Shanghai Disneyland Packing List: What to Bring and What's Banned

🛂 Passport

At Shanghai Disneyland, admission is issued with your passport, not a QR code. After bag check you reach the ticket check, where you show your passport and they print you a physical ticket. Make sure you bring your passport to the park, and keep it somewhere easy to reach before you enter.

Note: if you bought a 2-day ticket, you show your passport again on the second day, but no new ticket is printed – you just go straight in. And if you lose your ticket from the first day, you can still re-enter with your passport.

📱 Translation app

In China, most people speak only their native language (Chinese), and even basic English often didn’t get through. I assumed English would work fine at Disney since it’s a tourist destination, but most of the Cast Members had a hard time communicating in English.

Even simple questions or explaining a situation often required Chinese, so I strongly recommend having an app that can translate into Chinese, such as Papago (a popular Korean translation app).

The Papago and Alipay apps

💳 Alipay

Alipay is accepted across China, and inside Shanghai Disneyland I could pay with Alipay at both restaurants and merchandise shops. I recommend installing the Alipay app and registering your card before you leave home. Setting it up on the spot can be slow and a hassle.

🍫 Snacks

I heard there are restrictions on strong-smelling food like cup noodles, but simple snacks were allowed. I brought water along with energy bars, Choco Pies, gummies, chocolate and chips, and snacked in line to keep my energy up. With waits as long as they are at this park, snacks really helped.

🧘‍♀️ Folding hiking seat cushion

While waiting for parades or fireworks, I often wanted to sit down, even just for a bit. Rather than a picnic mat, a light, compact single-person hiking seat cushion was really handy. It slipped right into my bag, so it was no burden to carry.

🎀 Ear headbands or Zootopia merch

Disney ear headbands are much cheaper if you buy them ahead of time on AliExpress. And since Shanghai Disneyland has a dedicated Zootopia land, I also recommend picking up some Zootopia merch beforehand from a store like Miniso. The quality may be a little lower than what’s sold in the park, but it’s plenty to save money and get into the spirit. Everyone was wearing something, so I think I’d have felt a bit left out without one.

Judy and Nick plushies I bought at Miniso

🧣 Scarf, gloves and hand warmers

Shanghai is further south than Seoul, but theme parks in winter are very cold. I visited during the Christmas season and had to battle the cold all day, from morning until the late-night fireworks. If you’re visiting in winter, I recommend packing cold-weather gear like a scarf, gloves and hand warmers.

🚫 Things you must not bring

Disneyland in China is very strict about tripods and selfie sticks. Even my Volta (a GoPro charging grip with a built-in tripod) was refused entry because it has a tripod function.

Even the GoPro Volta tripod grip wasn’t allowed 😢

If you get caught, you have to follow a Cast Member to the lockers outside the park and store the item there, which costs a lot of time if you’re planning to rope drop. Also, because I was staying at a hotel outside the Disney resort, I had to pay 10 yuan for one day of storage for the banned item.

Assume that anything with legs that fold out like a tripod is not allowed, and just don’t bring it at all.

I hope my blog helps make your trip a little more magical ✨ If you have any questions, feel free to reach out through the contact page. Thanks for reading!