Three ride closures are now underway at Walt Disney World, all having their last day of operations yesterday and now beginning multi-month (or year-plus!) projects today, January 6, 2025. And even more attractions are temporarily or permanently closing later this month, later this year.
What’s covered below is probably the final slate of Winter 2025 closures, but expect to see a lot more projects added to the 2025 Walt Disney World Refurbishment Calendar. In the past, these would’ve been mostly confined to January through early March and August through September. However, the former is now fairly busy and other times of year have slowed down comparatively–so more projects from May all the way through September wouldn’t be the least bit surprising. Not only that, but lengthy closures are going to encompass multiple seasons, slower and busier times.
As we’ve pointed out on multiple occasions, there was a lot of deferred maintenance and proportionately fewer closures in the last few years due to pent-up demand and budget cuts. Walt Disney World also lost a lot of seasoned maintenance Cast Members during the closure, many of whom took early retirement or simply didn’t return.
This is precisely why “Maintenance & Unexpected Downtime” made the list of Top 10 Guest Complaints About Walt Disney World! Ride breakdowns remain an issue and, in our view, these unexpected closures are worse than routine refurbishments because you can’t plan around them. In our view, it’s good news that many refurbishments are now being scheduled simultaneously, even if it does come with the short-term pain of multiple major rides down during upcoming vacations.
In any case, just wanted to start with a quick ‘heads up’ that Walt Disney World has a backlog of postponed projects from the last few years. Several attractions are overdue for refurbishments and will probably get them in 2025 or 2026–the tricky thing will be timing to avoid having too many “big” rides down in each park. It’ll help that pent-up demand is exhausted, staffing has improved, and the money spigot in Burbank has been turned on for Parks & Resorts, allowing for more projects of this nature to (finally!) happen.
Here’s what’s already closed as of January 6, 2025…and what else is on the horizon in the next couple of weeks…
Kali River Rapids
Let’s start in Animal Kingdom, where Kali River Rapids has temporarily closed for a routine refurbishment just like it does every single winter. I can’t remember the last time Kali River Rapids did not close in January. I’m honestly surprised Walt Disney World doesn’t pencil this into the calendar earlier as a guest courtesy.
As always, this is as much as story of low-demand due to weather and crowds as it is needed maintenance. This being a “rip-roaring river raft ride” coupled with current high temperatures struggling to break out of the 50s should tell you everything you need to know.
Kali River Rapids is currently scheduled to reopen in March 2025, with no specific date set. What’s normal here is for Kali River Rapids to reopen in mid-March at the latest, and ahead of schedule if weather allows and demand dictates. The weather usually cooperates, and Kali River Rapids ends up reopening in early March–a couple of weeks ahead of schedule.
With Dino-Rama permanently closing, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Kali River Rapids returning as early as Presidents Day weekend. Again, it comes down to whether the weather is sufficiently nice. We were just in DCA for New Year’s Eve and Grizzly River Run had a 5-minute wait all day long (as long headliners posted triple digits) because it was simply too cold for a rapids ride. Animal Kingdom doesn’t have enough to do, but they’re not going to reopen Kali River Rapids in 50-degree temperatures. So it really comes down to the extended weather forecast. That’s more or less what dictates when this ride reopens.
Gran Fiesta Tour
Over at EPCOT, Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros has closed for a temporary closure as of January 6, 2025. According to the company’s calendar, the boat ride is currently expected to reopen by March 15, 2025.
Of course, refurbishments are always subject to change, so Gran Fiesta Tour could reopen earlier or later. The current timeline suggests that the goal is to have it back towards the beginning of the 2025 EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival and start of the Spring Break season. That makes sense, and the capacity is needed in the Mexico pavilion in March and April.
Every sign points to Gran Fiesta Tour simply getting some TLC and necessary maintenance during this multi-month closure. Although there’s been speculation of a ride reimagining, there’s about a .001% chance of that happening during this brief (in the grand scheme of things) closure. It’s probably more about keeping the attraction looking great.
