Imagineering has shared progress they’ve made to create an authentic Tropical Americas expansion of Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World. This covers details about the Indiana Jones and Encanto land slated to replace Dino-Rama and the latest developments. (Updated October 28, 2024.)
For those who haven’t been following along closely, Tropical Americas at Animal Kingdom is now officially official. Walt Disney World has confirmed that Imagineering will transform Dinoland into a new area inspired by a region sometimes referred to as the Tropical Americas.
With this, Imagineering announced three areas of Tropical Americas. First is Pueblo Esperanza, the hub in heart of the rainforest that’s name translates to “Village of Hope.” This will be home to a large quick-service restaurant and will also offer a critter carousel as an attraction. To the left is the Encanto magical Madrigal Casita dark ride, which is likely to be a family-friendly Omnimover. To the right of that is the new Indiana Jones Adventure attraction, which will reimagine and replace DINOSAUR.
For a more detailed look at Tropical Americas and how the new land will replace Dinoland, check out our detailed look at Walt Disney Imagineering’s Tropical Americas Model that was displayed at D23.
Tropical Americas will feature “authentic experiences” from this area of the world, with placemaking and storytelling you’d expect from Animal Kingdom. “It’s a beautiful region to explore and has been the inspiration for so many magical stories over the years,” added Vaughn. We can only assume this means that Tropical Americas will feature capybara and chupacabra, both of which are definitely real animals and not at all made up freaks of nature.
Walt Disney World has now started to cover when the phased closures of the existing attractions, restaurants, and retail will begin. For a rundown, see When Will DINOSAUR & Dino-Rama Close at Walt Disney World? Spoiler: the answer for most of Dino-Rama is very soon.
To that point, let’s take a look at the latest permits filed by Walt Disney World on October 28, 2024…
October 28, 2024 Update: The latest development is that Walt Disney Parks & Resorts has filed a new package of permits with the South Florida Water Management District. The most interesting of which is a 26-page permit that details the before/after of Dinoland versus Tropical Americas. (Direct links to SFWMD permits aren’t possible, so search for “Project RO” if you’d like to review for yourself.)
Honestly, the permit itself is pretty pedestrian. As Walt Disney Imagineering points out repeatedly, the project will consist of enhancing and re-theming of the existing area with no change to land use. The SFWMD is primarily concerned with–you guessed it–water management, and this doesn’t really alter the status quo in that regard: “The existing stormwater collection and conveyance strategy will remain the same with a few realignments to allow for the construction of the proposed facilities.” Exciting stuff.
Disney indicates that the proposal should be grandfathered in, as the proposed project involves the modification of the existing Dinoland, USA in Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The project will consist of re-theming of the existing area with no expansion beyond its current limits. Perhaps the most interesting part is that the project proposes a net increase of 0.68 acres (5.3%) of impervious area, which is within the permitted stormwater treatment and flood attenuation capability.
In other words, all of the fans upset that Walt Disney World was reimagining and replacing instead of expanding had it totally wrong. We’re getting 0.68 acres–that’s over two-thirds of a full acre! In looking at the plans, I can only assume that’s entirely the Encanto show building. Speaking of the plans, here’s a look at the before and after:
In the above plan, the pre-development is on the left and the post-development is on the right. Buildings are blue, with pervious areas (greenspace) in green, and beige showing impervious areas (walkways).
To orient you, DINOSAUR is at the bottom, Restaurantosaurus is on the left, and Dino-Rama is on the right. You should able to get a pretty good sense for that, as there’s not much of a before/after difference with the DINOSAUR show building or Restaurantosaurus. Little changes, but nothing major. All of the big differences are on the right side, with Dino-Rama becoming part of Pueblo Esperanza and Encanto.
Here’s a closer look at post-development plans:
There are some changes on the DINOSAUR side, such as fully covered overflow queue and altered pathways between Indiana Jones Adventure, the gift shop, and Encanto area. I’d like to think this is an animal exhibit, but it’s probably just a rest area for guests who skip Indiana Jones Adventure.
