Shanghai Disneyland (SHDL) is probably the most unique castle park in the Disney pantheon of parks. Circumventing a number of conventions normally attributed to castle parks, Shanghai Disneyland breaks from the mold, charting its own course, to huge success. That’s why designing a potential 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland itinerary can be so challenging. It requires thinking of the park in a whole new way.
I had the privilege of being able to visit Shanghai Disneyland on several trips, and this 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland itinerary is borne out of my learnings and observations that sprouted from those trips. Hopefully they’re able to help you plan your day at Shanghai Disneyland. 1 day at the park is a bit short, but with the right amount of planning and with the right budget, you should be able to do the highlights of the park.
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Check out these helpful posts to plan your Shanghai Disneyland trip!
- Shanghai Disneyland Rides Ranking
- Shanghai Disneyland Attraction and Entertainment Guide
- Best Times to Visit Shanghai Disneyland
- How Many Days to Spend at Shanghai Disneyland
- What Shanghai Disneyland Tickets to Buy
- Beginner’s Guide to Shanghai Disneyland
Introduction to the Park and Itinerary
Located in the Pudong District of Shanghai, Shanghai Disneyland is Disney’s most experimental castle park. Eschewing a lot of the design conventions established by previous castle parks, Shanghai Disneyland reinvented the wheel of how a castle park should look like.
Gone are Main Street USA and Frontierland, instead replaced by Mickey Avenue and Treasure Cove, respectively. Also out the window is the traditional hub and spoke setup. Shanghai Disneyland replaces their hub with an entire land called the Gardens of Imagination. It is also the largest castle park, with it taking up to 20 minutes to walk from one end to the other. All of this means that you can’t approach planning your 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland itinerary just like you would any other park.
Planning a successful 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland Itinerary comes with its own set of challenges. But is it possible to do all the must-do rides, attractions, and shows in a single day? I would say yes, it is possible, but you’re going to have to be very strategic with how you go about planning your day.
Disney Parks have evolved to the point where you can’t just show up to one and wing it and expect to do everything you want to do. You could do this if you wanted to, but it would most likely result in you not being able to do most of the things in the park because you didn’t do any research on things like Rope Drop, DPAs, and crowd patterns. It’s good to come prepared and to have good planning skills.
Notice how I said planning skills and not plans. That’s because, as is the case most of the time, unexpected things can happen during your Disney day. Rides may shut down temporarily, shows may get cancelled, and the weather could turn sour. Even the best laid plans at Disney have a tendency to get sidetracked.
To combat this, you’re going to need to pivot. During your Disney Day, if you encounter a ride that’s shut down for example, you have to know what rides are nearby that you can do instead. Having a baseline plan is great, and hopefully this 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland Itinerary can provide you with a baseline for you to work with as you plan your trip, but always remember that unexpected things can happen, and it’s best to be prepared for them.
Now I can’t guarantee that your day will go perfectly. But what I can guarantee after reading this and my other Shanghai Disneyland planning posts is that you’ll be equipped with the right information you need to have a successful and enjoyable day at the park. And remember, even if nothing goes your way (which is also as unlikely as a perfect day), a bad day at Disney is better than a good day anywhere else. At least to me.
Klook.comCriss-crossing the Park
One thing I want to address early on in the itinerary is that, because of how large the park is, this 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland Itinerary will not have you criss-crossing the park. When I visit Shanghai Disneyland, I try to minimize this as well because it just takes forever to go from one side of the park to the other.
It may seem ideal to, for example, go from Soaring Over the Horizon to TRON Lightcycle Power Run, especially if TRON is showing a short wait time, but the walk from Adventure Isle to Tomorrowland will take you 15-20 minutes. That’s precious time you could have been spending lining up for another attraction or show. It’s just not efficient to keep criss-crossing a park as large as Shanghai Disneyland.
Because of this, I would recommend finishing the park land by land, keeping walking long distances to a minimum. This allows you to still do every ride, but in a way that saves you time and saves your legs from having to walk back and forth throughout the park the entire day.
