My one rule about Disney is that they are always changing. Prices change, attractions change, restaurants change, and resorts change. They even changed how you wear your tickets and use Fastpass. Yep, Disney is always changing. There are so many changes happening in the next few months that I decided to list them in one post. I couldn’t include all of them so expect more news in future. Both the Disney Parks Blog and TouringPlans.com have more detail so I am including links to their informative pages.
- Seven Dwarfs Mine Train opens May 28. There has been a lot of posts about this final addition to New Fantasyland at the Magic Kingdom. I have ignored most of it because I won’t have an opinion until I ride it. I do think it is a cute idea but it looks like a kids version of Big Thunder Mountain. Perhaps that is what it is supposed to be. I do look forward to trying out the interactive queue and I bet the ride will be lots of fun.
- Festival of the Lion King reopens in June. I always see the Festival of the Lion King when I visit Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The combination of music, costumes, acrobatics, and story makes this one of the best shows at Walt Disney World. It used to live at the far end of Camp Minnie Mickey but was closed because they are turning that area into Avatar Land (Hooray! Sigh.) Luckily, that was not the end of this amazing show. Disney has built a new theater in Africa (where it obviously belongs) for the Festival of the Lion King. I am really excited to see it again. The old building wasn’t perfectly set up for this show and I expect the new building to make the experience even more amazing.
- Harambe Nights Celebrates 20 years of The Lion King. Can you believe the Lion King is twenty years old? Seems like we’ve always been saying “Hakuna Matata!” One of the goals Disney has is giving Disney’s Animal Kingdom a night life. This is hard to do since the animals are all asleep. This summer you can celebrate the Lion King at Disney’s Animal Kingdom with Harambe Nights. This ticketed event includes a reception and buffet featuring great African food and wines. The highlight of the evening is “The Lion King – Concert Gone Wild.” This new show will be narrated by a variety of celebrities. Check the schedule to see who will be featured each night. It sounds like a wild party.
- River of Lights is coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom. This new night show will be expanding Animal Kingdom’s hours. It looks a lot like World of Color at Disney California Adventure. I’ll tell the truth. I thought World of Color would be good but I didn’t care if I saw it or not. Boy was I wrong. It is the most amazing thing ever. The combination of pictures on the water screens and music brought tears to my eyes. I was forever changed. River of Lights promises to be even better so I will not be missing it.
If you have not been to the Disney parks for a while I would start planning your next trip. It sounds like a lot of fun things are happening and who knows when things will change again. Happiness squared.
Goofy Tip: If you thinking you won’t have enough time to see everything never fear. From 6 a.m. on May 23 to 6 a.m. on May 24 the Magic Kingdom, Disneyland, and Disney California Adventure will be open 24 hours. I think I would sleep for the week before to prepare for that much Disney at one time.