Attendance @ HKDL over 1 Million since debut

[HKDisneyland]

http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000006&sid=a2FEi_pH4I88&refer=home

Nov. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong Disneyland, Walt Disney Co.'s first theme park in China, attracted more than 1 million visitors in its first 100 days of operation, putting it on track to achieve attendance goals, the company said.
Disney expects the Hong Kong resort to attract 5.6 million visitors in its first year, Parks and Resorts Chairman Jay Rasulo said today in an interview. The attendance numbers are the first that Burbank, California-based Disney has provided for the park since Hong Kong Disneyland opened Sept. 12.

Since the Hong Kong resort opened, 49 percent of visitors have been local residents. Twenty six percent came from mainland China and the remaining 25 percent arrived from other countries, Disney said.

``Hong Kong Disneyland has become a successful launching pad for Disney,'' said Laura Martin, an analyst at Soleil Securities Corp. in Pasadena, California, who rates the company ``buy'' and doesn't own shares. ``Success at Hong Kong Disneyland accelerates Disney putting more assets in Asia.''

 

[Woody13]

The Hong Kong government is not happy;

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D8E0J4OO0.htm?campaign_id=apn_home_down&chan=db

 

[HKDisneyland]

I believe with this number (over 1 Million guests) they are quite satisified.

Currently, as it is the size of the the park is only stage one of the Phase 1 development. so a daily average of 15,000 is very good!!!

 

[Woody13]

I believe with this number (over 1 Million guests) they are quite satisified.

Currently, as it is the size of the the park is only stage one of the Phase 1 development. so a daily average of 15,000 is very good!!!

Perhaps you did not read the article?

 

[HKDisneyland]

Perhaps you did not read the article?

that article was released b4 Disney formally clarified that there are more than 1 millions guest at the Park.

 

[Woody13]

that article was released b4 Disney formally clarified that there are more than 1 millions guest at the Park.

Perhaps you would like to post the entire article that you posted?

 

[tomm4004]

I believe with this number (over 1 Million guests) they are quite satisified.

Currently, as it is the size of the the park is only stage one of the Phase 1 development. so a daily average of 15,000 is very good!!!

Math isn't my thing I guess but isn't one million guests over 100 days an average of 10,000 per day? And doesn't that equate to 3.65 million for 365 days? (I suppose they are counting on more people over the holidays and the summer)

 

[HKDisneyland]

Math isn't my thing I guess but isn't one million guests over 100 days an average of 10,000 per day? And doesn't that equate to 3.65 million for 365 days? (I suppose they are counting on more people over the holidays and the summer)

They never said it is Exactly 1 million...they clarified that it is MORE than one million.
so you got that?

it is only 73 days if counting from Sept 12(official opening day) to the date of the press release (Nov 23).

 

[Woody13]

Monday November 21, 2005

Attendance at Hong Kong Disneyland below government forecasts,

HONG KONG: Attendance at Hong Kong Disneyland is running below government forecasts two months after the park opened, the South China Morning Post reported Monday.

Disneyland officials have refused to say how many people have visited the park. This has angered lawmakers, who say the public has the right to know since the government owns 57 percent of the attraction.

The Post reported that it sent four reporters to Disneyland on Nov. 13 and 16 to count visitors with handheld tally counters. The reporters counted 12,972 visitors passing through the turnstiles on Nov. 13 and 11,399 on Nov. 16, the paper said.

The government has said it expected 5.6 million visitors - an average of 15,342 per day - to the park in its first year of operation, the paper said.
The MTR Corp., which operates a special subway line to the park, said it usually carries 10,000 riders a day on weekdays and 20,000 on Sundays, the paper said.

However, some of the riders only visit the promenade outside Disneyland and don't go into the park, the paper said. A Disney spokeswoman said the newspaper's count was flawed but declined to give the company's own figures, the report said.

A Tourism Commission spokeswoman said the Hong Kong government, which is the majority owner of the park, won't disclose attendance figures for commercial reasons, the paper said. The government paid US$2.4 billion for the park's construction, while Walt Disney Co. paid over US$314 million, according to official figures. - AP

 

[tomm4004]

if counting from Sept 12(official opening day) to the date of the press release (Nov 23).

They must be counting preview days because you're right, it hasn't been 100 days since official opening. I do imagine that holidays and summer will be better. I know that for a few days, I believe in October, it was sold out because my cousin (who lives in HK) tried to get tickets for his family and it was sold out. I think it was during some festival period.

HKDisneyland - Just curious. How were the crowds when you went?

 

[Woody13]

Associated Press
Over 1M Have Visited Hong Kong Disneyland
11.24.2005, 01:20 AM

<!--OUTER BOX TABLE--><!--/OUTER BOX TABLE-->Disney says "well over" 1 million people have visited Hong Kong Disneyland, finally relenting in releasing visitor figures amid speculation of disappointing attendance and criticism that the park - mostly owned by the local government - wasn't transparent enough.

