So, you know when I say ‘D23’ I mean specifically the Horizons parks panel, right? That’s what we’re all here for!
After more than a few disappointing years of parks panels and a promise of solid announcements this time, there was more than a little hype in the lead up to this panel, so did it deliver? Well, let’s discuss that.
In the spirit of the panel, I’m going to head on a world tour of the Disney Parks, discussing what they’ve announced and just how I feel about it! Where else would we start than my closest, my beloved, Disneyland Paris?
Disneyland Paris
New Nighttime Spectacular
Right off the bat, we had an announcement for Disneyland Paris! Hearing our resort get name-checked this early in proceedings came as a little bit of a surprise, but when I stop to think about it, this isn’t super surprising, is it? How long could the resort be expected to hobble along with an edited version of Disney Illuminations? (I say that, but look at the state of Stars on Parade…)
After years of producing top quality supplementary nighttime shows, this new nighttime spectacular looks to bring together everything Disneyland Paris have learned. The concept art showcases drones, fireworks, projections of Disney Animated Classics (no sign of the live-action stuff yet – phew!) and for the first time, projections down Main Street. This is something the park have kinda tested, with the rainbow effect down Main Street this winter, but full projections will really help bring the party through the whole street. I sure loved this part of Mickey’s Mix Magic at Disneyland Resort! Disneyland Paris have gone from strength to strength in entertainment over the last few years, so my expectations for this show are sky-high. It’s due to debut in January, and you can bet that I’ll be there as soon as possible once it does!
World of Frozen 2026
lmao
Adventure Bay Nighttime Spectacular
Also debuting in 2026 is the brand-new nighttime spectacular in Adventure Bay!
As soon as Disneyland Paris fans saw that lake, hopes started for our version of World of Color, and here it is. Featuring water screens, fountains, effects, and ‘never-before-seen’ drone technology, we certainly seem to be in for a treat, particularly if those recent pyro drones are anything to go by! Disneyland Paris Know Their Stuff when it comes to drones!
Right now, there’s no real reason to stay at Walt Disney Studios Park until closing time. In fact, I usually swing by for the last few hours of operations to mop up some rides with minimal waits. This will change the game, giving guests a reason to spend their evening in the park! An easy win for the resort overall!
Lion King Land
Here it is. The big news for Disneyland Paris. The long-rumoured flume ride, themed to The Lion King! Our very own unique version of Splash Mountain is set to be the first true unique E-ticket attraction at Disneyland Paris in god knows how long. I’ve been ridiculously excited for this for quite some time now… and then that concept art dropped.
Cards on the table, I am a certified The Lion King (2019) hater. Without wanting to go full Letterboxd, it’s genuinely my least favourite film of all time. At least all other bad films tried to do something. What did this want to achieve? What was the goal? The purpose? The need? Its colour palate is almost as dull as its lifeless, emotionless ‘realistic’ characters. A car crash of story telling. *exhale*
So, I was pretty miffed when the concept art showed the ‘live-action’ (we all know it’s animated, right?) Lion King. BUT, never fear! Josh D’Amaro confirmed at the time that the attraction would be based around the beloved 1994 classic, and the model on display at D23 the next day would confirm this, with the bright land taking on the bright yellow hue of the movie. Thank god – it’s back aboard the hype train!
With the vast structure of Pride Rock rising up over the green, expansive land, this looks set to be Disney Adventure World’s Adventureland. Every step we can take to bring more greenery to that park is a win, and this is bringing it by the bucketload! On the model, we can clearly see Simba atop the iconic structure, and imagine if that’s an animatronic! How amazing will this be?!
Rumours for this ride have been incredible. Simply put, this is rumoured to be one of the most impressive rides Disney have ever crafted, with an extraordinarily lengthy experience – up to 15 minutes – filled with show scenes and animatronics!
Of course, the only other drawback here is… it’s one ride. This entire massive multi-decade reimagining of Walt Disney Studios park is simply not bringing the rides. The two lands anchoring Adventure Bay have one ride a-piece, with a nearby Tangled teacups ride to bring the area some additional capacity that it so desperately needs. Hopefully, we’ll see further additions down the line, but right now, it can’t help but feel a little half-baked.
