D23 Announcements and Updates!

I was planning on starting my blog with an introduction to who I am, why I am  starting a travel agency, but then D23 happened and I decided that I needed to jump on all these announcements so that you can also be informed and start planning for your next Disney trip. The next blog post will be a little more of an introduction, but if you are curious in the meantime, please visit my about me section on the website.

First, what is D23?. D23 is the “Official Disney Fan Club” It was started in 2009 and, like many Disney things, was the first of its kind. D23 offers fans and its members tons of insider looks, special events, unique merchandise and so much more. During this year's D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event, close to 50 big announcements were made during the Experience Showcase. Without further ado, let's dive into the big announcements that were made.

Let's start simple, Cruise ships! I am dying to try a Disney cruise in the next couple years. Most likely when my son hits at least three, and I am okay waiting when I found out that Disney is launching four new ships. These ships are scheduled to arrive between 2027 and 2031. Disney currently has a fleet of 5 ships with 4 previously announced ships in the works so these additional 4 ships will bring the fleet total to 13. Hopefully, this means that Disney Cruises should become easier to access and have more sailings for us all to enjoy. On top of this news, some more details were released about the new ships joining the fleet next year. Disney’s Destiny is going to be where magic and mischief collide and will feature both heroes and villains from the Disney movies. This ship launches in November of 2025 out of Fort Lauderdale. This ship has so many cool features and restaurants that I think fans will just eat it up and every day we get to hear a little more about it, such as the D23 announcement that “Disney Hercules” will be the signature production aboard the Destiny. Is Hercules not quite your thing or a little to “old school” for your kids? Don't worry there will be other show options aboard the Destiny and if you have a Moana fan on your hands you might want to look at Disney’s Treasure, which is another new ship that will be launching in December of this year. Disney announced that the signature show of the Treasure is going to be “Disney The Tale of Moana” which will feature music from the movie as well as a large puppet on stage depicting TeKa. I could keep going on about all the amazing and magical things that are going on with these new cruise ships and the rest of the Disney fleet, but let's save that for another time and focus back on the announcements from D23.

Following the cruise announcements, we, of course, have the standard movie announcements, which I am kind of excited about as well. We already knew that Moana 2 was in the works and going to be released in November, as well as the prequel Mufasa which got its official trailer release. Here are some of the new ones. The live action Snow White is finally set to be released in March of next year. Also due to come sometime in 2025, a live-action Lilo & Stitch and Zootopia 2. There are lots of new movies coming as well as some series coming to Disney+ that will be pretty fun. Of course, you are wondering what this has to do with travel and these announcements really don't, but still fun to know what to expect in the coming months! 

Jumping back into more travel related things. Let’s talk about the park changes that are coming. Now one of the most exciting things, in my opinion, is that chairman of Disney experiences Josh D’Amaro started the park's presentation by saying “Everything we share tonight with you, is in active development… this is not blue sky”. Meaning that all of these changes are actively being worked on now and will be happening. This is exciting to me because this means that there are timelines and hopeful opening dates so that fans can start planning their trips to the parks to experience these new changes. So what are these changes?

Let's start with Disneyland and California Adventures. Probably one of the most interesting things to be announced, in celebration of Disneyland’s 70th anniversary, is the Walt Disney audio-animatronics figure that will be in the Opera house, alongside Abraham Lincoln. The idea is to allow guests to step back in time and see Walt in his office dreaming up the next thing for Disney. It seems like a great tribute and lets his spirit live on in the place he was so dedicated too. The plans are for this to debut in 2025. 

