After five years of construction and weeks of testing, the $5.5-billion Shanghai Disneyland in China has been opened to the general public on Thursday.
Messages from U.S. President Obama and China's President Xi Jinping were featured in the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Disney chairman Bob Iger read out Obama's message, and China's Vice President Wang Yang read Xi's.
During the opening, pianist Lang Lang played a custom arrangement of "Let it Go." The song "Ignite the Dreamer Within," which was written for the grand opening, made its debut. The Shanghai Symphony performed "Heigh Ho," "Once Upon a Dream," and "Some Day My Prince Will Come" alongside composer Tan Dun of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," who conducted the symphony.
George Lucas, Jerry Bruckheimer, and Sheryl Sandberg were seen attending the official opening.
Shanghai Disneyland is expected to become the world's most-visited theme park. It will attract at least 15 million guests or as many as 50 million guests per year. On the other hand, Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida attracts 19.3 million guests in 2014.
Shanghai Disneyland covers almost 1000 acres. It is built on a reclaimed land, near the Pudong airport. It features six themed areas with a mix of lands and attractions that are staples of other Disney parks as well as new ones in Shanghai. It has two themed hotels, namely, an elegant Art Nouveau-inspired Shanghai Disneyland Hotel and Toy Story Hotel inspired from Disney Pixar series of "Toy Story" animated films. It has a Disneytown near the two resorts, where the Walt Disney Grand Theatre and Marketplace are located.
One of the attractions in the new Tomorrowland zone is the Tron Light Cycle, which is a very high-speed roller coaster where riders must crouch forward and be locked in.
A joint venture between Disney and a consortium of local Chinese companies made this park a reality. Between June 16-30, tickets will be worth 499 yuan ($75 USD) and same as for holidays and weekends. The regular admission price is 370 yuan ($56 USD).
