Disney World New Attractions: What's Opened Recently & New Attractions Opening Soon! [new rides, timelines & D23 announcements]

Want to hear about the Disney World new attractions – and ones due to open in the next few years? This is the post for you!

Unlike Universal Studios Orlando, Disney World is known for its iconic attractions – that have been standing for 50+ years.

However, with the rise of competition from Universal (Epic Universe opening in 2024), Disney is finally investing in their parks.

Which means Disney World new attractions are being planned, built and are opening over the next few years!

From rides that have opened in recent years to ones set to open by 2028, let’s discuss all the Disney World new additions and plans you should know about.

This post is all about the Disney World new attractions, so know what’s new at Disney World for your future vacation(s).

Disney World New Attractions

Disney World New Attractions 2024 (& a little before)

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure

Height Requirement: 40in (102cm)

Highlights: Log-flume ride

Location: Frontierland, Magic Kingdom

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is a re-theme of the well-known Splash Mountain ride.

If you’ve never been on Splash Mountain, and have no expectations going into this, you’ll probably think it’s a decent attraction.

That being said, the storyline is weak (little more than planning a party), and not all animatronics are not made the same (some are practically glorified mannequins).

If you’ve experienced Splash Mountain, you may still like this attraction. And if the storyline was more interesting, it could be at least almost as good as Splash Mountain.

But overall, Tiana deserved better than this ride (in my opinion).

As expected, reviews are mixed on this Disney ride. I highly recommend experiencing it and going in with an open mind.

But if you’re expecting it to be the best attraction just because it’s new at Disney World, you may be disappointed.

On the bright side, the huge drop is still *a lot* of fun and provides gorgeous views of Magic Kingdom – so you could argue this ride is good for that reason alone!

TRON Lightcycle/Run

Height Restriction: 48in (122cm) +

Highlights: Fast, thrilling roller coaster

Location: Tomorrowland, Magic Kingdom

TRON is a high-speed roller coaster. It transports you into the digital world of TRON, offering a racing experience.

What’s unique about it? The seat. It feels like you’re sitting far forward on a motorcycle (the closest comparison is the seats on Avatar Flight of Passage at Animal Kingdom).

The downside? This ride is a little under a minute. So, if you spend a long time in line (1 hour+), are you going to be disappointed?

Although the seating is unique on the roller coaster, nothing else is that extraordinary.

Is it a good ride? Sure. Is it the most impressive roller coaster at Disney World?

Well, it doesn’t quite compare to the next ride we’re discussing …

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind

Height Restriction: 42in (107cm) +

Highlights: Dark, thrilling, roller coaster – with great music

Location: World Discovery

This Marvel roller coaster takes you on a thrilling journey through space and time.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind features reverse-launch on a roller coaster, which really is as impressive as it sounds.

To tell the story, this ride relies quite heavily on screens. Usually, this just feels like a cost-saving measure. But, with the impressive track, the relative reliance on screens feels less irritating.

Also, this is the first – and only – roller coaster in Epcot, so it is a welcome addition.

Does a Marvel roller coaster make thematic sense in Epcot? Not really.

But is it a good ride? Yes.

Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana

Height Requirement: 42in (107cm) +

Highlights: Picturesque walk-through attraction

Location: World Nature, Epcot

This walk-through attraction offers a peaceful escape.

Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana is designed to educate and engage, showing the vital connection of water to our planet.

This immersive experience encourages you to connect with nature and learn about the water cycle in a way that’s interactive and fun.

Similarly to Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, it makes little to no thematic sense in Epcot.

It’s pretty, but I wouldn’t recommend making the trip to Disney World just to experience this decent walk-through attraction.

Country Bear Musical Jamboree

Height Requirement: No height requirement

Highlights: Music show with animatronics

Location: Frontierland, Magic Kingdom

The beloved Country Bear Jamboree was updated to the new Country Bear Musical Jamboree.