Early Entry (and How it Can Enhance Your Visit)
For this 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland itinerary, I also recommend purchasing Early Entry for your visit. I will always recommend doing this as it saves you so much time, allows you to go on attractions with short waits, and gives you an extra hour in the park. During my most recent trip, I bought Early Entry for every day of my visit. I can personally vouch for how helpful that extra hour is in decompressing your day and making the rest of your day less stressful.
As mentioned, Early Entry allows you to enter Shanghai Disneyland an hour before everyone else. I’ve actually experienced it where I was let into the park 10 minutes before the start of the Early Entry time. 10 minutes might not seem like a lot, but if those 10 minutes mean you can be in line for Zootopia: Hot Pursuit or Seven Dwarfs Mine Train before Early Entry time even starts, that could be a game changer for how the rest of your day goes.
I would also note that, on the Shanghai Disneyland website, it says that Zootopia: Hot Pursuit is not included with Early Entry. During my visit, however, it was open during Early Entry every single day. I would always check the Shanghai Disneyland app as soon as 7:30am hits as they usually publish the wait times at that time, so you can confirm if Zootopia is open, which it should be.
But you also don’t have to use Early Entry to get on rides. If pictures are a priority for you, you can spend the 1-hour early entry taking crowd-free pictures in front of the castle or in other areas of the park like Zootopia. The extra hour really gives you a lot of flexibility as to what you can do.
You can buy Early Entry on the Shanghai Disneyland app, or on websites like Klook. They usually cost RMB199, which is around US$30. It can be a little cheaper on the Klook website or other third party websites, and you can also bundle it with tickets to save a little more money. As always, I recommend thoroughly perusing the Shanghai Disneyland official website and third party websites like Klook for the best deals before you make a purchase.
Klook.comDisney Premier Access (and Why You Will Need It)
This 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland Itinerary will have you using some Disney Premier Access passes or DPAs. Unfortunately, because of the layout and size of the park, there will be some popular rides that you’ll have to do later in the day because they’re far from your starting point. Because of this, it might be necessary to purchase a DPA for them so that you can ride them later on.
That being said, this itinerary will only have you booking 2 DPAs, which I think is the least amount of DPAs needed to get on all or almost all of the premier attractions at the park (assuming everything goes well during your visit day). You may need to grab more or less of these depending on the queueing situation at the park on the day of your visit.
I would not recommend buying the sets of DPAs that Shanghai Disneyland and Klook sell, mostly because they include rides that you wouldn’t normally need a DPA for, such as Buzz Lightyear Planet Rescue or Fantasia Carousel. Sure, you’ll get a few good rides included such as Tron Lightcycle Power Run or Zootopia: Hot Pursuit, but the sunk cost of the rides that you don’t need DPAs for will make the main DPAs you get more expensive.
If I were you, I would just buy DPAs for individual attractions. Since we’re only going to use 2 DPAs, this makes the most financial sense. However, I am warning you now that we will be buying the DPA for ILLUMINATE, which is the priciest DPA on offer. I’ll explain later why I think it’s well worth it, especially if you’re only in the park for a day.
Now it is possible to do this itinerary without purchasing DPAs at all. If you have the patience, you can just stand in line for those popular rides that you will be riding later that day or wait in the Gardens of Imagination for a good spot for ILLUMINATE (although you will be waiting more than an hour for this). But on your visit day, time will be crucial, so if you can avoid waiting in line I say go for it. But if it’s not in your budget then don’t feel obligated to purchase them or feel like you won’t have a good day if you don’t purchase them. This 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland Itinerary is just a guide and no matter what happens, I’m sure you’ll have a great time at Shanghai Disneyland.
Klook.comNon-Ride Things to Note
Shows and Streetmosphere
This itinerary includes shows such as Eye of the Storm – Captain Jack’s Stunt Show, Mickey’s Storybook Adventure, Heart of Magic, Mickey’s Storybook Express, and ILLUMINATE, but it does not include other “streetmosphere” shows like the Jammitors or the Shanghai Disneyland band. If you’d like to see these small shows and streetmosphere entertainment, I would recommend pausing this itinerary temporarily, seeing the shows you want to see, then continuing on with your day.
