Hong Kong Disneyland with kids and teens: all the best rides and shows for each age group
We had 2 days at Disneyland Hong Kong, so we were able to visit almost every single place and check out every ride. On this post, I’ll write about the best age group for each ride at the park.
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* we received tickets for the park, but the opinions are 100% ours
Hong Kong Disneyland is a small park, but don’t take it for granted. It’s small, but there’s a lot to see and do. One day is enough if you don’t need to cover it all, but most likely, not enough to do everything.
If you have toddlers, you probably wouldn’t because it’d be way too busy.
Hong Kong Disneyland for families with kids
I’ll start with a rough map of the park.
This is the map from the website. I just added the area names. The entrance and exit are through Main Street USA on the right-hand side of the map.
Before the park opening hours, you’ll have access to Main Street USA. It closes off a bit before the roundabout. There’s a line there and there are cast members preventing people from crossing it.
When the park opens, you can either go right to Tomorrowland, left to Adventureland or go straight to Fantasyland. Tomorrowland and Fantasyland are open until later, so I think you should go to Adventureland first.
My suggested route is Main Street USA > Adventureland > Grizzly Gulch > Mystic Point > Toy Story Land > Fantasyland > Tomorrowland, so I’ll put it down on this order.
Main Street USA
You can arrive early to take photos with Mickey, Minnie, Hiro and Baymax, Donald and Daisy, Chip and Dale, Pluto and Goofy, and Duffy and friends. Or even to shop.
Main Street USA, people! You can get to around half of it before the park officially opens, so make use of that extra time!
This part of the park opens up earlier than the rest of the park, so you can arrive way before park opening hours.
There isn’t much more there – shops, food, Animation Studio, and character photos – but it’s enough to keep you busy for at least an hour. Arrive early!
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Animation Academy
This is an art class, given by a real Disney artist. It’s for everyone and there are classes throughout the day. We didn’t do it because classes are in Cantonese only. If you speak Cantonese or you think you can handle it anyway, just check the schedule at the entrance!
Good for kids who can sit through a short class and follow instructions to adults!
We arrived extra early on the second day and we found Chip and Dale there. They’re adorable!
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Art of Animation
A nice little exhibit with Disney art for sale, but it’s also for people willing to upgrade their tickets to Magic Members (or annual membership) with a lounge for members. We visited the exhibit and it’s adorable but small.
The exhibit isn’t much fun for little ones, but for tweens and teens, it was delightful!
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Hong Kong Disneyland Railroad – Main Street Station
It may be one of the longest lines we had, but it’s because people take so long to find a place and sit, seriously. The train ride is cute, though, and you can stop at any of the stations through the park – great way to avoid walking and tiring little legs. There are only 2 stations, though: Main Street USA and Fantasyland. You can go up and down a few times while your child rests.
It’s great for all ages!
It was May so the Easter decorations were still there – SO CUTE! Those eggs were everywhere!
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Main Street Vehicles
There are vintage cars there, and some are ridable. They take you for a ride around the park or just on Main Street USA, but you’ll need to check the operating hours!
Great for all ages, especially if you have a kid that loves vehicles!
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Royal Princess Garden
For those wanting to meet the princesses (except for Moana and Rapunzel), this is the place to go. There are lines, though.
And there’s Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique for the kids wishing to get a ‘royal transformation’. It’s paid separately, though.
Best for kids under 10.
Adventureland
Adventureland is small and there’s only one ride, but that’s where you’ll find Moana and Black Panther, and that’s also the place for the Lion King show, which is a must!
Here you see Moana asking Coral a question about something she was carrying – they have this way with kids that’s incredible and they all are really into their characters!
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Jungle River Cruise
This is a water safari through the jungles of the park. It’s all animatronics (or robots), but they’re pretty cool and the guides are awesome. There are lines for different languages, so make sure you get into the right line to understand what the guide says.
It’s a great ride for all ages, though some parts may be scary for the littlest, like when there’s a volcano explosion or the cannibal tribes.
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Karibuni Marketplace
A neat little ethnic market with some of the Lion King, Alladin, and Lilo & Stitch characters.
We missed the characters there but we scrolled through the market after the Lion King show and we liked it – but didn’t buy anything.
It’s good for all ages.
Meet Hong Kong Disney’s elephants. They’re not real elephants, but we wouldn’t want to be purists, now.
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Liki Tikis
A water playground, because it’s so hot there!
It’s just a few tiki totems lined up in a circle that squirts water all around.
Great for all ages, as long as they’re up for a bit of water fun.
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Rafts to Tarzan’s Tree House and the Tree House
This is the one thing we didn’t do because of the lines. They were huge, people were in the rafts, which was packed, with their umbrellas open, stabbing one another, and then they’d go to the tree house, full of climbings and rope bridges, and then they’d need to wait in line again, in midst of the umbrellas, to get out of the island. No, thanks.
It should be great for kids who can walk and are in need of some running and jumping.
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The Lion King show
You need to see it. It’s a musical, and it takes around 30 minutes. Leave it for when the sun is strong and enjoy an air conditioning break.
The show is pretty great and entertaining, even if you’ve never watched the movie. Well, even if you, like me, didn’t like it.
If you sit at the back, there’ll be fewer people and you get an awesome view. We sat at the front but then moved on to the back because we got a clearer view.
It’s great for all ages, but it’s a bit dark and some parts have fire and can be a little bit scary for little kids. They may also get bored because it lasts for 30 minutes.
Grizzly Gulch
OK, so this is also a very small area of the park, themed as the Wild West. Even though there is nothing besides the Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Carts, you need to come around because this roller coaster is worth it. Something like Expedition Everest: so good.
There are also some photo stops with the WANTED posters, if you want to take a photo.
It’s embarrassing that we spent around 4 hours there and this is the ONLY photo of Grizzly Gulch we have. Well, at least we managed to take it before we were told off for taking photos during the ride.
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Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Carts (Fastpass ride)
For people over 112 cm (44 in)
It’s a rollercoaster. It’s not the fastest, and it doesn’t have any super enormous drop, but it’s relatively fast and thrilling. Parts of it run backward and there are loud explosion noises, so see if your child can handle it.
My kids loved it. My 6 years-old Coral would ride this one all day long. We did end up riding it around 20 times because lines were short. It’s our favorite roller coaster in HK Disney.
Mystic Point
It’s probably the smallest area of the park and it wasn’t our favorite but it was fun anyway. Only one ride and nothing much else, it’s the best place to skip if you only have one day.
Mystic Manor – the nice air conditioning walk is a bliss! Take your time when you walk through it and take in the little details it has!
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Mystic Manor
A fun ride through a mansion filled with mysterious objects that come to life. It’s not scary, though it may be a little too much for younger kids.
It’s a slow ride, good for all ages – but it does have some creepy parts. It’s mostly funny, though.
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Garden of Wonders
It’s a small garden with a few strange stuff. We wandered quickly through it, but honestly, we didn’t think too much of it.
It’s for all ages, but there isn’t much around.
Toy Story Land
I don’t think this one needs an introduction, but anyway, it’s basically Andy’s (from Toy Story) play area.
If you’ve ever wished you became a tiny little ant, then this is where your wish comes true. It really is that adorable.
It’s probably the cutest part of the park, and every detail is adorable, like the popsicle stick benches, the Knex rails, the cardboard box shop… Love it! No wonder it’s one of the most crowded places in the park.
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RC Racer
This is SUPER fun. It’s a cart that does up and down on a U shaped track and we love it. We rode it quite a few times when the lines were short.
For people over 120 cm (46 in) and who can handle some thrill. I think kids over 5 could handle it.
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Barrel of Fun
This isn’t a ride, but it’s where you’ll find Toy Story characters. Check the app or the website, they are super fun!
Well, if THIS isn’t adorable enough, what is? And I’m not even talking about the super cute Lotso, Sully, and Mike eggs.
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Slinky Dog Spin
It’s a ride on the Slinky Dog on a round track. It’s a fine ride, but it goes around quite a few times – it made me dizzy.
Anyone can ride, but I don’t recommend it for people prone to motion sickness.
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Toy Soldier Parachute Drop
I didn’t even want to ride this one because it looked so boring but I’m glad we did. It was AMAZING! It’s way more thrilling than it looks, trust me.
