1A major part of Magic Kingdom Park at the Walt Disney World Resort will be closed indefinitely in one month’s time.
Amid the soaring crowds of the Thanksgiving period and the preparations for Christmas, it’s easy to forget that 2025 will be a massive year for development at the Walt Disney World Resort. Work is already underway on the DinoLand U.S.A. retheme at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, which will see three locations shut down for good on January 13, 2025.
That said, the land’s signature ride–DINOSAUR–was recently confirmed as remaining open for all of 2025, surprising fans who expected to bid this beloved ride goodbye next year. At EPCOT, Test Track, now sponsored by General Motors, will open following its revamp in late summer 2025.
But perhaps the biggest loss Disney park fans will face in 2025 will be the indefinite closure of the classic—and fan-favorite—coaster, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. The closure of the Frontierland ride was announced earlier this year, with the official Disney World website stating that it “will temporarily close for refurbishment on January 6, 2025” and “will reopen with a little bit of new magic in 2026.”
That means Big Thunder Mountain will close in exactly one month, on January 5, 2025, without a confirmed reopening date in sight. Many speculate that the “new magic” Disney teased will be akin to the updates made at the Disneyland Resort (Anaheim, California) version over a decade ago.
In preparation for its update, a new permit has been filed. “The permit, filed today, is assigned to long-time Disney Imagineering partner Elite AV Systems Inc. and expires on December 3, 2025,” WDWMagic reported.
“Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is scheduled to close on January 6, 2025, for what Disney has described as its most extensive refurbishment to date,” the report continued. “Previous permits for the project included work with Coastal Steel Inc. for general construction and DPR Construction for complex structural updates. The DPR Construction permit is valid through March 13, 2026.”
The news regarding the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad permit comes after Disney faced hurdles over its big Frontierland overhaul at the resort. The Ron DeSantis-controlled Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD)–which replaced the Reedy Creek Improvement District (RCID)–has requested a 60-day extension for the ongoing discussions between the state of Florida and the Walt Disney World Resort.
The major expansion project at Disney World’s original theme park will see the Cars franchise join Big Thunder Mountain and Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, replacing Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of America. The highly divisive update to the 53-year-old park came at this year’s D23 Expo, where Disney Experiences chief also confirmed that the Tropical Americas retheme at Disney’s Animal Kingdom would feature Encanto and Indiana Jones attractions and be known as the Pueblo Esperanza.
Shortly after the D23 Expo and the concept reveal of the Magic Kingdom demolition, D’Amaro took to the stage at the INBOUND festival in Boston to acknowledge that Disney does not always get it right when it comes to its developments but that everything is targeted at the next generation of Disney theme park fans.
How do you feel about Big Thunder Mountain being closed for over a year? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!