bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Hong Kong Disneyland  expects to open its first new themed area under its expansion plan in two to three years, a top park executive says. 
Speaking yesterday after the groundbreaking ceremony for the theme park's expansion, managing director Andrew Kam Min-ho  said Toy Story Land  would be the first among the three new areas to be completed.
Construction starts today.
'We're confident that it would be the first to be opened ... in the coming two to three years,' Kam said.
The park hoped the expansion would be completed as soon as possible, he said. 
Apart from Toy Story Land, based on the popular animated blockbuster, the Grizzly Gulch  attraction, formerly known as Grizzly Trail,  and Mystic Point  will be completed before 2014. 
For the first five years, the latter two will be exclusive to Hong Kong and Toy Story Land will be exclusive to Asia.
Announced in July, the HK$3.63 billion expansion will see the area of the park increase by about 23 per cent to 27.5 hectares. The  number of themed areas will increase to seven with  a total of more than 100 attractions.  
Joe Lanzisero,  creative senior vice-president of Walt Disney Imagineering  who oversees the design for the Hong Kong park, said new technologies would be used and Chinese characteristics had been integrated into the new attractions. 
Asked if the planned Disney park in Shanghai would contain any of the new themed areas, Bill Ernest,  president and managing director of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts in Asia,  said the company was still negotiating the deal and it was premature to release details.
Despite worries that the Shanghai park would draw visitors away from the one in Hong Kong, Ernest reiterated that China was big enough to house two Disneyland parks and they could complement one another. 
He said 'there's plenty of room' and 'plenty of business' to support them.
Facing increasing competition as more theme parks open in the region next year, he said the company remained optimistic but cautious.
Details about Hong Kong Disneyland's performance this year, such as visitor attendance, will be announced next month, Kam said. 
Also at the groundbreaking ceremony, Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah  expressed confidence that an expanded Hong Kong Disneyland would help the city continue to be a premier destination for visitors from around the world.
Growth spurt
The expansion of Hong Kong Disneyland will see it grow by about 23 per cent to 27.5 hectares 
The cost of the expansion, in HK dollars, will be: $3.63b



Disney expects new attraction to open within three years