"Hong Kong Disneyland has welcomed and entertained well over 1 million guests," Walt Disney Parks and Resorts said in a statement issued late Wednesday.

The statement came after park officials repeatedly refused to disclose visitor numbers because of their sensitive nature and media reports that attendance at the park has been lackluster.

The South China Morning Post reported Monday that its reporters counted several thousand fewer park guests than the projected first-year daily average of 15,342 on two days in November.

In Wednesday's statement, Disney Parks and Resorts Chairman Jay Rasulo said such calculations are "meaningless" because they don't factor in seasonality.

"The bottom-line is this: Attendance is ramping up well, which continues to give us confidence that we are on track to achieve our long-term attendance goals," Rasulo said.

Disneyland's silence until now has frustrated critics who say the park must be held accountable to the public because of the level of government investment.

The government paid US$2.4 billion (euro2.03 billion) for the park's construction, while Disney paid over US$314 million (euro 266 million), according to official figures.

Disney also said mainland China, expected to be a major source of tourists for the park, accounted for over a quarter, or 26 percent of guests. Foreigners contributed 25 percent, and locals had a 49 percent share.

 

[HKDisneyland]

They must be counting preview days because you're right, it hasn't been 100 days since official opening. I do imagine that holidays and summer will be better. I know that for a few days, I believe in October, it was sold out because my cousin (who lives in HK) tried to get tickets for his family and it was sold out. I think it was during some festival period.

HKDisneyland - Just curious. How were the crowds when you went?

I don't really like the way they report news in HK, particulary they just want readers' attentions by writing negative things ( in order to make people buy their newspapers). This is a norm in HK Newspapers.....

I noticed more people in the park on Friday and weekends, but the crowds were manageable.

 

[tomm4004]

I don't really like the way they report news in HK, particulary they just want readers' attentions by writing negative things ( in order to make people buy their newspapers). This is a norm in HK Newspapers.....

I noticed more people in the park on Friday and weekends, but the crowds were manageable.

That's the norm for most newspapers.

The two days that the "spies" counted guests were Sunday and Wednesday. If it was 12-13,000 on those days I would except that Saturday and maybe Friday would be more. And as Rasulo points out, the summers will be busier.

It's interesting that they've revised their numbers from over 1 million to "well" over 1 million. The first was a bit vague.

A big key too is occupancy at the hotels and guest spending. Attendance was never the problem at 'EuroDisneyland' in its first couple years. Also, will HKDL get repeat visitors?

 

[Woody13]

Lower Expectations;

HK Disney ekes out visitors

Park attendance averaging 10,000 per day

By PATRICK FRATER


The Hong Kong Disneyland theme park that opened in September has welcomed significantly fewer visitors than are needed to meet local expectations. But Disney drew comfort from the many "milestones" the operation has passed.
A Disney statement issued from Burbank, Calif., on the eve of the Thanksgiving holiday said the park, the group's first in China, had welcomed "over a million visitors" in a hundred days.
That suggests an average of 10,000 visitors per day and compares with the 15,340 a day needed to meet the 5.6 million first year total expected by the Hong Kong government.
Disney parks and resorts chairman Jay Rasulo said in the statement: "Attendance is ramping up well, which continues to give us confidence that we are on track to achieve our long-term attendance goals."
Rasulo said the park is doing well in terms of visitor-satisfaction metrics and merchandise sales, which have run to 3.3 million items.
"Hotels have soft openings all the time. We are in a soft opening phase," said Alana Goss, the park's Asia-Pacific head of communications. "Our prospects are very good."
Rasulo points to a varied mix of visitors as proof of the park's broad appeal in the region. Hong Kong residents make up 49% of visitors, mainland China guests 26% and visitors from other countries 25%.
Disney has recently come under growing pressure in Hong Kong to provide performance data for the park. With majority ownership in the hands of the Hong Kong government, questions have been asked in the Hong Kong legislature, and local newspapers conducted their own surveys that produced unflattering results. But until this statement, all investigations met with the response that admissions figures were "commercially sensitive."
The figures will be welcomed by Hong Kong's freedom of information campaigners, but other critics of the park note that the million spectator figure includes the "pre-opening phase" before the Sept. 12 launch, when tickets were heavily discounted or given away for free.
In recent weeks, the park operators have introduced discounts for Hong Kong residents in order to attract more locals.
Rasulo slammed the Hong Kong media's attempts to survey visitor numbers.
"Average daily attendance calculations by the media, especially over a short period of time, have resulted in misleading and faulty conclusions and paint an oversimplified picture that doesn't reflect either performance or guest enjoyment of the Disney entertainment experience. One must always remember in the tourism industry to take seasonality and fluctuation during peak and nonpeak times into account, which makes simple daily averages meaningless." Hong Kong Disneyland says it is already expanding and enhancing the park experience beyond the top attractions, Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters, Mickey's PhilharMagic, Space Mountain and the Jungle River Cruise. Next summer it will add Autopia, featuring battery-powered vehicles traveling a whimsical highway.

