Are the Parks in Disney World Decreasing in Quality? [closing great attractions, mediocre new attractions]

If you’ve been visiting the Disney parks for a number of years, you may have noticed something unimpressive about the parks in Disney World.

This is that they *may* be decreasing in quality.

Although Disney World is home to three of the top 10 visited theme parks in the world, it doesn’t mean that the parks have always aged well.

From closing great attractions and opening subpar replacements and new rides, there are plenty of reasons why many of us believe that the theme parks in Disney World may be losing their infamous quality.

Even though the Disney World tickets are crazy expensive, unfortunately, it doesn’t mean the parks are crazy impressive.

In today’s post, we’ll discuss if the parks at Disney World are actually getting worse and why.

This post is all about determining if the parks in Disney World are decreasing in quality.

Parks in Disney World

How many Disney Parks are there in Orlando?

Wondering: ‘how many Disney World parks are there’?

Disney has four theme parks, including:

Magic Kingdom (since 1971)
Epcot (since 1982)
Hollywood Studios (since 1989)
Animal Kingdom (since 1998)

Disney also has two water parks:

Typhoon Lagoon (since 1989)
Blizzard Beach (since 1995)

In this post, we are focusing on the theme parks.

The Closing of Iconic Attractions

In recent years, there’s been a lot of talk about whether the parks in Disney World are keeping up with the magic that made them famous. A big part of this conversation centers around the closing of some beloved attractions. When rides that have thrilled guests for decades suddenly vanish, it leaves many wondering if something special is being lost forever. Let’s explore some of the notable closures and how people have reacted to these changes.

Examples of Closed Attractions

Several iconic attractions in Disney World have closed their doors, leaving fans across the globe reminiscing about their favorite rides. These closures aren’t just about removing old rides; they often represent a significant shift in focus or strategy for Disney, reflecting broader changes in the parks’ experiences.

Great Movie Ride: This classic opening day Hollywood Studios attraction, which took guests on a journey through cinematic history, closed in 2017. It combined animatronics with real-life cast member actors to take you on a journey throughout the movies – from The Wizard of Oz to Alien.
Splash Mountain: This ride has a controversial history, which other posts/articles have covered in more detail (this is a great detailed post about Splash Mountain). In this post, we will be focusing solely on the ride. This attraction was considered by many to be the best log flume ever created. With lots of animatronics and thrilling drops, it was one of Magic Kingdom’s most popular attractions for three decades.

The Emergence of Mediocre New Attractions

Have you ever wondered if the new attractions at the Parks in Disney World live up to the magic we all expect? There’s been quite a buzz about whether these new experiences are keeping pace with the iconic ones that have been closed. Let’s dive into the details and see what’s really happening.

Overview of New Attractions

Recently, Disney World has introduced several new attractions. Here’s a peek at what’s new:

TRON Lightcycle Run: Located in Magic Kingdom, this ride propels guests into the digital world of Tron, promising thrills on futuristic motorbikes. Whilst this is interesting, the actual roller coaster is just okay – without telling a story as interesting as Big Thunder Mountain or Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.

parks at disney world — 📷 Credit: Disney PhotoPass

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure: This movie was worthy of a great attraction, and it got an … okay attraction. This attraction doesn’t have a strong storyline and has fewer animatronics than Splash Mountain. This wouldn’t be that noticeable if this wasn’t a replacement for Splash Mountain. There are a few times where there are screens instead of animatronics on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, which cheapens the ride experience – instead of enhancing it (like on Na’vi River Journey at Animal Kingdom). These shortcomings are explained in more detail in this interesting article.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind: Opening in 2022 as the first roller coaster at Epcot, you get to travel through space and time! This is one of the few new innovative attractions at Disney World. For example, it has the first reverse-launch on a Disney roller coaster! Which sounds – and actually feels – impressive. Although screens are utilised – perhaps slightly too much – the impressive track pretty much makes up for it.

Disney World VS Universal Studios

Universal Studios is often mentioned in the same breath when talking about exceptional park experiences.

With its thrilling rides themed around blockbuster movies, as well as adding innovative concepts like The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Universal Studios Orlando has become very popular.

