MickeyBlog News for August 19th, 2024
Disney says goodbye to the Rivers of America, and the fallout from other D23 announcements continues.
We’ve got an interesting week of MickeyBlog News updates.
We Knew, But It Still Hurts
During the 2024 D23 theme parks panel, Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro made a business decision.
At one point, D’Amaro revealed that Frontierland would survive the coming updates at Magic Kingdom.
Alas, something still had to die for the Cars Neighborhood to live.
While D’Amaro proved unwilling to rip off the Band-Aid that night, Disney didn’t wait long.
On Monday morning, the Disney Parks Blog confirmed what I’ve warned you about for nearly two years now.
Disney will reclaim the space of Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of America to construct the new Cars Frontierland setting.
That’s a necessary sacrifice to maximize the value of the space, which is currently, let’s be honest, mostly wasted.
Most adults traveling without children rarely visit Tom Sawyer Island, and even dutiful parents sometimes send their kids along on their own.
A long time ago, many fans recognized Tom Sawyer Island as a glorified daycare center and understandably avoided it.
Disney officials don’t want any part of Magic Kingdom to be overlooked by tourists. It messes up with the crowd distribution patterns.
So, any plan that calls for the reinvention of Frontierland would be flawed from the start if it didn’t also demand the closure of these places.
In future years, we’ll tell our kids and grandkids that when we visited Magic Kingdom, it wasn’t landlocked. There was even a riverboat!
That’s Not the Only Loss
Sadly, the Liberty Square Riverboat probably shuts down due to this decision as well.
I’d hoped that Imagineers might have a plan to save it via a new path, but the published images show Frontierland without water.
Photo: Disney
Disney has even filed some paperwork for this project. You can learn more about it here.
So, within five years, everyone will think of Frontierland as Walt Disney World’s answer to Radiator Springs at Disney California Adventure.
In the short term, we’ll all go through the heartache of losing Tom Sawyer Island and the Liberty Square Riverboat, though.
The opportunity cost of progress is always high. On the plus side, if Disney already has the permits ready, this go-project may begin soon.
Disney
I’ve written an estimated Disney expansion timeline article that estimates the new Cars Neighborhood arriving in 2028 or 2029.
Sooner is definitely possible if Disney starts immediately, though.
Stating the obvious, you should visit Tom Sawyer Island one last time while you still can.
The New Disney Cruise Line Shows
Credit: Disney
I’ll add a synopsis soon of the many changes coming to Disney Cruise Line (DCL) over the next seven years.
During earnings calls, Disney execs have emphasized that they envision an explosive growth division of Disney Experiences.
Photo: Disney
As such, Disney is putting its money where its mouth is by adding new entertainment options and, soon, more new cruise ships.
Currently, there are only five Disney cruise ships in the entire world. Seven years from now, that number will be thirteen.
Disney Wonder Deck Pool
DCL wouldn’t expand that rapidly unless there was enough demand to match the supply.
Just as importantly, DCL must expand its offerings to create enough new experiences to satisfy customers on all these ships.
Photo: Disney
We’re still in the early stages of this, perhaps best demonstrated by many Disney park experiences suddenly translating to DCL.
For example, Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean lounges/pubs will soon become permanent parts of some cruises.
Photo: Disney
The epic shows are an equally significant part of the DCL experience. So, Disney is adding more of them as well.
Soon, the Disney Dream will host a Broadway-esque show based on the popular 1997 film, Hercules.
Photo: Disney
The wildly popular Muses will return to narrate the story, and the show will include an entirely new song, a ballad called Shooting Star.
Not to be outdone, the Disney Treasure will introduce Disney The Tale of Moana in December.
Disney
Yes, Disney will somehow bring the story of Moana to the stage, including an epic showdown with Te Kā.
A fifteen-foot puppet will represent Te Kā on stage, and I cannot wait to see what sounds like a spectacular presentation.
Disney Miscellany
Over the past few days, we’ve had tons of park updates, one of which wasn’t planned.
Disneyland suffered a 4.4-magnitude earthquake on Monday.
Thankfully, nobody was injured, and the park had everything operational again soon afterward.
Disneyland also revealed that It’s a Small World will close on September 16th…but for a very good reason!
Credit: Disney
Cast Members will spend the next few weeks prepping the ride for its holiday overlay, which will be ready on November 15th.
At Disney California Adventure, Plaza de la Familia debuts a new show this week!
Photo: Disney
On August 23rd, The Storytellers of Plaza de la Familia Celebrate The Musical World of Coco! will host its first performance.
You can catch the show from that date through November 2nd.
At Disneyland Park, park officials have revealed more details about the upcoming Walt Disney Audio-Animatronic.
Everyone involved with this project sounds beside themselves with joy. So, I’m wildly optimistic about the presentation.
Photo: Disney
Also, Davy Crockett’s Canoes is finally ready to return. In fact, it might have reopened by the time you read this!
The scheduled reopening date is August 19th, but today is always a possibility if it runs early!
At Walt Disney World, Peter Pan’s Flight did exactly that. It reopened on Friday, a bit ahead of schedule.
Click the above link to see the pictures of the modified scenes on the classic attraction.
The other Magic Kingdom news to know is that more Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween dates have sold out.
You really need to act fast if you intend to attend the party this year!
Minnie Popcorn bucket
Finally, we’re giving away this popcorn bucket, and I hope you win it!
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Feature Photo: Disney
