Future at Disneyland

July 12, 2019, 4:53 PM

I was wondering, what lands and/or attractions does the future hold at Disneyland and California Adventure? Other than Star Wars and Marvel. I know the Mickey and Minnie Railroad train ride will be built in Toon town.

Will Disney just focus on Star Wars, and Marvel at the Disneyland Resort? Will they just continue to expand, like Universal has done with Harry Potter? Has anyone heard any other types of rides that are being discussed at Disneyland?

Replies (5)

Edited: July 15, 2019, 12:06 PM

You've already identified additions that take Disneyland into the middle of the next decade. Anything beyond that is just spitballing, and who knows what Disneyland can do since their ability to build new attractions will likely be limited by available space.

For now, you've got the start of the Marvel Land taking over the Bug's Life area of California Adventure and a proposed future expansion for a new e-ticket attraction behind Guardians that's not likely to be done until 2023. Then you've got MMRR at DL that probably won't be ready until 2021-22. Considering all Disney has done with the Anaheim resort over the course of 5-8 years (through 2023), you'd be hard pressed to figure out where they're going to go next until they're able to expand the size of the resort.

July 15, 2019, 8:03 PM

Phase one of Marvel Land is coming next year. Runaway Railway will be 2022. There are plans for a Fantasyland/Tomorrowland overhaul (either/or, not both) for the 70th anniversary and a second phase of Marvel Land, but given what has happened with Galaxy's Edge it's entirely possible those could change. Anything else is either too far out, too small, or too unsubstantiated to be worth speculating on at this point. D23 is coming up next month...perhaps something will be announced there.

July 16, 2019, 2:31 PM

It seems as if Disneyland is focused on Marvel and Star Wars. As they should be. Mickey & Minnie’s Runway Railway will be a nice addition to Toon Town. But why is it coming to Disneyland and 2022, and Disney World in 2020? Why the two-year gap in between?

As far as Marvel, I know phase 1 is opening next year with Spider-Man. When will phase 2 open? The following year? AJ, what have you heard about a possible overhaul for either Fantasyland, or Tomorrowland?

July 16, 2019, 5:27 PM

>>But why is it coming to Disneyland and 2022, and Disney World in 2020? Why the two-year gap in between?

Probably because its easier to find room for things at WDW. DL generally requires something to be removed, so there's a lot of work to identify exactly what that should be, make the footprints work, and remove it.

July 16, 2019, 8:29 PM

"Mickey & Minnie’s Runway Railway will be a nice addition to Toon Town. But why is it coming to Disneyland and 2022, and Disney World in 2020? Why the two-year gap in between?"

First off, in Florida the attraction is going into an existing structure, while in California they are clearing space behind Toontown and building an entirely new structure for it. Secondly, construction started in Florida in 2017, but it didn't get the official green light in California until this past spring, so it would have been impossible to start construction before then. Additionally, like Chad mentioned, there were three or four locations under consideration as to where to put the ride, with the plan being to squeeze it into DCA up until less than a year ago. Why that changed I cannot say, but it was probably a combination of the decision not to remove Toontown for a new land and the decision to focus on more modern Disney properties in DCA.

Phase two of Marvel Land will be opening in 2022 at the earliest, but it may be longer than that. I know they want to have it open by the 70th anniversary, so look for that any time between 2022 and 2025.

Regarding Fantasyland/Tomorrowland...

-If the Tomorrowland refurb happens, it will be mostly focused on the front of the area. The plan is to replace Star Tours and Buzz Lightyear with new attractions (though likely just overlays to reuse the ride systems), remove the bottleneck at the entrance, and demolish the exposed portion of the PeopleMover track completely. Astro Orbiter may be relocated or simply removed. Beyond this, there may also be a new ride added in the former Innoventions building (though not necessarily an E-ticket). From what I've heard, Nemo and Autopia aren't going anywhere and they may leave the portions of the PeopleMover above that area. Also, no Tron at Disneyland (the ride is too massive).
-If Fantasyland is chosen, the main new attraction would be an E-ticket on the site of the Fantasyland Theater. Frozen is/was a frontrunner for this, but is not the only thing under consideration (if it still is, I suspect the performance of Frozen 2 to determine which land gets the redo). The rest of the area will get refreshed, but nothing notable as far as other attractions go (no Seven Dwarfs, Beauty and the Beast, etc.).

Again, the above is still in development and still very subject to change. Six years is a long time when it comes to theme park development, and until Disney actually announces something and begins construction don't assume it's definitely happening.

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