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The Hong Kong Disneyland Resort (香港迪士尼樂園度假區) was built by the Government Of Hong Kong and The Walt Disney Company and officially opened on September 12 , 2005 . It consists of one Hong Kong Disneyland Theme Park , two hotels ( Disneyland Hotel and Disney's Hollywood Hotel ), and retail, dining and entertainment facilities stretching over 1.3 km&2 (310 acres) on Lantau Island. It is located on Reclaimed Land beside Penny's Bay , at the northeastern tip of Lantau Island (approximately two kilometres from Discovery Bay ), in Hong Kong . Currently, the resort is overseen by executive vice president Bill Ernest . CONSTRUCTION A joint-venture company, Hong Kong International Theme Parks Limited (HKITP), was created in 1999 with Disney investing US$316 million for a 43 % equity stake in the project and the Hong Kong government owning the remaining 57 % of the US$1.8 billion project. The Hong Kong government expects it to provide 18,400 jobs on opening and up to 35,800 jobs over the following 20 years. The total economic benefits amount to an estimated HK$ 148 billion (US$19 billion), or about 6 % of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) over 40 years of operation. The construction of the theme park itself started in January 2003, and it opened on 12 September 2005. An Artificial Lake of some 12 hectares was also created to serve the resort's water irrigation needs In an effort to avoid cultural friction similar to what happened when Disneyland Resort Paris opened in France , Disney has taken efforts to make this new park reflect the local culture. The New York Times reported that Feng Shui consultants have helped with the layout of the park and the grounds. Incense was burned when the construction of each building was completed, and one of the main ballrooms is 888 square meters large, as eight is an Auspicious Number in Chinese Culture , signifying fortune. The hotels will skip the number four when numbering of their floors because four is considered bad luck. Hong Kong Disneyland employees speak English , Cantonese , and Mandarin , and were trained at other Disney parks while their home park was being constructed. The park is projected to attract five to six million visitors in its opening year, mostly locals, tourists from Mainland China and nearby Asian countries. The World Tourism Organization predicts that the Hong Kong Disneyland Resort will become one of the world's largest tourist destinations within the next fifteen years. If the park's first working year is successful financially, and both the government of Hong Kong and Disney see benefits, the Phase Two of construction will commence. (There is room for a 40% expansion.) Disney forums across the World Wide Web have been busy with rumours and ideas for the second phase, mainly made up of installing classic Disney attractions that were not built in the first phase. At launch, Hong Kong Disneyland was the smallest of any Disney parks. The most likely result of Phase Two will be a fifth land, probably Frontierland , Mickey's Toontown or less likely an original and unique land not built before at a previous park. The government of Hong Kong has made it clear to the public and Disney that there is land next to the resort for a second theme park and several more hotels, but without a much higher price than what Disney paid for the land they already own, the government is liable to sell the land to one of Disney's theme park industry rivals. Names rumoured to be looking at the land feature NBC Universal , Six Flags and Anheuser Busch . Many view this move as a way of getting more money out of Disney, as the government does not actually want another company to build a separate theme park in the area. THEME PARK See Also: Hong Kong Disneyland Currently, the resort only consists of one Disney theme park, Hong Kong Disneyland . Besides, reclamation works for Phase 2 Extension is now in progress and it's expected to be finished by 2008 . At that time, construction for another new Disney theme park will be started and the new park will open in 2010 . HOTELS There are two hotels in the Resort, the five-star Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel and the four-star Disney's Hollywood Hotel , located on the seashore of the reclaimed land with about 1,000 rooms in total. TRANSPORT MTR Disneyland Resort Line See Also: Disneyland Resort Line (MTR) See Also: Disneyland Resort (MTR) Bus Long Win Bus (including "Airbus" and KMB fleets) Long Win Bus currently operates 2 external routes between the city and Hong Kong Disneyland Resort .
Please note that the above routes depart for Disneyland only with several departures each morning, and they depart Disneyland only after the firework display every evening. Outside the service period, passengers can take any North Lantau and Airports routes which via the Lantau Link Toll Plaza and interchange there for R8 with a bus-bus interchange discount. Cancelled Routes
This route was cancelled due to low demand. Citybus Citybus currently operates 3 external routes between the city and Hong Kong Disneyland Resort .
Please note that the above routes depart for Disneyland only with several departures each morning, and they depart Disneyland only after the firework display every evening. Outside the service period, passengers can take any North Lantau and Airports routes which via the Lantau Link Toll Plaza and interchange there for R8 with a bus-bus interchange discount. Cancelled Routes
This route was cancelled due to low demand. Jointly-operated routes These routes are jointly-operated by Citybus and Long Win Bus .
Route R8A serves as a temporary route for the opening of Inspiration Lake which is located also in Hong Kong Disneyland Resort . This route was proposed to be cancelled within weeks after the grand opening, replaced by the bi-directional sectional fare of route R8. However, until now the route is still not cancelled. Special Routes
The route was operated for only once. On that day, there were special activities in Disneyland causing the park to close late. CONTROVERSIES Shark fin soup controversy Disney originally planned to serve Shark Fin Soup , a traditional Chinese delicacy, at wedding banquets {Link without Title} . Animal rights groups protested in June 2005, citing the declining shark population in global waters and the cruel methods sometimes used of cutting the fin and discarding the live sharks back into the water. At first, Disney removed shark's fin soup from its menu but said it would still offer the soup if their clients insisted on having it served at their wedding. They said they would distribute leaflets about shark conservation to discourage the choice. {Link without Title} . However, after constant and continuous pressure from environmental groups and schoolchildren shareholders concerned about the company's image, Disney announced on 24 June 2005 that shark fin soup will not be served at all, because, according to their press release, "After careful consideration and a thorough review process, we were not able to identify an environmental sustainable fishing source, leaving us no alternative except to remove shark's fin soup from our wedding banquet menu." [http://science.monstersandcritics.com/news/article_1021460.php/Under-fire_Disney_takes_sharks_fin_off_menu_at_Hong_Kong_park_ Other controversies
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