We’re only a few weeks in, and we’ve already seen a lot of Disney news.
We’ve found out the Jungle Cruise is getting reimagined, Disneyland Paris pushed back its reopening, and the Magical Express will close at the beginning of next year. But while we learned a lot in January, we still have some burning Disney questions.
What’s going on with Disney’s 50th anniversary celebration?
Walt Disney World is turning 50 this year! That’s a pretty big milestone, and Disney really knows how to celebrate its birthdays. The castle got an entire makeover for its 25th!
But with limited operations in the park, Disney still hasn’t announced what it’ll be doing for its big day (or year!). Disney resort guests will get Early Theme Park entry as a nod to the occasion, but other than that, we don’t know much. Of course, we’ll keep you updated with any news here at AllEars!
When will Splash Mountain actually close?
Disney released a statement last spring that Splash Mountain would be re-themed to The Princess and the Frog in both Disneyland and Walt Disney World. At first, there were questions of if Splash Mountain would even reopen with Magic Kingdom in July. But it did, and since then we’ve wondered: when is Splash Mountain actually closing?
Disney has yet to release an official announcement for when we’ll have to say goodbye to the Laughing Place. Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products Chairman Josh D’Amaro did say the reimagining “has been expedited to ensure that all who visit the company’s parks do feel welcome as well.” But we’re not sure what this new “expedited” timeline is, or if Splash Mountain will close at all this year.
When will Disney entertainment resume?
This month, we got the exciting news that “Festival of the Lion King” would reopen in Disney’s Animal Kingdom this summer. What does that mean for other entertainment in the parks?
Other shows like “Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular” and “Finding Nemo The Musical” have yet to reopen since the parks’ closure in March, and many entertainment cast members were laid off in October 2020. However, D’Amaro did say in November that Disney is “looking forward to us bringing back some of the entertainment that we recently had to discontinue.” So we’ll keep our fingers crossed and look forward to the return of our favorite shows!
When will annual passes be for sale again?
Disneyland recently ended their annual pass program and is developing a new membership program instead. But in Disney World, annual pass sales have been “temporarily paused” with no word on when they’ll return.
Disney is currently limiting park capacity due to the pandemic, so they are keeping a careful eye on how many tickets of any kind they sell. And for now, you cannot buy a new annual pass unless you meet specific conditions.
When will these attractions open?
Before the pandemic, Disney had big plans for its theme parks. Some of those projects are nearing completion, like Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure in EPCOT. But others are stalled, and we’re not sure when they’ll be open.
TRON Lightcycle Run was supposed to open in Magic Kingdom this year, but it’s likely delayed beyond 2021. The Moana-inspired walkthrough Journey of Water is reportedly delayed, too. And who knows when we’ll actually get to eat in EPCOT’s Space 220 restaurant?
..and will this attraction ever open?
When the parks reopened, Disney went silent on other anticipated attractions. What happened to the Wondrous China film that was supposed to debut in 2020 in EPCOT’s China Pavilion? Three other World Showcase films opened in 2020: Canada Far and Wide, Awesome Planet, and Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along. Wondrous China is an unannounced mystery.
We’ve got lots of questions, but we’ll be sure to provide lots of answers here at AllEars as soon we get them! Stay tuned for park news and updates.
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What do you think about all of these questions? Let us know in the comments!
I would like to know if they plan on bringing back Fast Pass vs standing in long lines when crowds increase
Incredible what is going on in the world lately, isn’t it????
The fiftieth birthday isn’t a priority with the Disney Company. They will probably blame it on the pandemic which is partially right. The pandemic is causing the company to have an economic downturn. Gavin Newson is destroying the Disneyland property. They ran out of funding for Tron Lightcycle. Tron is being closed up and work is stopped until October. Personally, I think only Remy’s Epcot ride will open in 2021, because it is the closest to completion.