Walt Disney World Resort has broken ground on the replacement for its original “theme park within a theme park”: DinoLand U.S.A. at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
At D23 Expo 2024, Walt Disney Imagineering announced plans to replace DinoLand U.S.A. with a Tropical Americas-inspired land called Pueblo Esperanza. The area will feature two new attractions inspired by Encanto (2021) and an Indiana Jones retheme of the current DINOSAUR ride.
Much of DinoLand U.S.A., including Chester & Hester’s Dinosaur Treasures, TriceraTop Spin, and Chester & Hester’s DinoRama (featuring the Fossil Fun Games), closed permanently in January. Days later, construction walls and rolling planters appeared, blocking guests’ view as crews bulldozed the original roadside theme park within Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park.
Construction slowed over the last few months, leaving a plot of empty dirt and some scattered equipment where the DinoLand U.S.A. area once was. Last week, Inside the Magic reported that Walt Disney World Resort filed permits to build trailers at the Encanto site and near an Imagineering base behind Expedition Everest, suggesting that work at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park would begin soon.
Now, preliminary work has begun on the Encanto attraction buildings. Aerial photos from X (formerly known as Twitter) user @bioreconstruct show that crews have demolished a berm and retaining wall that used to separate DinoLand U.S.A. from backstage areas at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park:
Aerial photos of where a berm and part of a retaining wall have been removed at the Encanto ride site in Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
Another photo shows that crews have installed another retaining wall connecting to the remaining pieces of the existing berm. This could distinguish between backstage and onstage in the Pueblo Esperanza area.
Aerial photo of the Encanto ride site in Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
According to reports from BlogMickey, Imagineers have also begun testing paint, walkway layouts, and other scenic design elements for Pueblo Esperanza in a backstage laydown yard near Expedition Everest. The final version of these designs will be displayed at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park when the Tropical Americas-themed land opens in 2027. Walt Disney World Resort hasn’t announced an exact grand opening date.
The rest of DinoLand U.S.A. will shut down in phases. The Boneyard play area will close permanently on September 2, 2025. DINOSAUR and the land’s Quick Service dining locations will remain open through early 2026.
Do you agree with Walt Disney World Resort’s decision to replace DinoLand U.S.A. with Pueblo Esperanza at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park? Share your opinion with Inside the Magic in the comments!
The post Disney Breaks Ground on Animal Kingdom Theme Park Replacement appeared first on Inside the Magic.