In fact, according to BlogMickey, Universal Studios Florida had an estimated 9.75 million visitors and Islands of Adventure an estimated 10 million visitors in 2023.

This beats Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park – which had an estimated 8.8 million guests in 2023.

That being said,

But instead of looking at last year’s number, the real “threat” to Disney World is the third Universal theme park opening in 2025: Epcot.

Scheduled to welcome guests from summer 2025, Epic Universe will turn Universal Studios into a multi-park experience.

Although we don’t have extensive details about Epic Universe, we know that the new attractions will likely draw an impressive attendance. We can expect to see at least a slight decrease in attendance at the Orlando Disney parks.

Will Disney Increase in Quality in the Future?

Maybe.

Disney has announced a long list of new attractions for the Disney World Parks at D23 2024, including:

Tropical Americas – a new land replacing Dinoland, U.S.A. at Animal Kingdom Park – set to open in 2027 – with an Enchanto and Indiana Jones rides.
Monsters Inc. Land – This new land will open at Hollywood Studios with Disney’s first suspended coaster that will take you through the infamous monster factory!
Cars Land/Area – This will replace Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of America. This is supposed to be different to Cars Land at California Adventure at Disneyland, but details are currently sparing.
Villains Land – This long-awaited and rumoured land will be coming to the Magic Kingdom. Exact details haven’t been released, but this has the potential to be one of the most popular lands at the park (if done right).
Test Track 3.0 – The latest version of Test Track will open in 2025. This isn’t a new ride but is an “upgraded” version, which is inspired by the long-gone World of Motion attraction at Epcot (1982-1996).
Zootopia: Better Together!: This is a 4D show at the Tree of Life theater at Animal Kingdom Park. The show – set to open in winter 2025 – will replace It’s Tough To Be a Bug.
Millennium Falcon: There will be a new story coming to this Star Wars attraction – which open in 2019 at Disney’s Hollywood Studios park.

How good will these new attractions be? Unfortunately, only time will tell.

It depends on many things:

How much will Disney invest?
Will the new lands make thematic sense in the parks they’ll be located in?
Will the rides be well thought out and utilise current technology to make the experience better? Or will they just use screens instead of animatronics (for example) just to save money and cut corners?

Based on the attractions that have opened in the last few years, it’s not irrational to assume that there may be quality issues with at least some of these additions and replacements.

Frequently Asked Questions about the Decreasing Quality of Parks in Disney World

Is Disney focusing more on new franchises?

Disney has been incorporating popular franchises like Marvel and Star Wars into the parks.

new parks in disney world — Rise of The Resistance – Galaxy’s Edge – Disney’s Hollywood Studios

This can attract new fans but sometimes disappoints those who prefer traditional Disney theming or attractions without IP at all.

The current CEO of Disney, Bob Iger, does not want to add attractions without IP to the Disney Parks. So until there’s a new CEO, there is basically no chance we’ll see any innovative new ideas (no, “it’s a small world” or “Haunted Mansion” 2.0’s).

Even after Disney has a new CEO, we may continue to see this trend for many years.

Do price increases affect perceptions of quality?

Rising ticket prices can naturally lead to us having higher expectations.

Unfortunately, according to many guests, not all of Disney’s latest attractions are worthy of the ridiculously high ticket prices.

How does Disney respond to criticism about park quality?

At the end of the day, Disney is a business. They want to keep customers happy, so they keep making money.

That being said, profit seems to be their primary priority. If this means upsetting OG fans by getting rid of Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of America, to throw Cars Land into Frontierland (where it makes no thematic sense), they will do it – rightly or wrongly.

The days of running the parks division like Walt Disney are long gone. And under current management, they will not be returning any time soon.

Ta Ta For Now

The decline in the quality of Parks in Disney World can’t simply be pinned down to a single factor.

We’ve seen loved attractions close their doors and moderate ones take their place, often leaving us underwhelmed.

Have you noticed changes in Disney World’s parks? Share your experiences and the changes you think Disney should make!

This post was all about determining if the parks in Disney World are decreasing in quality.