Disney D23 shows off its largest Imagineering pavilion ever

Completely uniformed opinion: Absent a worldwide crisis (economy, pandemic, etc.), Piston Peak National Park ALONE, is going to push the Magic Kingdom's annual attendance to more than 20 million (TEA/AECOM 2030).

I think that's certainly likely TH, and Disney has probably targeted that milestone before they even demolished ROA/TSI. According to the TEA Index, MK saw 17.836 million guests in 2024. MK's high water mark, achieved in 2019, was 20.96 million, so I think there's an expectation that the park can one day achieve or exceed that number again. Frankly, they could probably get to 20 million in 5 years without the addition of Piston Peak given that most successful parks have been growing their attendance 3-4% year over year since Pandemic restrictions ended in 2022. All MK would need is a single 8-10% jump, and the park will leap over that 20 million number in the next 5 years, so to predict such an achievement occurring over that time is a pretty low bar. Also, let's not ignore the fact that MK (and virtually every other theme park on the planet) has yet to achieve attendance numbers that were recorded prior to 2020, so getting back to those numbers within a decade should be a mandate, not an aspirational goal.

If were going to gauge the success of Piston Peak, lets take a look at the year over year growth driven by that attraction by looking solely at data from 2027 (pre-Piston Peak), 2028 (half year Piston Peak), and 2029 (full year Piston Peak and likely half year Villains). If MK sees a significant increase in growth in 2028 and 2029, then we can look back on the loss of ROA and TSI with a very different view.

If the scale of the Avatar Experience’s show building is any indication, it would seem to be a major attraction, despite online conjecture and brow-furrowing reports to the contrary. The seating capacity of the display model of the ride boats alone seem to indicate that it will also be a people eater, unless mine eyes deceive me.

@fattyackin - I definitely agree. That model lands with about the same amount of smackdown to critics as the earnings report statement confirming the Avatar "Experience" at DCA. The clear presence of boats in the model almost 100% confirms the long-rumored Battle for the Sunken Treasure ride system, and I think the use of that should deliver a very thrilling and dynamic experience. The real question will be how much more will there be to this area, because the use of the term "experience" in the earnings call and the presence of a ride in the model would suggest that Disney is planning for something more in terms of place making and perhaps retail/dining. PtWoA at DAK is a fully realized land with 2 attractions, dining, retail, shows, and interactive activities, so if DCA's Avatar "experience" is something less (and clearly would occupy a smaller footprint), what other stuff will this area contain?

Once Piston, Villains, Trop and Monsters open, there'll be no catching Disney (TEA/AECOM) in the Orlando market.

@russell:
Though it hasn’t been announced with any detail yet, possibly even to put a lid on out-sized expectations, there could be a chance of a small scale Moana type water themed walk-through there as well. Not for nothing, the locale of this attraction definitely takes its inspiration from the second film Avatar: The Way of WATER (emphasis mine). I fully expect the main boat ride to be the Belle of the Ball and could possibly see something like the aforementioned walk-through being almost brushed to the side as a secondary experience without major emphasis put on it. Obviously this is all conjecture on my part, but an aquatic sensory walkthrough would be a perfect fit for both the IP and the local temperatures in my opinion.

I realize that these are all projects distributed throughout every worldwide market. But the sheer amount of major attractions and / or new lands that have broken ground at the moment is staggering. WDI is building about 2 theme parks worth of E and D ticket rides around the world at the moment. I’ve said it many times here and I’ll say it again now: universal moves a chess piece, Disney counters, universal moves again, Disney counters again. And so it keeps going. Disney uncorks all this cool s**t and universal rolls out its UK park. It’s a great time to be a theme park fan.

@fattyackin - Completely agree, Disney is truly working in overdrive right now, but I wonder if this is making up for lost time from the Pandemic, which not only slowed in-progress projects (Tron, TBA, Guardians, and EPCOT renovation), but put the brakes on the development process, so would these projects have been more spaced out had the world not shut down?

Assuming Universal UK opens in 2030, Disney's chief competitor will have added 2 major theme parks in the span of a decade (along with numerous other major attractions at existing parks), so this massive push to add and expand from Disney is very much tit for tat.

