News 'Encanto' and 'Indiana Jones'-themed experiences at Animal Kingdom

[The Leader of the Club]

I wonder if WDW will use the "one new big thing per year" strategy. If so, we might be looking at something like this:

2024 TBA
2025 Full press on entertainment including parades, night parades, and drones
2026 DAK: Tropical America
2027 MK: Beyond BTMR
2028 DHS: 'something big'
2029 EPCOT: Figment/Inside Out
2030 DAK: Zootopia in Tree of Life
2031 MK: Moana
2032 DAK: Lion King ride
2033 MK: BBTMR phase 2
2034 5th Gate: Cupcakeland

Count your blessings if two of the things happen in the same year.

I know this post is a joke, but do you really think we could get Tropical Americas as early as 2026? That would be a heck of a turnaround, especially if Dinoland lasts most of the year.

 

[MisterPenguin]

I know this post is a joke, but do you really think we could get Tropical Americas as early as 2026? That would be a heck of a turnaround, especially if Dinoland lasts most of the year.

At the end of 2026, that's two and a half years. Indy is a retheme and they underlying mechanics work. Encanto is a boat ride. And what's left is a spinner. So, yes. if they start sooner than later. They're already clearing out a space for construction equipment.

 

[James Alucobond]

The most recent artwork also shows almost all of the existing buildings outside of Dinorama staying put with some new stuff getting tacked on to theme them. So outside of the Encanto area, there's nothing terribly significant to demo.

 

[KDM31091]

I seriously doubt it's ready by 2026 since work has not begun in any significant capacity at this point, and more than likely Dinoland won't close until January 2025. Even a full year is pushing it to retheme Dinosaur and rebuild Dinorama as something else, especially given recent construction timelines (i.e. slow). I feel like we're looking at 2027 at best for the entire area to be completed.

It does seem like every structure/building outside of the carnival area will likely remain and just be redressed, since they are not terribly old buildings to begin with. No real reason to demo and start over.

 

[doctornick]

I wonder if WDW will use the "one new big thing per year" strategy. If so, we might be looking at something like this:

2024 TBA
2025 Full press on entertainment including parades, night parades, and drones
2026 DAK: Tropical America
2027 MK: Beyond BTMR
2028 DHS: 'something big'
2029 EPCOT: Figment/Inside Out
2030 DAK: Zootopia in Tree of Life
2031 MK: Moana
2032 DAK: Lion King ride
2033 MK: BBTMR phase 2
2034 5th Gate: Cupcakeland

Count your blessings if two of the things happen in the same year.

I know this is a bit tongue in cheek but the impression I get is that the Moana ride for MK for be the first thing done there. Also I think the TLK ride would be done in parallel with the other DAK changes as opposed to a big delay.

 

[Bocabear]

2 and a half years for a restaurant....when you think about it, there is no possible way they could demo, change the interior of the ride, build the new facades and temple theming along in 2 and a half years...not feasible with the current TDO timelines. and then completely redoing Restaurantosaurus, demo of what's left of Dinoland USA and then re-theming landscape, adding a new spinner and a brand new ground up attraction themed to Encanto? That alone would be 5 years unless they hired all new construction companies they have not been working with.... That whole changeover I do not think they could complete before 2028 at the earliest.... Unless it is done really poorly....

 

[Twirlnhurl]

That alone would be 5 years unless they hired all new construction companies they have not been working with....

I don't think the issue was the construction compthey used. During covid, construction went to a crawl because they wanted to spend less money on construction in a given year: $100 million over two years is $50 million a year. $100 million over five years is $20 million a year. If the cash coming in is less, a business can spend money slower to keep things balanced (or prop up streaming).

Prior to covid, some of the really long construction timelines were more about replacing park infrastructure while keeping the park open. If it takes a year to build a new back of house facility building to replace the old one that is in the way of Star Wars Galaxy's Edge and three years to build SWGE, you can't be done in three years because the back of house facility needs to be moved before SWGE construction can begin. So four to five years really was reasonable for SWGE to go in those locations.

A better comparison for the timeline to convert Dinosaur to Indiana Jones would be Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway, which took about two years seven months.