However, Splash Mountain is one of my favourite rides of all time. Disneyland Paris has been crying out for a water ride as its summers grow hotter and hotter, and any excuse for a vast number of animatronics, and one of the best movie soundtracks of all time sounds like a party for me. I am all in on this. All in.
Anything Else?
Well, no. That’s about our lot. With surprises sprinkled throughout the other parks, particularly at DCA, it was more than a little bit disappointing to see Disneyland Paris come away with… well… not a lot. Disneyland Park’s last new ride was Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast, way back in 2006. That was a replacement attraction. Ground up? The last ride was Space Mountain. In 1995. Disneyland Park is crying out for some love, and all we continue to get is entertainment. Don’t get me wrong, I love entertainment. DLP are fantastic at it. But, we need some real, solid additions now to keep the park and the resort fresh.
Still, it’s a heck of a lot more than we usually get!
Disneyland Resort
Walt Animatronic
Now, normally I’m fully against bringing the dead back without express permission – some of those holograms are not it – but if there’s one person who would have really wanted to be an animatronic, it’s Walt. And where better to host such a creation than on Walt’s Main Street? On my visit to Disneyland Resort, Great Moments with Mr Lincoln was one of my favourite attractions, steeped in history and still jaw-dropping decades later. I can’t wait to see a modern take on this attraction running alternately with the original!
Avengers Campus Extension
Oh Avengers Campus E-ticket, we’ve seen too many summers! This ride has been lurking around for… how long now? First, a vague concept, then a few different iterations of ride, and now finally, finally, we have a solid concept! It’s… drumroll, please… The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man! This has, predictably, caused uproar over the past week across theme park social media, which is, I believe, a problem of Disney’s own making. Had they revealed this ride type from the off, everyone would have been on board, but there was so much mystery, so much promise, that it can’t help but feel a little disappointing to be utilising a pre-existing ride type.
However, this is no ordinary ride type. The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man remains one of the greatest dark rides on earth decades later. This is a ride type that can do amazing things. Things worthy of a modern E-ticket attraction. With the ride visiting a number of iconic Marvel locations and large-scale sets rumoured, this could be something very, very special!
But not only that, we’re also getting a new… robo arm? Who saw that one coming?! Stark Flight Lab looks to be a robo arm ride of a sort I’ve never seen before, with riders boarding a two-person ride vehicle that then travels to the arm, is picked up, and riders are swung around. Thats… wild?! I’ve only ever seen these things on the pier at Weston-Super-Mare and at Futuroscope, so safe to say I’ve never seen them delivered on this level. Colour me intrigued.
Coco Boat Ride
Now we’re talking! Now we are talking! An announcement I absolutely did not see coming, this found me screeching at 03:45am. Coco is my favourite of all the Disney Pixar movies, and dozens of watches later, still makes me cry every damn time. With stunning character design, vibrant colours, and incredible music, this is a ride I can see translating beautifully into a boat ride, which looks to be exactly what’s coming to DCA. Of all the announcements, this could be the one I’m most excited about. The power of IP, eh?
Avatar: The Way of Water
Pandora – The World of Avatar is one of those theme park lands that full transcends its IP. Yes, people like Avatar, but do they love it enough to translate into the kind of reverence that Pandora receives? No, I don’t think so. They love Pandora because it’s a stunning representation of the importance of nature in theme park design. Its elaborate use of landscaping, of water, of fantastical structures made of materials that feel real makes it one of the most memorable and beloved of all theme park lands.
So, how about another one? DCA is set to receive what looks to be an equally beautiful land dedicated to the Avatar sequels. But, as we’ve seen, the material doesn’t matter, it’s the delivery and oh boy, if they deliver anything close to this concept art it’s going to be another slam dunk, filled with forests, fountains and vast expanses of water.
The action all takes place inside the tent-like buildings so familiar from Pandora and what action it is! Rumoured to be a dark ride on the scale of, and using the same ride system as Shanghai’s Pirates of the Carribean, the Na’vi are not here to play. Quite simply, this could be one of the best dark rides on earth, in one of the most beautiful lands on earth. Let’s bloody go!
Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Monsters, Inc. Coaster
Hands up if you distinctly remember watching Monsters, Inc. as a kid and thinking that you’d do anything to get to ride that door system. I know I did! Now, decades later, that dream is becoming a reality via what looks to be a Vekoma Suspended Family Coaster!
