Carousel of Progress Refurbishment 2026-2027: Reopening, Changes & Latest Updates
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Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress is currently closed at Magic Kingdom while Disney Imagineers carryout its biggest reimagining in more than three decades. The attraction closed on 6th July 2026 and Disney have now confirmed the new version will open in late spring 2027, although there is still no exact reopening date.
This page tracks the refurbishment as it develops, with updates when Disney confirms new details.
What's the latest Carousel of Progress refurbishment update?
The latest major update was at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event on 15th August 2026.
Disney confirmed that Jamie Lee Curtis will voice Sarah and Bryan Cranston will voice John in the reimagined attraction and revealed another look at the new Halloween 1985 scene.
More importantly for anyone planning a Walt Disney World holiday, Disney narrowed the reopening window from the previously announced 2027 to late spring 2027.
Carousel of Progress refurbishment announcement timeline
Here’s the dates of announcements and the key details so you can track the updates that matter as they happen.
Date | Announcement | Key Details |
|---|---|---|
30th August 2025 | Walt Disney Audio-Animatronics figure announced at Destination D23 | Walt Disney would be added to Carousel of Progress through a new introductory scene featuring an Audio-Animatronics figure. |
28th May 2026 | Disney reveals the true scale of the reimagining and sets the closure date. | Every main scene would move into a new period and changed, now the ride will be taking the family through:
Closure date of 6th July Song: “There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow”, to stay New promotional poster released Reopening in 2027 |
5th July 2025 | Last day to ride | |
6th July 2026 | Carousel of Progress closes | Work begins on the attraction: it’s now closed until an unknown date in 2027 |
15th August 2026 | At D23 Horizons Entertainment Showcase voice cast and late-spring 2027 reopening window announced | Jamie Lee Curtis will voice Mum (Sarah), while Bryan Cranston will voice Dad (John). Showed the updated 1985 scene Reopening window now late spring 2027. |
Disney reveals Walt is coming to Carousel of Progress
During the Creating the Happiest Place on Earth presentation at Destination D23 2025, Walt Disney Imagineer Chris Beatty announced that an Audio-Animatronics figure of Walt Disney was going to be added to Carousel of Progress.
A completely new introductory scene with Walt is being added before rotating into the familiar show with John, Sarah and the rest of the Progress family. Noting that there’s "plenty of additional details to be revealed", specifically mentioning John, Sarah and the rest of the family, fans were reassured that the heart of Carousel of Progress would remain intact.
September 2025 to May 2026: Silence
For around 9 months, there has been silence on this project. Despite Disney having teased more Carousel of Progress details, the attraction’s notably absent from Walt Disney World's major 2026 calendar of upcoming experiences. This does leave us asking the question: how far away is this project and have Disney perhaps had a change of mind.
Disney reveals the full Carousel of Progress reimagining
28th May 2026; it’s the biggest announcement. A massive reimagining is unveiled with the closing date for the current version of Carousel of Progress. The 5th July 2026 is the final opportunity to experience the version of the show that has largely existed since its 1994 refurbishment. The reimagined attraction will reopen sometime in 2027, but the show will move forward nearly 60 years, moving the timeline of every key scene.
The Progress family's new journey is now Summer 1969 → Halloween 1985 → New Year's Eve 1999 → a possible future.
Why Disney is moving the timeline forward by 60 years?
When Carousel of Progress opened, it was at the 1964-65 New York World's Fair, its opening scene looked back roughly 60 years to the beginning of the 20th century. Disney’s now applying much the same principle again.
Instead of asking a 2027 audience to begin with a period more than a century earlier, the new attraction starts approximately six decades in the past. Carousel of Progress will once again offer guests something it has gradually lost over time: living memory.
The new timeline:
Act One moves to the 1969 Moon landing
It’s summer 1969; John and the family are gathered around their television alongside millions of people around the world watching the Apollo 11 Moon landing.
Instead of electricity, indoor plumbing and basic domestic appliances being extraordinary, the new Carousel begins with technology allowing an ordinary American family to watch humans walking on the Moon from their living room.
The second act moves to Halloween night in 1985.
