Villains Abound
Recent D23 events and Disney releases have all talked about a “Blue Sky” project coined “Beyond Big Thunder Mountain.” The highlight of the D23 announcements was that this is not only no longer a “Blue Sky.” Crews are actively turning dirt according to Josh D’Amaro, Chairman of Disney Experience. A land themed around and immersed in Disney’s Villains is currently under development. We are so excited to hear this announcement and cannot wait to see how it comes together.
This will have grand scale storytelling and feature two brand new attractions, themed dining, shopping areas, and other attractions dedicated to Disney villains. This new land will quite literally be beyond Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. There has been no commitment to the opening date of Villains Land.
Cars Coming to Magic Kingdom
A surprise announcement was made that Lighting McQueen and Tow Mater are heading to Walt Disney World by way of Magic Kingdom. This land will feature two new attractions. One will be a thrilling off-road rally and the other will be a family friendly ride. These attractions will get you out of Radiator Springs and into the great wilderness.
This will be in a rethemed Frontierland in Magic Kingdom. The location announcement is a controversial one to some people. Tom Sawyer Island, the Rivers of American, and the Liberty Square Riverboat will all be eliminated, and the land reimagined to Cars themed land. Construction is to start in Early 2025 and there has been no opening date announced for this new land.
Dino-Land USA Reimagination in Animal Kingdom
It was announced during 2023 Destination D23 that we would be saying farewell to the midway of Dino-Land USA at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. During the D23 announcements in 2024, we got many more details on this reimagination.
The Tropical Americas area of the park will be eleven acres in size. The theme will be focused on a fictional rainforest village called Puebla Esperanza. There will be a few new attractions and one intensively reimagined ride in this area.
DINOSAUR ride will be converted to an Indiana Jones themed ride focused on a Mayan temple and will be an all new ride. This will not simply be a copy of the Disneyland ride. A new Encanto themed ride will take guests through Casa Madrigal shortly after Antonio learns he can speak to animals as his gift. We like the nod to Animal Kingdom with the speaking to animals.
A hacienda will be an exceptionally large quick-service restaurant. We are assuming this is going to be in place of Restaurantosaurus. This Tropical Americas land will also feature a hand carved carousel with various animals, carved by a local craftsman. Work on this reimagination is set to begin Fall of 2024 and anticipated opening in 2027.
Monsters Inc area in Hollywood Studios
This announcement blindsided many fans of Walt Disney World as there have not been many rumors about Monster Inc coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. There has not been an official announcement as to exact location within the park. Some rumors have been replacing Muppet-Vision 3d, replacing Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, or the vacant land behind Commissary Lane between Grand Ave and Toy Storyland.
This land will feature Walt Disney World’s first suspended roller coaster themed around the hanging doors in the factory. We are excited to have a Monsters Inc area in a park, but question of Hollywood Studios will be even more heavy on high demand rides. This park already has some of the fiercest queues in theme parks worldwide. Construction will begin in 2025 and there is no forecasted opening date announced.
Disneyland
There were some West Coast D23 announcements this year as well. Two new E-Ticket attractions are coming to Avenger’s Campus based on Marvel Cinematic Universe. Avengers Campus will be roughly doubling in area along with these new rides.
The movie franchise Avatar will be getting its own land in California. This land will be based on Avatar: Way of Water and future movies from the franchise. This will not be a cookie cutter of Pandora at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. It will be interesting to see how the Imagineers incorporate content from unreleased movies without spoilers. This has been a long wished for announcement and cannot wait to see how over the top the land is upon completion.
A Coco attraction is also coming in 2026. This will be a trip through the land of the dead in a dark ride. This ride will be inspired by the classics of The Haunted Mansions and Pirates of the Caribbean rides. There are so many possibilities for this ride, and it will surely be visually spectacular based on content from the movie.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is set to open November 15th, 2025. Walt Disney – A Magical Life show will open at the Main Street Opera House and will cycle with the current show Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. Disneyland Resort is set to host a 70th Anniversary celebration in 2025.
Other Park News
D23 announcements did not stop with these marquee announcements. There were plenty of other exciting releases during the D23 convention. The blue fairy from Pinocchio will host a new nighttime parade. Disney Starlight in Magic Kingdom will be debuting in Summer of 2025 and will carry some tradition of the Main Street Electrical Parade of years gone by.
Pirates of the Caribbean themed tavern will be opening in 2025, believed this will be in the former Tortuga Tavern in Adventureland. Also in 2025, a winter opening is planned for Zootopia: Better Together show taking place in Animal Kingdom’s Tree of Life theater replacing It’s Tough to Be a Bug.
A new lounge will be opening in EPOCT themed on Spaceship Earth. This park will also see the reimagined third version of Test Track opening in 2025. This reimagination will feature much inspiration from the former World of Motion that was a huge EPCOT attraction in its former life.
The D23 announcements did not stop domestically nor on land alone. Disney Cruise Line announced that by 2031 its fleet will be thirteen ships deep in vessels. Disney Adventureland in Paris will be getting a flume attraction themed as a ride through based on The Lion King. A new high-speed thrill coaster inspired by Spiderman will sling guests around at Shanghai Disney Resort while another Spiderman attraction is set to open at Hong Kong Disneyland.
Closing
D23 announcements were impressive this year. For the last couple of years, D23 announcements have been lackluster and underwhelming. Disney was leading up to announcements but being very vague, they nearly completely removed the fog of vagueness and these D23 announcements blew us away here at Theme Park Vacations.
Imagineers are sure to impress with the theming of this long anticipated expansion. The Cars and Monsters Inc lands stunned us as we did not see these coming. We cannot even remember Disney alluding to these in previous announcements. The Tropical Americas area was overdue and while we are sad so see Dino Land USA go away, we cannot wait to see what Tropical Americas brings to Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
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