It’s a sad, sad day, friends. Big Thunder Mountain Railroad has officially CLOSED for a lengthy refurbishment in Magic Kingdom.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
We spent the ride’s final day keeping an eye on crowds and wait times, and now that the ride has officially closed we’re back in the park to see if anything has changed at the Wildest Ride in the Wilderness. While we don’t have many details on the ride’s refurbishment so far, we can’t wait to see what Disney has planned!
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad has officially closed for a lengthy refurbishment, making Frontierland in Magic Kingdom just a little less appealing for now. While it doesn’t look like too much has changed over at the ride itself — there aren’t too many massive construction walls up everywhere just yet, we did notice a more low-key construction wall blocking the entrance so folks can’t head into the queue.
Entrance blocked
You’ll also find some more construction walls out in front of the ride, showing that sadly, it really is closed for the foreseeable future!
More construction walls
We recently learned that Disney filed a new Notice of Commencement on January 3rd, 2025, for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. The document is for general construction to be done by Coast Steel Inc. of Lake Buena Vista, Florida.
Closed for now
What we found most interesting is that the expiration date on the Notice of Commencement is March 13th, 2026. Usually, these permits expire one year after they are recorded unless a different date is specified. In this case, the date of March 13th, 2026, was specified, leading us to believe this closure may last until the spring of 2026.
Whee!
Of course, Disney hasn’t made any official announcements or revealed many details about what this refurbishment will entail, or when the ride may reopen when all is said and done. For now, the ride remains closed leaving Tiana’s Bayou Adventure to takeover as the main ride in Frontierland!
In the meantime, we’ll be on the lookout for the latest updates from Magic Kingdom and the rest of Disney World. Make sure you stay tuned to the Disney Food Blog for more news from Disney World!
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I do not intend visiting Disneyworld anytime during 2025. So many of my favourite rides are closed it would be a waste of money, so I may go to Universal this year instead.