2023 welcomed some new attractions, characters, and shows to the Walt Disney World resort. Disney Darling takes a look at some of the best parts of this previous year.
Tron
Tron Lightcycle Run opened on April 4th, 2023, adding energy to Tomorrowland. It still remains a popular attraction and requires a virtual queue, meaning that you need to book a reservation on the My Disney Experience app in order to ride. However, this may not be the case for long. Tron will have a regular standby line like the rest of the attractions in early 2024 during After Hours events. This is a great way to test out how smoothly a standby line for Tron will run. If it is a success, Disney may do away with the virtual queue in 2024. Want to learn more about the attractions at Magic Kingdom? Click here.
Happily Ever After Returns
On April 3rd, 2023 the Magic Kingdom welcomed back its firework show Happily Ever After. It was temporarily replaced with Disney Enchantment, a show specifically made for Walt Disney World’s 50th anniversary. Guests are happy to see Happily Ever After return, and it is predicted that this nighttime show will run for many years to come.
Luminous - New Nighttime Show at Epcot
One of the ways Walt Disney World wanted to celebrate their 50th anniversary in 2021 was with a new nighttime show at Epcot. This was called Harmonious. Unfortunately, it had some negative feedback. The show featured projections, which meant that guests needed to be in a certain spot in order to see the visuals. If the crowd was blocking your view, or you chose a spot at a weird angle, you missed the majority of the show. Also, the projections were made with these ugly barges that were a major eye sore for guests during the day. Some other criticisms were that the show was too IP focused. Still, some guests enjoyed the show.
In response to the feedback, Disney designed an entirely new show. This one is called Luminous, and it is described as a mix between Illuminations and Harmonious. There are no more ugly barges. So far, reviews have been positive.
Journey of Water
A brand new walk through attraction opened at Epcot on October 16th. Guests of all ages adore this interactive experience that teaches guests about the water cycle. Older Disney fans love it because it keeps Epcot’s spirit of “edu-tainment” alive. Younger Disney fans love it because it’s themed around Moana. Check out Disney Darling's guide to the attractions at Epcot here.
Dreamer’s Point
Epcot has been under construction for the entirety of the ‘20s so far. As written about previously, Epcot was supposed to undergo some massive changes for the 50th anniversary in 2021. But things happened. Plans were scrapped. Projects were delayed. Still, at least a portion of the new Epcot opened up this year. In the last hour, part of the new World Celebration gardens opened. These gardens added some lighting, seating, and ambiance to the area. The most popular part of the gardens is a spot named Dreamer’s Point, which features a statue of Walt Disney.
Woody’s Roundup BBQ
What’s a Disney park without good food? This restaurant opened in Toy Story Land at Disney’s Hollywood Studio in Mar of 2023. The sit-down bbq restaurant offers much needed dining options to the land. The dining experience can be spendy ($45 per adult, $25 per child), but the meal is all-you-can-eat, so many view the price tag as worth the quantity.
Character Returns
Many character meet and greets returned to the parks this year. Ariel made a splash at her grotto. Minnie, Daisy, Goofy, and Donald returned to Pete’s Silly Sideshow at Magic Kingdom. Also returning to Magic Kingdom was Enchanted Tales With Belle. The iconic Seven Dwarfs made their return to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween party after 3 years. These character returns help the parks feel whole again after the closures earlier this decade. Want to know more about the characters at Magic Kingdom? Click here.
New Characters
Several popular characters made their way to Walt Disney World this year. Fairytale Garden in Magic Kingdom transformed from Merida’s castle to Casa Madrigal. Here, guests can meet Mirabel from Encanto. For the first time ever, Figment has his own meet and greet at Epcot. Wait times got up to 5 hours long this year for the purple dragon. Moana now meets guests at Animal Kingdom and Epcot. And at Hollywood Studios, live-action Ariel greets guests. Each park got a new character this year!
New Babies
In 2023, Walt Disney World has been the birthplace of over 300 animals. In the spring, two zebras were born. Cotton-top tamarin twins were born in June. Pixie the white Shetland pony was born on July 11th. An African elephant, Corra, was born December 13th. These are just some of the babies Disney welcomed this year.
Hatbox Ghost Materializes
The Hatbox Ghost is a fan-favorite animatronic on Disneyland’s version of the Haunted Mansion. Imagineers thought it would be a good idea to bring the Hatbox Ghost to the other coast. This would be a pretty cool update to a beloved classic attraction.
Unfortunately, the ride is so beloved that die-hard fans can be quite protective. You see, the Haunted Mansion starts out by taking you through a seemingly abandoned house. You’ll pass the library and the hallway before you actually see any ghosts. Then, you enter the seance room. Madame Leota chants a spell to reawaken the spirits. All of a sudden, the mansion is overrun by ghosts. Imagineers decided to place the Hatbox ghost in the hallway scene before the seance room. This contradicts the storyline of Madame Leota being the one to awaken the ghosts. And die-hard Haunted Mansion fans are not happy about this change. If you do not care about the intricate lore of the ride then it’s fine, I guess. Still, Walt Disney World takes the L on this one. The Hatbox Ghost does not add anything to the attraction. Arguably, it takes away from the storytelling.
Disney 100
The Walt Disney Company celebrated its 100th anniversary this year. On October 16th, 1923, Walt and Roy founded the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio in their uncle’s garage. How the company has grown since then! The company has made a big deal over the milestone, releasing special merch and changing the Disney+ logo. Walt Disney World got in on the action…kind of.
The “celebration” lasted only a few months and included park decorations, a new costume for Mickey, and of course merch sold in the gift shops. Coming off the Walt Disney World 50th anniversary, this choice makes sense. Guests can get anniversary-ed out. However, some expected the parks to do more than to just see the landmark as a merch opportunity. Hopefully, Walt Disney World will do more for the resort’s 60th anniversary next decade.
Your Opinions
What was your favorite part of 2023 at Disney? What are you looking for in 2024? Leave a comment below!
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