The bigger difference comes with the critter carousel replacing the Dig Site play area, TriceraTops Spin being demolished, and most of the current Dino-Rama space being redeveloped into a large outdoor queue for the Encanto Madrigal Casita attraction. We already knew from the concept art that the house would have a large front lawn, but this further reinforces that. It also shows the large show building for Encanto–we already knew it was going to be big based on the model, but it’s nice to have confirmation.
There are also a number of smaller buildings that have popped up around Tropical Americas, likely to be snack stands, merchandise kiosks, or meet & greet spots. It’s kind of fun to pore over these aerials, trying to make sense of the granular details and guess as to what each small spot could be. You can do the same with the queues (Lightning Lane vs. standby), little pathways, and more.
The most exciting part of all is that this permit was filed in the first place. It’s finally really-for-real happening. This is the first substantive permit (the ones below were back-of-house) for Walt Disney World’s aggressive 5-year construction plans. We look forward to tracking this project, and the many other permits that’ll come down the pipeline for other expansion.
Prior to the substantive permit, Walt Disney Imagineering filed a 25-page package of new permits with the South Florida Water Management District for Animal Kingdom earlier this year, suggesting that major expansion is slated to start soon on Tropical Americas.
In a nutshell, the permit outlines a plan to create a Walt Disney Imagineering staging area behind Kali River Rapids. This is NOT where construction will occur. Rather, it’s essentially a trailer park for on-site Imagineers that will include 5 temporary office buildings, plus 363 parking spaces and a new sidewalk with crosswalks down the entire stretch of roadway from the Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI) trailer park to behind Dino-Rama.
The permit lists this as being for “Project RO” and the proposal itself for the “Project RO Trailer Compound” (or ROTC). It does not mention Tropical Americas or Dino-Rama, but between the sidewalk leading to the project site and prior announcements, the permit’s purpose is patently obvious. Tropical Americas is being led in-house by a Florida-based team of Imagineers, which makes sense and is a good thing for a number of reasons.
Imagineering also filed another construction permit to set the stage for work on the Tropical Americas expansion at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. That Notice of Commencement was for the installation of more trailers in the backstage compound behind Kali River Rapids.
This is the second of such Notice of Commencements for backstage support on the Tropical Americas expansion, with both being assigned to Modular Building Systems International, LLC. This follows the above package of permits being approved by the South Florida Water Management District at the end of May, which laid the groundwork for WDI to proceed with the project.
The completed water management permit package is valid for 5 years–until May 22, 2029–which is hopefully enough time to complete this project…and whatever else Imagineering is cooking up for Animal Kingdom. The latest permits filed today are essentially more of the same–for the actual installation of the team trailers at the new Imagineering project compound outside Animal Kingdom.
It’s worth noting that the permits in question all pertain to the project team trailer park complex outside the actual area of construction for Tropical Americas. The work itself will require additional permits, and the filing of the first of those will be another major milestone signaling that construction is about to begin in earnest.
In addition to this, the Walt Disney Imagineering project team for Tropical Americas recently took a research trip to the Yucatán Peninsula for culturally authentic inspiration. This is one of the many locales that’ll be highlighted in Tropical Americas, coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
The above video shares a first look at progress on developing the land, including glimpses of 3D models and the art, architecture, archeology, and culture of the Maya civilization. Obviously the model is the big thing, but perhaps equally as notable is that they’re still using the same concept art as was released at last year’s Destination D23.
I’m not going to rehash my commentary from the original announcement at last year’s Destination D23, much of which focused on why Animal Kingdom is Disney’s top priority right now. That’s worth reading if you question the decision to move forward with expansion at Animal Kingdom as opposed to Beyond Big Thunder at Magic Kingdom or potential projects at Disney’s Hollywood Studios and EPCOT.
