For decades in succession, it has been the world’s home away from home. You could be anyone and a resident of any part of the globe of any age but once you set foot here, this place compels you to revisit your childhood once again. It is true when they say, there’s no place on earth quite like Disneyland.
The world’s most admired and loved amusement park has hosted hundreds of thousands of visitors from all around the world with show-stopping fun and adventure at Anaheim in California and Orlando in Florida. But how possibly could have Disneyland remained an all exclusive American entitlement with there being a China always rivalling the United States in myriad spheres of competition- be it modern science, technology or corporate enterprise.
Seeking to capitalise on a visible middle-class boom in China, leading realtors Wanda Group are seeking to rival US’ Disneyland and have built a near perfect clone to Disney at the eastern city of Nanchang in the Jiangxi Province. China’s imposing $5.5 billion worth amusement park is at present the epitome of public attraction where leisure and recreation are concerned.
In the face of encroaching foreign influences in China in the 21st century, the whooping entertainment complex built by the revered Wanda group reinstates China’s daring to spread its tentacles across a wide gamut of offerings, this being the turn of popular culture and recreation. Wanda’s massive site includes an $800 million China-themed park replete with twirling ‘porcelain tea cup rides’, bamboo forests, an in-door shopping mall and, a swarm of hotels and restaurants.
The growth and widespread affection for Disney is quite evident in China, coupled with the combined might of Hollywood’s superhero movie franchises garnering tens of thousands of cinema-going fans. So in these times, it was but pertinent for a domestic player to step up the game and raise the pedestal in the leisure industry. Amidst these times of massive foreign competition, the property group’s heavy investment toward film and cinema business amplifies its nationalistic drive to fend off the burgeoning impact of foreign players in China.
That said, it is believed that Disney’s presence in China stands thwarted with the mega realty group Wanda offering more competitive pricing for its own unique version of the Disneyland.