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Rumours of Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion making their way to Hong Kong Disneyland have been about since the opening of the park. Could there be pirates in the park by 2010? Will there be a Haunted Hong Hong? There will be if one 'insider' rumour is to be believed.

 

A leading Disney commentator has claimed that Hong Kong Disneyland will see a version of the classic Pirates of the Caribbean attraction by 2010.

In his discussion on the Pirates of the Caribbean updates, columnist Al Lutz wrote on MiceAge that in light of the aborted second update to the American parks for 2007, Walt Disney Imagineering has instead "been putting the finishing touches on the plans for the massive new Pirates of the Caribbean ride planned for Hong Kong Disneyland, and some nifty new effects and additions have recently been worked up". While Lutz doesn't comment further on what these new additions might be, he does speak of it being the most influence by the billion-dollar Pirates of the Caribbean film franchise. It is, after all, the first version of the ride to be built from scratch since the films opened.

The article elaborates further on the designs so far:

The queue will take waiting passengers quite literally through the streets and back alleys of Port Royal, similar to the large scale of the Indiana Jones Adventure queue. The ten minute-plus ride will then use all of the snazzy effects of the Disneyland version, including a Blue Bayou restaurant inside, but also add new effects like real fire instead of crinkling plastic and new show scenes that are taken directly from the movies.

The area surrounding the big ride building will be themed as the over the top Caribbean seaport seen in the films (stills above), and there will also be a handful of C and D Ticket rides built in the area that are also themed to pirates. Many of these smaller Hong Kong pirate attractions are also being considered as possibilities for a second phase of Tom Sawyer Island construction back in Anaheim. A semi-circular lagoon will front this huge expansion area, and it will be used for the Hong Kong version of Fantasmic! themed to... you guessed it, pirates! Additional stores and restaurants (what else?) will fill in the nooks and crannies of this new park area.

Ultimately, this new area will also be joined by the Haunted Mansion, says Lutz, very similiar to the stately white home seen in Anaheim.

Where is all this going to happen? Lutz reckons it will be beyond the berm in Adventureland, which seems to be consistent with the huge areas of land being cleared behind that area. We have a gallery of the construction here.

While some of this may seem like educated guess-work, and indeed it is the kind of speculation that we like to avoid here at The Source, the timetable and schedule - in combination with the existing construction in the park - would seem to indicate that this is definitely a possibility.

As always, we'll keep you posted.

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