Disney Tips Your Guide To A Great Disney Vacation
As Disney continues to expand its global footprint, not all of its theme parks are drawing the same crowds. A viral post has reignited attention on Hong Kong Disneyland, a park long known for its slower foot traffic, after one guest captured just how empty it looked—even at night.
The conversation comes at a time when broader questions are being raised about Disney’s financial outlook and the future of the theme park business. In the U.S., analysts and fans alike are speculating on the possible effects of an impending recession. And while domestic parks have typically been the focus of that concern, the conversation is shifting—prompted by a social media post that’s hard to ignore.
Credit: Hong Kong Disneyland
Since its debut in 2005, Hong Kong Disneyland has stood apart from its larger, busier cousins. With only one park and a smaller resort footprint, it was always designed to serve a more modest guest base. But even by those standards, the latest photos have guests wondering whether something bigger is going on.
Social Media Post Spotlights Empty Disney Park
X, formerly known as Twitter, user @MeganNyvold visited Hong Kong Disneyland recently and shared photos showing wide-open walkways and an empty roller coaster ride.
“WHY AM I THE ONLY ONE IN DISNEYLAND IS THERE A RECESSION???” she wrote in a now-viral post.
WHY AM I THE ONLY ONE IN DISNEYLAND IS THERE A RECESSION??? pic.twitter.com/1Wb55JvOky
— Megan Nyvold (@MeganNyvold) April 19, 2025
After some users questioned whether her photos were taken during early park hours, when crowds are typically light, she added additional images captured at night. The park still looked unusually quiet.
Nyvold noted that the park did get slightly busier later in the day but said wait times rarely exceeded 10 minutes. She added that character meet-and-greets were far more popular than the rides themselves—a trend familiar to longtime guests of the resort.
Hong Kong Disneyland’s Long Road to Recovery
The images may be striking, but Hong Kong Disneyland’s attendance challenges are not new. According to Statista, it was the second-least visited Disney park in 2023, ahead of only Walt Disney Studios Park in Paris. The resort has often struggled to compete with the scale and spectacle of parks like Shanghai Disneyland or Tokyo DisneySea.
Credit: Disney
Those attendance struggles have historically translated into financial difficulty. For years, the resort operated at a loss, only recently turning a profit in early 2025—the first in nearly a decade. The milestone followed extended closures during the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact of widespread political protests in Hong Kong starting in 2019.
Still, the park has made significant investments in its future. It replaced its replica Sleeping Beauty Castle with the Castle of Magical Dreams, introduced World of Frozen—the first of its kind—and began reimagining Tomorrowland as Stark Expo, a Marvel-themed land.
That momentum is continuing into 2025, as the park gears up to celebrate its 20th anniversary. In June, it will launch The Most Magical Party of All, featuring a revamped nighttime show (Momentous: Party in the Night Sky), the Friendtastic! Parade, and Disney Friends Live: Party at the Castle.
Credit: Hong Kong Disneyland
Plans are also in place for a Spider-Man-themed drop tower attraction, set to further expand the Marvel area.
What’s the emptiest you’ve ever seen a Disney park?
