Two major construction projects are happening right now at Magic Kingdom to make way for two brand new lands coming to Disney World. Villains Land is currently being built in the area “beyond Big Thunder Mountain Railroad” with a new Disney Cars-inspired area replacing the Rivers of America. This is one of the big areas of construction you should be aware of if you’re visiting in 2026.
Both projects are underway adjacent to the iconic Haunted Mansion attraction. Land clearing near the ride has already begun, creating early construction impacts, and Disney is also starting work on the attraction’s queue, raising questions about whether additional changes could be on the way. At Mickey Visit, we report on all the recent theme park news, including a brand new roller coaster at Universal Orlando and major changes coming to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. See new return of popular restaurant. Animal Kingdom is also moving forward with new land construction.
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Two New Lands Being Built in Magic Kingdom
These two major projects are located directly adjacent to the Haunted Mansion. Since these two new lands are being built near each other, it’s challenging to differentiate between the two construction areas just yet.
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We do know that Piston Peak National Park, the new Cars-inspired land, will primarily occupy the area previously home to the Rivers of America. Villains Land, meanwhile, has been described by Disney Imagineering as the area “Beyond Big Thunder,” indicating it will be located behind the former Rivers of America space. As for Haunted Mansion, it sits squarely between these two major construction projects.
In the map at the top of the articl, you can see our general idea of where these lands will be, with Villains Land potentially expanding further to the back of Magic Kingdom. Some of these areas will serve for construction staging and are not always a true indicator of the size of the land, but based on the aerial footage we have of Magic Kingdom, it’s likely Villains Land could take up a big portion of space.
Looking to the left of the original aerial view, we can see the former Rivers of America, along with newly cleared land that sits directly behind the Magic Kingdom areas that once surrounded the waterway.
If we look at a different angle behind Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Haunted Mansion, and Fantasyland, we can see all this land cleared out. Will all of this space be going to Villains Land? At the very least, it’s safe to assume this will be a larger land than Piston Peak National Park.
Here is another look at all that space that has been made for Villains Land, and also construction staging to store equipment. Now, let’s take a closer look at the work impacting Haunted Mansion.
Major Construction Happening Next to Haunted Mansion
If we zoom in on the Haunted Mansion, we can see that trees are being cleared to the left of the attraction. There is a big space that has been cleared out, which most are assuming is part of the work to make room for Villains Land.
Here is a closer look at the slope that has been cleared behind Haunted Mansion and it’s a small world. You can see to the right how the line of trees has been thinned out.
Looking closer at the Haunted Mansion, we can see how thinned out the trees are near the outdoor queue. Based on reports from inside Magic Kingdom, there is work being done on the outdoor graveyard with scaffolding in place, focusing on the area where the queue enters the building. You can see in the photo above how all the landscaping has been removed from the lawn in front of the building.
The Haunted Mansion is expected to remain open throughout this exterior work. The additional land clearing also gives Disney the opportunity to expand the Haunted Mansion queue, which would help ease much of the congestion in Liberty Square. While this appears to be the most likely outcome, I can’t help but hope for something more ambitious, such as a Haunted Mansion restaurant inspired by the themed bars found aboard Disney Cruise Line ships. The land cleared behind the attraction would be the perfect spot for a restaurant.
Disney Files Permit for Work at Nearby Boat Dock
Disney has also filed a permit for construction work at the boat dock shown above, located within the area being reimagined as Piston Peak National Park. This suggests there will be changes to the view from Liberty Square, which makes sense given that the Rivers of America and the Liberty Square Riverboat dock are now permanently closed and no longer serve a functional purpose.
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Photos via bioreconstruct on X.
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