Travel Beat Special: 2024 D23 Expo News for Disney World
Hey y’all, we know you are eagerly awaiting all the TURBOCHARGED announcements from D23 about upcoming attractions and features at Disney World. Well, here they are in a special edition of Travel Beat, and after this I’m going to bed because two in the morning is LATE. Enjoy!
- Starlight Parade Announced for Magic Kingdom (2025)
- Tropical Americas Updates at Animal Kingdom (2027+)
- Two New Bars at Magic Kingdom and EPCOT (2025)
- Test Track Reopening in 2025
- Monsters Inc. Land Coming to Hollywood Studios
- Cars Attractions Coming to Frontierland at Magic Kingdom
- New Mission for Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run (2026)
- Villains Land Announced for Magic Kingdom
Disney emphasized several times that none of these are “blue sky” announcements. They are all under active development with construction or reimagining already underway or scheduled to start soon.
Starlight Parade Announced for Magic Kingdom (2025)
It’s been over five years since you could plan to stake out a great spot and watch the parade and fireworks at Magic Kingdom, but the drought is over. In summer 2025, the Starlight Parade will begin its run. The Blue Fairy will bring your favorite characters to life including characters from Peter Pan, Encanto, Frozen, and more.
Tropical Americas Updates at Animal Kingdom (2027+)
We’ve already heard that Tropical Americas is coming to replace Dinoland at Animal Kingdom, with permits already drawn for work that was confirmed to begin later this year. Look for the land to create a new space, “Pueblo Esperanza” that brings a village feel in the same way that Harambe defines Africa. Pueblo Esperanza will feature headliner attractions, a carousel populated by animals from Disney stories, a large Quick Service restaurant, and a space that invites visitors to linger around a large fountain in the center. You may even be able to catch some of the villagers who like to gather there and tell stories.
The new space will be 11 acres, pretty much the whole footprint of the existing Dinoland USA, and construction will be done in phases. The headliners will be themed to Encanto and Indiana Jones. Disney confirmed that the work will be done in phases and hinted that fans will be able to enjoy a last ride on DINOSAUR for a bit longer. We expect this means the plaza, Encanto, and carousel will be completed first with Indy replacing DINOSAUR as one of the last pieces to fall into place.
Just outside of Tropical Americas, the new Zootopia show that’s replacing Its Tough to be a Bug will debut sooner than everything in Pueblo Esperanza, opening in winter 2025.
Encanto-themed Attraction
One of the two headliner attractions will be themed to Encanto. Guests will enter the Casita but they may not recognize it as Antonio has just received his special gift of animal communication and his room has transformed into a rainforest that you can explore with him.
Indiana Jones-themed attraction
The big question about the Indy attraction is whether it would be a clone of the one in Disneyland or elsewhere, and the answer is no! According to Disney the ride will be an all-new experience covering Indy’s quest to find a mythical creature deep inside a newly discovered (and perfectly preserved) Maya temple.
Two New Bars at Magic Kingdom and EPCOT (2025)
OK, so Disney had previously floated a Pirates-themed bar in the Magic Kingdom. But a Spaceship Earth-themed bar in EPCOT? We did not see that coming, but we are there for it! Both venues will open sometime in 2025.
At the Magic Kingdom, the previously announced Tavern themed to Pirates of the Caribbean will offer a “welcoming haven for all pirate-kind, big and small, and everyone in between”. (Translation: your kids are welcome.) Bandits and buccaneers can enjoy a selection of grogs and grub, raise a toast, and speak like a pirate — Ar! The precise location hasn’t been announced, but one may presume it will be sort of near to the ride.
OK, OK, to be technically correct, Disney said “Spaceship Earth-inspired” and not “Spaceship Earth-themed” lounge. The inspiration is the “stories, shapes, and enduring legacy of this timeless icon”. We just hope it’s easier to get into than the Space 220 Lounge. No precise location has yet been announced, but again, one hopes it would be somewhere proximate to the ride.
Test Track Reopening in 2025
We did not even get any new concept art with the straightforward announcement that the re-imagined Test Track would reopen in 2025. We didn’t really get any new and interesting detailed details either. “The queue will feature six distinct exhibits … celebrating the vehicles and the people behind the vehicles”. We’ll enjoy a “joy ride through scenes focusing on onboard technology … followed by a scenic outdoor route reminding us all of the joys of driving, taking in the world around us, and spending quality time with friends and family.” Does this mean we’ll be treated to a manifesto about why there shouldn’t be overhead DVD players in minivans? Good thing we only have to wait a year to find out.