Characters
This itinerary will also focus mostly on the rides and shows and not on character meet and greets. Shanghai Disneyland is notorious for having the longest lines to meet characters of any Disney park. This is because each interaction with a character takes anywhere from 3-5 minutes per group. If you have 10 groups in front of you, that’s already a 30-50 minute wait. I’ve seen LinaBell’s line balloon to over 400 minutes sometimes.
Because of this, we will not be including character meets in this itinerary. If there’s a character you do want to meet, however, I’d recommend scheduling in some down time on your 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland itinerary to be able to join their queue and meet them. Take note though that characters stop meeting at around dusk, so if they’re a priority for you, get in line ASAP.
Dining
This 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland itinerary will only have you eating at Quick Service restaurants as they are the fastest options for a meal. If you decide to dine in DisneyTown or at Royal Banquet Hall, do note that ordering your food, waiting for it, eating it, and settling the bill at a table service restaurant will take longer than simply dining at a quick service place.
I will recommend eating at the nearest quick service location to you. There’s one in Treasure Cove, one in Adventure Isle, one in Mickey Avenue, one in Tomorrowland, and two in Fantasyland. There are also snack carts and windows all around the park. If you want to eat at one of the carts or windows, that is also a very good option.
Height Requirements and Ride Info
I won’t go into things like height requirements or safety warnings associated with each attraction, as I’ve already done that on my Shanghai Disneyland Attractions and Entertainment Guide. If you need detailed information on what to expect from each ride, I highly recommend taking a look at that article.
Pick and Choose The Rides and Attractions You Want to Experience
While this 1-Day Shanghai Disney itinerary features my personal recommendations of which attractions, rides, and entertainment are worth doing and seeing, you don’t have to be glued to my advice completely. If there’s an attraction I placed in this post that you think is not your cup of tea, or if there’s a ride I didn’t include in this post that you want to experience, then you can modify your plans to suit your needs. Always stick with what interests you! Consult my Shanghai Disneyland Ride Ranking and my Shanghai Disneyland Attractions and Entertainment Guide for up to date info on each Shanghai Disneyland ride, show, and attraction!
Klook.com1-Day Shanghai Disneyland Itinerary
Arrive 30 Minutes Before Shanghai Disneyland Opens for Early Entry
The first thing you need to do before even entering the park is to get there early. Getting there early means you’re ahead of the crowds entering the park on the day of your visit, which allows you to get a headstart on your day. I would recommend getting to the gates at least 30 minutes before Early Entry begins. This ensures that you have enough time to walk through the queues to get into the park and that you’re in the park at or before the official Early Entry start time.
If you’re coming from any of the Shanghai Disneyland hotels, I would recommend leaving your hotel 50 minutes before the scheduled Early Entry time. This ensures you have enough time to walk over to the park. I wouldn’t recommend riding the bus to get to the park as, based on my experience, the line to board the bus will take an hour or more in the morning. Walking takes about 15-20 minutes, so I recommend just doing that.
If you’re staying at a nearby hotel or coming from Downtown Shanghai, do note that it takes about 10-15 minutes to walk from the Didi drop off point to the entrance of Shanghai Disneyland. Because of this, I would recommend timing your Didi so that you get to the resort 40 minutes before the beginning of early entry.
Once you’re in the park, head straight for Zootopia. As you’re walking, get on your phone to do the next step in this 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland Itinerary.
Buy a DPA for ILLUMINATE
As soon as you get into the park, immediately buy the DPA for Illuminate. Again, only do this if it fits within your budget to do so. If it’s not within your budget, that’s totally fine and you can watch Illuminate from the Gardens of Imagination. You will have to be there early, which means that you will be sacrificing some park touring time to wait for the show in order to get a good spot, which you won’t be doing if you purchase the DPA.
