Travel Guides Family Friendly Disney
Amanda Finn
One thing that happens at Disney Parks, for better or worse, is change. The parks were never meant to be stagnant but rather have new things for everyone to enjoy, whether they’ve visited the parks once or 100 times.
Some rides are refurbished, like Splash Mountain into Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, while other attractions are newly built. Disney is all about innovation and change. That’s true for Disney Parks all over the globe, too, not just the flagship Disneyland or Florida’s massive Walt Disney World.
Some of these updates, like the new Fantasy Springs area at Tokyo DisneySea, have been years in the making. And others don’t have an opening date yet. Either way, Disney fans are ravenous for more information on what to expect at the happiest place on Earth (or most magical, depending on which park is your favorite). So, here are some of the attractions we can look forward to at Disney Parks around the world coming up in 2024 and beyond.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure: Disney World and Disneyland
Disney
Housed in a revamped Splash Mountain at Magic Kingdom in Disney World and Disneyland, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure will transport riders into a colorful Mardi Gras adventure starting in 2024. You can see some of your favorite characters again in a whole new way, bringing the 2009 animated feature “The Princess and the Frog” to life.
Here we’ll meet Tiana and her friends on a musical journey as she and Louis the gator prepare for a performance at the upcoming Mardi Gras. Tiana’s Bayou Adventure will include some songs from the original film, along with some new songs developed specifically for the ride.
Like with other refurbs, the ride itself is largely the same. The experience still involves meandering along a river, seeing a bunch of animatronics, and bopping along to music. It will also have that iconic drop that Splash Mountain was known for, so you should bring those ponchos along just in case you get a particularly wet ride.
Fantasy Springs: Tokyo DisneySea
Bloomberg/Getty Images
The greatly anticipated Fantasy Springs at Tokyo DisneySea will encompass several storyland areas. This park expansion is the biggest Tokyo Disneyland has ever had. In the new Fantasy Springs area, guests can see “Frozen,” “Peter Pan,” and “Tangled” represented. There will be four new rides, restaurants, a luxury hotel, and lots of shops to enjoy. This area is set to open in the spring of 2024.
The three areas within Fantasy Springs will be the Frozen Kingdom, Peter Pan’s Neverland, and Rapunzel’s Forest. “Tangled” fans will be thrilled to see more from Rapunzel’s world than just the bathroom area at Walt Disney World, we’re sure. You can even check out The Snuggly Duckling -– perhaps you’ll make a friend or two with a band of singing bandits.
To top things off, this area brings with it the brand new Tokyo DisneySea Fantasy Springs Hotel, making it easy for guests to hop from the park into a luxe experience. As far as Disney resorts hotels go, this is considered a deluxe hotel, likened to others like the Grand Floridian or the Grand Californian.
New Star Tours scenarios: Disneyland, Disney World, Disneyland Paris
Disney
Disney announced that new mission scenarios will be coming to the Star Tours ride in Disneyland, Disney World, and Disneyland Paris starting in 2024. Since Star Tours first opened in each of these parks, there have been updates from time to time to keep the ride relevant to new stories, characters, and places throughout the “Star Wars” universe.
Star Tours, the very first “Star Wars”-oriented ride in the Disney Parks, premiered at Disneyland in 1987. Fans of the original Star Tours iteration may remember that R3X was the pilot before C-3PO. Though, in true Disney fashion, you can still see R3X in the parks -– DJing at Oga’s Cantina.
While we know that Ahsoka will be featured in some of the new Star Tours content, Disney didn’t elaborate on what else might be in store. Currently, the anticipated timeline for these new rollouts is spring 2024. Hopefully, somehow a Loth-cat makes an appearance because they are purr-fectly suited for spaceflight.
Revamped Country Bear Jamboree: Magic Kingdom, Disney World
Disney Photographer
This change will have some fans in a tizzy, but the Country Bear Jamboree in Magic Kingdom at Disney World is getting a (much-needed) overhaul. Starting in 2024, the show will be called the Country Bear Musical Jamboree. The new show will have the bears singing beloved Disney tunes reimagined in a country music style.
Don’t worry if you’re a Country Bears superfan — a lot of your favorite bears will still be there. Big Al, Trixie, and the triplets will be there, among others. However, this attraction has been in desperate need of an update for a long time. “Blood on the Saddle” doesn’t exactly scream “little kid-friendly experience,” with lyrics like “Oh pity the cowboy / all bloody and dead / A bronco fell on him and mashed in his head.”
In order to maintain that authentic, Southern sound, Imagineers working on the revamp are collaborating with musicians out of Nashville. Together they can combine the distinct country music vibes with the familiar Disney tunes. It brings to mind the Disneymania CDs from the early 2000s when pop stars performed revamped versions of Disney hits. That version of “The Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room” is still a bop.
Refurbished Disneyland Paris Hotel: Disneyland Paris
Disney Photographer
Starting in January 2024, guests can be treated like royalty once more at the reimagined Disneyland Paris Hotel. The entire property has been refurbished from top to bottom, and these five-star digs are returning with its iconic and very Parisian exterior intact.
Like the aforementioned new hotel at Tokyo DisneySea, the Disneyland Paris Hotel is a deluxe category hotel. It also presents a range of royal stories from the Disney universe instead of dedicating itself to one or two — though it obviously needs a bit of a “Beauty and the Beast” motif since it’s in France. You can enjoy some of that at La Table de Lumière or have a more general royal experience at The Royal Banquet.
There hasn’t been another Disney Parks hotel that has tried to combine as many of the existing royal stories as this hotel has. This newly refurbished accommodation even has elements from “The Sword in the Stone,” which is practically unheard of.
Zootopia Land: Shanghai Disneyland
Disney
Opening in late 2023 (so before the 2024 dates on the previously mentioned attractions), the new Zootopia Land area opens at Shanghai Disneyland. With a ride called Hot Pursuit featuring adorable animatronics of Clawhauser and Chief Bogo, unique merchandise and food offerings, and buildings that transport you to “Zootopia,” you’ll feel like you’ve just popped in from Bunnyburrow.
Since Zootopia Land takes you to the city itself, you also have the opportunity to see or interact with various characters from the film. From itty-bitty friends like Fru Fru to massive characters like Koslov the polar bear, there are all kinds of animals to meet in Shanghai Disneyland’s newest area.
You can even visit Jumbeaux’s Cafe for some “Zootopia”-themed snacks, like delectable red pawpsicles just like in the film. And you don’t have to buy them from Nick Wilde or worry that there will be hairs from Finnick in them, from making the molds with his paw in the snow.
World of Frozen: Hong Kong Disneyland
Disney Photographer
Experience Arendelle as you’ve never seen it before in Disney’s first expansive “Frozen”-themed land. Slated to open in November 2023, the World of Frozen at Hong Kong Disneyland will take you deep into the land of snow. Immersed in Arendelle itself, guests will be able to enjoy two new “Frozen” attractions, as well as shopping and dining experiences. The two new attractions include Oaken’s Sliding Sleighs — a coaster ride — and Frozen Ever After, where guests visit Arendelle for a Summer Snow Day.
Beyond the big attractions in this Disney Parks’ largest “Frozen”-themed land to date, the little details throughout Arendelle will impress even the most diehard fans of “Frozen.” Look up at the town’s clock tower, and amongst the intricately carved details, you’ll notice two figures of Elsa and Ana at the front of the clock. Plus, you can meet Oaken and other Arendelle villagers as they make their way through the area. They’ll greet you faster than you can say, “Yoohoo, big summer blowout!”
