Florida Needs Disney World's Fifth Theme Park After New Statements Come To Light

Central Florida is booming–but imagine what would happen when the Walt Disney World Resort opens its “largest Magic Kingdom expansion in history.” Better yet, imagine what would happen if the Mouse House finally launched its much-anticipated fifth theme park gate.

Disney World Is Evolving–Maybe Bigger Than Ever

It’s no secret that The Walt Disney Company has put the pedal to the metal and gone all out in 2025. Sure, the company isn’t opening a new park like Universal Orlando Resort did, but with large-scale overhauls at three out of four theme parks, a deep shift is happening in the middle of Florida.

At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Monstropolis is coming, bringing with it Disney’s first-ever suspended coaster. In Disney’s Animal Kingdom, landscaping work is already underway to transform DinoLand U.S.A. into the Tropical Americas Pueblo Esperanza area. And at Magic Kingdom, the recent closure of two classic attractions has set in motion “the largest expansion in Magic Kingdom history.”

Magic Kingdom, Disney World’s 53-year-old theme park, recently lost Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of America on July 6, marking the end of an era. The divisive shutdowns are part of a major redevelopment at the park, which sees Pixar’s Cars franchise (and later the Disney Villains) come to The Most Magical Place on Earth.

To be known as Piston Peak National Park, the area will be a part of Frontierland, featuring multiple attractions. Later, Disney Imagineers will transform the land “Beyond Big Thunder” to feature the beloved Disney Villains. These significant changes were revealed almost a year ago at Disney’s Ultimate Fan Event, D23 Expo, where Josh D’Amaro outlined initial plans.

But What About the Long-Awaited Fifth Disney World Theme Park?

Ever since Universal Orlando Resort began constructing its Epic Universe theme park, discussions about when Disney would open its own new gate increased exponentially. The last time Disney World gained a park was in 1999 when Disney’s Animal Kingdom opened to guests.

Earlier this year, industry experts predicted that Disney would announce a fifth park at its Walt Disney World Resort within 18 months. Since then, the company has revealed an international expansion in the form of Disneyland Abu Dhabi, but many fans won’t be appeased until Central Florida has a new addition.

Further rumoring ramped up last month after new documents were uncovered. “According to a new Comprehensive Plan 2045 from the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD), a fifth theme park is still in the cards for the Walt Disney World Resort,” Inside the Magic previously reported. “The CFTOD explicitly reserved development capacity for a “major theme park” and two “minor theme parks” to be built over the next few decades.”

And now, more data has surfaced that shows Florida could reap major benefit from not only the opening of the large Magic Kingdom expansion, but also the long-awaited fifth park.

Florida Economy Booms In May, Thanks to Universal

In a new report, the financial outcome of the Comcast-owned theme park’s opening on May 22 has contributed to a spike in the economy.

“Orange County Comptroller Phil Diamond on Monday announced that Tourist Development Tax (TDT) collections for May 2025 reached nearly $30 million, marking a 5.7% increase compared to May 2024 and the highest amount ever recorded in the month of May,” Click Orlando reported.

The outlet added: “Orlando’s travel performance also showed positive trends in May. Hotel occupancy rose to 69.2%, up 0.6% year-over-year, while hotel demand increased 2.6%, helped by the addition of 2,500 new hotel rooms. The average daily hotel rate climbed 4.7% to $198.20.”

Alongside the opening of Universal Epic Universe, which features themed areas like SUPER NINTENDO WORLD and How To Train Your Dragon: Isle of Berk, events at the Orange County Convention Center also contributed to this record-breaking May.

Following Disney World’s Animal Kingdom’s 1998 opening and Universal’s Islands of Adventure’s 1999 debut, Epic Universe is the first major theme park to open in over a quarter of a century. And as Phil Diamond said last November, the arrival of new theme park attractions does cause tourism spending spikes.

“The year after Animal Kingdom opened, there was about an 8% increase in spending, which is a good increase,” the Comptroller explained. “However, the year after Islands of Adventure opened, there was about a 1.8% increase. After [The Wizarding World of Harry Potter] opened, there was about a 7% increase.”

On the Disney World front, it is also worth noting that on May 21, 2025, all six theme parks were opened for the first time in six years.

So, as the figures state, whenever a shiny new thing opens in Central Florida, tourists flock to the Sunshine State. With spikes in spending coming as Epic Universe opened, it is clear that Florida will greatly benefit when Disney World launches its new areas, especially the history-making Magic Kingdom expansion.

That said, if new land at an existing park can increase tourism, just imagine what a fifth Walt Disney World Resort theme park would do.

How do you feel about the developments at Walt Disney World Resort? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!