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Disney has revealed the next wave of changes coming to its theme parks and cruise line. New details for Villains Land, Piston Peak, Tropical Americas, Monstropolis and several classic Walt Disney World attractions dominated the night but Disneyland Paris and Disney Cruise Line also have some exciting developments going on that UK holidaymakers might want to take note of.
For UK holidaymakers planning Walt Disney World trips, D23 has made 2027 a more interesting year at Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios, but some of Magic Kingdom's biggest and most anticipated projects didn’t get confirmed opening dates.
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Key D23 Experiences Showcase Announcements Impacting UK Holiday Planning
There were many announcements during the two hour D23 2026 Horizons Entertainment Showcase which I watched live, but very few were date based announcements. It was more about concepts coming to life, progress updates, and ride reimagining. If there are specific experiences that you have to experience, these announcements could shape how you plan your holiday, especially if you are planning a once-n-a-lifetime trip or a trip every 2-5 years. On the hand, if specific experiences do not factor into your decision making, this is just nice to know, rather than going to shape when you book a holiday,
For UK fans, Disney Parks holidaymakers, and Disney Cruise Line fans based in the UK, here’s the announcements by parks and cruise line that could impact future holiday plans.
Disney World D23 Announcements
Here are the big Disney World fan questions and the announcements that answered them that’ll impact Disney World holidays in the near future:
Will Monstropolis be open soon? | Yes, it’s opening early but without the roller coaster in 2027 |
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Is there a vision for Villains Land | Yes, Villains Land has a confirmed logo, name, land backstory, a Maleficent coaster ride, and a Magic Mirror boat ride in development |
What are the rides at Piston Peak? | There’s 2 new ride names confirmed: Miss Fritter’s Dare Devil Spin Along and Cars Ridge Run Rally, and some more ride information shared |
Is there anything confirmed about the Indiana Jones ride? | Yes, the name, the ride story, some of the outside façade detail and an Indian Jones animatronic which is going to be modelled on Harrison Ford. |
Is there anything new confirmed about the Encanto ride? | Yes, the ride vehicle, a new concept scene suggesting some elevated track, more about the story, a no height requirement announcement. |
Any other new information about Tropical Americas? | The carousel animals were revealed, and the name of the carousel was announced |
Will Tropical Americas open soon? | It’s due to open in 2027, but no new information about when was shared. |
Is the Yeti coming back to life on Expedition Everest - The Legend of the Forbidden Mountain? | Yes, the long-time broken animatronic is being fixed and will come to life again in Animal Kingdom. |
Are they changing Spaceship Earth? | Yes, the story is being reimagined to focus on human connection |
What’s happening with The Carousel Of Progress reimagining? | It’s opening in early Spring 2027, with two new actors voicing Mum and Dad, and new decades added to the ride. |
Are they bringing back Dreamfinder and changing the Figment ride at EPCOT? | Yes, Dreamfinder is coming back to the Figment ride, Journey Into The Imagination with Figment, which is being refurbished. |
Disneyland Paris D23 Announcements
The Disneyland Paris announcements included a classic ride reimagining and more news on the world-first Lion King attraction.
Is there going to be a Scar animatronic on the Lion King ride? | Yes, there is going to be a retelling of the animated film, including a scene involving a Scar animatronic. |
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Did they announce the Lion King ride opening date? | No, no ride opening announced. |
Are they closing Hyper Space Mountain and reimaging it? | Yes, the ride is being returned to a classic Space Mountain style and will be renamed: Space Mountain: De La Terre A La Lune. Closing at the end of 2027 |
Is there a new day-time parade coming to Disneyland Park? | Yes, but not until 2028. So it’ll be 11 years since the park had a day time parade, and it’ll feature new floats and include Coco |
Disney Cruise Line D23 Announcements
Disney Cruiseline made quite a few announcements, as the fleet continues to grow to reach 13 ships by 2030:
Is there a new class of ship joining the fleet? | Yes, it’s going to be a smaller ship that sits in a currently unnamed class between the newer Dream class of ship and the Magic ship class. |
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Did they announce the key characters for the stern, Grand Hall and bow on the Disney Believe? | Yes, Disney Believe will have Moana in the Great Hall, Woody and Buzz on the bow and Tinkerbell on the stern. |
is Lorcana TCG coming to Disney Cruise Line? | Yes, his was announced at a different panel but Disney Lorcana is going to be available to play across the ships “fleet-wide” from 2027 |
How do D23 announcements impact booking Disney World holidays from the UK?
There were few date based announcements, and the ones that were had vague seasonal dates, so UK holidaymakers cannot plan a holiday around the Disney Parks D23 announcements in Disney World, Disneyland Paris, or on Disney Cruiseline.
The reveals gave a clearer idea of what is coming to the parks, what is going to be closing for reimagining, and what’s in development at the parks. Some announcements were more like peaking over the construction wall into an Imagineers meeting rather than a tangible announcement impacting booking decisions.
For anyone who was holding off booking a 2027 holiday in the hope of being able to get a date for Tropical Americas or Monstropolis opening, and still making use of the free UK Disney drinks and dining plan, that’s not happened and for anyone who wants to avoid the dates when rides will be reimagined; they also weren’t given. And the majority of reveals were more here’s what the experience will look like or we’re changing this, rather than you can experience it on this date.
What new Disney World attractions are confirmed for 2027?
