Some big new additions are in the works currently at Disneyland as the summer draws closer! The Haunted Mansion closure continues as construction progresses, and Tiana's Bayou Adventure is making steady progress as we look forward to the ride's opening later in 2024.
The majority of Critter Country also recently closed, with the exception of the Hungry Bear Restaurant, for construction to start on two new retail shops inspired by Princess and the Frog. For a full list of all of the rides at the parks that are currently under refurbishment, see our full Disneyland refurbishment guide which we update regularly. We also got a first look at the new Pixar Fest Marketplaces that will become available starting May 10, and they look so cute!
Keep reading for the most recent update on the construction happening at Disneyland, plus a surprise new addition revealed.
Pixar Fest Marketplaces First Look
An exciting offering Disney announced for Pixar Fest is the Pixar-themed Marketplaces coming to Disney California Adventure on May 10. You can see our full Pixar Fest food guide for the surprisingly huge amount of offerings that will be available during the celebration this summer.
Marketplaces are already starting to show up, and they look fantastic! Here is the Hanger Management one with a lot of flame imagery and Anger himself with a fork and knife in hand. We love how cute this is!
Hanger Management will offer food items like the Joyful Yellow Comforting Mac & Cheese with happy cheesy puffs and Angry Red Hot Mac & Cheese with spicy cheese crunch as well as drinks like the Mood Swing and Mood Stabilizer Mule.
We're looking forward to seeing the rest of the Marketplaces around the park as they open next week!
Haunted Mansion Construction Update
The Haunted Mansion closed earlier this year on January 22 to begin work to add an expanded outdoor queue, a new retail shop, and a new elevator exit from the attraction for guests with disabilities. Many visitors, including us, are really missing the Haunted Mansion right now during the ride's longer closure. See the view from the Mark Twain Riverboat of the Haunted Mansion and Tiana's Bayou Adventure area of the park in these pictures.
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In the current phase of construction for the Haunted Mansion, the former queue has been demolished but we are still yet to see any recognizable elements of the new additions Disney shared will be featured in the expanded queue. It will still have some of its iconic elements like the pet cemetery and horse-drawn funeral hearse, but it will also incorporate new stories like new gardens inspired by Master Gracey, Madame Leota, and the one-eyed cat.
For reference, this is the concept art for the Haunted Mansion expanded outdoor queue that will be coming to life as construction progresses:
We're hoping that the attraction will be ready in time for Halloween at Disneyland, which will start earlier than usual this year in late August. We do not expect that the attraction will open before the beginning of Halloween at Disneyland. When the ride closed, the Nightmare Before Christmas decorations for Haunted Mansion were still up inside. I don't know why they would put the effort into taking down those decorations just to put them all back up again weeks later.
We anticipate that the Haunted Mansion Holiday version of the attraction will be the one that operates during any of the period that the attraction is open before Halloween. We will likely not see the normal Haunted Mansion version of the attraction until January 2025.
Tiana's Bayou Adventure Construction Update
Excitement continues to build for the opening of Tiana's Bayou Adventure as Disney has recently shared more details on what we can expect on the inside of the attraction, including a reveal of the ride's amazing animatronics and more new characters and storyline details.
Progress continues on the ride's construction as new greenery has been added, and it appears that they have run water through it recently as you can see below.
Meanwhile, the majority of Critter Country has closed as of May 1 for work on the new Princess and the Frog retail shops with construction walls up, though the entrance to Hungry Bear Restaurant is still open for guests. Other parts of the land like Pooh's Corner and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh ride remain closed.
Construction progress is still a ways behind the version of the ride at Walt Disney World, but it is making good progress!
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Three New Mexican Restaurant Concepts Open in Downtown Disney
Three new Mexican restaurants just celebrated their grand opening at Downtown Disney. Paseo, Céntrico, and Tiendita are now open to guests! Walk-in service is available now for all of the restaurants, and reservations are starting on June 1 for Paseo and Céntrico. Paseo is currently open for dinner, with weekday lunch and weekend brunch service coming soon, and Céntrico is serving lunch and dinner. See our review of the food we tried at one of the new Mexican restaurants during its soft opening!
Big Al Statue at Disney California Adventure
Over at Disney California Adventure, there is also a new statue of Big Al that has been added to Grizzly Peak! The addition of this favorite Country Bear Jamboree character is too cute. See a closer look at him below:
There's no good reason that this statue was added here beyond the fact that someone at Disney knew that this would put a smile on the faces of the fans in the know. That's the best reason of all. Some have speculated that this is to gauge interest in a Country Bears Jamboree addition back at Disneyland. I kind of doubt that since theater shows never really stick around in Disneyland as the locals don't go enough, but it's a fun thought. The real reason this is here is likely just to draw more people in to pitch them on Disney Vacation Club.
Here's a fun thought for any Disney Imagineering reading. Let's get a Country Bears Jamboree influence brought into the new Villas at Disney's Grand Californian which are moving ahead with their complete refurbishment.
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