It’s time to start planning that 2025 Disney World vacation! As I say, there’s no time like the present to start thinking about your next Disney World vacation!
Planning a 2025 Disney World vacation so far in advance has never been easier, with most of 2025 available for booking as of this writing. Let’s break down what we already know about what a Disney World vacation will look like in 2025, and what you need to know before you book that trip.
Vacation Packages Are On Sale Now
If you’re like me and want a Disney World vacation on your calendar as early as possible, you’ll love this first bit of information. You can book 2025 Walt Disney World room-only reservations and vacation packages (room and park tickets) NOW.
Reservations are available for the entirety of the 2025 calendar. Whether you want to visit next summer or for the holiday season, you can book your 2025 Disney World vacation!
PREPARE FOR YOUR 2025 DISNEY WORLD VACATION NOW: CLICK BELOW TO SHOP MY DISNEY ESSENTIALS
READ MORE: MY 10-STEP GUIDE FOR PLANNING A DISNEY WORLD VACATION.
Disney World Rolls Out First Slate of Discounts For 2025
One of the mantras when booking a Disney World hotel is to never pay full price, and that remains true for 2025 vacations. Disney recently announced the first wave of promotions and special offers to help guests save on their upcoming trips, and they’re worth looking at if you’re considering booking a reservation. The best part is these discounts will automatically apply to your reservation, so there’s no extra work or promo codes needed if you book directly through Disney!
There are two main promotions you’ll want to be aware of if you’re looking at a Disney World vacation in the first half of 2025. The first allows guests to save up to $200 per night on a 3-night, 2-day Walt Disney Travel Company room-and-ticket package at select Disney Resort hotels. This offer is valid for arrivals most nights from February 26 to June 30, 2025.
The fine print here is you have to stay for a minimum of three nights, but your reservation can be for up to 14 nights. Note that the promotion says “save UP TO $200 per night,” meaning your actual savings can be lower than that depending on the hotel you book. In general, to gain the most savings, you’ll need to book a reservation at one of Disney World’s deluxe resort hotels.
The second promotion allows guests to save up to 25% on rooms for stays most nights from February 23 to April 30, 2025, and up to 20% on rooms for stays most Sunday to Thursday nights from January 1 to February 20, 2025. Like the other promotion, you stand to save more at those upper-tier resorts. Of course, the starting price is going to be higher, so you may still wind up paying more to stay at a deluxe resort, even if the discount is greater.
READ MORE: WAYS TO SAVE ON YOUR DISNEY WORLD VACATION.
New Lightning Lane Pass System Introduced
If you finally were used to using Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane at Walt Disney World, I’m sorry to say that you’ll need to learn an entirely new system…again. As of July 2024, Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lane was replaced by Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Lightning Lane Single Pass, respectively.
These new systems function similarly, but with other features more akin to FastPass+. The big difference you need to know if you’re planning a 2025 Disney World vacation is you can once again book return times in advance! Multi Pass and Single Pass allow for in-advance Lightning Lane bookings seven (7) days prior to arrival for guests staying at a Walt Disney World Resort hotel, and three (3) days prior to your first park day for all other guests.
There are a lot of details surrounding this new Lightning Lane pass system, so be sure to read up on my full breakdown of what it entails before your next Disney World vacation.
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READ MORE: ULTIMATE GUIDE TO THE NEW LIGHTNING LANE SYSTEM THAT REPLACED GENIE+
New Complimentary Water Park Admission Perk
It can be tricky to plan your arrival day at Disney World. You are most likely arriving in Orlando partway through the day, making it hard to justify adding a full day onto your park tickets. Time is money, after all, especially when you’re vacationing in Disney World. That’s why this brand-new offering available for 2025 vacations is such a sweet deal.
Guests staying at Disney World resort hotels will receive complimentary admission to one of Disney World’s water parks on their check-in day! That means you and your travel party can head to either Typhoon Lagoon or Blizzard Beach free of charge to kick off your vacation. This deal is good for check-in day only, and every guest must be on the room reservation in order to redeem this offer. It’s valid for vacations with check-in dates starting on January 1, 2025.
