The Cool Tradition Walt Disney World Has When A Ride Closes In The Park

The beginning of February was a big time for Disney’s theme parks. The guy who ran them got promoted to CEO of the company. The upcoming Avengers Campus expansion at Disney California Adventure reached a major milestone in its development, but it was also the end of an era as the popular Dinosaur ride at Disney’s Animal Kingdom said its final goodbyes.

Disney Parks are a place of traditions for the guests, but that’s also true for the Cast Members who work there. When the new showbuilding at Avengers Campus hit its highest point, Cast Members signed the steel beam. When Dinosaur closed, the last people to ride it were the Walt Disney World Cast Members who made it great. While February 2nd was technically the last day of operation for the ride, the next day, Diservations captured that Disney CMs (and actor Wallace Langham) came together to say goodbye.

Nobody who knows Dinosaur needs to be told about Dr. Grant Seeker, the odd little scientist who introduced guests to the Dinosaur attraction and explained the ride’s backstory during the pre-show. Like so many original creations of Disney Parks, Dr. Seeker became a fan favorite, so it was only fitting that the actor who brought him to life was also on hand for the closing of the ride.

The line for Dinosaur over its last weekend of operation was one of the longest the ride had seen in quite some time, showing just how many fans Dinosaur had. But it's only fitting that the last people to say goodbye to the attraction were the people who worked on it. The same thing happened last year when Muppet*Vision 3D closed down. The final shows for the popular attraction were seen by Cast Members and their guests the day after it closed to the public.

Dinosaur is just one of several attractions closed as Walt Disney World undergoes a major transformation. Epcot is the only park not to currently have significant construction walls blocking off rides and shows that are gone for good. Of course, Epcot spent years covered in construction walls, so it’s served its time until, well, the next time.

The Dinosaur ride is set to be replaced by a new Indiana Jones-themed attraction. Little is known about the ride, other than it will be a new adventure set in the Tropical Americas land that will take over the former Dinoland U.S.A. Dinosaur was originally built using the same ride system as the original Indiana Jones Adventure at Disneyland, so the basic infrastructure of the ride is expected to remain, though one assumes it will also include a lot of new design elements to improve on the decades-old attraction.