A (2019) HalloXmas trip to Asia - Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo! - COMPLETED 5/1!!!

[lvcourtneyy]

I absolutely love all the parade pictures! It really does look amazing!!

 

[KEK1]

WOW!!!

 

[NancyLuvsMickey]

WOWZER!!!!! That parade was flipping AH-MAZING!!!!! Is it just me or is everything better over there... It's kinda like we got the "B" team designers and they got the "A" team designers...

 

[missjackiemcg]

Oh, wowie wow wow!! I have heard of Dreamlights, but never actually looked up the soundtrack or pictures. It's stunning to say the least!!! It truly reminds me of the Spectromagic parade from WDW, which I absolutely adored, and cried when I heard what had happened to it's floats

It's like Spectromagic totally PLUSSED!! Probably too much to hope they'd ever do something of this magnitude for us again at WDW!

 

[PlutosRHM55]

Wow, even better than Paint? That IS high praise. I personally don't see myself liking it more than Paint because I have very deep strong feelings about Paint, but this looks absolutely stunning. I'm not sure if I'll get past the Baroque Hoedown that brings me back to DEP, but it looks stunning. Very much an upgrade technologically to DEP.

Looks like we're gonna be closing out TDR on a high note.

 

[missangelalexis]

This looks INCREDIBLE! That Genie float is insane! Really does seem like it tops Paint the Night, which was also amazing!

 

[lucas]

Wow. Just wow to that parade!

 

[KathyM2]

Trying to catch up around here!! So sorry about your sad lonely part of your day, but that lights parade looked absolutely amazing! I can't believe the lengths people go to to get a parade spot. I would not do it lol

 

[Lesley Wake]

I absolutely love all the parade pictures! It really does look amazing!!

It really was!

WOW!!!

Lol, yup!

WOWZER!!!!! That parade was flipping AH-MAZING!!!!! Is it just me or is everything better over there... It's kinda like we got the "B" team designers and they got the "A" team designers...

I think they just get almost unlimited budget! Their parks have been so profitable from the start that the company in charge is always willing to put money into things.

Oh, wowie wow wow!! I have heard of Dreamlights, but never actually looked up the soundtrack or pictures. It's stunning to say the least!!! It truly reminds me of the Spectromagic parade from WDW, which I absolutely adored, and cried when I heard what had happened to it's floats

It's like Spectromagic totally PLUSSED!! Probably too much to hope they'd ever do something of this magnitude for us again at WDW!

I'm sad I never got to see Spectromagic! And yeah, I would love to see something with even just half of its awesomeness at WDW!

Wow, even better than Paint? That IS high praise. I personally don't see myself liking it more than Paint because I have very deep strong feelings about Paint, but this looks absolutely stunning. I'm not sure if I'll get past the Baroque Hoedown that brings me back to DEP, but it looks stunning. Very much an upgrade technologically to DEP.

Looks like we're gonna be closing out TDR on a high note.

I mean, I love PtN so much. But this one was better! And at least it did end the night on a high note!

This looks INCREDIBLE! That Genie float is insane! Really does seem like it tops Paint the Night, which was also amazing!

I know - the Genie was amazing!

Wow. Just wow to that parade!

Yup!

Trying to catch up around here!! So sorry about your sad lonely part of your day, but that lights parade looked absolutely amazing! I can't believe the lengths people go to to get a parade spot. I would not do it lol

Yeah, parades there are crazy! I definitely spent my share of time waiting for them!

 

[Lesley Wake]

Part 8 – An Evening in TDL

Immediately after the parade I gathered my things and quickly went over to get a ride in on Pirates of the Caribbean as it didn’t have a long wait at all! No photos on the ride (I knew I had at least 2 more days at TDL so I decided my first time on rides I wouldn't focus on photos, just experiencing them), but it was pretty much the same as DLR, just without any of the PC things fixed (not just the auction scene, but the pirates chasing women).

I made my way back over to the hub. I checked out some of the decorations, which had cool lighting!

I tried to silhouette the partners Statue in this one

And then time for the fireworks. It’s interesting how low key the Tokyo fireworks are. Like Disneyland in Anaheim, they do have the complication of surrounded by occupied areas, so have the potential to get cancelled fairly often if there is wind. But really it was a pretty basic show – some music and some bursts. No castle projections (even when the castle wasn’t under scaffolding) or true special effects.

I think there was about 1 hr before the park closed, so I went up to up to Fantasyland, where I believe I got a ride on it’s a small world since I have a photo from inside the queue. Though I didn’t take any photos on the ride itself (but I will re-ride a week later and take photos).

