At the D23 Expo, every park at Walt Disney World got a shiny new toy to play with, except one. The Magic Kingdom is getting a Villain’s and Cars Land, while Hollywood Studios is getting Monsters, Inc. Land.
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Animal Kingdom will get an entirely new look, with an Encanto-theme land and Indiana Jones replacing DINOSAUR. However, that still leaves EPCOT out in the cold.
EPCOT wasn’t completely ignored during the D23 Expo. Josh D’Amaro did announce that a new Spaceship Earth lounge would be coming to the Disney Park, but that was it.
So, out of all the Walt Disney World parks, EPCOT seems to have almost nothing new coming except what has already been completed or announced. No new countries or rides are coming to the forgotten Walt Disney World Resort park anytime soon.
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D’Amaro would argue that EPCOT has undergone a massive transformation, creating four new worlds: World Celebration, World Nature, World Discovery, and World Showcase. EPCOT also has a yearlong renovation of the Test Track.
However, guests were less than impressed by the new CommuniCore Hall and Festival area, with some likening it to a college cafeteria. Guests were less than impressed with the lack of theming and the bland decor.
Disney fans hoped to add another country to World Showcase or another thrill ride to replace the former Body Wars pavilion, but it was not to be.
However, it seems that EPCOT may be getting something new after all. According to reports, Disney has filed a permit for more work at the Hotel du Canada on a mystery project that they have yet to announce. Hotel du Canada in the Canada Pavilion underwent an extensive eight-month renovation, but construction walls have returned to Canada.
The Canada Pavilion is home to Le Cellier Steakhouse, the Canada Far and Wide movie, and the Northwest Mercantile. However, there is room for expansion between Canada and Imagination Pavilion.
What makes this permit even more intriguing is the company hired to complete the work. Icarus Exhibits was listed as the building contractor.
Icarus Exhibits has worked on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, Tron: Lightcycle/Run, and the Tangled Bathroom at Magic Kingdom. The company also worked on Toy Story Land and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.
For the most part, Disney does not appear to bring Icarus Exhibits to complete a simple refurbishment of the Hotel du Canada. There seems to be more to this construction project than meets the eye.
Disney would also have room to expand the Canada Pavilion toward the United Kingdom Pavilion and into the World ShowPlace Events Pavilion, which sits behind the walls between the two countries.
Whatever the project, Disney has not announced anything yet. Perhaps they are waiting until they have all the details, rather than what happened with the United Kingdom Pavilion when Disney announced a Mary Poppins attraction only to cancel it.
What do you think Disney is working on at the Canada Pavilion?