However, this Gran Fiesta Tour refurbishment could be laying the groundwork for a future reimagining (see the last two years of Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster closures for routine maintenance in the lead-up to a reimagining that was finally announced). As with RnRC before it, we think something will happen here eventually–and we take a deeper dive into that topic in Is a Coco Boat Ride Coming to EPCOT?
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
There are several major and minor projects now underway or starting soon in Magic Kingdom. The biggest is that Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is now closed for refurbishment as of January 6, 2025. According to Walt Disney World, the wildest ride in the wilderness is planned to reopen in 2026 with a little bit of new magic.
That’s all that’s been officially announced about the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad closure, but we know there are a lot of moving parts to this reimagining, which had been rumored for over 6 months before being officially confirmed by the company. There’s also a lot we can glean from construction permits (plural) that have already been filed, and the presence of an enormous crane behind the attraction that towers over Frontierland.
Based on previous rumors and contractors listed on permits, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad needs a significant refurbishment involving substantial work on the ride system and a complete 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. Hence the crane–it’s there to remove old track and replace it with new track (should be fun to watch!).
There are a lot more moving parts to this, including how the BTMRR closure relates to the Rivers of America replacement, pathway construction connecting this side of Frontierland to Haunted Mansion, and work beginning on Cars and Villains Lands. There’s also the matter of a reopening date in 2026. For all of that and more, see Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Closed for Refurbishment at Magic Kingdom Until 2026!
Astro Orbiter
Next up in Magic Kingdom is Astro Orbiter. This Tomorrowland spinner will be temporarily closed for refurbishment beginning January 13, 2025, and is planned to reopen in the summer of 2025.
Astro Orbiter will be closed for 6-8 months, with a reopening likely sometime between Memorial Day and Labor Day. It could also be shortened or extended based on the scope of the work, which is presently unknown. Disney could be working on the elevators, queue, or ride system itself.
This attraction goes down about once per decade for a closure of this duration, which usually includes disassembling, servicing, and rebuilding the spinner. It also typically gets a fresh color scheme and new lighting effects, but nothing that materially alters the attraction. The same project was just done last year at Disneyland. We wouldn’t expect an extension of this one unless it does involve the elevators, which are always a wildcard.
Hall of Presidents
Walt Disney World has announced that Hall of Presidents will go down for refurbishment starting on January 20, 2025 and is expected to reopen later in 2025. For those who are wondering, this is customary, and precisely what we predicted would happen. (See our standalone post about the Hall of Presidents closure, which has been updated to debunk reimagining rumors (for now).
In theory, Imagineering could take the easiest option, reusing both the existing Trump Audio Animatronics figure and dialogue. This would essentially mean ‘restoring’ the show to its pre-2020 status (well, plus Biden, who will obviously be moved from center-stage). If this is the outcome, you can expect the closure to be significantly shorter than last time. Walt Disney World could theoretically do a quick refurbishment, having the attraction closed for a month or perhaps less.
All of this is in theory because Walt Disney World might opt to go the cheap route and keep Hall of Presidents closed longer to save operating expenses. Hall of Presidents isn’t exactly a marketable draw, meaning it’s not “needed” while other attractions are closed to help absorb crowds. Disney stating that Hall of Presidents is “expected to reopen later in 2025” instead of providing a specific date–or even season–suggests they might draw it out to save money.
Point being, don’t assume that just because this could have a quicker turnaround time that it actually will. Whenever Hall of Presidents does reopen, it’ll probably be fairly uneventful. There won’t be anything new, per se, to publicize when Trump resumes his speaking role and the attraction has become divisive regardless of who’s front and center.
Dino-Rama
Dino-Rama and Dinoland USA will begin their phased permanent closures, starting with the following in Winter 2025:
- TriceraTop Spin – Closed permanently starting January 13, 2025
- Fossil Fun Games – Closed permanently starting January 13, 2025
- Chester & Hester’s Dinosaur Treasures – Closed permanently starting January 13, 2025
The last day to experience this ride and other offerings will be January 12, 2025. Construction walls for the reimagining to Tropical Americas at Animal Kingdom will go up overnight and be visible to guests on January 13, 2025.
