Shanghaî Disneyland Adventure Isle and Roaring Rapids Storyline !

After yesterday's article about SDL Pirates of Caribbean ride, the series of article bringing more details about Shanghaî Disneyland attractions continues, and today we'll have a closer look at Adventure Isle!

Let's start with the Roaring Rapids raft ride:

Plunge through dark chasms, outrace a ferocious beast and churn through raging, roiling currents on a thrilling raft adventure!

Confront the Mountain’s Terrifying Secret

Join a rafting expedition to explore an ancient legend… but beware the dangers that lie ahead.

You’re invited to join the League of Adventurers as they unravel the mystery of Adventure Isle’s highest peak, known as “Roaring Mountain” for the forbidding sounds it emits.

Arbori natives believe that Q’aráq—a crocodile-like beast—dwells within. But could this incredible tale be true? League scientists have already unearthed fascinating relics and a hidden pathway.

Finding more clues will require a perilous river journey through uncharted waters. Brave volunteers are needed. If you have a thirst for adventure and a yearning for excitement, climb aboard and set off into the unknown.

Feel the Rush!

A journey to explore becomes an adrenaline-charged race to survive.

You’ll board your raft and set off upriver to Field Camp Beta. But look out! A fallen tree blocks your way and diverts the current in a new direction—right inside the mountain!

Within the cavern, the roar turns deafening as the rapids propel you toward the enraged monster itself. Speeding through the darkness, you’ll see the bulging-eyed beast ahead, feel its steamy breath and duck as it snaps its giant razor-sharp teeth.

If your raft escapes the fearsome jaws of Q’aráq, you’ll plunge through a lava tube and into a churning whirlpool, then past erupting volcanic vents and steaming geysers as the whitewater rapids sweep you back to basecamp.

Breathlessly returning, you’ll be hailed by your fellow League of Adventurers members. Your mission has boldly embraced their intrepid spirit: seeking the unknown and discovering the unbelievable—no matter the peril!

And now, more details about Camp Discovery!

Traverse challenging rope courses, hike scenic trails and dig for ancient relics as you explore Adventure Isle.

Join the League of Adventurers

Discover an astonishing world of mystery, natural beauty and archeological wonders.

For millennia, the Arbori people have called this lush and beautiful island their home—living in harmony with their natural world. When, in 1935, an expedition of the League of Adventurers was blown off course and discovered Adventure Isle, the peaceful Arbori welcomed them. It turns out the tribe was just as curious about this intrepid band of scientists as the explorers were about the Arboris’ customs, artifacts and natural surroundings.

With so many natural and man-made marvels to be found on this remote tropical island, the League welcomes inquisitive explorers like you to help them with their ongoing investigations.

At Camp Discovery, you can choose from a variety of expeditions to help unravel the island’s mysteries and uncover its wonders. You can climb on elevated rope courses to survey the stunning terrain of Roaring Mountain, hike through the breathtaking scenery or work inside a dig zone to unearth ancient artifacts.

Are you ready? Onward, Adventurers!

Excitement for Explorers of All Ages

Choose your course, set out for adventure and prepare for the incredible!

For everyone, from the most fearless trailblazer to the youngest League of Adventurers recruit, Camp Discovery offers rare experiences and remarkable sights few have ever encountered.

Challenge Trails at Camp Discovery

These 3 uniquely thrilling elevated rope courses traverse the terrain of Roaring Mountain—taking adventurers over river gorges, waterfalls and sheer cliffs, through stunning terrain and into spectacular caverns.

Hidden Falls Chamber – Journey behind a waterfall and deep into the jungle to a mystical cavern, home to the glittering gem-encrusted Temple of the Milky Way.

Echo Cavern – Wind along a perilous river gorge, discover magnificent rock carvings and cave paintings, and hear for yourself how Echo Canyon got its name.

House of the Ancients – Trek to the site of an in-progress excavation, where League of Adventurers archeologists are unearthing an ancient Arbori trading center.

Please note: Guests must be at least 106 centimeters (41.5 inches) or taller to experience the 3 rope courses of the Challenge Trails at Camp Discovery.

Vista Trail

This gentle and lushly landscaped trail lets adventurers of all ages and abilities experience the wonders of the rope courses from ground level—with photo opportunities around every bend. Stop to marvel at the trio of large “humming stones” which emit a mysterious hum heard only by the most nature-attuned individuals.