If you can afford it though, as soon as you get in the park would be the perfect time to purchase it. This DPA has a tendency to sell out, especially on busy days, so getting it early is absolutely crucial. You can do this as you walk to Zootopia. Make sure your entire party is linked to one account before booking the DPA to ensure that everyone gets a DPA for the show.
Klook.comHead to Zootopia and Save Gazelle on Zootopia: Hot Pursuit
If everything goes right, you should be at the entrance of Zootopia: Hot Pursuit by the time Early Entry starts and will only wait 10-20 minutes to get on the ride. Take a moment to really take in the queue as, in my opinion, it’s the best queue in the park. The wait time for this ride tends to balloon early in the day, so I would do the regular queue for now so that you at least get to experience the whole queue once.
Zootopia: Hot Pursuit is a trackless dark ride that involves a high-speed chase through the streets of Zootopia. In the ride, you’re tasked with apprehending escaped convict and former Zootopia mayor Bellwether. She has kidnapped Gazelle on the day of her big concert, and its up to you to save her. Featuring intricate physical sets, immersive screen segments, and next-level animatronics, this ride is ranked second in my Shanghai Disneyland ride ranking, and for good reason.
Once done, you have two options: ride it again with a shortened queue still, take photos around the land, or head to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train to continue on with this 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland itinerary. We will do the third option for the sake of this itinerary. If you choose to do the other two options, I would utilize the Single Rider line at Seven Dwarfs Mine Train afterwards to save you some time.
Head to the Mine on Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
Once you’re done with Zootopia, head on over to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. I would say that if the line is 60 minutes or less, get in the standby line. If it’s longer, wait for the single rider line to open and then ride the ride via the single rider line. I wouldn’t be too intimidated by the line, especially this early in the morning.
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is a family rollercoaster that includes an innovative ride vehicle design and an immersive indoor dark ride portion. The mine cars you ride in actually swing left and right, adding more motion to the ride. The dark ride section also includes state-of-the-art animatronics of each dwarf, which look amazing. This is one of my personal favorite rides in the park, and if you’re with children who might not be tall enough or brave enough to ride Tron, this is a good coaster for them to start out with.
Once you’re done here, you’re going to exit Fantasyland, walk about 10-15 minutes to Soaring Over the Horizon located in Adventure Isle (I know I said no criss-crossing but this is actually the most logical place to go next and it’s not as far as traversing from Adventure Isle to Tomorrowland or Toy Story Land).
Klook.comSoar Over the World on Soaring Over the Horizon
You should reach Soaring Over the Horizon about 15 minutes after the park has officially opened for everyone. The queue at this point should not be that long. It’ll probably take you 15-20 minutes to get through the whole queue, as most people are still in line for either Zootopia Hot Pursuit, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, or Tron.
If you’re familiar with the other Soaring rides around the world, this one is no different. The queue though is very different as it has you walking through an ancient temple, but the ride is still basically the same as the Soaring rides in Anaheim and Orlando, but just with a different ending, with this one ending in Shanghai. If you’ve never ridden Soaring before, or want to see the different ending, then I recommend riding it now. If you’re not a fan of Soaring or have ridden it in other places before, you could skip this ride and go to the next one on this Shanghai Disneyland 1-Day Itinerary.
Whether you’ve decided to skip Soaring Over the Horizon or not, the next destination is the same: the other ride in Adventure Isle, Roaring Rapids!
Venture to See Q’araq on Roaring Rapids
Roaring Rapids is right beside Soaring, so you’ll be there in less than 5 minutes. If you’re visiting in winter this might not be the best time to ride it due to the cold temperatures at this time of the day, but crowds will descend on this ride when it gets warmer, so best to do it now to save you time.
Roaring Rapids is similar to other rapids-style attractions you’ve probably been on, but this one has an original story not based on any IP. In the ride, the League of Adventurers tasks you with investigating the roaring sounds coming from Roaring Mountain. You set off in your raft, but a tree blocks your way, sending you deep into the mountain for a face to face meeting with Q’araq, the beast inside the mountain. Q’araq is one of the best animatronics Disney has ever made, and it is worth lining up just to see him. Overall, it’s a fun, exciting ride, but do note you may get wet.
