“Disneyland will never be finished,” Walt Disney once said. “It will continue to grow as long as there is imagination in the world.”
And with Disneyland celebrating its 70th anniversary in 2025, there’s a lot of new growth coming – both at the original Disney park and its 53-year-old counterpart in Florida.
So what’s next at Disneyland and Walt Disney World? A ton of new rides and experiences, according to the Horizons Disney Experiences Showcase, part of Disney’s D23 Expo last weekend, and information Disney has released since then. From new rides to new lands to huge park expansions, here’s everything that’s been announced for Disney Parks and the Disney Cruise Line.
Villains Land at the Magic Kingdom
Villains Land, which celebrates all the classic villains from the Disney films, is coming to the Magic Kingdom at Disney World in Florida and it will be “dark and thorny”.
Villains Land was teased two years ago during D23 and is now confirmed. It will be located on the other side of Big Thunder Mountain — that is, on the edge of the current Magic Kingdom map — said Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney Experiences, and will extend to the Haunted Mansion.
Villains Land will feature two major attractions, as well as restaurants and shopping, “on an incredibly crazy, massive scale.” The site is already being built, but there is no information yet on when it will open.
A spooky trailer for the chaotic land on Instagram hints at elements in the land representing Maleficent, Dr. Facilier, Ursula, Gaston, Yzma, the Queen of Hearts, Hades, the Evil Queen, Lady Tremaine, Captain Hook, Jafar, Kaa, Madam Mim, Cruella, Scar, King Magnifico, and Mother Gothel.
Rivers of America is being redesigned for Pixar’s Cars
The new rally racing vehicle from Cars.
The Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island in the Magic Kingdom will be repurposed to create a new area themed after Pixar’s Cars films. This expansion of Frontierland, which currently includes attractions Tiana’s Bayou Adventure and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, will give it a counterpart to Route 66.
“To make room for this all-new area, the Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island will be transformed into vast and rugged landscapes for a rally race featuring some of the world’s most famous racers,” Disney said in a blog post on Monday.
The rally racing ride takes you through mountains, geysers and over trails, Disney said, adding that there will also be a second Cars-themed attraction. Cars Land, which was added to Disney’s California Adventure in 2012, remains popular in the west, so it was only a matter of time before it was added in the east, too. Work is scheduled to begin next year.
Two more Avengers rides at Disneyland
The Avengers Infinity Defense ride.
Disney’s California Adventure, which already hosts the Spider-Man Web Slingers and Guardians of the Galaxy attractions in the Avengers Campus area of the park, will get two more Marvel attractions.
Avengers Campus will double in size to make room for Avengers Infinity Defense – a ride with King Thanos where you travel across the multiverse between Asgard, Wakanda and New York City to fight him – and Stark Flight Lab, where you sit in a two-person pod and fly with Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man.
Construction of the Avengers Campus extensions will begin in 2025.
Monsters Inc. Land at Hollywood Studios
Disney’s first suspended roller coaster takes you on a ride through the Monsters Inc. factory.
Disney World is getting another new addition to its Hollywood Studios theme park: a Monsters Inc. themed area,
The land, unveiled alongside Mike Wazowski himself and Billy Crystal, lets you walk through Monstropolis from the Pixar films. A new attraction also takes you through Monsters Inc.’s Laugh Factory aboard one of the doors to the human world – aka the floating rollercoaster.
“When I first saw Monsters Inc., I really wanted to ride on one of those doors like Mike and Sulley,” D’Amaro said Saturday. “You go to the factory and experience the first suspended roller coaster ever in a Disney park. Remember the movie where those claws grab the doors and lift them up in the air to take them away? We do that too. And you get to ride along.”
Work on the Monsters Inc. site will begin in 2025.
Check this out: Disney Parks Announcements at D23
Coco Ride at California Adventure
Concept drawing for the new Coco ride.
Disney’s California Adventure is not only getting more Avengers, but also more Pixar.
A Coco attraction is slated to be built in a yet-to-be-announced area of the park, but it sounds like it will be a dark ride like Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean, replete with audio-animatronics.
“The attraction will be filled with characters – and music! – that you know and love from the popular film as you join Miguel on a journey to the Land of the Dead,” Disney says.
Work on the Coco ride will begin in 2026, so it is still a distant dream.
Avatar is coming to California
An aerial view of the Avatar-themed area under construction at the Disneyland Resort.
The world of Pandora will expand from Disney World’s Animal Kingdom in Orlando to California Adventure in Anaheim. The design of the California area will be inspired by the second Avatar film, The Way of Water, as well as the upcoming Avatar sequels.
It will likely be part of the massive Disneyland expansion that extends the boundaries beyond Downtown Disney and nearby parking lots. While Disney hasn’t commented on details and dates, the Avatar experience will be “dynamic, intense and emotional,” with a dark boat ride similar to the Pirates of the Caribbean films that will take guests “all the way to the vast seas of Pandora.”
Tropical America in Animal Kingdom
The Tropical Americas area will replace DinoLand USA and feature an Encanto ride, an Indiana Jones ride and a carousel.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World is replacing its DinoLand USA area with Tropical Americas. While this was previously announced, Disney confirmed a few more details this weekend: Pueblo Esperanza will feel like a real village and will feature a giant fast food restaurant, a fountain and a carousel.
Tropical Americas also features a new Indiana Jones ride through a Mayan temple and an Encanto-themed attraction where you can explore Antonio’s rainforest room in the Casita.
Construction will begin this fall and the opening is planned for 2027.
Four more ships from Disney Cruise Line
Yes, four. In addition to the Disney Wish, which was launched two years ago, the Disney Treasure, which will set sail in December this year, and the Disney Destiny, which is scheduled to set sail next year, Disney is expanding its range of ocean voyages with four more cruise ships.
The ship names and destinations have yet to be announced, but they will set sail between 2027 and 2031.
Everything else announced for Disney World and Disneyland
Mando and Grogu join in the Millennium Falcon fun.
Disneyland’s Tiana’s Bayou Adventure will open on November 15, with Critter Country being renamed “Bayou Country.” It will continue to feature the many adventures of Winnie the Pooh and Davy Crockett’s Explorer Canoes, as well as Pooh Corner and “the reimagined Hungry Bear Barbecue Jamboree.” Two merchandise stores called Ray’s Berets and Louis’ Critter Club will also open.
Disneyland and Hollywood Studios will add Mandalorian and Grogu missions to the Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run attraction in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.
Epcot will open a “reimagined test track” (still sponsored by Chevrolet) in 2025 that will celebrate “the past, present and future of automation.”
Animal Kingdom will replace its old show “It’s Tough to be a Bug” in the Tree of Life with a Zootopia-themed show. “Zootopia: Better Zoogether” features Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde as they guide you through different areas of the city. The show will open next winter.
Magic Kingdom and Epcot are getting two new lounges: a Pirates Lounge and a Spaceship Earth Lounge. They will open in 2025.
The Magic Kingdom will also get a new night parade in 2025.
Disneyland will receive the first audio-animatronics of Walt Disney himself as part of a new show “Walt Disney – A Magical Life” at the Main Street Opera House in 2025.
