups in the queue ahead of me, and only several other groups were allowed to join the queue before the closed it off, which happened before the meet time had even been reached. So if meeting a character is important, definitely get to the queue early. Pooh was super cute and I loved meeting him again, he was definitely worth the wait (and the cast member who took my phone got so many good pictures!) =D
Illuminate! A Nighttime Celebration
So while the parade hadn’t changed from my 2019 visit, there was a brand new fireworks/nighttime show – and wow was I impressed by Illuminate! A Nighttime Celebration, it was amazing! We had really prioritised shopping and rides over getting there early for a viewing spot, in 2019 I rocked up about 5-minutes before the start and got a really good spot, but it was definitely more crowded this time so the spot wasn’t quite as good but I’m still happy with it. The show had a great mix of themes, characters and music, I’m not a big Marvel fan, but even I was surprised and impressed by that section. I’ve got a Youtube video of the show favourited and regularly go back and watch it, I just need the soundtrack to be available and I’d listen to it all the time! Highly recommend watching this on Youtube if you can’t get to Shanghai to see it in person. There is also a special viewing package you can buy to see the show from a terrace in Disneytown which I’m contemplating for my next visit, but I do love being right in the middle experiencing it with the crowds.
What to eat and drink
Just from my experience between November 2019 and September 2023, I think there are so many more themed/designed food and snacks and drinks and souvenir cups/popcorn buckets now than there were before – I love it! Food started with an early lunch, Pooh shaped pizza from Pinocchio Village Kitchen was a priority for me. It was an ok pizza, nothing special, but it was Pooh shaped so I was pleased with it! I also picked up the Stella Lou panne cotta, again this was really for the adorable design – it was supposed to be blueberry flavour, but I couldn’t really identify any flavour, it was still good though. There were so many souvenir sipper cups to get – of course, I got the Pooh one (without really thinking how I was going to get that home, but it made it^). It comes with a Sprite or I think you could add a tea instead. The Pooh themed treats and cup were at the Merlin’s Magic Recipe stand right across from the two rides and the meet spot. I also had the pineapple frozen treat, which I’m not sure I’d recommend in warm months because it was melting the second the cast member handed it to me and a lot of it melted down my arm XD There is now a Pooh themed toasted sandwich here which I think I’ll get next time! The bakery had so many yummy looking items, and the tiramisu milkshake sounded tempting, but with the heat I wasn’t really up for eating a lot of snacks and treats, so I didn’t get anything this time – but next time I’m planning to take some ziplock bags so that I can takeaway treats for later^ Dinner ended up in the Stargazer Grill and was delicious (but maybe we were just really hungry by that point?!) – I got the veggie burger and honestly I think it was the best veggie burger I’ve ever had! My friend got the blank panther themed burger in a black bun, also delicious! And I got a super cute themed water with Goofy and Pluto.
‘See Ya Real Soon’
Sad to leave Shanghai Disneyland again – it was a whirlwind of a day! Leaving was a bit crazy with the crowds but I love it, everyone is super happy from their day and you can feel the excitement. At the time of visiting, I had no idea when I’d be back, and it turns out it really was a See Ya Real Soon – by the time this goes live, I’ll have already been back^ Looking forward to sharing about the brand new Zootopia land soon! Be sure to also stop by the fountain on your way out, it’s so pretty lit up with the train station and castle in the background^
Shanghai Disney Store
A stop that can’t be missed is the Shanghai Disney Store in the city centre – it’s hard to miss this as it’s at the Pearl Tower, and has it’s own beautiful clock tower outside. I love the area because they play Disney music and it really gets you in a happy mood^ I wasn’t super impressed when I went in November 2019, but this time I loved it, a huge improvement in what was on offer and so many things I could have bought! I visited the store before my day at Disneyland, and I would say that most of the things I saw in the store were not available in the park and vice versa (with the exception of pins), so if you see something here, you will be unlikely able to get it at the park. The displays were all super cute and it was interesting to see some different characters getting a focus here which don’t really get a spotlight in the UK Disney store/online. Loved the Pooh collection they had, it was mostly sold out sadly – I did pick up some super cute keychains and especially loved the range of cat items they had. I easily spent an hour here, it was a perfect evening activity to get excited for Disneyland the following day
