Disney World’s Most COMMON Closures

No matter when you’re visiting Disney World, you’ll likely run into at least a few rides or experiences that are closed whether they are planned or unplanned.

While it’s nearly impossible to plan for any unexpected ride closures while you’re visiting, you can plan ahead for the bigger refurbishments! That’s because Disney World shares all the upcoming closures with guests online well before they’re scheduled to begin. So, to help you decide when to visit,  we’re compiling a list of the closures that you can almost guarantee will happen year after year — let’s take a look!

Kali River Rapids

While most Disney World rides are popular throughout the entire year, some attractions become less appealing to guests during the colder months in Florida like Kali River Rapids in Disney’s Animal Kingdom. And, because Disney can usually anticipate that guests won’t be too upset to see the attraction closed when it’s chilly, they tend to schedule annual refurbishments for early January or February (and sometimes even March).

Now, we have seen this timeline change a little bit from time to time (for example, in 2021 the ride closed from November to December), but like clockwork, this refurbishment happens every year.

Splash Mountain

Speaking of water rides that close for regular maintenance, we’ve also got to mention Splash Mountain in Magic Kingdom! Much like Kali River Rapids, this fan-favorite attraction is usually scheduled to close for a short period of time in January or February.

It’s typically only a few weeks before Splash Mountain is up and running again, but we do expect a longer-term closure to happen sometime in the future as Disney rethemes the ride to Princess and the Frog. No official word on when this will occur has been announced yet.

Jungle Cruise

Another Magic Kingdom attraction that closes on an annual basis is Jungle Cruise. We can normally expect this to happen twice a year with one closure in late October/early November and another at the beginning of January. 

During this time, Disney transforms the ride with a holiday overlay (also known as Jingle Cruise), so it typically isn’t long before guests can journey down the Nile River with Skippers once again.

Liberty Square Riverboat

And, lastly, the Liberty Square Riverboat in Magic Kingdom temporarily closes each year for routine maintenance, but the timeframe of when the closure happens isn’t nearly as predictable.

We’ve seen the refurbishment take place in January some years and August in others. Plus, there was a period of time in 2021 where the attraction was closed for an even longer amount of time.

Water Parks

Similar to Disney scheduling water ride refurbishments during the “off-season,” you can usually expect the Disney World water parks to close around this time too!

Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon Water Park

In the past, Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon Water Park has closed for a multi-month refurbishment between January to March. However, 2022 is proving to be a little different, as the water park actually reopened for the first time since 2020 in January.

That being said, Disney usually will take the time to refresh the park and perform routine maintenance once a year here, so we’ll see if this trend continues now that Typhoon Lagoon is back.

Disney’s Blizzard Beach Water Park

Disney’s other water park, Blizzard Beach, also closes annually for some TLC! In the past, the refurbishment has been scheduled for September through January, but 2022 has interrupted this pattern.

Just as Typhoon Lagoon reopened, Blizzard Beach closed for a refurbishment that is currently set to last for an unknown amount of time. It is possible that Disney is simply switching the annual refurbishment schedule of the water parks around and Blizzard Beach will reopen in March, but we’ll have to wait and see!

Resort Pools

At the beginning of every year, we can usually predict that at least one Disney World Resort hotel pool will be closed for refurbishment between January to April. The locations that undergo refurbishment tend to change from year to year, but you can often find notifications of what pools will be closed when months in advance.

This is something that you’ll want to be sure to check for before booking your hotel. And, if you happen to be staying somewhere that a pool is closed, there’s usually another pool at the hotel that is still open (it just might be a bit further from your room).

Of course, these dates and timeframes are always subject to change, so checking Disney’s website before you plan your trip (or leave for your trip) is a great idea. And, here at AllEars, we’re always keeping an eye out for the latest updates, so be sure to stay tuned!

See a FULL LIST of all the upcoming Disney World refurbishments here!

Do you check Disney’s refurbishment calendar when planning your trip? Let us know in the comments!

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