Paris – October 24, 2026 -- Construction is underway on a Lion King water ride at Disneyland Paris, the centerpiece of the first-ever immersive world themed to Walt Disney Animation Studios' 1994 film. It will sit inside Disney Adventure World.

The ride starts beneath a 120-foot Pride Rock

Guests will enter the caves under the 120-foot-high Pride Rock and set off on a musical journey through the Pride Lands. Along the way they will hear classic songs from the film and pass through memorable scenes, including Simba's final confrontation with Scar.

The ride retells Simba's story from cub to king, covering the happy times and the harder ones that stood in his way.

A new flume system ends in a 52-foot drop

The attraction will be one of the largest at the resort. It features a new flume system and a 52-foot drop. Audio-Animatronics figures, special effects and three slopes will bring the story to life.

Global – October 24, 2026 -- Disney Cruise Line will debut an entirely new ship class in 2029, with vessels sized between the Disney Wonder and the larger Disney Wish. The first-ever public teaser of the class was shown at the Disney Experiences Showcase, Horizons: A Carousel of Progress, where Claire Weiss joined host Neil Patrick Harris to talk about the new ships.

Three new ships follow Disney Believe in 2027

Announced at D23 in 2024, the expansion will take the Disney Cruise Line fleet to 13 ships over the coming years. Disney Believe, setting sail in 2027, will be the fourth ship in the Wish class. After it, three ships in a brand-new class will launch. Weiss said the teaser had never been seen publicly before.

Walt Disney World – October 24, 2026 -- Parts of Monstropolis, the Monsters, Inc. land at Disney's Hollywood Studios, will open to guests in 2027, even as work continues on the door coaster. Disney revealed the first details during "Horizons: A Carousel of Progress" at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event presented by Visa.

Host Neil Patrick Harris welcomed Michael Hundgen, Vice President Creative, and Chris Beatty, Vice President at Walt Disney Imagineering, who walked through the new locations. The land is a collaboration between Walt Disney Imagineering and Pixar Animation Studios.

Randy Newman writes his first theme park song

"Welcome to Monstropolis" is the first song Disney Legend Randy Newman has composed for a Disney theme park. Guests will hear it when the land opens.

D23 – October 24, 2026 -- A handmade King Arthur Carrousel costume with a rotating headpiece and a motorized, 3D-printed horse won the solo category at Mousequerade, the Disney costume contest held on day two of D23 2026.

The winning look turned a 1955 attraction into wearable art

"A Jest of a Carrousel Ride," made by Julieanna Trinidade, paired a corseted top with an intricate skirt and puffed sleeves. It also took the innovation and technology award. The carousel it honors is one of Disneyland park's original opening-day attractions from 1955, and most of its horses date back more than 90 years.

Disney's Animal Kingdom – October 24, 2026 -- The Yeti inside Expedition Everest at Disney's Animal Kingdom is coming back to life, Disney Experiences Chairman Thomas Mazloum announced at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event presented by Visa.

Mazloum interrupts Neil Patrick Harris with the news

Mazloum cut in on host Neil Patrick Harris on the "Horizons: A Carousel of Progress" stage. His words: "We're bringing the Yeti back to life inside Expedition Everest at Disney's Animal Kingdom!" The crowd answered with cheers.

Gloria Gaynor sends off the Yeti with a disco hit

Gloria Gaynor then performed her 1978 disco hit "I Will Survive" as a send-off for the long-dancing Yeti.

The ride already hints at the beast

Expedition Everest sits inside a Forbidden Mountain of nearly 200 feet. The queue doubles as a trailside museum, with evidence of campground attacks, sketches of sightings and a footprint mold of a giant yeti foot.

EPCOT – October 24, 2026 -- Spaceship Earth, the geodesic sphere that has greeted EPCOT guests since opening day, is getting its first update in nearly 20 years. Disney Imagineer Ali Rubinstein revealed the news at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event presented by Visa.

A re-imagineered ride shifts its theme to human connection

Rubinstein said the re-imagineered attraction will bring Spaceship Earth into the internet age and beyond. The ride currently tells the story of human communication. The team is now widening that focus to human connection, a theme the source describes as classically EPCOT.

The announcement came during a Horizons: A Carousel of Progress stage conversation hosted by Neil Patrick Harris. YouTuber Mark Rober joined Rubinstein onstage.

California – October 24, 2026 -- Disneyland Resort will bring back two nighttime spectaculars in February 2027, followed by the "Magic Happens" daytime parade in summer 2027. Host Neil Patrick Harris revealed the returns on the Horizons stage at D23: The Ultimate Fan Event presented by Visa, after saying, "I have so many great memories under the stars with my kids."

"Remember... Dreams Come True" returns to Disneyland park in February 2027

The refreshed show adds new projections at Rivers of America, the facade of "it's a small world," and all the way down Main Street, U.S.A., in addition to Sleeping Beauty Castle. Music and projections run on nightly scheduled performances, with fireworks added on select evenings.

The show debuted during the Disneyland Resort 50th anniversary. It opens with a vocal introduction by Julie Andrews and uses songs and familiar phrases from popular park attractions to represent Walt Disney's dream of Disneyland.

Honda Center – October 24, 2026 -- Disney used its Horizons: Disney Experiences Showcase at D23 2024 to unveil nearly 50 announcements, including four new cruise ships, a Tiana's Bayou Adventure opening date of November 15, 2024, and new lands and rides across its parks. Many of the projects will start appearing over the next five years.

Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D'Amaro said all of it is in active development: "Plans are drawn. Dirt is moving."

Four new ships will bring Disney Cruise Line to 13 vessels

The fleet expansion runs from 2027 to 2031. Disney also shared new details about the Disney Treasure and Disney Destiny.

Florida – October 24, 2026 -- Disney's Carousel of Progress is closed for now, and its overhauled version is set to debut in late spring 2027 with new voices for Mom and Dad, an Audio-Animatronics Walt Disney, and four new time periods.

Jamie Lee Curtis and Bryan Cranston step in as Mom and Dad

Host Neil Patrick Harris announced the casting at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event. Disney Legend Jamie Lee Curtis and Emmy-winning actor Bryan Cranston will voice the family's mother and father. Harris also previewed one new scene, set in the 1980s.

United States – October 24, 2026 -- A second season of The Imagineering Story is officially in production and will debut on Disney+ in 2028, giving fans a new look at how Disney's theme park creators work. Filmmaker Leslie Iwerks and Walt Disney Imagineering President and Chief Creative Officer Bruce Vaughn announced it at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event presented by Visa.

Season 2 follows Imagineers from concept to construction

The first season arrived in 2019 and chronicled decades of Disney history. Season 2 takes a different approach: it follows Imagineers as they shape what the source describes as one of the most ambitious periods in Disney Experiences history.

Vaughn said Iwerks has been present as projects moved from blue-sky concept to the "dirt is moving!" stage. She has been granted unprecedented behind-the-scenes access to the creative process, so viewers can see not only what Imagineers are building but how they think.