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[Lesley Wake]

Then, time for my Honey Hunt fastpass! The queue is pretty cute, walking through the book, but moreso than the other Winnie the pooh ride versions.

The ride itself was actually really cute! I loved the trackless effects and all special features. It’s definitely the best ride at Tokyo Disneyland (well possible beaten once Beauty and the Beast opens).

A POV video

Now, it was time to head out.

Step count: 16,665

So, obviously my thoughts after this first day were very conflicted. Some great food items and the parades were top notch. Decorations too were so creative. But of the rides, only Honey Hunt was one that are truly awesome. And the overall crowds were ridiculously heavy. I also just felt excluded from everything. I mean, I get that I’m not a local and I don’t speak the language, but I had been to all of the other resorts worldwide and never felt that way. In Shanghai there were language barriers, but I felt people were really happy to see me and wanted to show off their park! HK and Paris had no real language issues. I didn’t have any Tokyo guests being outright rude to me, just very uncaring and I felt like a burden just for existing. I know, I know, this could just be me. I just was really bummed out because I had such high hopes for this resort! Maybe it would get better the next day?​

 

[KEK1]

Interesting. I wonder if this was partly cultural... one of the reasons we love holidaying in America is the really over the top friendliness. Which is magnified at WDW. It's very American, IMO and makes such a big difference. It would be different not having that and maybe TDR not being Disney owned means there is less emphasis on those traditions?

 

[PlutosRHM55]

I'm glad to hear your night ended on a much higher note than how the day started. Also, Hunny Hunt looks so so cute. I've heard amazing things.

Also, did you not see the videos of the Beauty & the Beast attraction yet? It's opened. I'm not sure I think it outdoes some trackless rides (Mystic Manor and Rise still reign supreme to me), but it's still pretty incredible, especially the pre-show.

 

[StayAwake]

I understand how you felt. While I enjoyed my time at Tokyo Disney, I felt separate from everyone else in the park. I realized how much of my enjoyment of the experience is being able to chat with others in line or even just acknowledge the shared experience we were having, and the language barrier was just too high.

I haven't been to any of the other non-US parks, so I don't have anything to compare it to from that perspective, but you are not the only person to feel that way.

I just found your report, and I am thoroughly enjoying it. It's re-sparking my interest in seeing all the Disney parks across the globe.

 

[ofcabbagesandkings]

That parade really looks special! Hopefully when the Covid crisis is over they will resume it. I must say, reading your review makes me wish TDLR offered VIP tours, especially ones in English. I've never gone for a VIP tour at WDW but I would at TDLR to help with navigating the parks and the language barrier.

 

[josefina022]

This trip is absolutely incredible! Loving your trip report!! I would love to be able to visit these parks someday, good for you for making your wishes come true!!

 

[Lesley Wake]

So, yeah I slacked off on this report! So so sorry! After the election I definitely had a lot of stress, hopefully that will help get reduced in January! And then I just took a break from the Dis. So, anyways, I will 100% be finishing it - even though I still have a lot to go!

Interesting. I wonder if this was partly cultural... one of the reasons we love holidaying in America is the really over the top friendliness. Which is magnified at WDW. It's very American, IMO and makes such a big difference. It would be different not having that and maybe TDR not being Disney owned means there is less emphasis on those traditions?

It's interesting because people do talk about how TDR is very friendly. I guess I just didn't feel it.

I'm glad to hear your night ended on a much higher note than how the day started. Also, Hunny Hunt looks so so cute. I've heard amazing things.

Also, did you not see the videos of the Beauty & the Beast attraction yet? It's opened. I'm not sure I think it outdoes some trackless rides (Mystic Manor and Rise still reign supreme to me), but it's still pretty incredible, especially the pre-show.

Hunny Hunt was super cute! I did see BatB videos - the animatronics look amazing.

I understand how you felt. While I enjoyed my time at Tokyo Disney, I felt separate from everyone else in the park. I realized how much of my enjoyment of the experience is being able to chat with others in line or even just acknowledge the shared experience we were having, and the language barrier was just too high.

I haven't been to any of the other non-US parks, so I don't have anything to compare it to from that perspective, but you are not the only person to feel that way.

I just found your report, and I am thoroughly enjoying it. It's re-sparking my interest in seeing all the Disney parks across the globe.

It's good that I'm not the only one who felt that way! I definitely want to go back and visit again though!

That parade really looks special! Hopefully when the Covid crisis is over they will resume it. I must say, reading your review makes me wish TDLR offered VIP tours, especially ones in English. I've never gone for a VIP tour at WDW but I would at TDLR to help with navigating the parks and the language barrier.