 

[Bocabear]

I don't think the issue was the construction compthey used. During covid, construction went to a crawl because they wanted to spend less money on construction in a given year: $100 million over two years is $50 million a year. $100 million over five years is $20 million a year. If the cash coming in is less, a business can spend money slower to keep things balanced (or prop up streaming).

Prior to covid, some of the really long construction timelines were more about replacing park infrastructure while keeping the park open. If it takes a year to build a new back of house facility building to replace the old one that is in the way of Star Wars Galaxy's Edge and three years to build SWGE, you can't be done in three years because the back of house facility needs to be moved before SWGE construction can begin. So four to five years really was reasonable for SWGE to go in those locations.

A better comparison for the timeline to convert Dinosaur to Indiana Jones would be Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway, which took about two years seven months.

So if they began tomorrow, it would be 2027 before completion based on MMRR...but MMRR did not have to build an all new themed land around it and a new Jungle temple building...Which would push it way beyond 2 years and 7 months... Fantasyland Forest broke ground in 2010, and the final attraction was completed in 2014... and it seemes like things moved much faster 15 years ago....at the current pace 2028 would seem early....especially sine they have no current date to even begin construction and Demo....

 

[ToTBellHop]

I'm very, very puzzled here. The construction you mentioned should be done in around five years, before Disney's spending fully ramps up. Mega expansion somewhere at Disney World should follow: where do you suggest?

They don’t typically add to a park for awhile after dropping a billion dollars on it. It’ll be ten years between Pandora and this forthcoming DAK project.

I imagine Tropical Americas will open Spring 2027.

 

[Twirlnhurl]

So if they began tomorrow, it would be 2027 before completion based on MMRR...but MMRR did not have to build an all new themed land around it and a new Jungle temple building...Which would push it way beyond 2 years and 7 months... Fantasyland Forest broke ground in 2010, and the final attraction was completed in 2014... and it seemes like things moved much faster 15 years ago....at the current pace 2028 would seem early....especially sine they have no current date to even begin construction and Demo....

If they leave Dinoland open during construction, I agree. But if all of Dinoland closes (perhaps sans the walkway to the Nemo Musical), the rockwork and other required exterior construction could occur simultaneously to the interior build out.

New Fantasyland touches the roof of the working Utiladors on two sides, greatly complicating construction.

I am not saying Disney will finish Tropical America's in ~two years. I am saying they can do it without a serious cultural change, if the company assigned the project the cash flow and closed the land to eliminate the need for phasing.

 

[KDM31091]

The other problem is AK already has relatively little to do as it is, and wiping out an entire land all at once is kind of problematic. Sure, Dinoland only technically has 3 attractions (excluding Nemo, as it is expected to be unaffected by the changes), but 3 attractions in a park with a total of maybe 10 total otherwise, is a large dent. This is why I feel like this will be done in phases rather than all at once, especially since most of the buildings will likely not be being demolished anyway.

To me the most likely scenario is that work starts at the Dino-Rama site since it is both the easiest to clear (especially since the coaster is already gone) and the least impactful, while Dinosaur would likely remain open. Then once that is mostly complete, close Dinosaur.

Obviously I could be wrong, but in a park with not a ton of attractions, closing 3 all at once seems like a lot, especially since we all know this will take several years to fully complete.

 

[Rich Brownn]

There’s a lot declarative statements in here with no proof to back them up other than “see what Disney did”. That’s not a smoking gun.

I could conversely argue that SSE’s consistent 15-30 minute waits mean guests do enjoy learning. Or that Test Track consistently has one of the longest waits in the park. Those are both just as arbitrary. @lentesta and a few of our other insiders are about the only one here with authoritative data on what is or isn’t liked.


This seems like a myopic way of looking at their business motivations. The main focus is what makes the most profit for less money spent. The IP enables them to sell otherwise irrelevant merchandise that comes with a pretty nice markup. Eg. it’s cheaper for Disney to sell the same generic & non-park specific Encanto merch at multiple parks than custom ride merch at only one park.

The IP also reminds people of the source film, leading to rewatchings via Disney+ or other purchased media. Leading to better revenue in other business sectors.

Disney obviously does not want disgruntled customers, but their number one focus is not “giving the guests what they want”, it’s what’s best for The Walt Disney Co’s bottom line.*

* - not trying to shame the company, they should be focused on remaining profitable, though it can be argued they’ve crossed the line into greediness on numerous occasions.