If you don’t want to get wet, there is usually someone selling ponchos in the queue, but you can also bring your own ponchos like what I did. The ponchos you can purchase in the queue cost around RMB10. There are also temporary lockers available near the entrance of the attraction for you to store your bags while you ride.
Klook.comSail with Captain Jack on Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure
After your rapids adventure, make your way to Treasure Cove, the land in between Adventure Isle and Fantasyland. This is a Pirates themed land, and you’re here to ride the landmark attraction in this land, and perhaps the entire park, Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure.
Unlike other Pirates rides around the world, this one is directly based on the film franchise. In the ride, you’ll be transported back to the age of Pirates, as you venture with Captain Jack Sparrow under the sea to unearth a long-buried treasure, protected by his arch-nemesis Davy Jones. The ride is one of the most technologically advanced rides ever made by Disney. Featuring an innovative boat ride system that can speed up and change directions, physical sets and screens on a grand scale, and fluid animatronics, this is THE ride you cannot miss on your day in the park.
You won’t get too wet on this ride, but there is a backwards drop so just keep that in mind. After riding this attraction, head to the nearby Teatro Fandango to experience the first show in this 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland Itinerary.
Watch Eye of the Storm: Captain Jack’s Stunt Show
Before we get to this next section, I want to make it clear that you should only enter the waiting area of the show only if you can be there 30 minutes before showtime to get a good spot. If there’s still more than 45 minutes before showtime, or you only have 15 minutes left before the show starts, I’d recommend doing rides and coming back to the show later in the day. This itinerary was designed to be flexible, so just keep that in mind.
The show is billed as a stunt show, but it’s relatively light on stunts. To this day I don’t really understand the plot, but it has to do with Captain Jack Sparrow evading capture from the British Royal Navy. There’s a bit where Jack and a Navy Officer get tangled up in a storm and they kind of indoor sky dive, which is pretty cool. It’s not the best Disney stage show, and if it doesn’t sound like your type of show feel free to skip it, but if you’re a fan of the Pirates movies you will want to see this.
Believe it or not, we’re now done with the right side of the park! For the next part of this Shanghai Disneyland 1-Day Itinerary, head to the castle to catch Heart of Magic, the new castle stage show.
Klook.comRestore the Magic in The Heart of Magic
I would recommend getting to the castle stage show viewing area around 15-20 minutes before the start of the show to get a good spot. I would also recommend standing in the section behind the secondary stage in the middle of the viewing area. This ensures that you see the action on both the main stage and the secondary stage.
Heart of Magic is by far the best stage show in the park. Following a loose storyline where Donald accidentally dampens the Heart of Magic, leading Mickey and Friends on a quest to restore it, and along the way they’ll encounter characters and songs from films like Cinderella, Winnie the Pooh, Tangled, Mulan, Hercules, Frozen, Toy Story, Coco, and Turning Red. It’s the best castle stage show Shanghai has ever had, and probably the best castle stage show ever. Be sure not to miss it when you’re in Shanghai Disneyland.
Once the show is done, head into Fantasyland to ride a ride that I would normally not recommend riding if it were in any other park: Peter Pan’s Flight.
Fly to Neverland on Peter Pan’s Flight
Head to the left side of Fantasyland and ride Peter Pan’s Flight. It may say it has a wait of around 45 minutes to an hour, but when I rode it with a posted 50 minute wait, it actually took just 25 minutes. Not saying this is what’s going to happen when you’re at the park, but either way this ride is worth lining up for so I would still ride it at this time.
This is the best Peter Pan’s Flight in the world. It follows the same concept as the other Peter Pan’s Flights around the world where you’re taken on a journey from London to Neverland all on a Pirate Ship that flies over the different scenes. But this Peter Pan attraction has added effects and scenes, including a finale that I think should be replicated on every other Peter Pan ride around the world. It brings the Peter Pan ride into the 21st century, and it’s the only Peter Pan ride I would wait more than 30 minutes for.