Russell: "Assuming Universal UK opens in 2030, Disney's chief competitor will have added 2 major theme parks in the span of a decade (along with numerous other major attractions at existing parks), so this massive push to add and expand from Disney is very much tit for tat".

Me: I'm sorry, but "numerous other major attractions"? I count two that are under construction in Orlando: a cloned coaster replacing a coaster and a new land that Mr. Niles suspects is being scaled down (Reference TPI podcast episode "Making it rain in a good way" at 8:30). Also I hope they don't rush the construction of that UK park. That sort of "get-it-done-fast" approach didn't seem to serve them very well in Texas.

Other than those two concepts and faced with a cut-and-run from Comcast, all we really have is hyperbole over building permits from wannabe theme park designers who happen to have a vlog.

"a cloned coaster replacing a coaster" - F&F in Orlando has a completely different layout and elements than the USH coaster. The coasters are "clones" in name and train design only.

Let's give Universal another year to get the UK park open so they're not rushing it like the Texas park, and track the completed additions and projects expected to be completed over that decade (2021 through 2031).

Epic Universe
Universal UK
Super Nintendo World (USH)
F&F (USH)
F&F (USF)
Velocicoaster (IOA)
Super Nintendo Land and Donkey Kong Country (USJ)
Lost Continent replacement (IOA)
F&F Supercharged replacement (USF) - the closure announcement suggests UC has concrete plans to rework this attraction (rumors are pointing to Twister(s))
Epic Universe expansion(s)

Those are all completed or major projects in process and don't include "small ball" additions like Villain-con (USF/USJ), Secret Life of Pets (USH/USJ and potentially USF), and Dreamworks Land (USF), nor does it include the potential of rumored projects to be completed before 2031 like the Springfield retheme (USF and USH) and Jurassic Park/World project (IOA).

And on again with your assumption that Comcast spinning off NBC/Universal will instantly lead to decline. I just don't understand why you keep falling back on that high level business decision as a roadblock for the success of the parks division. It's a tiring refrain that's based on the false premise that the new company is being set up for failure. Why are you so insistent that NBC/ Universal cannot survive or thrive without the support of a parent that operates as a utility with limited opportunities for growth. I tend to think the split actually favors NBC/Universal as a separate entity that actually produces revenue and provides a much higher ceiling for growth than being coupled with a utility company providing a commodity that is declining.

@Russell -- I'll add that if they get UUK open in 2031, that's technically THREE major theme park openings in a decade:

- Universal Beijing
- Epic Universe
- Universal UK

Really excited about everything coming down the pike at Disney parks! Though, am I hallucinating or was the Hong Kong drop tower originally announced as a Spider-Man ride? Now it seems to be Avengers-focused.

@Russell: Where's your source for "rumors are pointing to Twister(s))"?

@TH - There are 2 different UO insider groups who have indicated UC has been looking for a way to capitalize on the Twister IP following the success of the sequel (and loss of the original attraction over a decade ago), and that the Supercharged platform provides a natural opportunity given Universal's history of applying disaster-themed IPs to the traditional studio tram experience that Supercharged's ride system is based upon.

Again, just rumors, but they certainly seem very plausible. For all we know, they could go with Ghostbusters, BTTF, Beetlejuice, or any other number of IPs, but I doubt they would have accelerated the closure of Supercharged if they didn't have solid plans for that space in the near term. Ultimately, why does the specific IP matter when UC has announced an earlier than expected closure of a low-rated attraction to theoretically replace it with something (anything) better?

Russell: "There are 2 different UO insider groups who have indicated UC has been looking for a way to capitalize on the Twister IP".

Me: Right. Got a link?

https://insidethemagic.net/2026/08/universal-parks-classic-attractions-returning-emd1/
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbuGFfdgBA4/

Both of these piggyback on the idea that the finale of the USH Tram Tour, which closed over a year ago, would be ported to USF given the similarity of the ride system and technology employed.

Are you trying to track down moles giving away secrets of your upcoming projects?

Probably an unpopular opinion here but I think the “static tram experience attraction” that has been previously housed (choose whichever version you like) here has run its course, especially without the buildup of an actual tram tour to set it up. I’m hoping that this thing gets gutted and UC builds a whole new attraction system in its place. It’s a rather sizable footprint after all. I realize that the cost of this would be significantly higher than just making a new “tram ride” but hey, a guy can hope can’t he?