READY TO START PACKING? CLICK BELOW TO SHOP THE BEST HARD-SHELL SUITCASES:
READ MORE: WAYS TO SAVE ON A DISNEY WORLD VACATION.
Extended Park Hours Remain For On-Site Guests
One of the biggest perks when staying at a Disney World resort hotel is extra time in the theme parks. In recent years, this offer has included early morning theme park entry for all Disney resort guests. This includes 30 minutes of early theme park access, allowing you to get a jump start on popular rides before the park opens to other guests. This offer is good every morning.
Another perk offered exclusively to Disney Deluxe and Deluxe Villa resort guests is extended theme park access in the evening. On select evenings, one theme park will remain open for an additional two hours for guests staying at those top-tier resort hotels.
BOTH of these perks – Early Theme Park Entry for all Disney resort guests and Extended Evening Theme Park Hours for Deluxe and Deluxe Villa guests – will return in 2025. This should be an important factor in determining whether you want to stay at a Disney World resort hotel or if you prefer to stay off-property.
READ MORE: DISNEY WORLD’S CHEAPEST RESORT HOTELS SO YOU CAN SAVE ON YOUR NEXT VACATION.
Changes For Room-Only Cancelation Policy
Sometimes, last-minute changes pop up, and unfortunately, vacation plans need to be altered or canceled altogether. Currently, Disney World’s cancelation policy for room-only reservations allows for cancelations up to 5 days prior to check-in without penalty. This policy will change in 2025, and you will want to make note if you need that added bit of flexibility as your trip approaches.
Next year, that policy will be moved to 8 days prior to check-in for room-only reservation cancelations without penalty.
TRAVELING TO DISNEY IN THE SUMMER OF 2025? MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE FOLLOWING RAIN GEAR:
READ MORE: FOOLPROOF TIPS TO PLAN YOUR VERY FIRST DISNEY WORLD VACATION.
What We Know About Temporary Closures and Refurbishments in 2025
From time to time, temporary closures of rides, attractions, and other offerings are necessary to keep things in tip-top shape. Refurbishments are to be expected, and we already know of some work that will be happening in 2025. Knowing these in advance can help you plan ahead and around any unnecessary disappointments. Unexpected downtimes can also happen, but these sorts of refurbs are extended, multi-day or multi-week closures that Disney announces ahead of time.
Disney World announced that Big Thunder Mountain Railroad will be closed for essentially the entirety of 2025, with the last day of operation prior to the closure being January 5, 2025. Once the attraction closes on January 6, it will remain out of service until sometime in 2026.
While we do not yet know the full timeline of Test Track’s closure, it is likely safe to assume that the EPCOT thrill ride will be closed for at least a few months into 2025, if not longer. The current version of the ride had its last day of operation on June 17, 2024 before it closes so it can begin its transformation into what fans are dubbing “Test Track 3.0.” It was announced at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event that the new version of Test Track will open “soon” in 2025.
One of the big refurbishments we already know about is Stormalong Bay and Shipwreck Pool at Disney’s Yacht and Beach Club Resorts. The fan-favorite pool area will be closed for the first half of 2025 — January through June, according to Disney’s website.
I will continue to update this space as we learn more about extended closures and refurbishments that will impact your 2025 Disney World vacation.
READ MORE: THE BEST DISNEY WORLD RESORT HOTEL OPTIONS FOR FAMILIES.
What Else Is Arriving At Walt Disney World in 2025?
Disney fan learned a ton of new information about what’s coming to Walt Disney World in 2025 at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event. These changes touch all four theme parks, so it will be a year filled with new openings!
For starters, as previously mentioned, we could see the brand-new version of Test Track debut at EPCOT. Disney Parks Chairman Josh D’Amaro announced in 2023 that the thrill ride would be getting a makeover once again. The current Test Track version closed on June 17, 2024, most likely to begin work on its transformation. It was confirmed that Test Track 3.0 will open in 2025.
