Disney World Is Closing Rivers Of America Today. Of Course, Fans Have A Lot Of Thoughts

We’ve known for some time we would be saying goodbye to Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island in favor of new and upcoming attractions at Walt Disney World, and the day has now come. The popular theme park waited until after the Fourth of July holiday to say sayonara to this OG attraction, but today, on the last day of the Liberty Square running in the parks, fans are not holding back their thoughts.

To me, change is inevitable, but that doesn’t mean there are no emotions revolving around theme park changes when they do happen. Some fans are feeling those feels right now, and have been taking to X (formerly Twitter) to soak “in the views” before the river closes for the final time.

Many feel sentimental about what fans will be missing without the “wow” factor that was the Rivers of America attractions, including the boat and the island, in the parks. I think that speaks to the nostalgia people have about going to Disney World across spans of years or even decades. After one X user wrote about the "timeless" nature of the attraction and how losing it will lead to the loss of some of its most "kinetic appeal" another fan responded:

Some fans are still really salty about the impending loss of the attraction, which opened when Magic Kingdom first let parkgoers in back in 1971. One particularly upset post garnered some eyeballs online, and also inspired comments like “Excellently expressed sentiment,” and “The best ones come straight from the heart.”

Happy 4th of July to everyone except the jerks that decided to remove the Rivers of America.

Others are still pleading for the imagineering powers that be to walk back their upcoming plans, which include bringing the popular Pixar series Cars to the Magic Kingdom. Given the ride is set to officially wrap today, I think we're a little far down the river with new plans at this point, but this sentiment does speak volumes about where some Disney World parkgoers are at.

There have been a lot of changes at Florida theme parks lately, between the opening of Epic Universe, the closure of Muppet-themed attractions and now the loss of Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island. Some of these closures have been for attractions, photos spots, and even restaurants that have been in the parks for years. It's easy to see how there is emotional attachment for stuff that even the most frequent parkgoers are skipping a fair amount, because at one time or another, most of us did get on the river boat or explore the man made cave.

But there is reason to be excited about the changes around Frontierland. A new chapter will be opening -- maybe not super soon, but soon enough -- and hopefully it will allow new generations to make precious memories. But if you're lucky enough to be in the parks today, perhaps consider making one final stop on the river.