Everyone over 81 cm or 32 in can ride but know that the drops give you a chill in the spine. We all loved it!
This was, by far, the best ride in Toy Story Land. And it was so cute. No wonder the line is very long.
Fantasyland
This is the best place for those with little kids. They can go on all the rides and they’re all geared to the smaller humans.
It’s also one of the most popular areas in the park, so if you’re visiting on a crowded day, go first thing in the morning or later in the day if you have little kids. And it’s also one of the places with more rides.
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Cinderella Carousel
It’s a Carousel. Empaled horses going around, basically. There were mostly adults there and they were ALL taking selfies. They rode it to take selfies. I’ll never understand it. But it’s a good ride for the little ones.
For all ages – the smaller ones may need to ride with an adult. It’s boring for older kids, though.
I took this photo from Dumbo. It was a bit annoying to wait for the elephant to get to that exact point, but it was going to anyway. This was while Coral made our cart go up and down and up and down.
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Dumbo
Ride Dumbo and fly around the skies. This ride gives awesome views of the Castle, which, unfortunately, was under refurbishment during our visit. It’s a great ride for little kids. My 6-year-old loves Dumbo, and even though the ride itself isn’t fun anymore, she wants to ride it every single time we walk past it.
For all ages. I mean, the little ones can enjoy the ride while the older ones can take selfies. 😛
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Fairytale Forest
This is where you’ll find Tinkerbell. It’s a lovely maze garden with miniatures of the fairytale castles, like the Beast’s castle, Rapunzel’s tower, the Seven Dwarfs’ mine, Ariel’s grotto. They’re pretty and they have a few surprises. Most of them move when you spin a wheel, which is great fun for the little kids.
And they have some pretty good photo ops too.
It’s definitely worth the walk.
For all ages.
You can see the photo frames ready for an awesome photo and my too-cool-for-that teenager looking at Ariel’s castle. Well, Prince Eric’s castle. Whatever.
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Fantasy Gardens
It’s a garden inspired by Fantasia, which is pretty neat. You may find character there too.
We thought it was the same as the Fairytale Forest and didn’t enter. Stupid us.
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Hong Kong Disneyland Railroad
It’s the second train station, right after Main Street USA station. Great when the kids are tired, isn’t it? But the lines do take a while
For all ages.
It may not be the biggest fun you’ll have in the park, but the longish ride with the air conditioning and the lack of lines make it an awesome ride for tired and exhausted people. Serious.
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It’s a Small World
Everyone knows this ride, I think, but it’s a boat ride through the world with little-animated dolls singing the little song in different languages. It’s exactly the same as any other Disney in the world, so if you’ve been in one, you can skip this one for sure.
It’s only good because of the air conditioning and the rest.
Great for all ages, as long as it’s hot or cold outside and you’re tired.
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Mad Hatter’s Tea Cups
The spinning cups are fun for all ages, and it’s great because you can control how much it spins. Older kids can spin fast and smaller kids can just ride it.
For all ages.
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The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (FASTPASS and a photo ride)
It’s a slow ride through one of Pooh’s adventures.
Since it’s so slow, it’s a great place to make a super funny photo.
It can be a bit dark in parts, but it’s mostly fine for everyone.
We’d agreed we’d make scared faces but, you know, we’re all such great actors. Fun nonetheless.
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Mickey’s PhilharMagic
A 4D film through the music of Disney’s movies. We LOVE it! It’s so real, and nice, and restful!
It’s great for all ages, but kids who can wear the 3D glasses and watch a short movie (around 10 minutes) will enjoy it better.
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Sleeping Beauty’s Castle
We weren’t able to get close to it, as it’s undergoing a transformation. Well, nothing is perfect, right?
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Sword in the Stone
We clearly missed it, but I’d have loved to try pulling King Arthur’s sword from the stone!
It’s open and for everyone.
Well, the sunset is always magic, but when it has Sleeping Beauty’s castle, it’s a bit more special. Or just more photogenic. Well, I don’t know. All I can say is that more than half of the people there at that time was taking the exact same photo.
Tomorrowland
The futurist area, with things from all over the universe! Great fun, one of our favorite parts of the park for sure!
