The park is divided into "lands" (themed areas) and well-concealed backstage areas. On entering a land, a guest is completely immersed in a themed environment and is unable to see or hear any other realm. The idea behind this was to develop theatrical "stages" with seamless passages from one land to the next. The public areas occupy approximately 27.4 hectares (68 acres). When the park initially opened, it consisted of only four classic themed areas:
Main Street, U.S.A., designed to resemble an early 20th-century Midwest town;
Adventureland, featuring jungle-themed adventures;
Fantasyland, bringing to life characters and places from Disney's movies for children;
Tomorrowland, an optimistic vision of the future.
On 30 June 2009, Donald Tsang, the then Chief Executive of Hong Kong, announced that the expansion of Hong Kong Disneyland had been approved by the Executive Council. The park received three new themed lands — Grizzly Gulch, Mystic Point and Toy Story Land — all located outside the Disneyland Railroad track, south of the current area.