16 MAJOR Construction Changes in Disney World and Universal Orlando

Quite a few changes hit the Orlando theme parks in 2022!

We got new attractions, new restaurants, hotel updates, and even closures of old favorites. But 2023 is going to be even more exciting! If you’ve been following along with the many construction projects happening at Disney World and Universal Orlando, you need to see this — we’re breaking down all the construction updates from December 2022!

Magic Kingdom

Let’s kick this roundup off with Disney World, starting at Magic Kingdom. To begin with, TRON Lightcycle Run has made significant progress in the last month. The concrete has been completely poured for the walkway up to the ride, landscaping has been added, and we’ve seen the ride testing (with people on it!) multiple times. We’ve even seen the lights turned on at night!

Because the ride is still under construction, Tomorrowland Light & Power Co (Space Mountain‘s gift shop) has been closed for several months. It looks like the construction here is nearing its end as well.

They widened the walkway back to the coaster!

And as many Disney fans likely already know, construction was completed enough that the beloved Walt Disney World Railroad could reopen in late December!

Now, you’ll ride the train around Magic Kingdom and through a tunnel under TRON. It gives a very unique look at construction progress.

We’ll continue to monitor construction this way in the coming months as we approach TRON’s official opening.

EPCOT

Next up we have EPCOT, where there’s a LOT going on! First of all, the area that’s under construction near Guest Relations has finally seen some changes — they’ve started moving dirt around once again. We hope that this eventually reopens as a shortcut back to Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind.

Not much has changed over at the former home of Cool Wash. It’s expected that this will become a reimagined snack stand, but it still remains a dirt pit at the moment.

Moving on to the center of the park, a lot has changed!

CommuniCore Hall continues to grow as crews added a second story to the building and more fortifications on the outside of the frame. Visible progress has slowed on this particular area in the past few weeks, but it’s coming along.

Not too many changes with this building in December.

Next door at Journey of Water — Inspired by Moana is where the REAL excitement is happening! This month saw the walkways get paved, more detail added to the rockwork in the back, and of course, the giant Te Fiti sculpture that arrived at the beginning of December.

We can really start to see how the attraction will flow, and we’re ready to check it out for ourselves!

Hollywood Studios

At Hollywood Studios, there were no really big construction changes, but there was one update with an ongoing project. Roundup Rodeo BBQ in Toy Story Land was set to open before the end of 2022, but it was delayed to spring 2023.

The restaurant is still covered in construction walls, tarps, and scaffolding.

Animal Kingdom

At Animal Kingdom, construction was finally completed at the fountain in front of DINOSAUR. It was blocked by walls for quite some time.

Now the walls are down and the fountain (and Aladar!) are visible again.

Disney Resorts

Several resorts were under construction this month, starting at the Grand Floridian. This hotel has been getting room updates for a little while, and we saw them extended to new buildings in December.

At Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, a crane was brought onsite to start with the building of the first structures for the new DVC building. After months of piles of dirt, we’re excited to see progress!

At Disney’s BoardWalk, we’ve got multiple updates going on, as the resort is getting a bit of a transformation at the moment. For starters, the ESPN Club (that closed a while back) is being turned into The Cake Bake Shop, and it’s set to open sometime in 2023.

Inside the hotel lobby, construction was finally completed on Carousel Coffee, which opened towards the end of the month. This new coffee shop serves beverages, pastries, and more.

Soon, the BoardWalk lobby and hotel rooms will be getting updated as well. We’ll keep an eye out for changes.

Disney Springs

For our last construction project at Disney World, we need to mention Summer House on the Lake. The restaurant is coming in 2023 to Disney Springs and construction on the building’s frame went vertical in December.

We’re excited to check out this new addition in the coming months!

Universal’s CityWalk

Heading over to Universal Orlando, let’s start with Universal’s Great Movie Escape, which officially opened on CityWalk a few weeks ago. The newly-renovated building is home to two different movie-themed escape rooms.

If you’re looking to visit on an upcoming trip, you can make reservations online for your group.

Universal’s Epic Universe

And last but not least, we’ve got a construction update on the upcoming Epic Universe theme park from Twitter user @bioreconstruct. The three photos shared are from 2016, 2021, and finally, December 2022. That’s a lot of progress!

An aerial look back at site of Universal's Epic Universe. Oct 23, 2016 before site preparation.
2nd photo Dec 19, 2021, as construction of buildings started.
3rd photo Dec 9, 2022 Huge construction progress!
Arrow at same location in all the photos. pic.twitter.com/WiMPj2iinC

— bioreconstruct (@bioreconstruct) December 27, 2022

We can’t wait to check out this park when it’s finally completed. It’s set to open by the summer of 2025.

Those are all the big construction updates you missed from Disney World and Universal Orlando in December 2022. We’re ready to head into the new year and see what excitement is yet to come!

Quite a few new attractions and restaurants are opening in 2023, so stay tuned to AllEars for all the announcements, and of course, full breakdowns and reviews whenever those opening dates come.