Another change coming to Disney World that will arrive in winter 2025 is the new show based on the animated film Zootopia. The show is slated to come to the theater inside the Tree of Life at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. This means we will soon bid adieu to It’s Tough to Be A Bug, though as of right now, a closing date of the original show as not been announced.
At Destination D23, we also learned that a tavern inspired by Pirates of the Caribbean would be arriving at Magic Kingdom in the near future. It was confirmed at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event that the tavern will open sometime in 2025!
Another new lounge space is coming to EPCOT and was unveiled at the D23 Disney Fan Event. The new space, called Spaceship Earth Lounge, will open in 2025.
Magic Kingdom is (finally) getting a new nighttime parade, and it debuts in summer 2025! The parade is called Disney Starlight and it uses “the latest technology to tell new stories about the characters you love.”
Also debuting in summer 2025 is a brand-new live production based on Disney Villains! The show will find a home at Sunset Showcase at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, the home of Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy (which will close permanently on October 7 to make room for the new show).
According to Disney, this new villains production “show will feature appearances by dozens of the most infamous evildoers, with fiendish foes Cruella de Vil, Captain Hook and Maleficent each breaking through the glass to take the stage in live production numbers.”
Disney also shared the news that the previously-announced stage show “The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure” was delayed from its originally scheduled fall 2024 opening to summer 2025. This new musical stage production will feature advance theatrical technology as well as puppetry to bring the story of The Little Mermaid to life.
READ MORE: THE BEST TIMES TO VISIT WALT DISNEY WORLD IN 2025
Permanent Closures and Construction Projects Beginning in 2025
Finally, let’s discuss what construction projects are set to begin in 2025. These new rides and lands won’t be complete in 2025 — in fact, they’re likely several years away — but construction will be apparent. The first project set to begin construction in early 2025 is a new Cars-inspired area of Frontierland. The exact whereabouts of this land are to be determined, but in Disney’s words, it will be “a reimagined section of Frontierland at Magic Kingdom.”
It was confirmed after D23 via a press release from Disney, “To make way for this completely new frontier, the Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island will be transformed into vast and rugged terrains for a rally race with some of the world’s most iconic racers.” Another piece of concept art accompanied this announcement showing the new Cars section of Frontierland.
This is part of what will be Magic Kingdom’s largest expansion yet (no word yet on if the Villains land in Magic Kingdom will also begin work in 2025). If you want to get one more ride in on the Steam Boat, best do it as early as possible in 2025 before the area shuts down.
While the Tropical Americas land will not open at Disney’s Animal Kingdom until 2027, work will be underway in 2025. The phased closure of DinoLand U.S.A. begins in fall 2024, with additional closures taking place in January 2025. Specifically, January 12, 2025 is the last day to experience TriceraTop Spin, Fossil Fun Games, and Chester & Hester’s Dinosaur Treasures. That means construction walls will be up throughout DinoLand U.S.A. starting January 13, 2025.
Dinosaur, The Boneyard, Restaurantosaurus, Dino-Bite Snacks, and Trilo-Bites will remain open for now following the first phase of closures, but these attractions and dining offerings are due for extinction at some point in 2025. Keep this in mind as you plan your 2025 Disney World vacation.
The other project that will break ground in 2025 is the Monsters Inc. land coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Guests will be able to visit Monstropolis and fully immerse themselves in this world — it looks remarkable! The land will feature the first suspended roller coaster at a Disney theme park as guests zip through the door warehouse at Monsters, Inc.
2025 is shaping up to be a big year at Walt Disney World! The way we plan our trips to Disney World will be different with the rollout of Lightning Lane Multi Pass, and there is sure to be plenty of construction happening around the resort in anticipation of these newly-announced projects. Keep an eye on this site for more of the latest updates and planning tips as we head into 2025.
READ MORE: WHAT’S NEW AND UPCOMING AT THE DISNEY THEME PARKS.
