Disney Parks are always changing. Walt Disney himself said that Disneyland would never be finished, as it would always change and grow with time and technology. Over the last several years we’ve seen numerous new attractions and lands at Disney Parks all over the world, and that’s not going to stop anytime soon, as the company has promised to spend $60 billion over the next decade at Walt Disney World, Disneyland, and all its global destinations.
That’s no small amount of money, but just how all that money is going to be spent is a big question. Luckily we have a bit of information on how The Walt Disney Company is planning to spend that cash, and it should excite future guests because most of it is planned to be spent on the stuff guests love, new attractions, and experiences.
How Disney Will Be Spending $60 Billion On The Parks
Josh D’Amaro, the head of Disney's Experiences division recently confirmed to CNBC what had been said by others (including Disney CEO Bob Iger) previously: that 70% of the $60 billion, or around $42 billion, is planned for park (and cruise line) expansion. This means lots of new attractions coming to parks all over the world.
While that’s going to be the stuff that most people going to Disney World or Disneyland care about, the remaining 30% shouldn’t be completely ignored. At last week’s Disney Shareholders Meeting Bob Iger, in response to a shareholder question, said that the remaining $18 billion would include things like bringing back quality of life improvements to the parks such as the return of the sort of perks that disappeared following the pandemic and have not been seen since.
While the 10-year timeline means that certainly a lot of that money, and thus a lot of those new attractions, are still a long way off, many of them are much closer than we might think, as some of that money is clearly already being spent.
Where Disney Parks Expansion Is Already Planned
Internationally there are major expansions that have been recently completed, and others that are looking to open later this year. Hong Kong Disneyland opened World of Frozen last year, and a Disneyland Paris version of the land is currently being built. Shanghai Disneyland opened a Zootopia land in 2023 and Fantasy Springs, an expansion of Tokyo Disney Resort that will include areas dedicated to Peter Pan, Tangled, and more, will open later this year.
Closer to home, Disneyland Resort has continued to tease a new Avatar “experience” at Disney California Adventure. While there’s a lot we still don’t know about what it is, we know it’s happening. Disney World also recently announced that Epcot’s Test Track will close in June to make way for a major overhaul of the attraction.
But there’s even more on the way when it comes to new attractions at Disney World. Two major new lands at the vacation kingdom, a Tropical Americas area at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, will come when Dinoland U.S.A. joins the list of closed Disney World attractions. A completely new land at Magic Kingdom, an addition to the park, is in the early stages of development, though when work on it will begin is unknown.
The Biggest Disney Parks Expansion May Not Even Be Included In The $60 Billion
The biggest place that Disney Parks may be spending money over the next decade, however, will almost certainly be Disneyland Resort, and it likely means that Disney will be spending far more than the $60 billion they have said because every indication is that Disney will be spending that much even if DisneylandForward doesn’t happen.
In just a couple of weeks, the Anaheim City Council is set to vote on DisneylandForward, a major expansion of Disneyland Resort that will add new lands and attractions to both theme parks, and transform a large amount of what is currently parking lot space into more rides, more shopping, more dining, and conceivably more that we don't even know about yet.
While all signs point to the city council approving the plan, it is by no means a done deal, but nobody has ever indicated that the $60 billion currently being budgeted is contingent on DisneylandForward being approved. This would seem to indicate that if/when it is approved, the money being spent on that will be in addition to $60 billion.
We may be in the middle of something of a golden age for themed entertainment. Disney is looking to spend billions on expansion, while Universal is currently building two new theme parks, Epic Universe in Orlando and Universal Kids Resort in Texas, as well as a new horror experience in Las Vegas. A lot of great experiences are coming, the hardest part now is the waiting.