Sarah will take centre stage, rather than John narrating every stop on the family's journey. She'll talk about the appliances and gadgets making family life easier while John is outside handing sweets to trick-or-treaters.
Uncle Orville remains in his bathtub, so at least one member of the family has apparently resisted 60 years of progress. Imagineers have also revealed a wonderfully era-specific joke involving Orville investing in a fruit stand that has started selling personal computers, an idea John doesn't appear convinced will amount to much.
Act Three reaches New Year's Eve 1999
John, Sarah, Jimmy and Patty are preparing for the new millennium while the internet begins changing how the family communicates and interacts with technology. Grandpa has already fallen asleep before midnight, while Grandma has switched the television to wrestling.
The fourth act may be the cleverest change.
Rather than attempting to depict the contemporary home of the moment, Disney is creating a deliberately possible future. Imagineers have gone back to futuristic concept work by Disney Legend John Hench for inspiration. The family will live in an off-planet home where household robots, space travel and other technology have become part of everyday life.
Disney reveals what the new Walt scene will contain
Substantially expanding on the Walt Disney scene first revealed at Destination D23, Disney confirm the introduction will draw directly from the 1964 television special Disneyland Goes to the World's Fair.
Imagineers have been researching and recreating objects visible around Walt in the original programme including a prototype Tiki bird, a model of the Tower of the Four Winds and an it's a small world doll.
The new show will now begin with Walt introducing the ideas and projects that surrounded the creation of Carousel of Progress before guests move into its newly reimagined version.
Disney confirms what isn't changing
For all the headlines about changing decades, the May announcement also states what isn’t changing along with unveiling a new attraction poster.
There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow is staying.
The Sherman Brothers song will continue playing as the theatres rotate between the new scenes.
The Progress family remains central to the attraction.
Familiar characters and gags remain.
And Disney says physical props, painted scenery and practical effects will continue to be an important part of the show.
Carousel of Progress is now closed
Carousel of Progress gave its final performances on 5th July 2026, and will not reopen until sometime in 2027.
D23 reveals Bryan Cranston and Jamie Lee Curtis voice cast
Host Neil Patrick Harris reveals that Bryan Cranston will voice John, while Disney Legend Jamie Lee Curtis will voice Sarah in the new version of the attraction. Horizons: A Carousel of Progress at D23 2026 also shares a look at the Halloween 1985 scene.
D23 also provided the most important timetable update since the refurbishment was announce, narrowing the reopening window from simply 2027 to late spring 2027.
Once Disney provides an exact reopening date, we'll update it here.
How does this ride closure affect UK holiday planning?
For most UK visitors there is always going to be a closure of some type depending on when you visit Walt Disney World. Carousel of Progress is one of the longest rides, and as such during hot weather or downpours this ride has always been a popular retreat. For anyone booking a holiday this ride is often not considered a make or break decision making experience.
Questions about the Carousel of Progress Refurbishment and Reimagining
When will Carousel of Progress reopen?
Late spring 2027; an exact reopening date has not yet been announced.
Why is Carousel of Progress closed?
The attraction’s undergoing a major refurbishment and reimagining. Disney is replacing all four main time periods, creating new scenes and sets, adding Walt Disney to the introduction and updating the attraction for a new generation of guests.
Is Carousel of Progress permanently closing?
No, Carousel of Progress is temporarily closed and Disney has confirmed that a reimagined version will reopen in 2027.
Will Walt Disney be in Carousel of Progress?
Yes, a new introductory scene will feature an Audio-Animatronics figure of Walt Disney and will be inspired by Disneyland Goes to the World's Fair. It will be Walt's first Audio-Animatronics appearance at Walt Disney World, but not Disney's first Walt figure overall. The first debuted at Disneyland in California in 2025.
Is There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow being removed?
No, it’s confirmed that There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow will continue playing as guests rotate between scenes.
Who are the new voices in Carousel of Progress?
Disney has announced Bryan Cranston as John and Jamie Lee Curtis as Sarah. A complete voice cast for every member of the Carousel family has not yet been announced.
Will Carousel of Progress be open for Easter or May half term 2027?
Disney has only said late spring 2027, there is no confirmed opening date, only an opening season.
