Dive Brief:
- The Walt Disney Co. has announced plans to expand its theme parks including the largest-ever addition at Orlando, Florida’s Magic Kingdom.
- Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro detailed the new additions planned for the next decade to both Walt Disney World in Orlando and Disneyland in Anaheim, California, at the D23 Expo Aug. 10 in Anaheim, California.
- In June, the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District provided initial approval for Disney to build $17 billion more worth of parks across 17,000 acres of land owned by the company over a 15-year period.
Dive Insight:
Plans call for new and refurbished “lands” at many of the company’s theme parks.
At Magic Kingdom in Orlando, Imagineers will craft a land based on Disney’s most infamous villains, according to the release. Though details are largely under wraps, the new land will feature two new attractions in addition to dining and shopping.
In the same park, Disney will reimagine sections of Frontierland to a wilderness-inspired area based on the “Cars” movies. It will feature two new attractions: one off-road rally race and a family-friendly attraction for younger racers.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Orlando will also be getting a new land, Tropical Americas, set to open in 2027. Guests will enter through Pueblo Esperanza, a fictional village in a rainforest setting.
On the outskirts of the town, an attraction based on fictional movie hero Indiana Jones will take park goers into a Mayan temple. The land will also feature a new ride-through attraction inspired by the movie “Encanto.”
Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando, which currently houses rides from movies like “Toy Story” and “Star Wars,” will add monsters to the mix. The “Monsters, Inc.” franchise will get its own land, to include a tour of the Laugh Factory and Disney’s first-ever suspended coaster.
On the West Coast, Disneyland’s Avengers Campus, part of the Disney California Adventure land, which features characters, rides and attractions from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, will double its current size, Disney announced, adding two new Marvel-themed attractions.
At that same land, Disney will also add an attraction based off of the “Avatar” films.
“Disney Experiences is embarking on an accelerated path of ambitious growth and innovation,” D’Amaro said. “Work is well under way on all of the new projects we announced, and fans will start to see them come to life in the near future.”