As also mentioned there, I love the idea of reimagining DINOSAUR into Indiana Jones Adventure (IJA). Both attractions use the exact same ride system and even a very similar track layout. Despite this, Indiana Jones Adventure is substantially superior–it’s a top 5 ride at Disneyland, which is really saying something given the wealth of great attractions there. (I’d put it roughly on par with Radiator Springs Racers, another ‘wish list’ ride for Florida fans.)
There’s also a version of Indiana Jones Adventure at Tokyo DisneySea (TDS), which is notable because it’s set in the Lost River Delta port-of-call that’s themed to a rainforest in Central America. That’s closer thematically to Tropical Americas than the Adventureland version of the ride, and the Indiana Jones Adventure queue at Tokyo DisneySea has more real world grittiness of an ancient Aztec pyramid. In fact, footage from the Imagineering research trip reminded me a lot of IJA at TDS.
I’d also expect Indiana Jones Adventure at Animal Kingdom to be more like the Tokyo DisneySea incarnation since the latter was a clone that iterated on issues with the original and streamlined the ride. Meaning that it dropped frequently-broken effects and some of the ‘big swings’ from the original in favor of something more reliable.
I’d expect Indiana Jones Adventure at Animal Kingdom to have its own unique twists, figuratively, as more new effects and tech are introduced given that this version will come over 20 years after the last one and ~30 years after the original. (Fear not, non-believers–this ride is timeless and still feels innovative.)
My dream approach involves Imagineering opting to make the most significant changes in the queue, creating a temple on par with the Tokyo DisneySea version of Indiana Jones Adventure. In the actual ride-through portion, I’d love to see dinosaurs and Indiana Jones live together in delightful harmony (well, plus the inevitable conflict of the attraction).
It would be truly tragic if dinosaurs go extinct at Walt Disney World with Tropical Americas. It’s wild to think that the awesomest animals of all-time went from having an awful land (Dino-Rama) and unpopular ride at EPCOT (Universe of Energy) and Imagineering might not recycle any of that. Maybe it’s time for a live action remake of The Good Dinosaur?!?
One way or another, Walt Disney World needs dinosaurs. Universal is about to have two dinosaur-adjacent lands (Jurassic Park and How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk), which should be a wake-up call for Disney. With that kind of cornering of the large lizard market, maybe all the critics are actually right and Universal will eat Disney’s lunch (figuratively).
Ultimately, we’re pleased that Walt Disney Imagineering has pulled back the curtain a little more on Tropical Americas with a look at their research trip to prepare for the Dino-Rama replacement. While we had hoped for a splashier reveal and Indiana Jones Adventure confirmation (and concept art) during the annual shareholders meeting, it’s still good to see progress.
At this point, we assume that the big reveal will occur during the D23 Expo in August. As that’s shaping up to be a jam-packed Parks Panel–and a Dino-Rama replacement has been teased at the last two tentpole D23 presentations–it would’ve been nice to see the substance of this unveiled prior to then. Then again, I’ll happily take an announcement and concept art then along with a line that “site work is already underway.” That also would be a nice change of pace from the past, when D23 announcements were made and then there weren’t shovels in the ground for another 6+ months.
Either way, it’s going to be a very busy D23 Expo if even half the rumored projects that Imagineering is working on end up being announced. Seriously, there’s a lot on the horizon for Walt Disney World and Disneyland; if all goes right, the next decade is going to be a lot of fun to watch. It’ll be an interesting saga to follow–we’ll keep you posted!
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Your Thoughts
Excited that Imagineering is actively working on Tropical Americas and it’s not just going to be an Encanto and Indiana Jones IP land but will also offer cultural authenticity? Are you optimistic that this will usher in an era of expansion at Walt Disney World? What do you think of the Tropical Americas expansion announced for Animal Kingdom? Excited or underwhelmed by the (possible) plan? Or, are you in wait and see mode with this? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