Read the full article at:
http://www.variety.com/story.asp?l=story&a=VR1117933501&c=19

 

[tomm4004]

>"Hotels have soft openings all the time. We are in a soft opening phase," said Alana Goss, the park's Asia-Pacific head of communications. "Our prospects are very good."

-I wonder what they consider "soft opening." I've never thought of a Disney park having soft opening after the official opening day.

>The figures will be welcomed by Hong Kong's freedom of information campaigners, but other critics of the park note that the million spectator figure includes the "pre-opening phase" before the Sept. 12 launch, when tickets were heavily discounted or given away for free.

-So that's how they get 100 days when, as HKDisneyland pointed out, it's been open less than that.

 

[HKDisneyland]

Little Mouse in Big China

Disney breaks the silence to announce that Hong Kong Disneyland is doing just fine.


Family entertainment giant Disney(NYSE: DIS) broke out of its typically tight-lipped mode of announcing theme park attendance figures when it revealed that Hong Kong Disneyland has entertained well over a million guests.
Disney has never been one to break down the turnstile clicks at its domestic parks. Its quarterly reports often describe whether attendance is rising or falling at its resorts, but the company does not announce round attendance figures. It leaves that to the industry trades, such as Amusement Business, to estimate and dispense to the public.

However, there are a few good reasons that Disney has become a chatterbox when it comes to its performance in China. For starters, the South China Morning Post ran a story earlier this month that found that physical counts of guests entering the park on two different days were coming in well below the averages that the park would need to achieve to draw its stated goal of 5.6 million in annual attendance.

Another reason is that the Chinese government bankrolled the majority of the $2.7 billion cost of building the park. Stories of waning attendance, if left unchecked, would give critics of the deal some potent ammo for talking down China's massive $2.4 billion investment in the joint venture.

Perhaps the third and final reason for the disclosure is that, despite the success of Disney's theme parks in Japan, many still associate Disney's global theme park push with Euro Disney. The French park got off to a bumpy start. It reached the point where creditors got antsy and Disney renamed the park Disneyland Paris in an effort to wipe away earlier missteps.

If Disney were to trip up early again, it would hurt the company's chances of brokering deals with other countries to expand its empire. Japan's two successful Disney parks are neither owned nor operated by Disney, and the lavish capital expenditures in that country's parks bear that out. Disney has been reluctant in recent years to invest in its domestic parks, making its two most recent stateside openings the weakest performers in their respective states.

It shouldn't have to be that complicated. You see a regional amusement park operator like Income Investor pick Cedar Fair(NYSE: FUN) consistently growing, and even the troubled Six Flags(NYSE: PKS) chain has exhibited signs of life over the past year. For Disney's international push, the success of its theme parks takes on an added layer of urgency because it is also there to serve as a brand ambassador. It's why even General Electric(NYSE: GE) makes sure that its Universal Studios theme parks aren't limited to its two coastal bookends.

Success in Hong Kong would translate into more ambitious expansion in the world's most populous nation, even though just about a quarter of the park's visitors have come from mainland China. It's a region that clearly has explosive opportunity when it comes to leisure, as the economy improves and disposable income becomes a bit more disposable. It's why the Rule Breakers newsletter service has singled out not one -- but two -- Chinese gaming companies as attractive growth stocks in NetEase.com(Nasdaq: NTES) and Shanda Interactive(Nasdaq: SNDA). Online games is something that Disney is really taking seriously at the moment, and perhaps that is yet another reason why Disney can't afford to lose out on China.

 

[Woody13]

Disney claims visitor numbers at Hong Kong park are 'sensitive'

Tuesday, November 29, 2005 at 04:00 JST
HONG KONG — Hong Kong Disneyland will not release "sensitive" attendance numbers to "avoid confusing tourists," Group Managing Director Don Robinson said at a Hong Kong Legislative Council meeting Monday.

Dismissing legislators' criticisms of the lack of transparency, Robinson said the attendance number is too sensitive, which might be misunderstood by tourists, and so it is not appropriate to disclose it, local media reported. The reports said legislators expressed worries that low admission numbers would translate into financial losses, which would have to be shouldered by the government. (Kyodo News)

 

[HKDisneyland]

The Secretary for Economic Development and Labour, Stephen Ip said that the current daily attendance is in line with the forecast, that is the daily attendance is between 14,000 and 15,000. He further indicated that the Government of Hong Kong would like to see new attraction to be built at Hong Kong Disneyland each year.


He is hoping that the Government of HK would not be required to inject more capital into HKDL, all funds for new attractions would come from income associated with the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort.