Magic Kingdom Ride Refurbishment Realities

Ride refurbishments are rumored now confirmed realities for a couple of Magic Kingdom’s most popular attractions, starting later this summer and lasting through 2025. Here’s everything we know about these Walt Disney World ride closures, along with our speculation about what they might entail, timing for the downtime, and more.

June 27, 2024 UPDATE: The official Walt Disney World website now reflects a closure of Peter Pan’s Flight, with the Fantasyland dark ride slated for a 6-week refurbishment later this summer. Peter Pan’s Flight will be closed for refurbishment from July 8 through August 20, 2024. The attraction is currently expected to reopen on August 21, 2024.

This is a very last-minute addition to the closure calendar by Walt Disney World standards, but as we noted in previous versions of this post (see below), construction permits for the work were filed nearly two months ago. Our suspicion was and is that Walt Disney World was waiting for other pieces of the puzzle–the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad closure timeline as well as Tiana’s Bayou Adventure opening and operating reliability–and was backed into this corner by those timeframes.

As Magic Kingdom’s second most popular attraction by wait times and #1 Lightning Lane Multi Pass, Peter Pan’s Flight is a strategically-significant attraction. Frankly, I don’t see any conceivable way that this can go down without Tiana’s Bayou Adventure operating reliably and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad being open.

Back when the virtual queue for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure was first announced, we identified July 8, 2024 as the most likely date when the virtual queue would be dropped. More recently in You Might Have Problems Riding Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at Magic Kingdom, we backtracked from that suggestion due to the downtime.

Well, now I’m not confident that it’ll drop the VQ by then, but I am feeling better about the ride’s reliability woes. It’s doubt management would’ve scheduled this Peter Pan’s Flight refurbishment if there weren’t reasonable confidence about Tiana’s Bayou Adventure.

Speaking of which, this also narrows down the closure date for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad to, most likely, sometime after August 20, 2024. It’s possible there could be some overlap between the two–mid-August does start the slowest stretch of the year–but I’m skeptical. More likely, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad goes down shortly after Peter Pan’s Flight reopens. That is, unless there’s another quick closure Disney wants to squeeze in before the lengthy BTMRR closure.

This brings us to the scope and scale of the Peter Pan’s Flight project. This is longer than the average closure for routine maintenance, but shorter than a fully-fledged reimagining or even plussing. For reference, the enhancements to the version at Disneyland for the 60th Anniversary took just under 6 months. And that was about a decade ago, when construction timelines were generally faster.

It’s still possible something along those lines happens, especially if the project teams have done as much prep work as possible in advance, but I’m skeptical. The safest bet is that this involves “modernizing” the attraction, with possibilities for that discussed below. Hopefully we get some additions, not simply subtractions, as a result of the Peter Pan’s Flight closure.

Prior to this development, the other one of these once-rumored Magic Kingdom ride refurbishments was more or less confirmed. Walt Disney World has filed a new permit for “general construction” at an address corresponding with Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Magic Kingdom. This seemingly confirms the rumor discussed below that we first reported about a month ago regarding an extensive refurbishment to the fan-favorite roller coaster.

There are a couple of key details here that we can glean from the permit, with the first being that it has an expiration date of August 8, 2025. The default 1-year timeline is never noteworthy, but shorter or longer ones always are, as they’re extended or reduced purposefully. Meaning that there’s a reason for doing so.

In this case, that’s because the work is expected to take longer than one year–which aligns with the previous rumors about this project taking over one year and being significant in scale and scope. That means it’s not just a routine refurbishment, like BTMRR receives fairly regularly. (Those typically do not involve construction permits of any duration.)

However, if already planning your next Walt Disney World vacation around the reopening of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, we’d recommend not putting too much stock into that August 8, 2025 date. The roller coaster could reopen before or (more likely) after that.

It’s our understanding that this refurbishment has multiple moving pieces, and although the biggest is likely encompassed by that permit, there’s no guarantee it’ll be done and ready to resume operations by August 8, 2025. Even if work is finished by then, that doesn’t mean the ride will reopen right away–testing and training still take time.

The other key detail is that the permit is assigned to Coastal Steel, a company with a wide range of expertise and experience, from ride systems to steel fabrication and erection. If that name sounds familiar, it’s because you probably just heard about that contractor for the Test Track reimagining.

Even beyond Test Track, they’ve collaborated with Walt Disney World on several attractions. For example, Coastal Steel worked with Walt Disney World on a range of projects, from the construction of Expedition Everest and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train to Blizzard Beach, Mickey’s Toontown Fair, Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, and TRON Lightcycle Run.