Excavation Site

At this hands-on dig zone, young archeologists can discover fascinating relics embedded in rock and buried in sand. Slides and other engaging activities among the ruins make exploring this area extra fun.

No matter how you choose to explore, mysteries, wonders and new adventures unfold all around you when you make the trek to Camp Discovery

The main restaurant of adventure Isle will be Tribal Table: "Set out for the heart of the Arbori village where Guests like you are invited to a welcome feast—with entrees from our wok and roasting stations. Join us in celebrating the bounty and balance of nature! "

Stay tuned on Disney and more for more article about Shanghaî Disneyland rides and attractions!

Pictures: copyright Disney - Shendi

Shanghaî Disneyland Update

Here is a short Shanghaî Disneyland update to start the week with an article from Shanghaî Daily to which i've added WDI SDL artworks:

WALT Disney once famously said of his entertainment empire: “It all started with a mouse.” For visitors at the Shanghai Disney Resort, their entry into the magical world of Disney Parks will begin in a similar way at Mickey Avenue, a specially designed shopping and recreation area that pays homage to beloved Disney characters, including Mickey Mouse.

“Mickey Avenue is much more than a street. Mickey Avenue is a town,” said Geoffrey Woodward, a Creative Producer who is working with an international multi-disciplinary team in the design and execution of the main entrance of the theme park. “As we were developing what the main entry should be, we have learned that Chinese people love stories and characters.”

Based on this premise, designers and planners at Walt Disney Imagineering Shanghai saw Mickey Avenue as a channel where they could introduce guests to the company’s beloved characters — including Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald and Daisy Duck, Goofy and Pluto — before entering the park’s other themed lands.

Indeed, one of the first icons greeting visitors is a fountain decked with a sculpture referencing “Steamboat Mickey,” inspired by the 1928 animated short that introduced the world to Mickey Mouse.

After walking through the resort’s gates, guests can browse Avenue M Arcade, a bustling commercial center offering apparel, accessories, gifts, home décor, jewelry, as well as an extensive array of items created especially for shoppers in China, which planners say is the largest shopping facility of its kind in the park.

There will also be plenty of sweet treats and delicious foods on offer at Mickey Avenue. For instance, there is Sweethearts Confectionery, a candy store that pays tribute to Disney’s first couple, Mickey and Minnie Mouse.

A French-themed bakery based on characters from Ratatouille, Rémy’s Patisserie will offer a variety of breads, pastries and muffins, along with fresh desserts.

Mickey & Pals Market Café, a counter-service restaurant, will feature localized Chinese and international menus plus views of the nearby gardens, the Fantasia Carousel and the Enchanted Storybook Castle.

Meanwhile, the Market Cafe, designed as an open-air market, will feature four exhibition kitchens and a mural depicting Mickey and his pals planting, harvesting and sharing happy times together.

“This is the first time in the history of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts that we have built a main entrance like this, one that’s dedicated to Disney characters,” the creative producer said.

After making their way down Mickey Avenue, the next stop for visitors is the Gardens of Imagination.

“Mickey Avenue is a space defined largely by architecture, and the gardens is a space largely about landscaping,” said John Sorenson, Director and Principal Landscape Architect at Walt Disney Imagineering Shanghai. This 26-year Disney veteran worked closely from the creative team from the very beginning in order to create an inviting space for Chinese guests and families.

“It’s a celebration of nature. It has both quiet space but also very active space.” Guests can choose to explore the beautiful gardens, ride on attractions or find a great viewing location for the daytime and nighttime castle shows.

In the gardens, visitors can take a spin on the Fantasia Carousel, soar on the back of Dumbo the Flying Elephant or explore the sights and sounds of Melody Garden. It is also in this area that guests can find bridges and pathways leading to other areas of the park. As guests stroll along, they may also meet Mickey Mouse and his pals.

The area, covering more than three hectares, will contain seven individual gardens focused on themes of family, friendship and fun. These will include the Garden of the Twelve Friends, the Melody Garden, the Romance Garden, the Woodland Garden and so on.

Each garden will be filled with engaging activities, floral and woodland displays, and playful photo opportunities.

Over the past three years, Sorenson and his team traveled to China’s remotest rural areas and talked with local farmers to find flora compatible with the climate in Shanghai.

“A lot of trees you will see there are familiar to most people in Shanghai, but we also tried to find unusual Chinese native trees,” he said. “We spent a lot of time going to parts of the remote countryside of China and we perfectly achieved our goals.”

