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Eftleing and Tivoli are just beautiful parks. Thanks for the trip reports!

I'd rather they just updated it to the Shanghai version, though that's probably not possible due to the constraints of the show building. Be curious to hear what Robb thinks about the scene change since he dislikes the original version anyway.

English is one of the official languages of Hong Kong. There are also non-Chinese cast members. The last time I was in HKDL this past summer, the skipper was South Asian who spoke English fine, but the spiel was horrible. It was literally, "oohhhh, look at the hippos..." and "watch out for alligators...." But I don't blame the skips, I blame the park management for not doing proper training and quality assurance. It was such poor show and Disney could and should do better.

Don't get your hopes up too high for the announced HKDL expansion. The Hong Kong Legislature blocked the funding for the announced expansion saying they didn't want to throw so much money into a park that loses money. Of course, Disney will continue to negotiate with the HK government (which is the majority owner of the park) to get an expansion, but by no means is it a done deal. Disney is going to need to put in a lot more of the upfront costs for this expansion to happen. Most ticket prices at HKDL just went up over 10% so they're trying to recoup costs that way... but that makes Shanghai DL even cheaper for mainlanders. Next year is shaping up as a make or break year for HKDL's future. I hope Mystic Manor stays unique to HK, the park has very few marquee attractions unique to it. JC at HKDL is terribly overrated. The fire sequence at the end has been toned down significantly since opening and the skipper spiel in English is embarrassingly bad. Duffy isn't needed at the stateside parks, there's already tons of great characters from Disney media to meet without adding a cloying one created in the marketing department.

I wonder if there are other things yet to be announced. If they're taking two years to rebuild and modify the castle, maybe there will be a walkthrough or restaurant inside. Fantasyland could still use another dark ride. Adventureland needs a good ride unless they're planning to get rid of Lion King when Moana opens. From the Marvel land concept art, it looks like Jedi Training Academy will have to be moved as it's right smack dab in front of the land. Hopefully Toy Story land gets some kind of marquee attraction. But all in all, the expansion looks good. It's best to get this first gate right before starting on the second gate. Disneyland's castle is untouchable. People have been taking pictures in front of it for over 60 years so the framing of shots for comparison over time would be completely thrown off. A major redesign of the hub would be a huge costly mess for years pushing back the entrances of the surrounding lands and attempting to widen the walkways. It would be little gain for the mess and expense. The one that does makes sense to change and would relieve congestion is Tomorrowland's awful entrance. Get ride of the rocks and push Astro Orbiter back on top of the Astro Jets platform.

Great TR, Singapore's Haunt looks amazing. And the Suicide Forest was shocking, in a good scary way.

I've always wanted to visit this park. Thanks for the TR, it was great and funny!

Not at all surprised the opening dates have been pushed back. This is common practice in the Gulf to over-promise on opening dates (and number projections). Eventually DPR will get everything open, but I would encourage everyone to hold off buying tickets to visit until all parks and rides are open. I feel bad for the people who already bought airline tickets thinking the opening dates were set realistically by the management.

I have Twitter, FB, Instagram accounts but never use them. Tried them all but they all left me cold and disinterested. I still prefer online discussion boards and forums because they specialize in their one topic, and that's why I'm here. Heck, I wish we could go back to Usenet again. But then again, I guess I'm just old.

No trip report(s)? It seems like this park opened and then disappeared off the radar. Is it getting any business?

I lived in Riverside for a brief time and really like this little park. It has some charm, unique attractions and the landscaping is quite nice. The antique car ride is one of the highlights of the park, along with the train ride. They're both originally from Knott's, and the park has quite a few connections to that venerable park, which gives you tinges of nostalgia. There are sometimes magic shows on weekends that are actually quite good, and included in the regular admission. There's also a Ghostblasters shooter in the arcade, which is fun. One of the best parts of the park is the miniature golf, which is probably the best in SoCal. It is very nicely themed with four separate interlocking courses, and if only the park maintained it better, then it would be truly incredible. The arcade is full of old machines, which can be interesting in a way, but it would be better if they did something else with the space. There's also a water play area for little ones behind the "castle." The flume ride actually has a very good drop. Yeah, I have a soft spot for Castle Park and encourage people to do a day trip to Riverside to experience this 'little park that could.' Close by is the Citrus Park on Van Buren where you can get a huge bag of the sweetest oranges you've ever tasted for the ride home. Thanks for posting this report!

Projectors on the Madagascar ride!!! Why? If I wanted to watch the movie, I'd stay home and plug in a DVD. The projectors just scream cheap! And early reviews say the animatronics are pitiful. And no drops either!?!? I'd take Monsters Inc. over this any day. How disappointing...

Went for dinner at Dubai Mall last night and the fountain was working fine. If it had any down time, it must have been really short. Hard to imagine they'd let it go down for long since it's the peak tourist season and Shopping Festival month. Noticed that Michael Jackson's "Thriller" has been added as one of the Fountain songs.

Not that much actually, at least not compared to Saudi. In the UAE a gallon of regular gas is a bit over $2. There were two 15% increases last year, and it's rumored another 15% increase will be applied again soon.

