Disney's D23 2026 Experiences showcase confirmed 23 major parks and cruise announcements across Walt Disney World, Disneyland Resort, Disneyland Paris, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Disney Cruise Line. D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event has wrapped, and the Disney Experiences showcase delivered a dense slate of Disney theme park news.
In a year that has seen some of the lowest theme park crowds and a notable drop-off in international guests, Disney is lining up and delivering new experiences across its major properties worldwide.
Actor and celebrity Disney fan Neil Patrick Harris hosted the event, which took place at the Honda Center, in Anaheim and was also available on Disney+.
Neil Patrick Harris hosted special guests including Thomas Mazloum, Bruce Vaughn, Kevin Feige, Jared Bush and John Stamos.
Here, we take a closer look at 23 exciting theme park things we learned from this year's D23 event.
Walt Disney World Resort
1. Villains Land has a name, a storyline and two very different headliners
Villains Land is the confirmed name of Magic Kingdom's new villains area, built around an original fairytale about a corrupted Wishing Well rather than plots lifted from the films, at a scale Imagineering compares to Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge.
Yes, it is simple and obvious (which is the point) and like Tomorrow Land, Frontier Land, Fantasy Land and Adventure Land this helps guests of all backgrounds easily make their way around the park and find the attractions they're looking for.
Of course, there are many more exciting reveals than just this obvious name. D23 revealed new details about one of the most important and hotly anticipated parts of any park expansion: the backstory!
The Magic Mirror materialised onto the D23 stage to introduce Mazloum, and the whisper that rippled through the arena was entirely justified.
Rather than lifting plots wholesale from the films, Imagineers have built an original fairytale.
Villains Land will be deeply immersive, as well as large in scale and magically themed architecture; described by Disney as "Conjured".
They see a vast, foreboding forest, and a Wishing Well torn apart by a wish so wicked it corrupted the stone and leaked poisoned magic into the trees. And, one by one, the villains have come to claim what's left of that power, conjuring fortresses and palaces that reflect their personalities.
The imagineering team compare the project's scale to Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge, the 2019 expansion of the Hollywood Studios park that redefined large-scale theme park immersion.
2. Maleficent's coaster and the Magic Mirror's dark ride
Maleficent's fortress coaster and a Magic Mirror dark ride will anchor Villains Land at Magic Kingdom, covering both ends of the thrill spectrum between a briar-racing coaster and a journey into the Mirror Realm.
Guests heading into Villains Land will find two headline attractions, and Disney has now shared more detail (and artist impressions) of these exciting rides.
The first is a coaster that races through enchanted briars surrounding Maleficent's mountaintop fortress, with guests effectively accepting an invitation from the Mistress of All Evil herself.
The Imagineering team presentation at D23 teased that it will include elements they've never attempted before on a comparable attraction which, given some of Disney's new additions, is a big claim.
The new land's second attraction will be a dark ride hosted by the Magic Mirror, who the Evil Queen keeps in the catacombs beneath her palace.
When you reach the Mirror, he transports you into his Mirror Realm, where a blend of physical sets and special effects conjures a parade of Disney Villains in ways only the Mirror can manage.
Between them, the two attractions cover both ends of the thrill spectrum.
3. Carousel of Progress gets Jamie Lee Curtis, Bryan Cranston and four new decades
Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress at Magic Kingdom, which is currently down for refurbishment, returns in late spring 2027 with new voices and every scene reset to four new time periods.
The D23 showcase opened with the news that Disney Legend Jamie Lee Curtis and Emmy winner Bryan Cranston are taking over as Sarah and John in Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress.
Imagineers explained that the every scene is being reset to new time periods, so the family now moves through the 1960s, the 1980s, the turn of the millennium and a far-flung future.
Act one puts the family around the television in summer 1969 for the moon landing. Act two lands on Halloween night 1985, with Sarah taking centre stage for the first time to demonstrate the household gadgets while John hands out sweets on the porch and Uncle Orville complains about the lack of privacy.
Act three is New Year's Eve 1999, with a new thing called the internet drawing everyone closer (and Grandpa asleep before midnight). And, Act four imagines a home in the distant future, built partly from Disney Legend John Hench's original concept sketches.
The previously announced Walt Disney Audio-Animatronic still opens the show, in a scene inspired by the 1964 "Disneyland Goes to the World's Fair" special. "There's a Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow" stays put between scenes.
The attraction is currently down and returns in late spring 2027.
4. Spaceship Earth is finally getting its update
Spaceship Earth at EPCOT will be reimagined for the first time in nearly two decades, shifting its story from human communication to human connection.
Imagineers have confirmed that Spaceship Earth will be reimagined for the first time in nearly two decades, bringing the attraction into the internet age and beyond.
The ride has always told the story of human communication; now, with the update focusing on human connection, Imagineers have more room to cover the digital age.
No exact re-opening dates have been released, only a teaser card reading simply "the next chapter begins".
5. Dreamfinder and Figment are coming back to EPCOT
EPCOT will see the return of classic and long-lost characters, with the Dreamfinder set to be reunited with park mascot Figment in a new imagination attraction.
It has been nearly 20 years since Dreamfinder left the original ride in 1998.
This reveal was saved for the closing moments of the showcase, and it saw Neil Patrick Harris appear as the Dreamfinder himself.
Disney Imagineers announced a new journey into imagination at EPCOT starring both Figment and Dreamfinder.
Whilst the Dreamfinder has been away for decades, Figment never went away.
The diminutive and whimsical dragon has been a feature of the Journey Into Imagination, the face of the EPCOT International Festival of the Arts since 2017, and countless pieces of merchandise throughout.
Disney say the Dreamfinder's return and his reunion with Figment is a response to fan feedback.
6. Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent
Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent is the confirmed title of a new attraction coming to Animal Kingdom's new land, Tropical Americas.
And it will carry the first Disney Audio-Animatronic modelled on Harrison Ford's own face (Galaxy's Edge has the Millennium Falcon, but not its most famous pilot).
Harrison Ford opened the D23 segment with a video message, thanking fans and then dropping a genuine surprise: that he is the physical model for the new Indiana Jones Audio-Animatronic.
The attraction's title was confirmed as Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent, and it lands in Animal Kingdom's new Tropical Americas land. Guests on the ride are expected to meet Dr. Jones exploring a temple, leading the Maya Underworld directly, guarded by a serpentine creature called the Tsukán.
Guests will be transported through a portal into the Underworld and have to escape bats, oversized scorpions, fire and of course Indi's most hated adversaries, snakes, with the ride culminating in a confrontation with a towering hand-sculpted Tsukán animatronic.
Disney Imagineers said they are working with archaeologists, anthropologists and Maya experts, drawing heavily on the Copán site in Honduras, and the temple facade is already under construction.
7. Antonio's Fiesta de Encanto steps inside Casita
The other headline attraction coming to Animal Kingdom's Tropical Americas comes from the world of Encanto.
Antonio's Fiesta de Encanto sees Animal Kingdom park guests climb aboard a rise vehicle that's in the form of a piece of furniture assembled by Casita itself.
Set on Antonio's gift day, the attraction invites guests into Casita as celebration guests, joined by Mirabel, Luisa and Isabella.
The ride moves through rooms invented specifically for the attraction before arriving upstairs in Antonio's room, transformed into a verdant rainforest containing more than 50 animal species, including a capybara, a toucan and a donkey.
Walt Disney Imagineering partnered with Disney's Animals, Science and Environment team to ensure every creature is accurate to Colombia.
It will be a family ride, with no height requirement.
8. El Carrusel de los Animalitos joins Tropical Americas
El Carrusel de los Animalitos is the third experience confirmed for Animal Kingdom's 11-acre Tropical Americas land, which will also house one of Walt Disney World's biggest quick-service restaurants and a Maya-inspired play area.
The land's third experience also got its name: El Carrusel de los Animalitos, an animal-themed carousel featuring 22 hand-carved figures drawn from Disney and Pixar films.
Expect to spot Scuttle, Squirt, Pua, Pascal, Simba, Eeyore, Kuzco and Heimlich among them - as some of the carvings were on display at D23.
Beyond the three attractions, Tropical Americas will include a large hacienda that ranks among the biggest quick-service restaurants on Walt Disney World property, as well as shopping and a Maya-inspired play area where younger explorers can unearth artefacts through hands-on play.
The 11-acre land was first announced at D23 2024, and more details are still to be finalised before the anticipated opening in 2027.
9. The Expedition Everest Yeti is coming back to life
Not so much new attraction, rather a (very) long awaited repair of an iconic Animal Kingdom favourite, with Disney announcing that Expedition Everest's Yeti Audio-Animatronic is being restored to full movement, ending years of the figure running as a strobe-lit projection.
No timeline was attached, but the repair is sure to be cheered and celebrated.
10. Piston Peak brings two Cars attractions to Magic Kingdom
Piston Peak, Magic Kingdom's Cars-themed expansion, will hold two attractions.
According to details revealed at D23, one is a family thrill ride, and the other is a spinner, respectively named Cars Ridge Run Rally and Miss Fritter's Daredevil Spin-Along.
Cars Ridge Run Rally sends racers climbing mountain trails, through snowy peaks and past erupting geysers before bouncing back down toward the finish line, with Lightning McQueen and Mater calling the action from the sidelines.
Alongside it, Miss Fritter's Daredevil Spin-Along puts the demolition derby champion from Cars 3 front and centre as host of her wildest competition yet.
Like other expansions and new lands in recent times, Disney is balancing thrills and more relaxed family attractions in a pairing that promises something new and exciting for guests of every age and taste.
11. Monstropolis opens at Hollywood Studios in 2027
Monstropolis, the Monsters, Inc. land at Disney's Hollywood Studios, opens in 2027 with a Mike and Sulley theatre show, which Disney confirmed will feature an original song by legend Randy Newman.
Other details of the new land were also revealed at this year's D23 including dining and retail news.
Park guests will, for example, enjoy pizza at Archie's Scare Pig Pizza.
Disneyland Resort
12. The first-ever Coco ride, in detail
In California, the first Coco attraction at any Disney park is under construction near Paradise Gardens Park and Pixar Pier, the ride is a boat ride through Miguel's memories of the Land of the Dead with no height requirement.
D23 revealed more detail around the attraction's storyline, which picks up a year after the events of the original film.
Imagineers are said to be working closely with Pixar so the ride nods to both Coco and the upcoming Coco 2.
The ride queue is expected to begin in Pixar Pier beside Inside Out Emotional Whirlwind, welcoming guests into a "casa museo" dedicated to the music of Héctor Rivera, Miguel's great-great-grandfather.
From there guests board a boat and travel through Miguel's memories of the Land of the Dead, encountering Miguel, Dante, Héctor and more. Imagineering is drawing on Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion for inspiration while using the latest Audio-Animatronics to bring the skeletal cast to life.
Construction is currently underway.
13. Avengers Campus doubles in size — with dates and a cast list
Avengers Campus at Disneyland Resort will double in size in 2028, when two new attractions open with returning voices from legendary Marvel actors Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie, Jeremy Renner, Brie Larson and Iman Vellani.
The headline reveal here is Avengers Infinity Defense and Stark Flight Lab, both set to open in 2028.
Avengers Infinity Defense casts park guests as new recruits, with a pre-mission briefing from Iman Vellani's Ms. Marvel before they're sent to reassemble the Avengers against King Thanos.
Stark Flight Lab, meanwhile, seats two guests per "gyro-kinetic pod" on a track that stops in front of a giant robot arm for a simulated Avenger flight-training session.
14. Tomorrowland is being reimagined at Disneyland park
Tomorrowland at Disneyland park will be fully reimagined with new attractions, more open spaces and new places to dream about the future, though Disney has committed only to revealing more in the years ahead.
Announced in the showcase's closing stretch: a full reimagining of Tomorrowland at Disneyland park. What was confirmed: new attractions, more open spaces, and new places to dream about the future, with the stated goal of restoring the optimism and possibility Walt described in 1955 as "a vista into a world of wondrous ideas."
The concept art carried the tagline Yesterday's Tomorrow, Today.
15. Three beloved entertainment offerings return in 2027
Disneyland Resort is bringing back three entertainment offerings in 2027, with two returning in February and the third arriving in time for summer. A triple announcement for Disneyland Resort fans.
A refreshed "Remember… Dreams Come True" will light up Disneyland park again beginning February 2027, and an updated version of the original "World of Color" returns to Disney California Adventure the same month.
Then, just in time for summer 2027, the "Magic Happens" parade dances back down Main Street, U.S.A.
Disneyland Paris
16. The Lion King attraction takes shape at Disney Adventure World
Disney Adventure World at Disneyland Paris is building a new flagship attraction for the French resort, bringing the Lion King water ride entered through caves beneath a 120-foot-high Pride Rock, with a new flume system, three slopes and a 52-foot drop.
Construction is underway on the second immersive world being added to the French resort's newly expanded, renamed and relaunched Adventure World park.
The new Lion King-themed areas will be home to a flagship water ride, akin to Orlando's Tiana's Bayou Adventure (Splash Mountain), with the ride expected to plunge guests into the Pride Lands, entered through caves beneath a 120-foot-high Pride Rock.
It promises a full retelling of Simba's journey from cub to king, the happy times and the decidedly not-happy ones, passing through memorable scenes from the 1994 film and building to Simba's final confrontation with Scar, with Audio-Animatronics figures, special effects and iconic songs throughout.
Once open it will be among the largest attractions at the French resort, featuring a new flume system, three slopes and a 52-foot drop.
The surrounding land will include dining, shopping and character meets, and forms a major piece of the ongoing transformation of the resort's second park.
17. Space Mountain returns to the Moon
Disneyland Paris will also see a big change at one of its other flagship "mountain" rides, resolving what has been a polarising point in the French park's recent history.
Tomorrowland's main attraction Space Mountain is ejecting the "temporary" Star Wars-themed reskin that's been in place since 2017.
Ten years on, the ride will return to its Jules Verne 'cyberpunk' roots, as "Space Mountain – De la Terre à la Lune" following a refurbishment that's scheduled to start at the end of 2027.
Restoring to the Jules Verne premise takes the ride back to its original vision from its opening in 1995 (and also makes sense of that one room in the ride queue, which somehow escaped all Star Wars reskining in the meantime).
Walt Disney Imagineering Paris said the move will bring the Moon back to the heart of the attraction
The 1995 story shifts slightly, now transporting guests to an idealised era of the very first journeys to the Moon in Discoveryland's steampunk register. Park going guests should expect reworked indoor sets and props, an enhanced queue, and new effects on the famous cannon blast sequence.
18. A brand-new daytime parade arrives in 2028
For the first time since 2017, Disneyland Park will debut a new daytime parade in 2028, unique to Disneyland Paris and intended to anchor the park's daytime entertainment.
Mickey Mouse and pals lead the procession, joined by elegant new floats carrying the Genie and Jasmine from Aladdin, Tiana from The Princess and the Frog, Rapunzel from Tangled, and Miguel from Coco.
Dana Harrel, VP Entertainment at Disneyland Paris, said the parade raises the bar and that what excites her most is how the creativity speaks across generations.
The scale of the undertaking is worth noting: more than 10,000 hours of research and technical development, and nearly 225 sketches of costumes, wigs and makeup.