We'll end with a great video showing the Shanghaî Disneyland float at the Opening ceremony of Shanghaî Tourism Festival 2015 a few days ago, with the specially designed SDL float, Disney characters and more!

Pictures: copyright Disney - shendi

Text: from Shanghai Daily

Shanghaî Disneyland Mickey Avenue High-Res Artworks

It's always good sometime to check twice and i realized that i had missed some HD renderings related to Mickey Avenue released on the new Shanghaî Disneyland website!

So, the first one below is showing the Carthay Theater located at one end of Mickey Avenue facing SDL Castle and it's obviously a zoom on a part of a larger rendering. Nevermind as we learn something interesting if we have a closer look at it, and i'm talking about the terrace of the Carthay Theater where we can see people eating or having a drink. Which mean that there should be a restaurant upstairs and with one of the best view of the park as it will face the Gardens of Imagination and Enchanted Storybook Castle. Great place too to watch the parade or fireworks!

Next is another HD rendering showing the inside of Tony's Ristorante and this one too seems to be a zoom on a larger original artwork.

The last rendering is one we've seen before but here in HD and it's for the Confectionery shop.

That's all for today about Shanghaî Disneyland!

Pictures: copyright Disney, Shendi

Shanghaî Disneyland Update : New Treasure Cove Artwork !

All-right, it's the week-end so it's time for the Shanghaî Disneyland update and i have new great artworks for you as SDL released new renderings for the Treasure Cove land!

Above is the Treasure Cove map as displayed on the Shanghaî Disney Resort website. Now, the first picture below shows you the pirate ship that SDL guests will see in Treasure Cove lagoon, not so far from the entrance of the Barbossa's Bounty restaurant.

Next rendering is showing the start of the Pirates of Caribbean ride during which, precisely, the riders will see others guests having lunch or dinner at the restaurant. A scene quite similar to the one at DLP with the Blue Lagoon or at DL with the Blue Bayou.

Now, as you know, SDL Pirates of Caribbean ride is called "Battle for the Sunken Treasure", which mean, basically, a battle for a treasure now underwater. And here is the rendering showing the ride scene with the treasure underwater. Which also mean that, yes, your boat will need to go underwater too. But this was announced officially last July when Iger said that the ride will take guests both over water and under water. What he didn't say is that your boat will be supposedly hit during the battle between the two huge pirate ships and that your boat will be supposed to sink (!) ...and so going under water. Well, not really under water as the effect will be done thanks to some dry-for-wet lighting from WDI wizards but it should be impressive anyway. And, hey, it will be the first Pirates of Caribbean ride in which you'll go underwater!

This next rendering is showing what most probably is the pre-show scene of the Pirate stunt show in El Teatro Fandango.

And last but not least here is another never seen before rendering showing Treasure Cove Explorer Canoes, which will be the only kinetic element in Treasure Cove Lagoon!

See you soon for a new Shanghaî Disneyland update!

Artwork: copyright Disney, Shendi

Shanghaî Disneyland Tomorrowland : From Blue Sky to Reality

Officially, the final design for Shanghaî Disneyland Tomorrowland is the one you see above, a land that will include the Jet Packs ride,  Stitch Encounter, Buzz Lightyear Planet Rescue, and of course the awaited TRON Lightcycles Power Run ride. But, as usual when WDI Imagineers design a new theme park, the design of SDL Tomorrowland has changed a lot since the "Blue Sky" period. This always happen for various reasons whether it is feasibility or budget reasons. So we'll have a look today at the Shanghaî Disneyland Tomorowland "that never was"- although it sounds bit odd to say this about a theme park not open yet, so let's say "that never will be", to be more accurate.

The Jet Packs ride which will be located at the entrance of the land will be unique to SDL Tomorrowland but in fact it's been a while that WDI Imagineers were turning around the idea to create a ride in which the guests will be "attached" to jet packs. So we'll start this pictorial evolution of SDL Tomorrowland with these renderings which were probably not done for SDL but could have been done for DL Tomorrowland. We can see an Orbitron with Jet Packs instead of the usual rockets but also a ride using robotic arms - like the Kuka robot arms used in the Harry Potter ride at Universal - which would move on the track where once was the People Mover...

On this next artwork we see not only Space Mountain but the Jet Packs are also there, this time with a different tech including fountains and water effects.

Another rendering also done probably for Disneyland Tomorrowland - see on the left and right the Submarine and Autopia cars - with the first appearance of a TRON motorbike coaster, and always the Jet Packs in the background.

