Fan-favourite nighttime spectacular Happily Ever After lights up the night sky over Cinderella Castle at Walt Disney World Resort. Photo / Disney
Disney’s 100 Years of Wonder sprinkles that special toon touch at Disney destinations worldwide. Cassie Tannenberg shares where to celebrate the House of Mouse in 2023.
The Walt Disney Company is a global phenomenon with six resorts and 12 theme parks around the world, five cruise ships (and counting) and a movie studio network that includes Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm.
Founded in 1923, Disney’s centennial celebrations kicked off in late 2022 and continue throughout this year, highlighting the brand’s past, present and future.
Disney100 is the largest worldwide celebration in the company’s history and Disneyland Resort in Anaheim will be the epicentre of the epic festivities.
To get in the celebratory spirit, we take a look at the six resorts around the world and what they’ve got coming up this year.
Disneyland Resort is the original Walt Disney-designed theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in July 1955, Disneyland Resort is home to two parks – Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park – and 17 themed lands and areas. Famous for its ambience and magical moments, Disneyland is the quintessential House of Mouse experience.
Park highlights: From January 27, Disneyland Resort is the centrepiece of Disney100 celebrations, beginning with the new Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway attraction and followed by Mickey’s Toontown reopening with new additions CenTOONial Park, Chip ‘n’ Dale’s GADGETcoaster and more on March 8.
To mark the anniversary, two new night-time spectaculars will light up the sky: Wondrous Journeys, which references all 60 Walt Disney Animation Studios films, and World of Color – One, highlighting Disney’s storytelling legacy.
Later in the year, Mickey, Minnie and friends will don new platinum anniversary finery in the daytime parade, Magic Happens. The iconic Sleeping Beauty Castle also gets a glowup with platinum banners and bunting. Guests can take home limited-edition souvenirs ranging from clothing to sipper cups.
Best rides: Full of classic and new attractions, popular rides include Indiana Jones Adventure, Jungle Cruise, Incredicoaster, Radiator Springs Racers, Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! and Soarin’ Around the World. The Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge and new WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure attractions are also hot tickets.
Best place to stay: Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa is the priciest of the three onsite hotels but the VIP gate to Disney California Adventure Park is worth the rate. For a budget option, check-in to Courtyard Anaheim Theme Park Entrance, a 10-minute walk away.
When comparing Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World Resort, it’s important to note one is a ‘land’ and the other is a ‘world’. To put it in context, Walt Disney World is approximately the size of San Francisco – 51 Disneylands could fit within its massive area.
Located in Orlando, Florida, Walt Disney World opened in 1971 and boasts four theme parks (Magic Kingdom Park, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park) and two water parks (Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon Water Park and Disney’s Blizzard Beach Water Park).
Park highlights: Celebrating its 50th anniversary until March 31, Walt Disney World is currently abuzz with ‘The World’s Most Magical Celebration’, which includes golden Disney Fab 50 Characters dotted throughout the resort, commemorative items and exclusive parades and night-time entertainment. For Disney100, Walt Disney World will debut a brand-new night-time show at EPCOT in late 2023.
Best rides: This year introduces TRON Lightcycle / Run alongside Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run, Avatar Flight of Passage and Na’vi River Journey.
Best place to stay: Walt Disney World has 25-plus resort hotels and due to its immense size, it’s a good idea to stay on site. Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge offers an African safari experience while Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort is another fan favourite, beloved for its proximity to Magic Kingdom Park. Star Wars fans can book into the new Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser for an immersive, all-inclusive two-night stay aboard the ‘ship’.
Among discerning Disney park fans, Tokyo Disney Resort (specifically Tokyo DisneySea) is considered to be one of the best Disney theme parks. With two parks, Tokyo Disneyland (the first to open outside the US in 1983) and Tokyo DisneySea, Tokyo Disney Resort is just 10km from central Tokyo on the Disney Resort Line. Tokyo Disney Resort will celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2023 with new daytime parade Disney Harmony in Color, plus special merchandise and menu items to commemorate the event until March 31 2024.
Park highlights: Tokyo DisneySea is distinct from other Disney parks with ‘ports’ instead of ‘lands’. It has 35 attractions across seven themed ports (soon to be eight with the addition of Fantasy Springs in 2024) and exclusive gems include Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Fortress Explorations, Sinbad’s Storybook Voyage and Teddy Roosevelt Lounge.
