Shanghai Disney resort set to open June 16
The next big Walt Disney Co. theme park expansion -- the Shanghai Disney Resort -- now has a grand-opening date: June 16.
The only Disney theme park on mainland China had originally been scheduled to open in December 2015, but was delayed because Disney and its Chinese partner, the Shanghai Shendi Group, invested an additional $800 million to add more attractions.
When it opens, the $5.5-billion Shanghai resort will be Disney’s second-largest theme park, behind only its resort in Orlando, Fla.
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“When it comes in June, Shanghai Disney resort will be a one-of-a-kind, world-class destination that is authentically Disney and distinctly Chinese,” Disney Chairman and Chief Executive Robert Iger said in a statement.
The resort will include the Shanghai Disneyland park with six themed lands: Adventure Isle, Gardens of Imagination, Mickey Avenue, Tomorrowland, Treasure Cove and Fantasyland. The park will ring the Enchanted Storybook Castle. The resort will also feature two hotels, a shopping district and 99 acres of gardens, lakes and parkland.
When the boost in spending was announced in 2014, the Chinese economy was booming and the market for leisure activities among the Chinese middle class was huge.
In recent months, however, the Chinese economy has started to cool. Disney officials have previously said that they are confident that the country’s short-term economic problems will not hurt the long-term success of the resort.
To read more about travel, tourism and the airline industry, follow Hugo Martin on Twitter at @hugomartin.
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