It’s one of the areas that stay open for longer, so leave it for later in the night. It’s also a lot prettier at night, trust me.
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Hyperspace Mountain (Fastpass and photo ride)
This Space Mountain is Star Wars themed and INCREDIBLE! We love it and we rode it so much we even felt sick – well, after 20 times, who wouldn’t?
It isn’t as dark as the other Space Mountains and it has a photo at the end, so strike a pose when the rainbow lights come up.
For those over 102 cm (40 in), but it’s a dark and fast ride, so if your child doesn’t like the dark, it may not be a good idea.
Ride it enough and you may be able to take a nap. Or not. We loved this roller coaster, really. It’s great, even for smaller kids. Coral (6) didn’t like the one in Tokyo, but she enjoyed this one.
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Iron Man Experience
If you’ve ever ridden Star Tours, this is it, but now it’s Iron Man themed. Take a tour with Jarvis and Tony Stark through the streets of Hong Kong – it was super fun to wander around the places and recognize them from the ride.
It’s a 4D ride for those over 102 cm or 40 in. Any age will enjoy it, as long as they like Iron Man.
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Iron Man Tech Showcase
If you wish to meet Iron Man, this is your chance. He’s there and it’s fun for all ages! The little tech show is only in Cantonese, but Iron Man speaks English, which is a relief.
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Orbitron
It’s Dumbo dressed as a spaceship. The same thing, seriously. It goes around the track and you control how high it goes.
Good for all ages, but may not be a lot of fun for the littlest because Dumbo is way cuter.
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Star Wars: Command Post
Want to meet Chewbacca? What about R2-D2 or BB-8? Well, this is the place to go.
Don’t miss it, it’s GREAT! Coral (6) loved the moving, ‘talking’, and greeting R2.
For all ages, but some kids may be scared of Chewie, so show them a photo before entering the line or, you know, watch the movies!
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Jedi Training
If your child wants to become a Jedi, then they must try the Jedi Training. It’s free, and it happens quite a few times through the day.
You’ll need to sign your child up, so the earlier you sign up, the more options you’ll have.
They’ll be dressed in Jedi robes, clad a lightsaber and fight Darth Vader or the Seventh Sister Inquisitor, and even face Kylo Ren.
Coral (6) was torn between hugging Darth Vader or doing what she was supposed to but then she didn’t get the chance to get near him. Well, it is what it is… and she didn’t want try it again, so…
Pros: It’s great fun if your child likes Star Wars.
Cons: They push and pull the kids there, I was really upset afterward, but since Coral didn’t mind, I kept my mouth shut. The older kids did the Jedi Training in Orlando and it was a lot more gentle and respectful, but I guess it’s just part of the culture. It was also a bit confusing because they spoke both in Cantonese and English, all mixed up, and it was a bit hard to understand what to do. And you can’t choose who you’ll fight. Coral wanted to fight Darth Vader but never got a chance.
I think it’s best for kids 5 and over because it’s a bit hard to understand what’s going on, really, and what to do. But they accept kids of all ages, so if you really want your kid there, send them in.
To finish it…
Hong Kong Disneyland is pretty great for smaller kids, as well as for older kids. The areas are well organized and it’s very easy to get from one place to the other.
Disneyland Hong Kong is Disney and it’s magical. At night, it’s even prettier. If it weren’t for the mosquitoes… it’d be perfect.
Since it’s only one park, it’s also easier to go back and forth a few times.
Kids over 1 m (40 in) can ride almost everything, and kids over 120 cm (46 in) can ride all the rides. Coral is a tall 6-year-old, and she rode every single ride.
To summarise it, the best areas for each age group are:
- For toddlers and infants: Fantasyland, Toy Story Land, Adventureland, and Mystic Point
- For small children: Fantasyland, Toy Story Land, Adventureland, Mystic Point, and Tomorrowland
- For tweens and teens: Every single area.
- For adults: EVERYWHERE!
We really loved Hong Kong Disneyland! It’s well worth the visit! The lines are shorter than the other Disney parks and we think it’s a great place to really enjoy it!
Don’t miss the upcoming parts of the characters and the hotel!!!
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