They crank up the air-conditioning in the malls anyway so it's a good idea to wear pants if just for that reason. Short-sleeves are fine for a t-shirt or polo. Even the local guys wear them when they're not wearing a dishdasha. Ironically, Iron Maiden played Dubai about two years ago. I didn't go but wondered if they sold t-shirts with Eddie on them. While World of Color at DCA is the king of all water shows, the Dubai Fountain with the Burj Khalifa in the background is still pretty impressive. On a trip, I'd schedule it with dinner at one of the many restaurants around the fountain's perimeter. I'm sure as you already know, schedule a trip some time from December to April so you're not here during the oppressive heat. November is still incredibly humid so I'd choose even May over November even if the temperatures in November appear comparatively cooler. I was last in Wonderland with my family about a year ago and it looks like it's declined even more since that recent trip. Did you see the worst "dark" ride in the world with sleigh vehicles around a track with slightly animatronic mouse dioramas? It's incredibly bizarre. As said above, I've been told by locals that Wonderland used to hopping back about 10 years ago, but with the rise of the malls it's fallen into disrepair. Wafi Mall has a hi-def overlay projection show now similar to what Disney is doing on Small World in Anaheim, and Cinderella Castle in Orlando. The Christmas show was quite good, but the current Egyptian one is still technically impressive, but not as engaging, to me anyway. Wafi Mall is intensively Egyptian themed with a really cool bazaar in the basement called the Khan Murjan Souk and a Turkish restaurant in the middle with an open air atrium on top. The mall is usually empty so you feel like this uber-luxury mall was put together just for you. The Grand Hyatt on the Corniche has an all-chocolate buffet that is worth checking out for chocoholics. There are some top-notch chocolate shops in the upscale malls that will make you never eat Hershey's or Godiva ever again. And for gelato, Morelli's in Dubai Mall is incredible. Best wishes putting together your TPR outing to Dubai and the UAE.

Life insurance is forbidden in Islam, it's like you're playing God or something. Jews are fine in the UAE. Frank Gehry comes regularly to design the Guggenheim in Abu Dhabi. I know Jewish people who live here with no problems. The locals separate the religion (Judaism) from the state, or entity as they would call it, (Israel). Joey will be fine in the UAE.

Congrats on the Dubai and UAE trip. I've lived in Dubai for three years so if you need any help planning for your TPR trip, just let me know. A few comments: Did you not see the water fountain show in front of the Burj Khalifa? It's one of the highlights of Dubai, and much better than the Bellagio IMO. It's in a self-contained area where you can eat dinner at any number of restaurants with a great view. They've also incorporated fire into some of the shows. Don't miss it on your next trip, it's spectacular. I agree that Aquaventure is a great water park (better than Wild Wadi, even WW has more rides). It's deluxe all the way with lush landscaping and amenities. Inside the shopping area of the Atlantis is a huge aquarium with many great restaurants. You can valet park for free at Atlantis if you eat at one of the restaurants. It's a good deal. One of the northern emriates, Ras Al Khaimah, has a new water park called Ice Land which opened last year. It looks pretty nice and might be worth a side trip, along with a cruise through the Strait of Hormuz in Oman's Musandam. It's kind of like the fjords of Norway, but hot! Did you see the aquarium inside the Dubai Mall? The huge flat panel display is pretty impressive, and there's a Candylicious store right across the screen. Eat some pizza at the Armani Cafe. Enjoy the choices at the Galleries Lafayette world cuisine stations. There's a lot of good food in that mall. In Abu Dhabi there will be some cool things that will be opening in a few years, but for theme park fans there's a "hidden" dark ride inside Khalifa Park that almost no one, including locals, knows about. It's a Peter Pan style hanging track ride that takes you past vignettes of Gulf history and an aquarium. It might be worth a small side trip since you'll be the only ones there and one of the few to have ridden it. Also in AD, you posted a pic of the Sheikh Zayed mosque, which is as grand as the Taj Mahal. I know TPR doesn't focus on cultural attractions, but that mosque is almost like a theme park attraction breaking many records for largest chandelier and carpet in the world. The entry room is a marble garden meant to evoke an Islamic vision of heaven as revealed in the Koran. The whole place is incredibly themed, and they will give you local clothes to enter. Seeing Rob and Elissa in a dishdasha, and abaya and headcover, would be worth the short one-hour excursion alone. Plus there's no entrance fee. As for tourist dress, the locals are actually pretty reasonable. Dubai is one the most liberal, then Abu Dhabi, and Sharjah is the most conservative. Sharjah almost went bankrupt in the 80's and had to take Saudi money to survive. If you take the House of Saud's money, then you have to play by their rules, hence the conservatism. But Dubai, which is a stone's throw away from Sharjah, is nothing like Sharjah. You can wear t-shirts anywhere in the UAE, even Sharjah. Just no plunging necklines for women. You can wear shorts that extend to your knees (no NBA style shorts from the 1970s tight era), though it's pretty much only western tourists who do so. I know in Dubai, there is no law on dress code except prohibiting nudity, so while you might get stares and a gentle admonition for a tank top, you won't get arrested either. In a nutshell, it's good to respect local cultures and customs, but you don't have to go overboard either and wear long sleeves in 100 degree heat. One things I'm surprised you didn't do is take a desert safari. They take you in a SUV and you race up, down and through sand dunes. It's like a roller coaster ride! Or you can rent a quad-bike and ride all through the sand and hills yourself. If you like roller coasters then you'll love that side trip. As for crime, the UAE is about as safe as it gets in the world. There's practically no chance of random crime happening to you here. Great trip report, thanks.

I haven't read the books, and only saw a couple of the movies which I thought were entertaining, but not great or worthy of a second viewing but... this land looks friggin' amazing! I can't believe some are complaining that it is too intricately themed! The worst thing Universal could have done is water it down to make it more appealing to those who haven't read the books. Half the fun is going to be trying to figure out what everything means in this land for the uninitiated. That's part of the adventure. And good for Rowling on demanding such detailed theming and giving Coke the boot. The less outside commercialism the more immersive the experience, plus Universal will make more profit from all the pumpkin juice and Butterbeer sold anyway. To the theme park industry: more of this please!