Tokyo, Hong Kong and Shanghai
19. Space Mountain: Earthrise launches at Tokyo Disneyland
Tokyo's Space Mountain gets an entirely new identity as Space Mountain: Earthrise, part of the park's reimagined Tomorrowland. Rather than heading outward into the void, this one turns the camera around.
Guests launch into the cosmos and experience the wonder of Earth seen from a perspective unlike anything previously attempted in a Disney attraction — a concept designed to celebrate the beauty of the planet while still pointing guests toward the future.
Between Paris going backward to Verne and Tokyo going upward to orbit, the Space Mountain family is diverging in genuinely interesting directions.
20. Sugar Rush: Sweet Rescue brings Wreck-It Ralph to Tokyo
Sugar Rush: Sweet Rescue is a brand-new Wreck-It Ralph attraction heading to Tokyo Disneyland, and the first significant Wreck-It Ralph attraction at any Disney park.
Also heading to Tokyo Disneyland: Sugar Rush: Sweet Rescue, a brand-new attraction based on Wreck-It Ralph. Guests join Ralph and Vanellope inside the Sugar Rush game itself.
The mission involves transforming rogue sugar bugs back into their original forms while staying a step ahead of King Candy — with plenty of sweet surprises and familiar faces along the way. It's the first significant Wreck-It Ralph attraction at any Disney park.
21. An Avengers Pavilion rises over Hong Kong Disneyland
Hong Kong Disneyland's Stark Expo skyline is getting a heroic upgrade in the form of a new Avengers Pavilion, home to the Avengers Research Testing Labs.
The premise: Stark Industries and brilliant minds including Peter Parker are developing powerful new technology, which — inevitably — attracts exactly the wrong kind of attention.
Using 120-plus feet of storytelling technology, the experience carries guests across realms including Wakanda and Asgard alongside Spider-Man and other heroes.
A new Quinjet landing platform nearby will serve as a character encounter spot. Construction is well underway, and Imagineers say that once the structure goes vertical it will genuinely reshape the Tomorrowland skyline.
22. Shanghai gets the world's first Spider-Man land
Shanghai Disney Resort is building the first land anywhere in the world dedicated exclusively to Spider-Man, home to the Shanghai division of the Worldwide Engineering Brigade (W.E.B.) — the organisation Tony Stark founded to get young people experimenting with technology, familiar from Avengers Campus in California and Paris.
Inside, Peter Parker and friends have built a new set of Spider-Bots to help assemble their experiments and construct a brand-new coaster — the final piece of track for which has now been installed.
In keeping with the W.E.B. ethos, Imagineers are collaborating with local artists on more than 20 murals throughout the land celebrating science, Spidey and the Avengers, some of which were previewed at the Imagineering Pavilion in Anaheim.
Disney Cruise Line
23. First look at the Disney Believe, and a new class of ships for 2029
The Disney Believe sets sail in 2027, and D23 delivered the first look of the inside and outside of the vessel.
Moana is expected to greet guests in the ship's Grand Hall, while the exterior will carry Tinker Bell on the bow and Buzz and Woody on the stern.
Looking further ahead, Disney Cruise Line announced an entirely new class of ships arriving in 2029.
These new ships will sit between Disney's classic vessels and its newest ships in size.
With this new class of ships, Disney Cruise Line aims to unlock destinations and experiences the current fleet can't easily reach.
The bottom line
Okay, so how "new" were this year's new announcements? . . . well, not much was entirely new.
A lot of this year's announcements were about revealing real details about projects that have been in the works for a number of years, but, are due to arrive in the next two years.
The backdrop of 2026's lower footfall can't be ignored either.
What is clear, however, is Disney is very much putting its front PR foot forward at the moment with this year's D23 announcements.
Reworking existing parts of the parks, and with them the return of favourites from the past add to the fan service being paid to the Disney theme park faithful.
No doubt it will be hoped that all those new attractions will see guests coming back to the Disney parks through 2027 and 2028.
