Disneyland Resort in California is charting an ambitious course for its next generation of theme park attractions. Construction is well underway for some projects, and yet to begin on others. We are actively tracking the work on all of the new rides and other additions coming to the resort.
We have the latest construction progress on five projects at Disneyland Park, Disney California Adventure, and Downtown Disney that will shape the Disneyland Resort’s future. Mickey Visit brings you the latest Disney news and planning resources, including the permanent closure of a Disneyland restaurant and updated theme park policies that divide guest opinions.
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Disneyland is Expanding in Coming Years
For decades, Disneyland Resort has been limited in how it can expand due to zoning restrictions of the land immediately surrounding its theme parks. This changed when the city of Anaheim approved DisneylandForward in 2024.
This long-term plan rezones sections of the Disneyland Resort property for theme park use, charting the course for the destination’s next generation of development and construction. The previous Disneyland President said that we should think about this plan as something that sets up the resort for the next 30-40 years of expansion.
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In the years to come, Disneyland guests will experience a new Coco ride, an Avatar land, new Avengers rides, and more. Some of these projects can only exist because of DisneylandForward, while others were in motion before the approval.
As part of DisneylandForward, a new parking structure will be built east of Disneyland Resort. This deck will service guests arriving from the south on I-5. A new pedestrian bridge will be constructed over Harbor Boulevard, connecting the new parking deck to the east entrance of Disneyland Resort. Construction on the bridge and the parking deck has not started, but permits have been filed.
DisneylandForward is a blueprint for the future. Here’s a look at where we are today during the construction of the new additions. These photos are from a recent day checking into the projects at Disneyland.
Coco Ride
A boat ride based on the Pixar film Coco is coming to Disney California Adventure. Guests will travel to the Land of the Dead with Miguel, just like in the movie.
Disney is building the Coco ride in an area that was formerly a backstage service road behind Incredicoaster and bordering pedestrian walkways on Disneyland Drive outside the park.
Crews have successfully cleared this area of trees and appear ready to begin construction of the ride building, though vertical construction hasn’t yet begun. It feels like this addition is about to really start to shoot up. When we were looking at the site this week, it looked like they had building materials being moved onto the site.
See our detailed coverage of what’s happening at the Coco ride construction site from earlier this week.
Fantasyland Snack Expansion
Edelweiss Snacks, a food window in Fantasyland at Disneyland Park, is expanding. Disney filed a permit for additions to this popular spot, known for serving turkey legs and bratwursts.
When we saw Edelweiss behind construction walls, with the new portion partially built, the size of the project surprised us. There’s an entire additional building!
It’s quite an accomplishment to construct a new structure within the tight confines of Disneyland’s footprint. We’re interested in seeing how this affects crowd flow throughout this area of the park.
For comparison, above is what the location looked like before.
Avengers Campus Expansion
Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure is expanding with two new rides. Both attractions will be housed in a massive building currently under construction.
Avengers Infinity Defense will comprise the majority of the building. This big-budget ride will star favorite Marvel superheroes in a face-off against King Thanos, a multiverse version of Thanos not seen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Stark Flight Lab will be visible from the plaza outside the building, flinging guests through the air with robotic arms.
The exterior and basic shell of the building seem to be almost complete. As you can see from the concept art, the crisscrossing beams are part of the final design.
From this point on, guests may be able to see progress on Stark Flight Lab. The majority of the work on Avengers Infinity Defense will be concealed within the building, a mystery to guests until Disney reveals what’s within.
The new rides join Avengers Campus’s existing attractions, Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission – BREAKOUT! and WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure.
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Here’s a fun look at a bunch of characters gathered in Avengers Campus for a Make-A-Wish event hosted earlier this week at Disneyland. We attended the event, where Disney and MrBeast hosted other creators to grant about 40 wishes. The moment was spectacular and delivered on the promise of what entertainment in the land could feel like.
Disney is proud to be the world’s largest wish-granter for Make-A-Wish, doing so every hour of every day. 99% of doctors say wishes help relieve a family from traumatic stress, and 87% of Make-A-Wish alumni say their wish was a turning point in their treatment.
New Avatar Addition
A new land based on 2022’s Avatar: The Way of Water and 2025’s Avatar: Fire and Ash is coming to Disney California Adventure.
The land will include large-scale architecture and a boat ride depicting the wonders of Pandora’s aquatic creatures.
Avatar will replace a portion of Hollywood Land at California Adventure, including Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue! and the Hollywood Lounge snack location.
It will also take up space currently belonging to the transportation hub on the Harbor Boulevard side of Disneyland Resort’s entrance.
Disney recently filed demolition permits for both the Monsters, Inc. ride and the snack building. However, there is currently no construction activity in this area, and everything remains open to guests. Disney says Monsters, Inc. will close sometime in early 2027.
In the photos above, you can see the still-standing attraction and Hollywood Lounge.
Downtown Disney Restaurants
Three highly anticipated restaurants are coming to Downtown Disney.
Porto’s Bakery & Café, a Southern California chain restaurant serving Cuban-inspired pastries, cakes, and savory dishes, is under construction. The future home of Porto’s is behind walls, with a mound of dirt peeking up from behind them, as seen in the photo above. The green building in the background is Soarin’.
Porto’s will be located on the site of the previous Earl of Sandwich and Earl of Sandwich Tavern location and the former La Brea Bakery location. That building and two ticket booths were completely leveled to prepare for Porto’s.
The size of the construction site is huge. It’s amazing how close the site footprint and the planned Porto’s building seem to be to Disney California Adventure’s main entrance.
Earl of Sandwich’s new permanent home is closer to opening, seemingly nearly ready, but still without an opening date. The two-story location will include a new restaurant, Gordon Ramsay at The Carnaby, upstairs, inspired by British pubs.
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