@fattyackin - That's the thing. Universal completely gutted the space after Disaster closed to make way for F&F, and utilized a brand new ride system (similar to Skull Island over at IOA that opened in 2016) - the old Disaster/Earthquake system was a coupled train-style vehicle that moved forward onto the effects stage and then backwards returning to the load/unload platform, not the complete circuit system used by the current F&F ride system. The Party Busses are not that old (opened in 2018), so Universal would probably want to get a decent lifespan out of that investment into the ride system. It's possible parts could be used over at Skull Island, but it would probably still be chalked up as a loss if Universal decided to gut Supercharged and installed an entirely new (and different) ride system, assuming they have chosen to put a "ride" into the space.

Welp. in that case I guess get ready for the inevitable WWoHP Triple Decker Knight Bus simulator attraction…

Incidentally, the 2027 Super Bowl will be on ABC/ESPN ... I imagine Tropical Americas and 'Frozen 3' will be making an appearance ... Maybe NBC/U ... or ... um ... PIF ... will run an ad promoting the 2028 opening of the F&F cloner-coaster ... or another Minions thing.

I wouldn't be surprised if Disney announces a new Cars movie (perhaps for Disney+) to be released in time for Piston Peak's grand opening.

All of this definitely incredible. I'll agree with TH on at least one thing- I hope that this is all so successful that Universal has no choice but to launch another wave of expansion into their parks before 2035, and I wouldn't be shocked if the way they do that is appealing to legacy IPs like Twister, Jaws, Ghostbusters, and BTTF in the near future.

@V-Coaster: "Hope" until your heart's content. But NBC/U/PIF is already paying for two Orlando projects (under construction at IOA and USF) and (my guess) a third planned for Epic (another Potter thing that might open in 2030-ish [?]).

With all of that on their plate, if NBC/U/PIF decides to dip into its checking account and go retro at USF, it's gonna be something cheap (screens) -- especially if they are going to replace both F&FSC and Simpsons.

Related: Get used to experiencing Transformers (now 15 years old), Mummy (22 years old) and the "needs to be retired" Animal show (36 years old) -- because it seems like they'll be around for the another decade.

Piston Peak does look pretty sensational and, yes, it will boost attendance significantly for some time once opened. While Universal has been winning the more recent battles I do feel the tide is turning back in Disney's favour as the decade progresses.....and then Villains Land will open. Universal need to come up with the goods and antiquated IPs aren't the answer, I'm afraid, regardless of what modern technology can do.

PP: "While Universal has been winning the more recent battles ..."

Me: No it hasn't ... Comcast is pulling a Sir Robin ("Run away!") and their most recent quarterly report is embarrassing ... Universal is locked into a forever second place.

"Comcast is pulling a Sir Robin"
lol

TH, we'll agree to disagree. WWoHP has outshone anything and everything Disney has done in the last decade including Star Wars and EPIC Universe has transformed their offering and multi-stay experience in Orlando. However, based on what Robert's D23 report has highlighted Disney is hitting back and hitting back strongly enough to continue its market share dominance into the 2030s. The ball, and it has to be a large one, is now back in Universal's court to counter and compete. D23 announcements are very impressive creating huge anticipation amongst all of us.

@ProfPlum: I refer you to the words of Russell Meyer, (07/13/26): "... let's not fool ourselves about what is going on at UO. The permits for Epic were filed months ago, and from most reports, very little is happening right now - just some basic land clearing and grading that had started before Epic officially opened. Yes, the latest permits indicate that progress will accelerate soon, but I haven't seen a single picture of a footer or a building pad. The same goes for IOA, which, yes has seen quite a bit of activity of late, but most of that is simple demo, which is easily executed and appears to demonstrate rapid progress but is typically a minor phase of an overall reconstruction project. Let's not forget that Sinbad closed nearly 8 years ago and Poseidon's Fury closed over 2 years ago, meaning that Lost Continent limped along with just the Mystic Fountain and Mythos for nearly 2 years before Universal made its first move to redevelop the land - compared to Disney, they closed Dinoland just earlier this year and expect to have the Tropical Americas retheme open sometime next year (I'd wager in the later quarter), so in the time it took Universal to figure out what to do with Lost Continent, Disney will have rethemed a new land, which includes a brand new attraction and re-skinned another"