Disney exec says China is big enough for two Disneylands

21 Dec, 2009 admin themed attractions

HONG KONG — China is big enough to support two Disneyland resorts, a top executive said amid concerns the company’s new Shanghai park would draw visitors away from its one in Hong Kong.

Bill Ernest, president of The Walt Disney Co.’s parks in Asia, noted that in the U.S., where the population is about a quarter of the size of China’s, there are already two major resorts – in Orlando, Fla., and in Anaheim, Calif.

“We think there’s plenty of room,” Ernest said at a groundbreaking ceremony Dec. 14 for a long-awaited expansion of Hong Kong’s Disneyland. “We think there’s plenty of business there that supports both parks.”

China’s planning agency approved plans for a Disney theme park in Shanghai in November, part of a government push to develop China’s biggest city into a global services centre and tourist destination.

The Shanghai park has been estimated to cost US$3.5 billion, though Ernest said it was too early in negotiations with the government to give any details about the resort’s price tag, attractions or capital structure.

The addition of three new theme areas in Hong Kong’s park will enlarge the resort by nearly a quarter over the next five years.

The $465 million expansion, announced in July, was considered a long-overdue move to lure more young adults and other visitors by addressing complaints the park was too small.

It opened in 2005 to great fanfare only to suffer disappointing attendance its first two years. However, visitor numbers in its third year grew by eight per cent, the Hong Kong government says.