I'm reminded of a quote from Henry Ford: "If I had asked people what they want, they'd say a faster horse."

 

[Advisable Joseph]

They don’t typically add to a park for awhile after dropping a billion dollars on it. It’ll be ten years between Pandora and this forthcoming DAK project.

I imagine Tropical Americas will open Spring 2027.

Again, the following exchange with Henry Mystic describes a massive strategy change, massive expansion in DAK and DHS in the next decade:

They need to do a lot at DAK and DHS, as well as more work at EPCOT, before they think about building a 5th park.

EPCOT doesn't really need expansions, especially compared to the other two, but it does need to fix several existing spaces. A new World Showcase pavilion or two and a couple of additional rides up there would be great, but not really necessary if they didn't have some old Future World pavilions wasting away.

DAK and DHS, on the other hand, both need at least double the amount of their current attractions.

That's the plan. Pump the most raw capacity boost over the next decade WDW has ever seen, and once that is done, build a 5th gate. Leadership gets it now, it's why you're seeing a new land at HWS before BBT is finished.

So it sounds like Henry Mystic is saying that the plan is for mega-expansion in DAK.

Too much demand: need more supply.

 

[PizzaPlanet]

I’d think the Bug’s Life to Zootopia conversion would be pretty quick. All the animation could be done in advance, then just a few months to update the theater and effects

 

[Advisable Joseph]

I’d think the Bug’s Life to Zootopia conversion would be pretty quick. All the animation could be done in advance, then just a few months to update the theater and effects

I wonder if that was part of the reason for moving Zootopia, assuming it was going in Dinosaur originally and not a modified Theater in the Wild or a new theater.

 

[Unbanshee]

The most recent artwork also shows almost all of the existing buildings outside of Dinorama staying put with some new stuff getting tacked on to theme them. So outside of the Encanto area, there's nothing terribly significant to demo.

Looks like the bone yard will be demolished

DinoLand USA Tropical Americas Reimagining Project Tracker (Concept Art, Info, Latest Construction & News)

Want to learn more about the DinoLand USA reimagining into a Tropical Americas land? Check out our project tracker with the latest news!

blogmickey.com

 

[Magicart87]

Is it too late to pitch my interactive digital talking puppet show for this area? I was thinking in the same vein as Turtle Talk only themed to Emperor's New Groove. Working title: Spit Happens with Llama Kuzco

 

[ToTBellHop]

Again, the following exchange with Henry Mystic describes a massive strategy change, massive expansion in DAK and DHS in the next decade:




So it sounds like Henry Mystic is saying that the plan is for mega-expansion in DAK.

Too much demand: need more supply.

I’ve seen this episode before. Disney makes seriously ambitious plans that are then dialed back massively. Happened with the DHS “rebirth”. Happened with Epcot’s. It’ll happen again.

Iger is CEO for a couple more years. Anyone suggesting they can predict with any certainty what will or will not be built beyond projects that will be under construction by late 2026 is being disingenuous.

I can’t help but laugh at any suggestion of a 5th theme park.

 

[999th Happy Haunt]

I wonder if WDW will use the "one new big thing per year" strategy. If so, we might be looking at something like this:

2024 TBA
2025 Full press on entertainment including parades, night parades, and drones
2026 DAK: Tropical America
2027 MK: Beyond BTMR
2028 DHS: 'something big'
2029 EPCOT: Figment/Inside Out
2030 DAK: Zootopia in Tree of Life
2031 MK: Moana
2032 DAK: Lion King ride
2033 MK: BBTMR phase 2
2034 5th Gate: Cupcakeland

Count your blessings if two of the things happen in the same year.

I think everything after 2025 needs to be pushed back at least one year, and waiting for 2030 for Zootopia 3D show is insane

 

[Bocabear]

ain't no way they are going to make 2027 with "Tropical Americas"... Half this year is already gone and there have been no shovels in the ground and no official closing date for Dinosaur. So we are probably looking at a closing happening in 2025 at this point, and with a complete gut except for the ride system, that is going to take at least 2.5 years let alone completely rebuilding the entire land to create a village...and then the Encanto ride will be a ground-up build....2028-2029....