2027 is shaping up to be exciting with two lands confirmed to be opening, but not necessarily with all new attractions. The new attractions coming to Disney World are mainly based around well-loved film franchise IP and classic, nostalgic rides. Most of the D23 announcements continued with this trend, taking fan-favourite IP and building on it. The confirmed 2027 attractions from D23 are:
Hollywood Studios’, Monstropolis will open early in 2027, but without the highly anticipated sliding doors roller coaster
The Carousel of Progress will reopen in late Spring 2027 with new decades, and voices for Mum and Dad
Animal Kingdom is still listed as opening Tropical Americas in 2027 as has been announced previously, but D23’s Entertainment Showcase didn’t make any opening announcements about this.
Will Villains Land and Piston Peak be open at Disney World in 2027?
At this time, there is no 2027 opening date for Piston Peak or Villains Land in Magic Kingdom. Disney revealed more about the rides in the lands, not opening timelines.
The news about Villains Land, saw the name, backstory, Maleficent Coaster & Magic Mirror boat ride confirmed. Disney has now also confirmed the names of its two Cars attractions at Piston Peak: Ridge Run Rally, an off-road racing experience through the wilderness, and Miss Fritter's Daredevil Spinoff, a more family-focused attraction featuring the Cars 3 character.
What are the new and refurbished Animal Kingdom rides?
The D23 entertainment showcase revealed that Animal Kingdom is set to get some incredible new and refurbished ride experiences, coming soon, including:
Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent: an exciting thrill ride where you’ll be chased as the myth comes to life inside the Mayan Temple you’ll be exploring
El Carrusel de los Animalitos: featuring 22 hand-carved animals
Antonio’s Fiesta De Encanto: explore the casita in a no height restriction family boat ride
Expedition Everest: It’s getting a yeti makeover as the ride’s famous 200 ft animatronic will come back to life
Animal Kingdom will be a park to watch in 2027 for UK holiday planners, as it is possible, although not confirmed, that these attractions will be ready in 2027.
Disney's Hollywood Studios: What’s Opening In 2027?
Monstropolis is now another major project to watch when planning a 2027 Walt Disney World holiday, as the area is opening in 2027.
The Monsters, Inc.-themed area is replacing the former Muppets Courtyard and will contain Disney's first suspended roller coaster, based around the famous door vault sequence from Monsters, Inc. However, when confirming the earlier 2027 opening timeline, it was made clear the rollercoaster would not be included in the land opening. There will be a new show, dining, and a shop opening however.
What did D23 reveal about EPCOT?
EPCOT's announcements are significant for any UK fans of the classic and nostalgic rides, as two rides: Spaceship Earth and Journey Into The Imagination with Figment will be reimagined.
Spaceship Earth remains one of Walt Disney World's most recognisable attractions and has previously undergone several major changes to its storytelling. The current attraction’s form was last substantially updated in 2007.
It’s been around 20 years since DreamFinder was removed from Figmen’’s ride so this is a substantial leap back and seems to be more of a fan-based move. Figment is also getting his own Lorcana card as the trading card game was confirmed as returning to EPCOT’s International Festival of the Arts in the Quests Ahead for Disney Lorcana Trading Card Game D23 panel the day before.
What does D23 mean for Disneyland Paris fans in the UK?
Disneyland Paris remains especially relevant to British Disney fans because its transformation is already happening much closer to home. Disney Adventure World opened its World of Frozen expansion in 2026, while construction is already continues on the resort's first complete Lion King-themed area which was a focus during D23’s Entertainment Showcase.
The future land will contain one of Disneyland Paris's largest attractions: a water ride beneath a 37-metre-high Pride Rock with three slopes, including a 16-metre, (52-foot), drop alongside Audio-Animatronics, dining, shopping and character experiences. The news about the Scar animatronic and the storytelling of the ride was the big D23 update.
In Disneyland Park a new daytime parade will debut in 2028, and Hyper Space Mountain will be reimagined into a more classic ride version which means the ride is closing in late 2027. For UK holidaymakers wanting to ride Hyper Space Mountain, booking a trip by the end of summer 2027 is best.
Could Disney Cruise Line's expansion mean more Disney Cruises From The UK?
The Disney Cruise Line segment of D23’s Entertainment Showcase proved interesting because of the new ship class that was announced. Claire Weiss, Portfolio Executive Creative Director, came to the stage and very much teased the new class of cruise ship which is smaller. The key part that we’ll be watching carefully is that this new unnamed class of ship will be going to new places and expending the options of Disney Cruise Line. This could mean UK cruise fans will have more Disney route options closer to home soon?
As well as the Lorcana trading card game coming to the ships fleetwide from 2027 and beyond, which was announced at a different D23 panel, Claire shared more about the Disney Believe, the ninth ship joining the fleet. The Disney Believe is scheduled for late 2027, and the stern, bow and Grand Hall characters were all revealed.
Magic in a Minute
D23’s Entertainment Showcase provided lots of new details about upcoming parks experiences, giving UK holidaymakers lots to look forward to but no definitive planning timeline points for the experiences they got most excited about. With lots on the horizon and plenty of significant new attractions coming there are plenty of reasons to consider a Disney World, Disneyland Paris or Disney Cruise Line holiday. Booking on your own timeline, or waiting until more announcements are made if there’s a particular experience you’re holding out for, is going to be the best way for UK visitors to make 2027 and 2028 trip decisions.