Beyond the concrete details from the Big Thunder permit, there isn’t much to add to the rumors discussed below. Since originally publishing this story, I’ve had the chance to chat with a couple of people about this project (prior to the permit being filed). It’s being treated as an open secret that “everyone” knew about, and yet, no one could agree on the specifics. It does seem that the coaster needs a retracking and along with that will likely receive (minor but marketable, at least to fans) new effects. Everything beyond that is unclear.

According to wdwmagic, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad could close as soon as September 2024. The Magic Kingdom coaster needs a significant refurbishment involving substantial work on the ride system and retracking. This long-planned project is viewed as preventative work that’s crucial to extend the useful life of the roller coaster, ensuring the ride’s longevity and operational status for decades to come.

While the ride has had a number of winter-time closures for several weeks to over a month in the last several years, the last lengthy closure was in 2016 when Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was down for 4 months in the late summer and early fall. Prior to that, BTMRR had multiple closures in 2012 for extensive work, installation of the interactive queue, as well as the Barnabas T. Bullion and Big Thunder Mining Company backstory.

Every version of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad has had extensive closures in recent years–except Magic Kingdom. Perhaps most instructive is the BTMRR at Disneyland, which closed for a major renovation in January 2013. This project had a similar scope as what’s rumored for Magic Kingdom, with new ride vehicles, track replacement, repainting the mountain, and also restoring the Rainbow Ridge Mining Town.

That was originally scheduled to be completed by Fall 2013, but it wasn’t done until March 2014. By the time Big Thunder Mountain Railroad did reopen over a year later, its return came with much fanfare and new features–and a potential “blueprint” for other projects of this nature that we’re now potentially seeing with Haunted Mansion and Fantasmic at Disneyland. Sort of a quasi “Disney Vault” approach to excite fans.

I’d expect something similar with the Magic Kingdom version of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. A closure that lasted 14 months approximately one decade ago translates to at least 18 months when adjusted for construction timeline inflation. (A thing I made up, but you know what I mean–and that it’s a real phenomenon!)

There’s no way Walt Disney World is going to close Big Thunder Mountain Railroad for between a year and 18 months and not have anything marketable to show for it when the attraction returns. There will likely be new lift hill effects, nighttime lighting, redone show scenes with Easter eggs and other historical tributes–something, anything. Given the cost in time and money, I fully believe they’ll make it count and this won’t “just” be a closure for invisible work that “only” extends the life of the roller coaster.

I also believe there’s a strong possibility that Beyond Big Thunder gets revealed at D23 Expo, and part of that entails more changes to this side of the park. If so, the BTMRR refurbishment could also be a reimagining that lays the groundwork for that expansion, both thematically and infrastructure-wise.

With a closure that’s going to last roughly a year, timing doesn’t make a huge difference. After all, it’s going to be down during every week and season, anyway. Not only that, but Walt Disney World has shown a willingness to close marquee attractions at popular times of the year. Look no further than Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster during spring break (twice!), Tower of Terror during spring and summer, and the upcoming Test Track closure from summer through at least the holiday season.

From my perspective, having both Big Thunder and Tiana’s Bayou Adventure open through at least mid-August makes sense. It gives Disney a chance to work out the issues with TBA; for school to go back into session and the off-season to arrive before taking BTMRR offline for a year or so. It would also give time for Country Bear Musical Jamboree to open, which will debut on July 17, 2024.

If at all possible, it might make sense to get the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad refurbishment done before October 2025. Summer crowds typically start winding down towards the end of July and drop off a cliff at the beginning of August. If this is a year-plus closure, it’s logical to have BTMRR down for the months of August and September twice than it does the months of October through December. But of course, that assumes they have a choice and can dictate timing–a bold assumption!

As mentioned above in the late June 2024 update, the other upcoming refurbishment is to Peter Pan’s Flight. Walt Disney Imagineering filed a construction permit early last month for the installation of set pieces at Peter Pan’s Flight in Magic Kingdom, listing InterAmerica Stage, Inc. as contractor. The work has the default expiration date of one year, which isn’t particularly noteworthy.

InterAmerica Stage is a frequent collaborator with Imagineering on new and refreshed attractions and shows. Recently, this includes work on Spaceship Earth and, currently, the reimagining of Country Bear Jamboree into Country Bear Musical Jamboree. The permit doesn’t specify the scope of work beyond the vague and generic (and frequently used) “install set elements.” However, this and the permit coming from Imagineering suggests that the project will entail new or reimagined show scenes, or possibly new effects.

We have been critical of Peter Pan’s Flight. It was the most controversial pick on our List of 10 Attractions That Have Aged Poorly at Walt Disney World. So it should go without saying that I’m fully on board with this project. In fact, I hope Peter Pan’s Flight has a multi-month closure to breathe new life into the attraction.

