Now it’s time to say goodbye to all our company…see ya real soon, D23 Expo! That’s right friends, the D23 Expo is OVER but boy, did it bring us some epic announcements.

From epic (and pricey!) 100th Anniversary merchandise to news about a giant Te Fiti figure coming to EPCOT’s upcoming Moana attraction — there was a LOOOOOT that we got to check out. But what were the biggest announcements from the entire Expo, you ask? Well, we’ve got that list for you right here!

Here’s a look at the 5 BIGGEST news drops from the Expo this year.

1 — Updates on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure (Which Will Replace Splash Mountain)

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is the name of the Princess and the Frog re-themed ride that will replace Splash Mountain at both Disney World and Disneyland in 2024. While we had already seen concept art inspiring the ride and a look at Tiana’s outfit, during the Expo we actually got a first look at the ride itself via a cool model!

But wait, there’s more! We also got to hear about a NEW Tiana-themed store — Eudora’s Chic Boutique Feating Tiana’s Gourmet Secrets — that will open in Disneyland, and we learned that it’ll actually be opening in Disneyland on September 20th, 2022! The store will have a line of merchandise featuring Tiana’s spices and sauces!

As if that wasn’t enough, we also learned that a Tiana-themed restaurant — called Tiana’s Palace — will also be coming to Disneyland!

And during the Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products panel, we got confirmation about some of the voice actors reprising their roles on the ride, a look at a misting effect coming to the ride, and more details about the backstory for the attraction.

Basically, if you love Tiana, this Expo was full of good news!

Click here to see a closer look at the model for the Tiana’s Bayou Adventure ride!

2 — HUGE Opening Timelines

During the D23 Expo, we also got 2 opening timelines we have been eagerly awaiting.

First, the TRON attraction coming to Magic Kingdom in Disney World is now set to open in the spring of 2023!

Over at EPCOT, the Journey of Water — Inspired by Moana walk-through attraction is now set to open in late 2023!

We can’t wait for these attractions to open. We’ll be on the lookout for more updates on them and we’ll let you know what we see.

Click here to learn more about the HUGE Te Fiti figure coming to the Moana attraction

3 — Avengers Campus EXPANSION

When it comes to Disney California Adventure Park, there were some big announcements too. One of the biggest announcements made was that Avengers Campus will be expanded and will be getting a NEW attraction.

The expansion will actually push Avengers Campus deeper into the multiverse and the new attraction will let guests battle alongside all kinds of superheroes.

JUST ANNOUNCED! Avengers Campus at Disneyland Resort will head into the Multiverse with a third attraction with a brand-new story! #D23Expo pic.twitter.com/6J7HCG6TA5

— Disney Parks (@DisneyParks) September 11, 2022

 

During the attraction, guests will actually get to meet the NEW King Thanos — a version of Thanos that WON. Not much else has been announced about this attraction and there’s no official opening date yet, but we’ll update you when we know more.

Click here to see more details about the new attraction

4 — Movie News

It wasn’t all about the parks though. During the D23 Expo, we also got to hear about what’s being worked on at Disney’s many movie studios. There was some especially exciting news when it comes to Disney Animation and Pixar.

First, Pixar has officially confirmed that Inside Out 2 is in the works! The movie will feature Riley as a teenager and there will actually be MORE emotion characters introduced!

But wait…there’s more! Pixar has also announced a brand NEW animated movie called ELIO. Elio is an 11-year-old who lives on Earth but, through a unique course of events, ends up making contact with aliens and is beamed up to space, where he must overcome his self-doubt and show the aliens that the best part of being human is just being yourself!

Finally, Walt Disney Animation announced a NEW animated film called Wish! The story follows Asha, who sees a darkness no one else does and makes a wish upon a star, which causes an actual star to fall from the sky!

Asha and Star must then go on a journey together! The film will be a musical in a watercolor style.

In addition to these films, we also got a trailer for the Enchanted sequel coming to Disney+, a trailer for the live-action Little Mermaid film, and SO much more!

Want more movie and show news? Click here to see the trailer for Season 3 of ‘The Mandalorian’ coming to Disney+!

5 — Encanto, Coco, and More Could Come to the Disney World Parks

Finally, we wrap up our main section of big news with some exciting “Blue Sky” ideas Disney has teased for Disney’s Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom.

Before we dive into these, it is important to note that these are Blue Sky ideas. That means they are VERY early in the stages of development, things could change, and nothing is truly “confirmed” yet. Josh D’Amaro, the Chairman of the Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products, did say, “We are not up here daydreaming. It’s important to me that you know that these things…they are very real.”

But, Disney has referred to these only as “early concept explorations,” “expansion opportunities,” and “what if” ideas. So take it all with enthusiasm and a grain of salt!

Just what ideas did Disney tease us with? Well, Disney’s team teased that DinoLand U.S.A. at Disney’s Animal Kingdom could (again, keyword: COULD) be re-themed in the future to something like Zootopia and/or Moana. In terms of Zootopia, they shared that guests could be immersed in various districts from the film (including some we maybe haven’t even seen before).

Over at Magic Kingdom, even MORE possibilities exist. The Disney team teased the idea of seeing what stories could exist if you were to go beyond Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. What could exist beyond the Mountain? Well, the team teased that areas themed to Coco, Encanto, and/or the Disney Villains are some ideas being teased for a potential future area! Imagine flying into the Land of the Dead on an alebrije or maybe walking into the Casita and opening your own door to discover your gift!

Again, these are all things in very early talks, but we can’t wait to see what could happen.

Click here for FULL details about these potential future areas for Magic Kingdom!

And that’s a look at 5 of the BIGGEST stories, but MORE huge things were announced at the Expo too. The Happily Ever After theme song is coming back to Disney World with an updated fireworks show, a NEW nighttime spectacular has been announced for EPCOT, a Figment meet-and-greet will be coming to EPCOT, and an area of Disney California Adventure Park will be re-themed to Big Hero 6.

For MORE D23 Expo news, check out our links below:

• A massive Hulk is coming to Avengers Campus in Disney California Adventure Park
• Get a first look at the Mandalorian and Baby Yoda (coming to Disneyland)
• The name has been announced for the NEW Disney Cruise Line Ship
• The Hatbox Ghost is going to join the Haunted Mansion in Disney World

Stay tuned for more updates!

Click here for our FULL COVERAGE of the D23 Expo!

What news from the Expo are you most excited about? Tell us in the comments! 

Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. We were invited by Disney to attend D23 Expo as media. Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