Disney Announces Ride Reopenings, Permanent Closure, and Lightning Lane Change

This week was major for Disney announcements as we got a highly anticipated reopening date for one of the most popular Magic Kingdom rides, changes revealed for Lightning Lane selections, and end dates for other major refurbishments at Disneyland.

Each week, there is always something new happening, whether that includes ride closures, openings, or other things that could impact your trip! We share a roundup of all of the key Disneyland and Walt Disney World news you missed with these announcements.

You can also check out our roundup of the key news from last week here. Mickey Visit brings you the latest Disney news and planning resources. See the major changes coming to Disney World in April here and the changes at Disneyland in April here.

Disney Announcements This Week

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First, some big stories across all of Disney that we are following.

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The new Disney theme park chairman has shared his priorities to focus on improving guest experience. Read the details on what he is focusing in on.

Concerns are growing over live streaming in the Disney theme parks after a recent incident. See the details on what happened and what could be coming.

Disney’s DAS program is facing a legal compliant which has now gone into the investigation phase. Read more about this next legal move for DAS.

Disney plans to lay off more than 1,000 employees in first move from the new CEO. Learn more about these layoffs.

A new article highlighting the crackdown on third-party vendors prompted a response from Disney on the recent move earlier this year. See Disney’s statement and the current update on third-party vendors operating on property.

There are some SUPER CUTE new Hallmark ornaments coming that featuring icons from the Disney Parks. See all of the ones that are coming and details.

Disneyland Announcements This Week

Now on to Disneyland news from this week that you missed…

Disneyland is closing a dining location permanently and replacing with a new tenant. See the details on what we know.

Disneyland released all the lowest $104 dollar ticket dates through the year. See all the cheapest dates to visit. 

A popular Disneyland restaurant just received an end date for its current refurbishment. Read more about the refurbishment timeline here. 

Disneyland revealed the location for the new Monsters, Inc. popcorn bucket and menu changes this week. See all the menu updates across the park.

Disneyland announces 5 new Star Wars popcorn buckets and novelties coming soon. Learn more about the new popcorn buckets. 

Crowds are going to surge at Disneyland on these dates after a ticket deal ends. Read more about which dates to avoid this spring.

The end date for an extended refurb at Disney California Adventure was revealed. See the new date here.

These quiz questions for Disneyland were featured on a special Jeopardy episode. Test your knowledge here on this trivia!

Walt Disney World Announcements This Week

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad trains

Now on to Walt Disney World news from this week that you missed…

Disney World is reopening one of their best rollercoasters after an over 15 month long refurbishment. See the reopening date here. We also took a look at the ride testing taking place this week for this iconic ride here. 

Disney World quietly changed their popular Princess Royal Rooms at Port Orleans Riverside. See our exclusive first look at the new rooms.

Disney World just hit a major milestone on a new roller coaster coming soon. See details and photos.

Lightning Lane received an update as a popular ride at Magic Kingdom reopened this week. Read more about this new change.

A new change was made to the popular Magic Kingdom nighttime parade. See the stunning new change here. 

A new discount was announced for annual passholders at Disney World. Learn more about this 40% off dining deal. 

Disney Springs is permanently closing two stores this month. See which stores are closing for good here.

A popular Disney World restaurant received a menu overhaul with more menu changes happening across the resort. Learn about all the new menu changes this week. 

People walk right past this lounge at Disney World even though it’s one of the best. Read our review of our favorite lounge here. 

Disney World is making major upgrades to one of its golf courses during its next closure. See the closure date and changes here. 

We took a look at the hotel that Disney planned to build at Disney World than scrapped. Learn more about this failed hotel. 

Disney World has closed 10 attractions to build all the new additions to Hollywood Studios. See all the former closed attractions here.

Universal Orlando is considering a “status match” for Disney World passholders. Read more about this possible discount. 

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About Lindsay Brookshier

Lindsay Brookshier has been recognized as a Disney expert since 2017 and has been featured by outlets including CNBC, SFGate, NerdWallet, and Visit Anaheim. She holds a Master’s degree in English and visits Disneyland, Walt Disney World, Universal Studios Hollywood, and Universal Orlando multiple times each year, giving her first hand insight into park operations, seasonal trends, crowd patterns, and touring strategies.

Her experience also extends to Disney Cruise Line, where she has sailed on every class of ship, visited both of Disney’s private islands, and participated in specialty sailings such as Marvel Day at Sea and Very MerryTime cruises. This depth of travel allows her to provide practical, data informed travel guidance across Disney Parks, Disney Cruise Line, Universal theme parks, and related destinations.

As Content Director of Mickey Visit, Lindsay oversees editorial strategy and daily content. She also leads the development and analysis of Mickey Visit’s crowd calendars, using historical wait time data, ticket pricing trends, and seasonal attendance patterns to forecast park crowd levels. Lindsay writes touring plans, authors in depth reviews, and offers expert analysis on Disney experiences. She also serves as an expert on Disney discounts and merchandise, tracking ticket offers, hotel promotions, seasonal deals, major merchandise collaborations, and collectible releases across the parks and online.

Lindsay comes from a lifelong Disney family and has been visiting Disneyland since the 1990s. She is currently planning a Disney Cruise Line wedding and her favorite ride is the Haunted Mansion.

See her Muck Rack profile here.

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