Once you’re done, you’re going to head across the path to the attraction closest to Peter Pan’s Flight which usually has low wait times: Voyage to the Crystal Grotto!
Klook.comJourney Underneath the Castle on Voyage to the Crystal Grotto
The entrance of Voyage to the Crystal Grotto is right next to Peter Pan’s Flight. This ride is an example of a people eater, also known as a ride that shuttles through a lot of people in the span of an hour. This is mostly due to the fact that the ride vehicles can each hold about 20-30 people at a time, so it loads people onto the ride pretty fast.
Feeling like a cross between the Jungle Cruise (Disneyland) and the Storybookland Canal Boats (Disneyland) or Le Pays Des Contes De Fees (Disneyland Paris) attractions, this boat ride takes you through the waterways of Fantasyland, ending in a secret cavern underneath the castle that houses the crystal grotto for which the ride is named. Along the way you’ll pass fountains and water features themed to Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Tangled, Mulan, and The Little Mermaid. It’s a cute ride and, while it’s not a top 5 headliner, is one of my personal favorite rides.
After you’ve done this, it’s time for lunch! We’re going to head to the nearest quick service place that is adjacent to where we’re going next: Tangled Tree Tavern.
Have Lunch at Tangled Tree Tavern
I know you’re probably wondering why we’re eating here instead of Pinocchio’s Village Kitchen, especially when Village Kitchen has the famous Pooh pizza. Well, that’s because the best dish I had in Shanghai Disneyland is found in Tangled Tree Tavern. I’m hoping it’s still around by the time you visit, but if you can get the Pork Roll with Stewed Meat Sauce and Rice, I promise you it’ll blow your mind. It was by far the tastiest thing I had on my trip, and I would get it again in a heartbeat.
Once done, we’re heading to the Winnie the Pooh mini-land to ride The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.
Klook.comGo to the Hundred Acre Wood on The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
I should mention before I get into the ride that the second showing of Mickey’s Storybook Express is approaching. I have it listed later on in this itinerary, but if it’s getting close to showtime, I would skip to the parade portion of this itinerary and just pick this 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland itinerary back up later once the parade is done. Remember, you need to be at least 30-40 minutes early for the parade.
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh is a carbon copy of the same ride found in Magic Kingdom and Hong Kong Disneyland, which means it’s good, but if you’ve ridden either of those versions, feel free to skip this. It follows Pooh and friends as they contend with a blustery day, a heffalumps and woozles fever dream, and a flood. It all ends well, and the ride features some jaw dropping special effects and clever physical sets that really immerse you in the story of Winnie the Pooh.
We’re going to take a break from rides and do a few walkthroughs and shows, starting with the one located beside the castle before going to the one INSIDE the castle.
Head into the Alice in Wonderland Maze
First stop: the Alice in Wonderland maze! This immersive maze is based on the successful Tim Burton movies, and has several distinct sections. First is a maze through a forest-like area where different animals all designed in an almost steampunk-like fashion litter the area. Then you enter a cave where the Cheshire cat appears as several projections.
Afterwards you end up in the Queen of Hearts Courtyard which has many photo opportunities scattered about. You then wander through a hedge maze that ends at the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party. It’s all very well done, and really feels like you stepped into the world of Alice in Wonderland. It may be a bit warm to do it now, but this is one walkthrough that I think is better in the daytime. It should take you about 15-20 minutes to walk through the whole thing.
Klook.comGo Into the Castle Again on the Once Upon a Time Adventure
Next we’re going inside the castle to the Once Upon a Time Adventure. This walkthrough is themed to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. You start at the base of the castle before walking up to the second floor of the castle.
When you get there, you’ll pass through scenes inspired by the film, from Snow White singing by a wishing well, to the Evil Queen transforming into the hag. It’s like you took the Snow White’s Enchanted Wish ride at Disneyland and made it a walkthrough. It’s one of the best walkthroughs I’ve experienced in all my years going to Disney Parks. Be sure to wait at each scene for the animation to start before moving on.