This ultra-comfy, ultra-fun model is already a firm favourite, but this could quite easily be my favourite of them all. You know how the Disney execs always say that their new experiences are going to let you ‘live out that fantasy!’ I think this might be one of the first times I’ve literally fantasized about doing the very thing the ride purports to offer. And that’s pretty darn exciting to me!
Besides that, the ride will be located in its own Monstropolis mini-land. Something that I believe will fit in beautifully at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. My least favourite WDW park by an incredible margin, I’m always happy to see new things come to truly the most stressful Disney park I’ve ever visited. Of course, the issue with Hollywood Studios is that it has limited capacity, all of which is tied up in an absolutely stacked lineup. The park is almost entirely E-tickets! And… well… this looks to continue that trend! With rumours also abound about where exactly this thing will go, it’s looking like it might not offer any additional capacity either. At least if the always reliable Alicia Stella is correct…
Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Tropical Americas
Oh boy, here we are. The thing that we all knew was coming, but prayed would stay away. The Tropical Americas are coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Again, not something inherently bad, as Disney’s Animal Kingdom is another park that would certainly benefit from additional capacity. But the way it’s being implemented is… less than ideal.
I’m not going to pretend to be a massive defender of Dinoland U.S.A.. On my last visit back at the end of 2022, Primeval Whirl had just been ripped down, and what remained was one of the most depressing areas in any theme park I’ve ever visited. A vast, empty expanse of concrete, only just a little worse than the tacky off-the-shelf coaster that formerly occupied the space. However, I am a massive defender of Dinosaur, and of dinosaurs in general. Dinosaur is one of my favourite rides at WDW. In fact, I made us trek back to Disney’s Animal Kingdom an extra time just for one more re-ride on our trip! It’s a fun, scary, and thrilling dark ride, packed with giant dinosaurs! What more could you want? Outside of the ride, I just find it incredibly sad that dinosaurs will no longer have a place at Animal Kingdom. Kids love dinosaurs. Adults love dinosaurs. Everyone loves dinosaurs! They’re creatures that capture the imagination like nothing else and automatically give a ride and its area cross-generational appeal. Sure, Dinoland U.S.A. wasn’t great, but dinosaurs are. They deserve a seat at the table.
So, what of Dinoland’s successors? Well, Dinosaur itself is set to become another Indiana Jones dark ride, this time with a natural world twist. I said in last year’s round-up that if they went ahead with this concept, it would be the laziest thing WDI could possibly do. I still believe that to a point. At least it’s an original version of the attraction! I’d expected a duplicate. I’ve no reason to believe that this won’t be an incredible ride, but I struggle to summon much excitement for it, not when it’s taking the place of something I loved so much.
Next door, we have the world’s first Encanto attraction. This has to be one of the quickest turn-around from film release to in-park attraction that I can remember! Casita is going up pretty quick! With rumours of this being a Columbian spin on Mystic Manor, I’m very intrigued about this one, and, unlike Indiana Jones, this is without doubt an improvement on what was there before! (Primeval Whirl)
Finally, replacing Triceratop Spin, the land’s spinner attraction comes a new carousel. Whilst the animals on this carousel will be based on Disney characters, I really appreciated the given backstory of each vehicle having been handcrafted by a local tradesman based on his favourite stories. Sure, it’s a little shoehorned in, but it works well enough to justify the attraction. Whether a carousel is an improvement for a spinner is up for debate, but the vehicles themselves should certainly be an upgrade!
So there we have it, undoubtedly an upgrade for Disney’s Animal Kingdom, but one that comes at a price and without adding any additional rides. This land is 100% replacement, something that is always disappointing to see at the Floridian parks.
Magic Kingdom
Cars Frontierland
Of everything on this list, the addition of Cars to Frontierland was the biggest what the fuck moment of the presentation this year. Which, to be fair, says something for the quality of the offerings. There had sure been plenty of those moments in years gone by!