The Boneyard, Restaurantosaurus, Dino-Bite Snacks, Trilo-Bites, and DINOSAUR will stay open for now according to Walt Disney World.
Walt Disney World has separately confirmed that guests have “through 2025 to go get that dino…before extinction” indicating that DINOSAUR will not close until sometime in 2026. Our expectation is that the ride closes in early January 2026, similar to the above timelines, with the goal of keeping it open through the holiday season rush.
It stands to reason that the same will be true of the Boneyard, Restaurantosaurus, and maybe Trilo-Bites. Those don’t necessarily need to close earlier. Given their locations and the turnaround time needed to reimagine or replace them, they could even stay open a bit longer than DINOSAUR.
It’ll come down to what makes sense from a capacity and crowd-absorbing perspective. With DINOSAUR closed, will guests really be venturing to this dead-end corner of the park? Even with DINOSAUR open, it’s possible that demand drops to the point that Walt Disney World opts to close the play area or dining options earlier. Again, this is a company big on saving operating expenses whenever possible.
Blizzard Beach
Not on any official list, but Blizzard Beach has already had its first closure of 2025, with at least two more on the horizon. Walt Disney World has updated its calendar to indicate that Blizzard Beach will be closed January 7-8, 2025.
This is nothing out of the ordinary. Walt Disney World’s water parks routinely close during the winter months when the daily high temperatures don’t break the 60 degree barrier. It’s the exact same story here as with the Kali River Rapids closure–lack of demand. (I still remember one chilly winter day when my family visited Blizzard Beach in the 90s, thinking we could “handle” it since we’re Michiganders. Suffice to say, Blizzard Beach really felt on-theme that day, and was totally devoid of crowds. I had a blast, but I was a kid—I’m sure it would’ve been miserable as an adult.)
Anyway, we don’t normally report on Blizzard Beach closures because it’s basically just reporting on the weather. And Central Florida along with most of the country are in the midst of a cold front right now. Daily lows in Bay Lake will be in the 40s (minus Friday) through January 18, 2025. It’s entirely possible that Blizzard Beach could be closed for 8 consecutive days, and 10 out of the next 11 days.
That’s a big deal on its own, but it’s even more significant given Walt Disney World offering free water park admission on your check-in day in 2025. If you dig into the fine print, Walt Disney World makes clear that this perk is subject to the water parks being closed due to weather, and that “no refund or credit given for any such changes or cancellation. Park admission and offerings are not guaranteed.”
From that, it seems pretty clear that guests arriving on days when the water parks are closed due to weather are simply out of luck. I’m nevertheless curious as to whether Walt Disney World will offer any guest recovery options for those who are impacted by this and plan their trips around it. For instance, is Walt Disney World simply going to throw its hands up and say “tough break!” to a family that books a redeye flight to take advantage of this free water park day? This perk is already very limited in its utility due to realities of flight times and water park hours, so having no recovery option would be a bad look.
For whatever it’s worth, the fine print often says things like this and Walt Disney World’s unofficial policy is much more flexible. So if you’re one of the rare families that is planning your travel around the water park day, I’d absolutely recommend inquiring about alternative options. I’m not really sure what the best course of action is since this is brand new and unprecedented, but I’d probably contact Disney as soon as the closure hits the calendar (before traveling). Failing that, asking Cast Members at the front desk of your hotel upon arrival is another option, as is inquiring at Guest Relations. As always, you catch more flies with honey, so be polite–and make sure to explain how you purposefully planned around using the perk.
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Your Thoughts
What do you think of Walt Disney World closing so many attractions all at once? Are you willing to “sacrifice” riding attractions on your next Walt Disney World vacation if it means ride refurbishments and reimaginings that improve the guest experience? Or would you prefer unreliable rides in poor shape, but that are actually open (or at least, scheduled to be)? Do you agree or disagree with my assessment? 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!