If you don't want to wait till then for something new, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is set to open November 15 of this year. This reimagining of Splash Mountain has been in the works for a little while, but we are excited to see the release date and can't wait to see what they have done to the space. There are also plans for a new Mandalorian Mission coming to the Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run which will focus around the Mandalorian and Grogu (aka Baby Yoda). The plan is for this new mission to open in 2026 around the release of the Mandalorian movie. Now walking across the street to California Adventures. Following the success of Deadpool 3 and all of the other movies in the Marvel universe, Disney is planning two new Avenger themed attractions that will ultimately double the size of the current Avengers Campus. These two attractions are going to be Avengers Infinity Defense and Stark Flight Lab. Not a lot was released about these two rides aside from some concept art. The concept art does look pretty impressive and hopefully the rides will be as immersive. Also in California Adventures, enter the world of Pandora with an area that will draw inspiration from Avatar: The Way of Water and newly announced Avatar: Fire and Ash. While there is a Pandora in Animal Kingdom, this will be based off the two later movies and be unique unto itself. There will be a new boat attraction, most likely similar to Pirates, that will take you through the world of Pandora. Another boat ride that will also be making its home in California Adventures is going to be based around the characters and music of Coco. The plan is for work to begin on this in 2026.

Moving on to Walt Disney World in Florida. Magic Kingdom is going to get some updates with a reimagined Frontierland that will feature Pixar's Cars. There will be two new attractions with one being a rally race theme through the landscape around Radiator Springs and the other being more of a family inclusive ride. They are planning to start work on this in 2025 and this does seem on track as permits where just filed this week to begin the construction. Also in 2025, over at Hollywood Studios, work is going to begin on Montropolis which is going to be a whole Monsters, Inc themed area that will include a suspended roller coaster. Not only is this going to be the first suspended roller coaster in the Disney parks, but it is going to feature the door factory because who of us didn't see the scene of chasing Boo’s door and immediately thinking how fun of a roller coaster that would be? Jumping back over to Magic Kingdom, along the lines of Disney Destiny, a new yet to be named Villains Land is in the works. This area will feature two major attractions as well as the expected dining and shopping experience that we are used to seeing in each Disney world. Based on the concept art for this land, Imagineers are really leaning into the more dark, twisted and thorny world that many of our favorite villains live in so this may be a little different then what we are use to seeing in other parts of the parks, but should still be a great area, especially since it seems so many of us are gravitating toward the villains. 

If you haven't been to Walt Disney World in Florida, it is huge! There are four parks and it is roughly 54 times larger than Disneyland so it makes sense that there are quite a few updates happening here. Disney has also pledged around 60 billion dollars for the parks over the coming years so again it makes sense that this year is a year for lots of announcements. So moving from Magic Kingdom, lets jump over to Animal Kingdom. Plans are in the works for a reimagining of the Dinoland into a Tropical Americas area which will feature two new attractions. One will be a completely new Indian Jones ride and the other will be an Enchanto themed ride where we get to travel through Antonios room after he receives his gift. The area will also feature new restaurants and shopping. Work will begin this fall and is set to open in 2027. In addition, a new show called “Zootopia: Better Zoogether” is in the works for the Tree of Life Theater. 

Last, but not least for Disney World. There is going to be an update to Test Track in Epcot, as well as two new lounges that are going to be themed around Pirates of the Caribbean and Spaceship Earth. And in 2025, we will see an all new nighttime parade on Main Street in the Magic Kingdom. The show is titled “Disney Starlight” and will be led by the Blue Fairy as she shows us some of our other favorite characters through the night with all the latest technology.

And finally all of the international parks (bucket list!). Disney Paris is getting a new attraction that will have guests and fans roaring with excitement. Finally, a Lion King themed area has been announced! You best believe that I am starting to think about going to France to experience this one. That being said the concept art does lean a little more toward the CGI remake, but hopefully they stay true to the original 1994 movie. If you or your little one is interested in a more recent movie, The World of Frozen is set to open in 2026 as is a new nighttime show that will take place on Adventure Bay. Moving further east, Spider-Man is the theme for both Shanghai and Hong Kong. Shanghai will be getting their own high speed coaster following Spider-Man. Hong Kong’s attraction will focus more on Spider-Man and Stark industries as Spider-Man tries to save the tech from his foe. This will be the third pavilion to open at Stark Expo.

Whoo, okay that is a lot to process! I know that I was overwhelmed, but beyond excited for these announcements. I already told my husband that we need to start planning a trip to France and saving for our Disney cruise. He actually asked me if we would be doing a birthday cruise this year to celebrate the Treasure. We will see! Well, that is all I have for now. As mentioned at the start, keep an eye out for a more introductory article coming soon as well as more details about Disney’s Cruises and what to expect from those new ships.