NEWS: Disney Files New Permit to CHANGE Tom Sawyer Island in Magic Kingdom

A LOT of construction will soon be happening in Magic Kingdom.

Not only is the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad refurbishment already in progress, but soon, you’ll see construction behind that ride for the all-new Villains Land. On July 7th, Tom Sawyer Island, Rivers of America, and the Liberty Belle Riverboat will all close to make way for a new Cars expansion. Ahead of those closures, Disney has filed a permit for work on Tom Sawyer Island.

On June 6th, 2025, Disney World filed a permit with Orange County, FL, for the address of 4975 Caribbean Way in Bay Lake, Florida. This location is where Tom Sawyer Island sits. The permit is for work consisting of demolition, infrastructure prep, and utility modification.

This work is being done ahead of the all-new Cars expansion in Frontierland that will be known as Piston Peak. This expansion will transform the area of Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island into a new area that will also include two new rides.

Disney is also currently working on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad — that refurbishment will include some updates to help it blend in with Piston Peak.

If you want to spend some time on Tom Sawyer Island, ride on the Liberty Belle Riverboat, or see Rivers of America, your last day to do so is on July 6th. After that, construction walls will probably be going up around the area.

If you’re looking for a travel agent to help with your vacation, we recommend our friends at Mouse Fan Travel. They’re experts in the field with over 20 years of vacation planning experience, and they can help take a bunch of the stress out of the entire booking process for you!

We’ll be keeping an eye on construction progress, though, so check back with AllEars again soon for more.

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Will you be visiting Magic Kingdom before these closures? Let us know in the comments!