Today marked the start of the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) Expo – Virtual Education Conference. It replaced the yearly IAPPA Expo held in Orlando. This change was due due to social distancing amidst the pandemic. Josh D’Amaro, Chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, took to the virtual stage first to share an update on new attractions and entertainment coming to Disney parks. Following the keynote presentation, Disney Parks Blog shared photos and videos. Here is a sneak peek:
Walt Disney once said, “All who come to this happy place, welcome.” It hasn’t seemed there is a lot of happy lately, but we finally have some good news to talk about. We got our first look inside the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser Resort, the Space 220 restaurant coming to EPCOT, the Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind roller coaster coming to EPCOT, as well as multiple announcements regarding the future of projects including Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure and the Princess and the Frog re-theme of Splash Mountain.
The multi-year transformation of EPCOT continues with work on Harmonious, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, Space 220 and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure. It was announced that Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure is “on track” to open in 2021. This is an odd choice of words since Disney originally announced an opening date of Summer 2020 and have since been silent about it’s debut. We gave our perspective in a past blog (read that post here) and I think we were spot on. The attraction appears to be complete from the outside. We also got our first look at the inside of the Space 220 restaurant. Originally planned to open in 2019, we have no new ETA for the restaurant.
Harmonious will be one of the largest nighttime spectaculars ever created, featuring the hallmarks of a Disney experience. It will include music and images, reimagined by diverse cultural musicians and artists from around the world. Harmonious will also feature the eponymous stargate of the hit television show, STARGᐰTE SG-1, reimagined for the diverse landscape of World Showcase. Work is well underway on this project and can be seen happening at EPCOT.
Much progress has been made on the Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind roller coaster. The Omnicoaster is a first-of-its-kind programmable roller coaster ride system, where guests can be rotated along the ride track in any direction while traveling at high speeds. The ride vehicles were previewed a few weeks ago and now we have a closer look. D’Amaro shared footage of vehicle testing on the track, and it looks amazing!
In a galaxy far, far away, progress continues at Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser Resort. Guests will live aboard a starship for a 2-day, 2-night experience and become the heroes of their own Star Wars story in a new type of immersive experience. Guests will “cruise” the galaxy in style aboard the Halcyon, known for its impeccable service and exotic destinations. Onboard, you’ll stay in well-appointed cabins, experience onboard dining, make a planet-side excursion to Black Spire Outpost on Batuu and much more.
We originally brought you the news of a The Princess and the Frog re-theme back in June when the parks were still shut down. It was assumed that Disney would sideline any future projects until the pandemic was under control and the economy was more stable. Despite the hopes of many fans, the Splash Mountain project has been fast tracked. D’Amaro said, “We want to make sure that we’re focusing on inclusivity for our guests as well, so we’ve chosen to speed up some of the work that we had been developing to make sure that our parks remain relevant and welcoming to all of our guests.”
One project at Magic Kingdom park not being fast-tracked is the TRON Lightcycle Power Run. Originally slotted to be open in time for Walt Disney Worlds 50th Anniversary celebration, we haven’t heard much about it lately. Progress continues on the canopy but is expected to slow down soon. It is rumored that construction will stop until October 2021 once the canopy is finished.
Other news from the virtual expo included updates on the Avengers Campuses at Disneyland Resort and Disneyland Paris. This new land will invite guests to team up with the Avengers and their allies in a fully immersive land. Guests visiting Disneyland Paris will also soon be able to experience Disney’s Hotel New York – The Art of Marvel. This reimagined hotel will celebrate 80 years of Marvel storytelling in a typical New York setting. The resort will feature contemporary Art Deco style and include one of the largest publicly viewable collections of Marvel artwork in the world. Construction is still underway on Disneylands Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway and at Shanghai Disney Resort, progress continues on “Zootopia” – where guests will be invited to experience the metropolis of “Zootopia.”
New attractions, restaurants, and shops recently opened at Tokyo Disneyland, marking the largest expansion of the park’s 37-year history. Part of the expansion will be “Fantasy Springs.” This exciting development will be themed to a magical spring inspired by the beloved Disney Animation films “Frozen,” “Tangled” and “Peter Pan.” It’ll include four new attractions, three restaurants and a new Disney-themed hotel situated inside Tokyo DisneySea that will overlook Fantasy Springs.
We have mixed feelings about these announcements and updates. Some projects have been put on hold, but there are groundbreaking new updates coming to Disney destinations around the world. Everything coming has us very optimistic for the future of the Disney parks. We had hoped that there would be more effort put into getting Magic Kingdom ready for the 50th Anniversary in October, 2021. This should be an epic event. Many of us have been waiting and planning for this celebration for years now. It seems we will get a diluted version of the celebration since anything that could be done in time would need to be in the works right now.
That wraps up our recap of updates on new attractions and entertainment in the parks. There was a lot of information and we look forward to bringing you future updates. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for all the latest news. Are you excited for 2021 in the Disney Parks? What are you looking forward to and what do you disagree with? We would love to hear from you so comment below or contact us on the “Contact Us” page.