Shanghai Disney resort set to open June 16

1/8

SHANGHAI, CHINA - Aerial view of Shanghai Disney Resort on July 15, 2015 in Shanghai, China. As the first Disney resort in China mainland, Shanghai Disney Resort includes the Magic Kingdom-style theme park, two themed hotels with a total of 1,220 rooms, a retail, dining and entertainment complex featuring a Broadway-style theater, as well as an outdoor recreational area. The Resort will open officially in 2016.

(ChinaFotoPress / ChinaFotoPress via Getty Images)

2/8

(ChinaFotoPress / ChinaFotoPress via Getty Images)

3/8

SHANGHAI, CHINA - Robert A. Iger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company, attends the unveilling ceremony of six themed parks of Shanghai Disney Resort at Shanghai Expo Center on July 15, 2015 in Shanghai, China. As the first Disney resort in China mainland, Shanghai Disney Resort includes the Magic Kingdom-style theme park, two themed hotels with a total of 1,220 rooms, a retail, dining and entertainment complex featuring a Broadway-style theater, as well as an outdoor recreational area. The Resort will open officially in 2016.

(ChinaFotoPress / ChinaFotoPress via Getty Images)

4/8

SHANGHAI, CHINA - Two people dressed as Mickey Mouses perform on the stage during the unveilling ceremony of six themed parks of Shanghai Disney Resort at Shanghai Expo Center on July 15, 2015 in Shanghai, China. As the first Disney resort in China mainland, Shanghai Disney Resort includes the Magic Kingdom-style theme park, two themed hotels with a total of 1,220 rooms, a retail, dining and entertainment complex featuring a Broadway-style theater, as well as an outdoor recreational area. The Resort will open officially in 2016.

(ChinaFotoPress / Getty Images)

5/8

(ChinaFotoPress / Getty Images)

6/8

Walt Disney Company chairman and CEO Bob Iger speaks about the new Shanghai Disney Resort during a press event in Shanghai on July 15, 2015. US entertainment giant Disney gave the first detailed preview to the media for its planned theme park in Shanghai, promising Chinese features and new attractions unlike its five other resorts, executives said.

(JOHANNES EISELE / AFP/Getty Images)

7/8

Walt Disney Company chairman and CEO Bob Iger speaks in front of a model of the new Shanghai Disney Resort during a press event in Shanghai on July 15, 2015. US entertainment giant Disney gave the first detailed preview to the media for its planned theme park in Shanghai, promising Chinese features and new attractions unlike its five other resorts, executives said. AFP PHOTO / JOHANNES EISELE (Photo credit should read JOHANNES EISELE/AFP/Getty Images) (JOHANNES EISELE / AFP/Getty Images)

8/8

(ChinaFotoPress / Getty Images)

By Hugo MartínStaff Writer

Jan. 12, 2016 3:35 PM PT

The next big Walt Disney Co. theme park expansion -- the Shanghai Disney Resort -- now has a grand-opening date: June 16.

The only Disney theme park on mainland China had originally been scheduled to open in December 2015, but was delayed because Disney and its Chinese partner, the Shanghai Shendi Group, invested an additional $800 million to add more attractions.

When it opens, the $5.5-billion Shanghai resort will be Disney’s second-largest theme park, behind only its resort in Orlando, Fla.

See more of our top stories on Facebook >>

“When it comes in June, Shanghai Disney resort will be a one-of-a-kind, world-class destination that is authentically Disney and distinctly Chinese,” Disney Chairman and Chief Executive Robert Iger said in a statement.

The resort will include the Shanghai Disneyland park with six themed lands: Adventure Isle, Gardens of Imagination, Mickey Avenue, Tomorrowland, Treasure Cove and Fantasyland. The park will ring the Enchanted Storybook Castle. The resort will also feature two hotels, a shopping district and 99 acres of gardens, lakes and parkland.

When the boost in spending was announced in 2014, the Chinese economy was booming and the market for leisure activities among the Chinese middle class was huge.

In recent months, however, the Chinese economy has started to cool. Disney officials have previously said that they are confident that the country’s short-term economic problems will not hurt the long-term success of the resort.

To read more about travel, tourism and the airline industry, follow Hugo Martin on Twitter at @hugomartin.

ALSO

First glimpse of Disneyland riverfront post-Star Wars Land

Shanghai Disneyland hotels to combine Chinese culture and Disney characters

Disneyland offers Southern Californians discounts on multi-day passes starting at $149