I’m going to be completely honest with you: I thought this was going to be a slow week when it came to Disney theme park news. I was even ready to combine this week’s news with next week’s news in anticipation of a slow holiday season. Boy, was I wrong!
The Disney theme park news is as robust as ever, with exciting updates about Annual Passholders in 2024, entertainment on the calendar at both Walt Disney World and Disneyland, a major update from Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, and more!
First “Good-To-Go” Annual Passholder Days To Be Added to Calendar in January
On January 9, Park Pass Reservations will no longer be required for most date-based tickets. That means that the vast majority of guests will no longer have to make a separate park reservation in order to enter a theme park! If you are a Disney World Annual Passholder, however, it will be business as usual in 2024, with Park Reservations still a required component of your visit.
That said, Disney has previously announced that there will be “Good-To-Go” days where Park Reservations are not required for Annual Passholders to enter any of the four theme parks (blockout dates apply). The first slate of dates will be announced on January 11. Future Good-To-Go days will be added periodically during the year, and according to Disney, they may be released “days or weeks in advance.”
Note that at this time, Park Reservations are not required for Annual Passholders if they enter their first park after 2:00 PM. The exception to this is if you want to visit Magic Kingdom on Saturdays or Sundays, where Park Reservations are required regardless of the time you enter.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ABOUT HOW A 2024 DISNEY WORLD VACATION WILL LOOK DIFFERENT THAN PREVIOUS YEARS.
New Little Mermaid Stage Show Coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios
If you grew up visiting Disney World post-1989, your early childhood memories probably involve the live-action stage show inspired by “The Little Mermaid” in Disney’s Hollywood Studios (or if you’re of a certain age, MGM Studios). That stage show has yet to reopen following the temporary park closures in 2020, but now we finally know more about the future of that theater.
A new stage show inspired by the animated classic “The Little Mermaid” is coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios in 2024! The show will debut in the fall and feature all of your favorite songs from the film.
CLICK HERE FOR YOUR 10-STEP GUIDE FOR PLANNING A DISNEY WORLD VACATION.
First Look Inside Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
We’re still several months out from the arrival of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure in Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort, but that doesn’t mean work isn’t well underway. In fact, we finally got a look INSIDE the attraction this week during a segment on “20/20.”
The segment showed brief snippets of the interior of the ride, which shows the first bits of scenery come to life.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is slated to open later in 2024 in both Magic Kingdom and Disneyland Park.
CLICK HERE TO MAP OUT THE COST OF YOUR NEXT DISNEY WORLD VACATION.
Returning Disneyland Entertainment in 2024
Disneyland will be a busy bee in 2024 with a full lineup of specialty events and festivals, including the return of Pixar Fest. Surrounding all of these exciting events is the return of fan-favorite entertainment at Disneyland Park. This includes the return of the fireworks shows Wondrous Journeys and Mickey’s Mix Magic, along with the popular daytime parade Magic Happens.
Here’s the current entertainment schedule through spring 2024:
- Mickey’s Mix Magic will perform nightly from January 8 through March 21
- Wondrous Journeys will perform nightly from March 22 to April 24
- Mickey’s Mix Magic will return nightly from April 15-25
- And Magic Happens will return for daily parades on February 2
CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL LINEUP OF EVENTS AND FESTIVALS AT DISNEYLAND RESORT IN 2024.
Refurbishment Announced For Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster
The first half of 2024 will not include a popular thrill ride on Disney World’s operational calendar. It was announced this week that Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith will close temporarily starting on January 8.
According to theme park journalist Scott Gustin, the ride is not expected to reopen until summer 2024.
Zootopia Opens at Shanghai Disneyland
Last but certainly not least, this week marked the grand opening of Zootopia in Shanghai Disneyland!
The new land features the attraction Zootopia: Hot Pursuit, character meet and greets, specialty snacks, and much more.
The land takes on a whole new look at night!
Make sure to continue to follow along for more weekly news roundups from Disney parks around the globe.