The five next renderings typical "blue sky" artworks but some elements that will be in the final design starts to appear like these curved lines and on the one below we can even guess an outdoor TRON Lightcycles outdoor ride. These artworks below were most probably done with the design of Shanghaî Disneyland Tomorrowland in mind. As you'll see most of them were done by artist Scot Drake, a great artist specialized in digital paintings.

The next one below is interesting, specially when we remember that the land where Shanghaî Disneyland is currently built was rice fields before.

Another "blue sky" rendering - and by the way, for those of you who wouldn't know what "blue sky" means, it is the period during which WDI Imagineers can design anything they wish without thinking about the feasibility. Afterwards elements of these concepts are kept, others not, and are include in the final "feasible" concept.

This next artwork is another different concept, but keep in mind the element on the left looking like a concert arena as we'll see it again later. The curved lines are always there too.

Another great "blue sky" artwork on which you'll note the elevated walkways, something which will stay in the final design.

A perfect Tomorrowland vision in this artwork most probably done for Shanghaî Disneyland Tomorrowland , and on which we see the TRON ride and the Jet Packs at its center. Look great but a vision probably very expensive to realize in real...

Now we're getting closer to the final design. Almost everything that will be in the final concept is here. The jet Packs, the elevated walkways, the curved dome structure, etc...

We're almost to the final design with this next artwork. Note that the Jet Packs ride is no longer in the center but placed at the entrance of the land. The curved  "TRON cover" is there but the water element with the Jet Packs apparently shouldn't be kept in SDL Tomorrowland final concept.

Again, here is the final design of SDL Tomorrowland,  the result of the evolution that you've seen on the artworks above. Looks disappointing in comparison of the others artworks? Of course it does, because of the scope of the others one. But the others concepts were not realistically feasible. They were probably technically feasible but the costs was too high.

That said, if everything works fine we should find most of the original spirit in the final result, whether it is the elevated walkways or the curved dome of TRON...

And remember this element on one of the artworks above that i told you to keep in mind. Well, you'll find it in the final concept as it will be the Tomorrowland Arena Stage!

Don't go away as we're not done yet with SDL Tomorrowland, more greatness to come tomorrow!

Artworks: copyright Disney - Shendi

D23 Expo Parks and Resorts Pavilion : Part One : Shanghaî Disneyland

In this first report about D23 Expo we'll have a detailed look at the fantastic Disney Parks and Resorts pavilion which this year include a phenomenal presentation of Shanghaî Disneyland with artworks, models, costumes for each land, and more. There is also one about the Avatar land that we will explore in a separate article. As usual Andy Castro from Dateline Disneyland is D&M photographer for everything about D23 Expo and i can't thanks enough Andy for his precious pictures. 

So, let's have a closer look at Shanghaî Disneyland starting with the map of the park.

Before entering the park - just like at Hong Kong Disneyland - Shanghaî Disneyland guests will find a fountain, this one with Mickey in his glorious early days in "Steamboat Willie", and here is a picture of the model.

Next, we'll have a closer look at Mickey Avenue, the entrance street of Shanghaî Disneyland. By the way, don't forget to click on the pictures you wish to see them in bigger size.

In front of SDL castle and at the exit of Mickey Avenue will be the Gardens of Imagination!

Let's move now to Adventure Isle to have a closer look to the Roaring Rapids ride as well as Camp Discovery...

Right next door to Adventure Isle is Treasure Cove and a brand new Pirates of Caribbean ride version!

There it is, you got it, the first SDL Pirates of Caribbean attraction poster! And if you want to know what awaits you in the ride, just have a closer look at the poster!

The video below will show you a few seconds of Shanghaî Disneyland Pirates of Caribbean ride from the simulation movie used by WDI Imagineers!

Fantasyland will have many unique elements including the unique Journey to the Crystal Grotto boat ride, a different Peter Pan's Flight, and much more!

Let's move to the Tomorrowland section and the Tron Lightcycles motorbike coaster!

The Shanghaî Disneyland Hotel as well as the Toy Story hotel also ha da special presentation.

The Toy Story Hotel Courtyard will feature the "Tin Toy" rocket sculpture below.

We'll end by the Disney Town presentation, SDL shopping, dining and entertainment area!

On Disney and more i've covered essentially the D23 Expo announcements about Parks or Imagineering but there was more so make sure to follow Andy Castro others updates on D23 Expo either on his Dateline Disneyland page HERE or on Mice Age HERE.

All pictures: copyright Andy Castro - Dateline Disneyland