Disney World has been VERY busy over the last couple of weeks with a lot of guests heading into the parks for the holiday season.
Main Street Crowds
If you’re ringing in the new year by visiting Mickey and the gang at Disney, make sure you know which rides, attractions, and hotels will be closed during your vacation! Here’s a complete list of the refurbishments that are scheduled to happen next week in Disney World.Â
Let’s check out the Magic Kingdom refurbishments first.
Magic Kingdom
Walt Disney World Railroad
The Walt Disney World Railroad is continuing its long closure throughout next week. This attraction does not have a reopening date yet.
Fantasyland Station of the Walt Disney World Railroad
It closed for some refurbishments and also because of the construction over in Tomorrowland on the upcoming TRON attraction, which interrupted the train tracks there. It did go through some testing recently though, and we got an update on this beloved attraction back in late 2021 in terms of some refurbishments that have been done!
Construction on TRON
We don’t know when the TRON: Lightcycle Run construction will finish up, but we’re expecting the railroad to be closed at least until that time.Â
In the meantime, if you’re missing the Walt Disney World Railroad, you can pick up a new railroad dress (with pockets!!) or a special railroad-themed bag!
Click Here to See an Update on the TRON: Lightcycle Run Construction
Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Expedition Everest
At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Expedition Everest — a popular roller coaster — is closing for a long refurbishment from January 4th, 2022, through mid-April, 2022.Â
Expedition Everest
As far as we know, this closure is just for scheduled maintenance on the ride. But we’re wondering if Disney might finally fix the giant yeti animatronic on the ride, which was originally supposed to swing down and reach for the guests as they rode past. For a long time, the yeti has just remained stationary, with flashing lights making it seem like he’s moving.
Click here to see a VIDEO of Expedition Everest being evacuated from back in 2020!
Finding Nemo: The Musical
Finding Nemo: The Musical is also still closed in this park, and we learned that a reimagined version of this show will return sometime in 2022 (although we don’t have a specific date yet).
Finding Nemo: The Musical
The classic show will get a few major changes. It is now going to be based on the timeline from Finding Dory, and it will keep some fan-favorite songs from the original show.
Click Here for the Most Recent Update on This Reimagined Nemo Show!
EPCOT
The Souk-al-Magreb gift shop in the Morocco pavilion of EPCOT’s World Showcase is still closed right now, and it will remain closed through all of January.
Souk-al-Magreb is closed
This gift shop is scheduled to reopen on February 6th, 2022.
Click Here to See the Latest News from EPCOT (Including a Dragon Sighting?)
Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Two long-term closures are continuing into the new year in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. The Voyage of the Little Mermaid show is still closed, and it doesn’t have a reopening date yet.
Voyage of the Little Mermaid
The nighttime show Fantasmic! is also still not open yet. We don’t have a specific date for its return yet, but we know that it’ll come back sometime in 2022. We have also learned that this popular show will look a little different when it reopens.
We miss you, Fantasmic!
We’ll keep an eye out for those return dates and let you know as soon as we hear!
Click Here to Learn About One Hollywood Studios Ride That Had a ROUGH Time Recently
Disney World Hotels
Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort
The only Disney World hotel that is still fully closed is Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort. This hotel is reopening on March 31st, 2022.
All-Star Sports Resort
If you’re hoping to stay at All-Star Sports, you can book your reservations now.
Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa
Some DVC Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa are closed right now.
Grand Floridian Resort in Disney World
Disney is adding new pull-out beds to these rooms.
Disney World Hotel Pool Closures (Disney’s Art of Animation Resort and Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge)
A couple of pools at Disney World hotels will be closing soon. The Flippin’ Fins Pool (in the Little Mermaid section of the resort) at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort will be closed from early January through late February. In the meantime, guests can use the Big Blue Pool (in the Finding Nemo section of the resort) or the Cozy Cone Pool (in the Cars section of the resort), which will both remain open.
