Chinese officials release etiquette guide for visiting Shanghai Disneyland

Shanghai's municipal government has released an etiquette guide to visiting Shanghai Disneyland ahead of its June opening, following episodes of boorish behavior exhibited by tourists earlier this month.

The six-point guideline, as reported by Xinhua news agency, appeals to people's common sense and sounds straightforward enough: Visitors are asked to refrain from littering, being too rowdy, vandalizing, cutting the line, trampling on flower beds, and general “uncouth behavior” such as lying down on the grounds and defecating in public.

But the release of an etiquette guide calling for civility became necessary after thousands of visitors descended outside the gates to get a sneak peek at the $5.5 billion park and left a trail of garbage in their wake.

Along with a soft launch for employees and family members, Disney opened the private metro line to the park in recent weeks, which has been drawing thousands of curious visitors.

Photos posted to the Chinese social media site Weibo show bags of trash left on the park grounds, trampled flower beds in spite of signs asking visitors to stay off the gardens, vandalized lampposts, and even a little girl defecating in the grass.

Shanghai Disneyland is Disney's fourth theme park outside the US, after Paris, Tokyo and Hong Kong, and features a spate of highly anticipated attractions including a “TRON” thrill ride, a “Pirates of the Caribbean” zone, and the Enchanted Storybook Castle, the biggest Disney castle in the world.

A 420-room Disneyland Hotel is set to open beside the park, along with a “Toy Story”-themed property.

Shanghai Disneyland opens June 16.