Best rides: Tokyo Disneyland Park is modelled after the original Disneyland Park and contains many classic rides with Pooh’s Honey Hunt and Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek notable exceptions. At Tokyo DisneySea, check out Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull, the New York-themed Tower of Terror and Nemo & Friends SeaRider.
Best place to stay: There are five on-property hotels, including the deluxe Tokyo DisneySea Hotel MiraCosta with private Tokyo DisneySea entry in the lobby. Hilton Tokyo Bay and Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel are popular offsite options with a convenient location on the Disney Resort Line monorail loop.
Opened as Euro Disney in 1992, Disneyland Paris is distinguished by its exquisite attention to detail. While that is a hallmark of all Disney theme parks, Disneyland Paris takes design to a new level of excellence and is considered to be one of the most beautiful spaces.
With two theme parks – Disneyland Park and Walt Disney Studios Park – and seven resort hotels, Disneyland Paris is around 32km from Paris. Disneyland Paris hosts its 30th anniversary soiree until September 30 with new decorations and artworks on display as well as the D-Light night-time show.
Park highlights: For outstanding views, head to Swiss Family Treehouse and the Queen of Hearts’ castle in Alice’s Curious Labyrinth. Disneyland Paris recently opened the Avengers Campus, Europe’s first Marvel-themed attraction, with a Frozen-themed area also slated.
Best rides: Disneyland Park offers many quintessential rides with Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain providing a galactic twist on the classic. Exclusive to Walt Disney Studio Park, enjoy Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy, The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror and Avengers Assemble: Flight Force.
Best place to stay: B&B Hotel is a popular offsite value option with a free shuttle to Disneyland Paris and daily breakfast included. For a premium immersive stay, the reimagined Disney Hotel New York – The Art of Marvel is ideal for superhero fans.
Since opening in 2005, Hong Kong Disneyland Resort has differentiated itself with first-of-its-kind attractions tailored for a diverse audience. Comprising one theme park with seven areas, including the world’s first Grizzly Gulch and Mystic Point lands, Hong Kong Disneyland also has the world’s first Marvel attraction featuring Ant-Man and the Wasp. Disneyland Hong Kong is located 10 minutes’ drive from Hong Kong International Airport on Lantau Island and 20 minutes from Central via the Disneyland Resort Line.
Park highlights: The brand-new Castle of Magical Dreams, inspired by Disney princesses and queens, includes musical entertainment and the Momentous night-time spectacular. An immersive Duffy and Friends-themed entertainment experience will debut in March followed by the first-ever World of Frozen land later in the year. An exclusive Walt Disney and Mickey statue will also be unveiled at the culmination of Disney100 celebrations.
Best rides: Hong Kong Disneyland’s one-of-a-kind rides, such as Ant-Man and The Wasp: Nano Battle!, Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine, Mystic Manor and Iron Man Experience, are the ones to line up for.
Best place to stay: Of Hong Kong Disneyland’s three onsite hotels, Disney Explorers Lodge is the theme park’s newest and largest hotel with heaps of family-friendly features. For an offsite option on Lantau Island, the top-rated Auberge Discovery Bay Hong Kong has luxury hotel appeal as well as a park shuttle service.
Disney’s sixth and newest resort opened in 2016 with Shanghai Disneyland, a Magic Kingdom-style park with seven lands that blends authentic Disney storytelling and distinctly Chinese cultural appeal. Situated in Shanghai’s Pudong New District, Mainland China’s first Disney destination is around 40 minutes’ drive from Shanghai Pudong Airport.
Park highlights: The heart of the park is the world’s tallest and largest Disney castle, the Enchanted Storybook Castle, featuring all Disney princesses. Shanghai Disneyland also has the only Zootopia-themed land and the first garden-inspired land, Gardens of Imagination.
Best rides: Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for Sunken Treasure elevates this archetypal Disney attraction for its most immersive and advanced experience to date, while the world-first TRON Lightcycle Power Run is one of the fastest rollercoaster rides in any Disney park. The Challenge Trails at Camp Discovery elevated ropes course is another must-do attraction.
Best place to stay: Shanghai Disney Resort has two resort hotels – the upscale Shanghai Disneyland Hotel (with a pool) and the Toy Story Hotel – both with priority access to the theme park. Meliá Shanghai Parkside has a tranquil lakeside location within 1km of Shanghai Disney Resort and a convenient shuttle service to the theme park and metro station.
The trendy spot is just six minutes from the Waikiki beach.