Watch Mickey’s Storybook Express
Now it’s time for the parade! Parades are a timeless tradition at Disney Parks, and you must make sure you have time to see Shanghai Disneyland’s parade, Mickey’s Storybook Express. The parade is themed to a train, with Mickey and Friends making up the engine followed by “cars” represented by Toy Story, Tangled, Zootopia, Frozen, Mulan, and finally a caboose with lots of different Disney characters on it.
I would recommend watching the parade from the area between Tomorrowland and Toy Story Land. This is so you can quickly make your way to the next destination on this itinerary, whether that be Fantasyland or Tomorrowland depending on the timing of your day. Assuming you’ve followed this itinerary to the letter, it’s time to finish off the day by riding the attractions in Tomorrowland!
Klook.comDefeat Zurg on Buzz Lightyear Planet Rescue
After the parade, you’re going to head to the lower level of Tomorrowland to ride Buzz Lightyear Planet Rescue! Even on busy days you shouldn’t have to wait too long for this ride. The longest I ever saw its queue was 30 minutes, and that was on a day when every other ride had a 120-180 minute wait.
This ride is similar to the other Buzz Lightyear shooting rides found around the world, except this time you’re trying to infiltrate Zurg’s lair instead of stopping him from destroying the galaxy. I don’t like it as much as the other Buzz Lightyear’s around the world. The shooting mechanism is better, but I find the sets a bit too static. There’s some movement, and definitely more than the Ant-Man and the Wasp ride at HKDL, but it’s lacking compared to the other Buzz rides around the world. It’s still one of the must-do rides on this 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland Itinerary though, especially because it doesn’t usually have a line.
Get a DPA for Tron Lightcycle Power Run (Or Line Up)
Next up you’re going to be buying the one other DPA that I mentioned earlier that you should buy. It’s for Tron Lightcycle Power Run. If you decide to buy it, your return time will be for about 90 minutes after you purchase the pass and will be valid till park close. If you decide NOT to buy it, you’re looking at a 1 hour wait. I highly recommend buying the DPA as it’ll save you time and allow you to see Mickey’s Storybook Adventure which, at this point, you might not be able to see if you decide to line up in the standby queue for Tron unless you’re extremely lucky and your visit day is light on crowds. Since this is the only other DPA you’ll be purchasing, I say it’s well worth the investment.
Klook.comWatch Mickey’s Storybook Adventure
Next, head to Mickey Avenue to watch Mickey’s Storybook Adventure. Just like Eye of the Storm and Heart of Magic, be sure to join the queue at least 30 minutes before the start of the show to get a good seat. This is probably the last show of the day, so it’s doubly important that you get there at least 30 minutes before showtime.
The show is similar to Mickey and the Wondrous Book in Hong Kong Disneyland, except the trio of princesses scene features Moana and Mulan instead of Ariel and Merida, and the third scene features Zootopia instead of Aladdin. I personally prefer the version in Hong Kong Disneyland, but if you haven’t seen either version then definitely give this a try! If you have seen it at HKDL though, you can skip it if you want to.
Fly on Jet Packs
Next we’re going to do the one flat ride that I think is worth doing in this park: Jet Packs! This is back in Tomorrowland, where you have to be anyway for the next few parts of this itinerary. It’s the spinning thing near Stargazer Grill so you can’t miss it.
This is probably my favorite spinner ride in any Disney Park, and in my opinion it’s the best one. It basically makes the spinner ride a mild thrill ride. You ride with your legs dangling from the seat, and the whole ride rotates at what feels like twice the speed of Dumbo. The first time I rode it I got really dizzy, just something to keep in mind. But it’s lots of fun and I highly recommend giving it a try on your visit to the park.
Klook.comHave Dinner at Stargazer Grill
The timing of dinner will depend on if you get sick on coasters or not. If you do, then ride Tron Lightcycle Power Run before eating at Stargazer Grill. If you’re like me and don’t get sick on coasters, however, then you can now eat at Stargazer Grill before riding. This might also be a good idea so that you can ride Tron when the sun has set and all the lights are on.