After riding the versions at Disneyland in California and Tokyo Disneyland this month, I’m very ready to see updates to the Magic Kingdom incarnation. I’d love some of the effects from the Shanghai Disneyland version, which is the best of the bunch. But it’s also brand new, whereas both the Anaheim and Tokyo versions are the same classic style as Magic Kingdom–and have seen enhancements in recent years.

There were actually rumors around 2019 that Peter Pan’s Flight would be one of the classic Magic Kingdom attractions to receive updates ahead of Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary. Supposedly, the plan was similar to refreshes at Disneyland ahead of that park’s 60th Anniversary, where Peter Pan’s Flight closed for over 5 months in 2015. But then March 2020 happened and all of those plans for Walt Disney World’s 50th were abandoned. (…Or the can was kicked down the road to 2024?)

To be clear, I don’t want to see Peter Pan’s Flight updated because I dislike it–I love it. This ride has enduring popularity and high wait times for a reason. It’s a classic, and deserves to be treated as such with respect and loving updates to keep it fresh. Flying over the streets of London and Neverland is a timeless lightning-in-a-bottle experience that should never go away.

Instead, Peter Pan’s Flight should be plussed with projection mapping and other lighting effects–as has been done in Anaheim, Paris, Shanghai, and Tokyo. Updating infrastructure so the flight is less jerky and smoother would help with suspension of disbelief. I could go on, but upgrades to the ride system are not within the scope of this construction permit, so there’s no point.

The most obvious upcoming change is probably the removal or update of the Indians scene in Peter Pan’s Flight. I don’t purport to be an expert on this sort of thing, but the depiction there does strike me as a bit of a caricature (to put it charitably). With that said, I also think it’d be a shame to lose the Indians in the attraction (that seems like the opposite of Disney’s goals). Given her presence in Peter Pan’s Never Land Adventure, I assume Tiger Lily is still an acceptable character. Having a new scene with her would be cool.

If that does happen, I hope it isn’t the only change. Peter Pan’s Flight at Magic Kingdom has some great effects and features as compared to the other versions, but it hasn’t been modernized with new effects to nearly as great of a degree, either. There’s a lot of opportunity and untapped potential to make it a ride that actually justifies those triple-digit wait times.

Logistically, I’m curious as to how a Peter Pan’s Flight closure might work. My gut says this would be a shorter closure (now confirmed!)–or a series of them (also still possible?)–even if it involves greater guest-facing changes. I could see a scenario where a Peter Pan’s Flight reimagining were handled similarly to Jungle Cruise or Haunted Mansion, with brief downtime for staging followed by work after hours and/or with a few scattered days of downtime. (They might even put scrims around various show scenes and just have them be missing.)

That way, people could plan around the Peter Pan’s Flight closure and it would have less impact on vacations. There’s also the practical reality that Peter Pan’s Flight is a big driver of Lightning Lane sales at Magic Kingdom, and Disney probably doesn’t want to take it out of commission for an extended period and lose out on that. Then again, maybe that’s part of the reason Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is not a Lightning Lane Single Pass!

Ultimately, you should take all of this with a huge grain of salt as they’re all rumors and/or have not yet been confirmed officially by Walt Disney World. It’s still plausible that none of these projects materialize. Again, we doubt it.

Ultimately, while these projects still haven’t been only the Peter Pan’s Flight closure has been officially confirmed by Walt Disney World, the company doesn’t filed construction permits just for the halibut. Something is happening with both Peter Pan’s Flight and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. While we’re uncertain of the scale of the PPF project, BTMRR is almost certainly going to be down for around a full year.

If anything, we’d expect more reimaginings and refurbishments of this nature for a couple of reasons. The first is that there was a lot of deferred maintenance and proportionately fewer closures in the last few years due to pent-up demand and budget cuts. So several attractions are overdue for refurbishments and will probably get them later this year or in 2025.

Second, the money spigot is about to be turned on for Parks & Resorts, allowing for more projects of this nature to (finally!) happen. Sure, it’s not as exciting as brand-new attractions–and many of you may lament more rides being closed during your vacation–but refurbishments are very much a necessity for maintaining appropriate attraction standards and ensuring that breakdowns don’t continue to happen at a more frequent rate. So here’s hoping we see more on this front!

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YOUR THOUGHTS

What do you think about the possibility of lengthy ride refurbishments/reimaginings of Peter Pan’s Flight and/or Big Thunder Mountain Railroad? Hope these classics are updated to ensure their longevity for decades to come? Do any attractions at Walt Disney World strike you as being prime candidates for ride reimaginings? Do you agree or disagree with our choices? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!