Monsters Inc. Land Coming to Hollywood Studios
Ladies, gents, monsters of all sizes, the Door Coaster has arrived! You’ll ride on the first suspended coaster in any Disney park, where you can be hoisted in the air and whisked away just like the claws and doors in the movie.
Although there have been rumors that Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster would be re-themed, Disney didn’t confirm whether this will be a new coaster or a re-imagining of the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster space. But it will be part of a new land themed to Monsters Inc. Work on the project is scheduled to begin next year.
We’d hate to see all of Sunset Boulevard go away, but it wouldn’t need to. Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy is already at the very end of Sunset Boulevard, past Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster. If this space were re-imagined into the new Monsters Inc. land, a coaster re-theme could be seamlessly incorporated without changing the character of the street as a whole.
The only “things that make you go hmm” problem with that would be what to do with the popular Lightning McQueen attractions. If Disney hadn’t used the world “new” to describe the attractions coming to the Magic Kingdom (see below), I’d be seriously thinking they’re just going to move it there.
Cars Attractions Coming to Frontierland at Magic Kingdom
Over in the Magic Kingdom, there was lots of speculation that some Tiana-adjacent rethemes would be announced, in keeping with the opening of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. Instead, we heard that the land will be receiving two new Cars-themed attractions. One will run you across wild terrain as you climb mountain trails and dodge geysers on a rally race. The second will be a less active attraction geared towards smaller races that’s touted as fun for the whole family. Work on the space in Frontierland will begin in 2025.
UPDATE 8/12/2024: Disney has now released additional information to indicate that these attractions will be going into the space currently occupied by Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island.
New Mission for Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run (2026)
ICYMI: a Mandalorian and Grogu movie was announced at the media panel on Friday night. In a partner announcement at the parks panel, a new Mandalorian and Grogu mission was announced for Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run. The new mission will touch down in the attraction at the same time as the movie is released in theaters, currently slated as 2026.
Villains Land Announced for Magic Kingdom
Are you a love-to-love ’em or a love-to-hate ’em when it comes to Disney Villains? No matter which way your preference leans, Disney is betting that you will love the upcoming Villains Land expansion at Magic Kingdom. The land will hold two new attractions plus dining and shopping, and that’s about all the specifics we got, including no mention of a specific timeline although construction has already started. We’re hoping for more details on that soon, and we feel confident that the attractions will be on a grander (or at least more modern) scale than Snow White’s Scary Adventures.
UPDATE 8/12/2024: Disney has now indicated that Villains Land will be placed “Beyond Big Thunder Mountain”; we anticipate that with the removal of Rivers to America and Tom Sawyer Island this will allow Haunted Mansion to serve as the gateway to the new Villains area.
Which of these announcements is making your ears perk up? What do you guess will fill in some of the blanks in the news? Let us know in the comments!
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I feel I have a terrible timing with my 2026 travel. I might just as well wait at least until 2027 – at least Animal Kingdom should be done by then.
I was planning a 2026 trip to WDW but it seems my timing is awful. Every park except Epcot will have major work going on.
I went only once to WDW 15 years ago and was waiting to take my son there but I feel I should just wait until 2027-2028 if I don’t want to visit Fence World
Hi Anne – yes, it does feel as though there will be walls everywhere. I find the big impact of walls is how much they disrupt the traffic flow (narrowing walkways, needing to go around them, etc.) I’m hoping the impact won’t be too bad but it does seem like 2027 should be past at least some of it.
They’re getting rid of Rivers of America and the beloved sternwheeler ship for that stupid Cars. Also Tom Sawyer’s Island. IP is everything now at WDW and we hate it. Just another reason, on top of pricing for the rich and the ever-changing ride-entry fiasco, we won’t be back.
Had not considered that RnRC would be rethemed as part of Monsters, Inc. land. The concept art makes it look like a whole new building, but it could just be a facade (or misleading concept art). Kind of stinks if this is the case because it would not be adding ride capacity to a park that desperately needs it.
Agreed, and to be clear it would be more of a “reimagine” than just a “retheme” as the whole coaster mechanism would change. But it’s also an idea that’s been floating around the community for a while as a “replacement” for the “problematic” Aerosmith, so … ?? who knows ??
Also agreed that HS needs more ride capacity. Realistically, it feels like Disney is always trying to even out the crowds between the parks, and the right way to do it is … build more capacity at the other parks to make them more “even” competition for attention.
Sounds exciting! We were hoping Test Track would be open for our December trip. We are planning Universal for 2025 and likely won’t be back to WDW until 2026.
You never know, but it does seem unlikely at this point.
Excited for the new attractions, still puzzled why WoL and Stitch remain sitting empty.