Flippin’ Fins Pool
At Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge, the Samawati Springs Pool (at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas – Kidani Village) will be closed from January 2022 through April 2022.
Samawati Springs Pool at Kidani Village
Guests at the Animal Kingdom Villas – Kidani Village can head over to the Jambo House area to use the Uzima Springs Pool.
Click Here for the Latest News from Disney World Hotels, Including a Limited-Time DOLE Whip
Disney World Water Parks
Typhoon Lagoon reopened on January 2nd, 2022.
There’s more than just water rides here!
This water park has undergone some big menu changes and new snacks are now available there!
Click here to see photos & videos from our time inside the reopened Typhoon Lagoon!
Just as Typhoon Lagoon reopens, Disney’s other water park, Blizzard Beach, will close for refurbishments.
Blizzard Beach
The last day of operation for Blizzard Beach before its refurbishment was January 1st, 2022.
Click Here to See Our Review of a Returning DFB-Favorite Treat That is Now Available at Typhoon Lagoon
That’s it for the refurbishment update for Disney World this coming week! Keep following DFB for more of the latest news from the Disney parks.
Click Here to See a Construction Update on Two Upcoming EPCOT Attractions — Moana: Journey of Water and the Guardians of the Galaxy Coaster
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They’re obviously not restoring the Yeti to full functionality. To do so would involve dismantling the attraction.
With all this major attractions closed I would think the admission fee would be lower.
Disney’s planning needs review, busiest time of the year and to have these closures is really un acceptable. Coming off all that we the public have indured and are paying big money to experience a good visit puts a BAD taste in our mouth for those of us who have a love for Disney.
Admission fees lowered, surely you jest. That would be the right thing to do if Michael Eisner was 9n charge, he was a big guest advocate. Iger and the new regime are purely in it for the greenbacks. I wonder, did they add or improve anything at Typhoon Lagoon during this long shut down… they could have improved or added something other than the pricing and some food,options. Current Disney management is clearly not for improving guest services. To bad. And as for the WDW railroad, they could have very easily built a protective tunnel for the train to travel thru with some unique visual aspects while Tron was being built. Clearly management is not guest focused. Bad Show Disney.
Disney world next weekend!
Dismantling the attraction to fix the Yeti is an often repeated claim but not based in fact. As Martin from Martins Vids on YouTube once said…
There was an issue where continued use could crack part of the figure.
Legal are paranoid about anything above the ride path that moves and could fall without a physical safety backup.
It isn’t hard to fix. The figure has been removed from the mountain and put back at least twice since 2007 when it first broke. And the mountain continued to open to guests.
It was removed since it is easy to do so. The figure is on a platform that’s only 15-20 ft above the ground, with plenty of space around it. It comes down to the floor in a clean, bright hanger like area. And out the roller shutter on the back wall.
I’d hazard a guess unless DAK attendance dipped significantly there’s a thought of why should they fix it when people will still ride it.
They will never make the Yeti move. It’s widely known that they originally tested it but the sympathetic vibrations were detrimental yo the physical structure of the mountain. And they’ve said it will never be turned back on.
Why would they reduce the price of admission? The lines will continue to be insanely long whether these attractions are open or closed.
I have taken my grandchildren to DW for the past 10 years. With all the changes and the downed attractions, the Genie+ mess, the cost of the tickets. I will never go back. DW is concerned with nothing but making money. Well, they aren’t getting my money. AND, why weren’t all the renovations done during the summer months or when the COVID was less prevalent?
When are they going to refurbish Splash Mountain? I can’t wait to see how they incorporate Ray due to him being a tiny firefly.
Mistylyn, Disney has not yet released dates on this refurb. We will report as soon as they do.
The structure of EE is fine, it’s just the Yeti and the fact he was positioned over the track that causes problems. They could fix it if they wanted. The whole tear apart the mountain is just a bad rumor.