Stargazer Grill, when I last visited the park, was serving a Pixar-themed menu. I had the bacon cheese wagyu beef burger, which I thought tasted great. I also ate outside the restaurant where I had a great view of the sunset and Tomorrowland at night. I highly recommend eating here even just for that.
Use Your DPA for Tron Lightcycle Power Run
Now it’s time to use your DPA for Tron Lightcycle Power Run. You might still encounter a wait when the line splits in two for each loading zone, but it shouldn’t take that long. Remember to line up on the left side as it is a bit shorter based on my experience.
Tron is one of my favorite rides in the park. The story goes that you’ve entered the World of Tron, and the only way to escape is by beating other teams who also want to escape in a Lightcycle competition to see who can pass through as many entry gates as possible. It’s a fun story and an interesting way to add narrative layers to a coaster. I love how it starts outside, with a launch that is probably my favorite launch in the entire world. The indoor portions are just as thrilling though, with lots of cool physical sets and projection effects. It’s really well done, even if it is a bit on the shorter side.
After riding this, take some time to take in the views of Tomorrowland at night. It looks incredibly beautiful at night, with all the buildings being lit in blue tones.
Klook.comGo Back to Zootopia and See it At Night
At this point, you’ve done every major ride and attraction at Shanghai Disneyland in one day! Pat yourself on the back, but not for too long! What you do next will depend on if you have a DPA for Illuminate or not. If you don’t, I would recommend you shop a little on Mickey Avenue, then stake out a spot in the Gardens of Imagination for Illuminate.
If you did buy the DPA though, then it’s time to repeat rides with relatively low waits or do some rides that aren’t on this itinerary! Before that though, I’d recommend heading to Zootopia to see it at night. It looks incredible at night, and believe me you’re going to want to take lots of pictures of the land. It really looks incredible, and you can also get in the single rider line for Zootopia: Hot Pursuit while you’re at it.
Walk Around the Park to See the Lands at Night
Next I would suggest touring Treasure Cove and Adventure Isle at night, doing any of the rides there that interest you. You could also go to Fantasyland and ride Voyage to the Crystal Grotto at night, which I highly recommend as well. You could also go on Peter Pan’s Flight one more time as well if you’re in the area. Or you could simply walk through the lands, soaking up the atmosphere before you have to head to the west entrance of the reserved viewing area for ILLUMINATE.
Klook.comGo to Your Reserved Area for ILLUMINATE and Enjoy the Show
The west entrance for Illuminate is located by the toilets at the back of Dumbo. If you want a perfectly centered view, I would suggest getting there 45 minutes before showtime. I arrived about 30 minutes before showtime and had a great view that was off to the side a little bit. I absolutely loved the view, and I would do it again if it means not having to stake out a spot hours before.
ILLUMINATE is a great nighttime spectacular. Its plot and themes have to do with protecting the light in each of us that allows us to hope and dream. This show charmed me a lot when I saw it for the first time. Each segment works really well to sell the overarching theme of the show. Favorite parts include the rock rendition of Into the Unknown, as well as the rendition of Try Everything from Zootopia. All in all, it’s a fantastic show that perfectly ends your 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland Itinerary.
Do Some Shopping on Mickey Avenue or World of Disney
Once the show is done, take some time to take pictures in front of the castle. After you’ve done that, head to the shops on Mickey Avenue and peruse them to find some merch to commemorate your trip. Once you’re done, you can then head out of the park and to your hotel.
And with that, you’ve just completed this 1-Day Shanghai Disneyland Itinerary.
Klook.com1-Day Shanghai Disneyland Itinerary Conclusion
Hopefully this post was able to help you plan out your visit to Shanghai Disneyland. I would recommend using this with my Shanghai Disneyland Rides Ranking and my Shanghai Disneyland Attraction and Entertainment guide to determine how to plan your day at Shanghai Disneyland. At the end of the day, though, even if things don’t go the way you planned, I’m sure you’ll still have a memorable day at Shanghai Disneyland. I hope you have the best time! If you have any questions, feel free to contact me on my socials!
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