Disney World Ride, Attractions, and Other Theme Park Closings and Refurbishments

This resource tracks ride, attraction, and other theme park closings and refurbishments at Walt Disney World. As you’re probably aware, most guests go into a Disney World vacation with a list of must-do attractions. You plan and plan for months, sometimes years. The last thing you want is to arrive at Disney World and find that one or more of your top-pick attractions are closed for refurbishment. It’s a sad day when you’re standing outside the gates of The Haunted Mansion only to find out the ride is closed. If you think about it, you can almost hear the ghost host laughing. But you’re not. How many times will you think, “I can’t believe we missed that,” over the course of your visit?

Sadly, it is inevitable that some rides and attractions will be closed for refurbishment or routine maintenance during your visit. Disney does their best to post these notices ahead of time. Naturally, things sometimes happen, and only short notices are provided. We try to maintain an ongoing list to help you plan. Below, we’ve listed scheduled refurbishments and closings for the theme parks. If you’re looking for similar information on the resorts, we keep a separate list of Disney Resort Hotel Refurbishments.

Updated: March 15, 2026

Permanent Closings in Recent Years

As you may have heard, the theme park landscape is drastically changing in three of the four Disney World theme parks. To help you stay abreast of these changes, we’ve added this list of permanent closures:

  • Magic Kingdom Permanent Closures
    • Liberty Square Riverboat (Closed Permanently July 7, 2025)
    • Tom Sawyer Island and Rivers of America (Closed Permanently July 7, 2025)

*These closings were to make way for a Frontierland expansion that features a new Cars-themed area called Piston Peak and an entirely new land themed to Disney Villains.

  • Disney’s Hollywood Studios Permanent Closures
    • Mama Melrose’s Ristorante Italiano (Closed Permanently May 10, 2025)
    • Muppet Vision 3D (Closed Permanently June 7, 2025)
    • PizzeRizzo (Closed Permanently June 7, 2025)

*These closings were to make way for a new Monsters, Inc.-themed land that features Disney Parks’ first-ever hanging roller coaster.

  • More Permanent Closures at Disney’s Hollywood Studios
    • Animation Courtyard, except for The Little Mermaid: A Musical Adventure
    • Star Wars Launch Bay (Closed Permanently September 25, 2025)
    • Disney Junior Play and Dance (Closed Permanently September 25, 2025)
    • Disney Visa Star Wars Meet-and-Greet (Closed Permanently September 25, 2025)

*These closings happened to make way for a new animation-inspired experience and a Walt Disney Studios Lot coming to this area of the park.

  • Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith (Closed Permanently March 1, 2026)*

*This attraction closed to be re-imagined into a similar ride starring The Muppets.

  • Disney’s Animal Kingdom Permanent Closures
    • It’s Tough to Be a Bug permanently closed on March 17, 2025. (*Replaced by Zootopia: Better Zoogether)
    • Areas of Dinoland, U.S.A., specifically TriceraTop Spin, Fossil Fuel Games, and Chester and Hester’s Dinosaur Treasures, permanently closed on January 13, 2025.
    • The Boneyard Playground permanently closed on September 2, 2025.
    • Trilo-Bites and Dino-Bite Snacks permanently closed on October 20, 2025
    • DINOSAUR and the rest of Dinoland U.S.A. closed on February 2, 2026
    • Rafiki’s Planet Watch, The Animation Experience at Conservation Station, and Affection Section permanently closed on February 23, 2026. (*This area is being reimagined as a new Bluey experience that will open on May 26, 2026.)

Dinoland, U.S.A., permanently closed on February 2, 2026, to make way for a new Tropical Americas-themed land called Pueblo Esperanza. The DINOSAUR attraction will be rethemed to a new Indiana Jones attraction. The land will also be home to the first-ever Encanto-themed attraction.

Magic Kingdom Refurbishments

The following notices are in place for Magic Kingdom:

  • Cinderella Castle is being repainted in 2026. Disney has noted that you might see cranes around the castle on or before noon each day. There could be slight entertainment changes to Let the Magic Begin (welcome show), Mickey’s Magical Friendship Faire (castle stage show), and Happily Ever After. You’ll want to check the entertainment schedule in the My Disney Experience app on the day of your visit.
  • Pete’s Silly Sideshow
    • Closed for refurbishment on January 5, 2026
    • Walt Disney World has announced that the characters who meet inside the circus tent of Pete’s Silly Sideshow will be temporarily relocated, starting January 4, 2026.
  • Big Top Souvenirs

Walt Disney World Website Statement: Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin will be temporarily closed for refurbishment beginning August 4, 2025, and is planned to reopen on April 8, 2026.

Walt Disney World Website Statement: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad will temporarily close for refurbishment on January 6, 2025. The attraction will reopen with a little bit of new magic in Spring 2026.

  • Walt Disney World Railroad (STILL OPEN)
    • This attraction currently operates on a reduced route. (Details)

Walt Disney World Website Statement: To make way for the largest expansion in history at Magic Kingdom, the Walt Disney World Railroad will be operating under a modified route that excludes Frontierland station. The attraction will operate as a shuttle between Main Street Station and Fantasyland Station only.

Epcot Refurbishments

The following notices are posted for Epcot:

  • Soarin’ Around the World at Epcot will close on May 13th. A new simulated ride experience called Soarin’ Across America will replace it. Soarin’ Across America is scheduled to open on May 26th.
  • Impressions de France and the Beauty and the Beast Sing Along: These attractions, which share the same theater, will be temporarily unavailable due to refurbishment starting February 22nd. The announcement does not list the length of expected downtime.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios Refurbishments

The following notices are available for Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

  • Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster
    • Closed on March 1, 2026 (Closing Announcement)
    • The Muppets will take over this attraction sometime this summer. (2026)

Info: Disney announced that the Muppets Takeover of Rock ‘n’ Roller will debut at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in the summer of 2026. An exact opening date for the newly themed attraction has not been given at this time.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Refurbishments

The following notices are posted:

  • Rafiki’s Planet Watch permanently closed on February 23, 2026. When the area reopens, it will be referred to as Conservation Station. A new experience called Bluey’s Wild World is set to debut on May 26, 2026. A new animal area called Jumping Junction replaces the former Affection Section. The Wildlife Express Train is also closed until this area of the park reopens later in May.

Disney Water Park Refurbishments

  • Blizzard Beach reopened on February 15, 2026. (Announcement)
  • Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon closed for refurbishment on February 14, 2026. The park will reopen on May 12, 2026. (Reopening Announcement)

Other

  • The Disney Skyliner
    • Per Disney, the Skyliner will close for refurbishment from January 24, 2027, to January 30, 2027. (See the 2027 closures details here.)

Final Thoughts

Disney’s ride closure and refurbishment schedule is often extensive and continually ongoing. With so many attractions, this kind of work is to be expected. We update this guide as we become aware of these changes. So make sure to check back often for more details. For more details about planning your park visit, our Disney Parks Guide is a good place to start. Check back with Resorts Gal soon!

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