Yeah, a VIP tour would be great! But knowing so many of the people in Tokyo would probably book them all up immediately! They do have Club 33 over there, so maybe they do have a private version?

This trip is absolutely incredible! Loving your trip report!! I would love to be able to visit these parks someday, good for you for making your wishes come true!!

Thanks!

 

[Lesley Wake]

Day 10, Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Part 1 - DisneySea

Today was the day… DisneySea! I felt this one was the most beloved of all the parks I was going to visit. And I hoped for a better experience than the day before.

And a preface – I don’t have crazy detailed photos this day. But I have several more days coming up a week later when I will be showing more photos! Doesn’t mean there aren’t still a lot of photos, it is a Lesley trip report after all… just not as many as you would expect!



Unfortunately the fates hated me and it decided to rain all day long! And relatively chilly rain too… oh well, I had to make the most of it!

I hoped on the monorail, though I don’t have a photo of my ticket, but I think I got the festival of mystique version of the day ticket!

You can see the sea of umbrellas out there!

I actually stopped at a cart to try and buy a poncho because I realized, while I had a raincoat, my bag wasn’t covered, so I basically finagled something with the poncho covering my bag (though it was questionable as to how well it worked). (FYI – I don’t use umbrellas…I’ve broken so many in the past that I think I’m cursed). I also had brought rubber shoe covers, basically like thick plastic raincoat for my feet. This definitely helped avoid getting my feet totally soaked, though it was a bit weird wearing them!

Also, right after scanning into the park I grabbed my first fastpass – Tower of Terror, which was good in 15 minutes, woohoo! Definitely the rain helped decrease the crowds today.

And into the park!

I had now visited all Disney parks in the world!

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[Lesley Wake]

They had been doing refurb on Mount Prometheus, but had started taking down the scaffolding. It wasn’t a perfect view, but it was better than before!

I still had some time before my Fastpass and I was hungry, so on the way I stopped at New York Deli for breakfast.

I got the Halloween set – which was a ham sandwich with purple potato roll, and pumpkin salad. Also, as with most of their options, came with fries and a drink. I did pick out some of the nuts in the pumpkin portion, but overall it was pretty good.

I also checked some wait times/fastpass availability. The newest ride, Soaring Fantastic Flights, was 2 hrs (this was about an hr after park open) and Toy Story Mania was 3 hrs. Looking back, I probably should have grabbed a fastpass to Soaring, since this was the only time they had FPs available at the time I was in the park, but I never did and didn’t end up riding either ride at all! I just didn’t consider them as much of a priority when I have versions close to home I can ride whenever I want. It would have been cool seeing the queue for Soaring though!

Anyways, onto Tower of Terror! I was pretty excited about this one as I knew it had a different backstory.

If you’ve ever read a Tokyo trip report, you would know, photos are forbidden in this ride, including in the queue. I don’t quite understand that, but once you go inside you aren’t supposed to take photos… I actually saw one person being scolded by the CM. Funny thing though – I was using my phone but not to take photos (I was checking the Tokyo Disney app). Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the CM inching towards me, reading to yell at me, so I tried to angle my screen so she could easily see I wasn’t using the camera! So I was successful in not getting yelled at.

Now the ride itself. Unfortunately it was a bit of a letdown. Now the queue and preshow are awesome! Though they are all in Japanese, so I didn’t totally understand it all, but the show quality was great with a CM acting like a tour guide and some special effects. But on the ride it’s weird because you have full seatbelts (lap and shoulder). And the intensity was so minimal, especially compared to Guardians of the Galaxy in DCA or even ToT in DHS! And only like 3 drops. So a bit disappointing. I mean, it’s not bad, it just wasn’t mindbreaking!

While I was in the ride I grabbed another fastpass, for Nemo & Friends SeaRider, which was almost immediate usage! Yay! Though I had some other things to do so I don’t think I used until the end of the time period.

I stopped in Mediterranean Harbor to play the Tokyo lottery. I didn’t win for Festival of Mystique (though I knew with weather it probably wouldn’t run) or Isle of Mirage, but I did end up winning for Big Band Beat, which was awesome!

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[Lesley Wake]

Anyways, I mentioned that Festival of Mystique wouldn’t run because of the rain. And it was forecast to continue all day. But at least they make up for it with a little harbor parade of the floats and characters in ponchos.

I had my choice of spots and ended up getting one against the railing in Lido Isle

Had some close views of brave people riding the gondolas in rain!

Time for the show!

It was a fun compromise, though I really wish I could have seen the full show!

Coming up - Seeing Duffy's home​