How I feel about these attractions comes down to one thing, and one thing only. What they replace. During the presentation, Josh D’Amaro stated that they would replace an area of Frontierland. Now, we can bet that Big Thunder Mountain and Tiana’s Bayou Adventure are safe… so what does that leave? Well, I’m pretty darn worried about Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of America. I’ve stated before that what really makes, or even can save, a park for me are quiet areas. Places to escape the noise and relax. The Alton Towers Gardens, the Paultons Park lake, Adventure Isle at Disneyland Paris, and also Tom Sawyer Island at Magic Kingdom. At the most visited theme park on earth, Tom Sawyer Island provides much-needed respite. The Rivers of America too bring water, nature, and also the kinetic energy of the riverboats sailing on by. To lose all this to another pretty obnoxious attraction would be heartbreaking. Even more so, because the ride itself? Well, that looks nothing short of amazing. Appearing something like Radiator Springs Racers taken to a whole new scenic level – something I didn’t even know was possible – this has the potential to be the headline attraction at Magic Kingdom. It looks perfect for the park. A ride to be adored by all ages. I just really, really hope it isn’t going where I think it’s going.
Villains Land
Emo kids, our time has come! Not only are we getting Dark Universe at Epic Universe, but now, down the road, we can live our best angsty Disney life too in the upcoming land dedicated to the Disney Villains. Like any lifelong Disney fan who went through a hardcore emo phase, I had a time of being painfully obsessed with Maleficent, a love that’s never quite left me. Whilst I know the dragon underneath Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland Paris isn’t Maleficent, it can’t help feeling a little bit more important to me given its similarity to her. Let’s not even talk about Fantasmic!
I mention this because Maleficent seems to feature in a big way in the Villains land concept art, with her dragon form visible, green fire shooting from her mouth. Could we something akin to the dragon in Diagon Alley? Pleaaaaaase! Whilst it’s hard to know what else to expect from this concept art that predominantly focuses on giving a mood, we know that the land will feature two major attractions, and in the rear corner we can just about make out some coaster track – Disney Villains coaster? I am ascending!!!!
Whilst all of the Orlando announcements can most likely be determined to be a response to Epic Universe in one way or another, this feels the most direct. This feels like Disney realising that kids can handle something a bit more mature, a bit more scary, and that. That is exciting!
New Nighttime Parade
Incredible. Stunning. Iconic. Necessary. Every park should have a nighttime parade! They’re some of the only parks open until night on a daily basis. Use it, goddamn it!
EPCOT
Spaceship Earth Bar
I feel like I need to see more because right now, this looks like another clinical, soulless space added in a botched refresh of EPCOT. But, we’ll see. A bar themed to one of my favourite dark rides has great potential, after all. And what’s more EPCOT than drinking?
Shanghai & Hong Kong
Spider-Man Attractions
I’ll be honest, I’m not paying massive attention to these because, in all likelihood, I’ll never visit these parks. Mainland China is a massive no-go for me, and whilst Hong Kong is up for debate, after the last few years, it seems as though it’s also going to be a no.
However, I am very intrigued by both of these ride concepts, particularly what appears to be another different version of Tower of Terror at Hong Kong! We’ve not got much to go on with this attraction just yet, but it’s truly one of my favourite things about Disney Parks that each of these attractions globally is different. I just don’t think I ever expected another one to be built, and for Hong Kong, this is huge! That’s a ground-up headlining attraction right there! Something I was not expecting at that resort for quite some time!
Oh shoot and one last thing. Mandalorian and Grogu on Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run? Thank GOD! Make this thing Star Tours, but interactive, and I might finally start wanting to re-ride it! This is a great, small piece of news!
That’s about it for D23 2024. Sure there were a few other little opening date announcements, but I think that’s everything worth discussing!
Now, going into this presentation, the overwhelming question was ‘Will Disney respond to Epic Universe?’ and I think the resounding answer is yes. It has been a very long while since I felt this excited about the future of the Disney Parks. Fun, exciting, creative projects flat-lined under the tenure of Bob Chapek, but seem to once more be the order of the day, and I cannot wait. Whilst we certainly need to exercise some caution – we all know how things can change, and even get cancelled on their way to fruition – we Disney fans finally have just cause to be excited again, and it feels so. damn. good.
With both Universal, Disney and even, finally, the UK parks bringing their A game once more, has there ever been a better time to be a theme park fan?
I know I’m living my best life.
Speak again soon,
Claire
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coasterclaire.co.uk 