The result? It’s less funny with more recognizable music.

Because this is Bob Iger’s Disney – so IP has to be almost everywhere.

Objectively, is this show more polished and modern now? Absolutely.

But was this show meant to be perfect?

No, not really. It was meant to be funny.

The Country Bear Jamboree hasn’t been wrecked. But it’s certainly less humorous and charming.

Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure

After opening in 2014 at Disneyland Paris, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure was replicated in the France Pavilion at Epcot in 2021.

This is innovative, as it is a trackless ride. However, it requires the use of 3D glasses – as it is a screen-based attraction. This makes it feel outdated – although the Disney World version is still in its first few years of operation.

That being said, in this ride, you become the size of a rat and basically re-live the movie.

It’s a good ride, but it feels dated compared to other (relatively similar) rides that opened in the late 2019-2020:

Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway – a screen-based, trackless ride – that does not require the use of 3D glasses.
Rise of the Resistance – a trackless ride with less of a reliance on screens – with impressive animatronics.

Disney World New Attractions Coming Soon

Disney World New Attractions D23

At the 2024 D23, we finally got some Disney World new announcements for upcoming attractions (as well as other parks, such as Disneyland and Disneyland Paris).

Here is a list of Disney World new attractions 2025 and beyond:

Tropical Americas (Animal Kingdom) – set to replace Dinoland, U.S.A., scheduled to welcome visitors in 2027. This area will feature rides inspired by Encanto and Indiana Jones (so not as animal-themed as you’d think from this park, but hopefully it will make *some* thematic sense. Until we have more details, we’ll just have to hope this is a worthwhile replacement).
Monsters Inc. Land (Hollywood Studios) – in the works and will be home to Disney’s first-ever suspended coaster, through the monster factory. Construction will begin in 2026.
Cars Land (Magic Kingdom) – will take over Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of America. We don’t know much about this, but it will be different from Cars Land at California Adventure in Disneyland. The concept art makes the ride in this land look a lot like Radiator Springs Racers, but hopefully we’ll get more information soon. Work is due to start in early 2025.
Villains Land (Magic Kingdom) – The long-rumored land finally making its way to Disney World. We have almost no information on this. We’re not expecting this to open much before 2030 at the earliest.
Test Track 3.0 (Epcot) – In 2025, Test Track 3.0 is opening – that nods to the classic World of Motion attraction from Epcot’s past.
Zootopia: Better Together! (Animal Kingdom) – a 4D show meant to open in winter 2025, replacing It’s Tough To Be a Bug in the Tree of Life theater.
A New Storyline on the Millennium Falcon (Hollywood Studios) – This will be the first major change since it opened in 2019.

Frequently Asked Questions about Disney World New Attractions

What is Disney World’s newest attraction?

At the time of writing this post, the Country Bear Musical Jamboree is the newest attraction (if we’re considering this as a different attraction to the pretty different Country Bear Jamboree).

What are they adding to Disney World?

At D23 2024, Disney announced lots of attractions and lands being added to Disney World. See the list above for the details!

How far in advance can we expect to hear about new attractions?

Disney usually announces major attractions a few years in advance at events like the D23 Expo and Destination D23 or through official Disney Parks blogs and press releases.

Do new attractions mean park ticket prices will increase?

Disney World tickets see increases in price over time for a number of reasons, including new attractions.

Disney often adjusts pricing based on demand, operational costs (and because they’re a company trying to make a lot of money from the parks)!

What new land is coming to Magic Kingdom?

The Cars and Villains Lands are the new lands coming to Magic Kingdom in future years.

Ta Ta For Now

Do you like the new attractions at Disney World? And, are you excited for the upcoming Disney World new attractions?!

Share your thoughts in the comments 🙂

This post was all about the Disney World new attractions, so know what’s new at Disney World for your future vacation(s).

Disney World New Attractions: What’s Opened Recently & New Attractions Opening Soon! [new rides, timelines & D23 announcements]