Walt Disney World occasionally closes rides for maintenance. For older attractions, these refurbishments sometimes call for significant upgrades to evolve the ride for a new generation and bring it up to speed with modern safety protocols. For one of those currently closed rides, we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.
A classic attraction at Disney World has been closed for over a year and is now showing signs that the refurbishment is coming to an end. Keep reading to see how Disney is preparing this ride to reopen and what a possible reopening timeline may look like. Mickey Visit brings you the latest Disney news and planning resources, including scrapped plans for a hotel inside Magic Kingdom and an overlooked lounge perfect for a midday break in the parks.
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Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Almost Ready to Reopen
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at Magic Kingdom closed for refurbishment on January 6, 2025, and has been closed since. During the 15-month closure so far, Disney conducted a top-to-bottom update of the ride’s facilities and storytelling.
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On the structural side of things, Disney installed a completely new track for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad along the length of its ride path. Every roller coaster has a service life, a designated number of years it can safely operate before needing to be either dismantled or replaced. Disney replacing the track of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad ensures the coaster is fit to welcome its next generation of riders.
Maintenance teams also likely utilized the ride’s lengthy downtime to upgrade other components of the ride’s operations that are less noticeable than a new track.
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When the roller coaster reopens, it will also feature new special effects during its indoor lift hill scene. What first appear to be beautiful, rainbow-colored caverns will turn an ominous red as bats flutter and the train ride goes awry.
When Big Thunder Mountain Railroad first closed in January 2025, it was set to reopen sometime in 2026. On March 12, 2026, Disney announced the coaster would reopen in “early May” 2026. At the time of this writing, Disney hasn’t revealed a specific opening date beyond that general timeframe.
However, as of April 4, Disney is testing Big Thunder Mountain Railroad coaster trains carrying water jugs. This is a regular safety procedure for new and refurbished rides. Maintenance teams test a certain number of ride cycles with jugs of water, or sometimes bags of sand, sitting in for human riders before testing the ride with actual people onboard.
Disney has been testing the trains of Big Thunder Mountain Railroad since fall 2025, but testing with water jugs is a positive sign toward the ride’s reopening.
Assuming Disney is finished painting the ride vehicles, the coaster train now sports a darker shade of brown than its previous color scheme.
Clues from Another Magic Kingdom Reopening
On the other side of Magic Kingdom, Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin has been closed for refurbishment since August 2025.
The ride is officially scheduled to reopen on April 8, 2026, but Disney has been operating the ride for all guests over the past few days. Of course, since the ride’s official reopening date hasn’t arrived yet, its availability is subject to change.
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin are by no means similar rides, and just because the latter is utilizing a soft-opening period doesn’t mean the former will.
What this does show us is that modern Magic Kingdom operations leaders are receptive to the idea of a soft open if a ride is ready before an official opening date. If Big Thunder Mountain Railroad follows the same pattern, and its official reopening is slated for early May, one would hope that soft openings before then could be possible.
Looking further into the future, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad sits directly next to a huge construction site at Magic Kingdom that will one day be home to Piston Peak National Park and Villains Land. See our coverage of a milestone reached by that construction crew.
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