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Credit: Michael Lehet, FlickrSome big things are in store for Walt Disney World’s prehistoric thrill ride.
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There are lots of changes happening in and around Walt Disney World, though for a lot of fans, Disney’s Animal Kingdom project remains the most fascinating. The park is set to receive several new rides and attractions in the coming years, one of which will take over the former Bug’s Life-themed 4D show inside the park’s Tree of Life.
However, fans are also keeping their eyes and ears open regarding Disney’s ongoing DinoLand update. Half of this land closed permanently earlier this year, with the rest set to close down shop in 2026. This includes the land’s frightening “E-ticket” thrill ride DINOSAUR, which Disney recently filed a new permit for.
Disney World Files Permit for DINOSAUR
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Walt Disney Imagineering has filed a new permit for work connected to DINOSAUR at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The permit taps Mecca Productions, Inc. as the contractor. Mecca Productions is based in Central Florida and specializes in scenery and props. Disney and Mecca have a long history of working together.
The permit mentions the installation of set elements. What these set elements are is unknown, but we do know they have something to do with DINOSAUR.
With DINOSAUR set to close in the next several months, it’s hard to imagine Disney is giving the thrill ride a whole lot of TLC. However, Disney has updated the attraction numerous times over the last several months, even returning missing features and effects.
Still, we don’t expect Disney to upgrade DINOSAUR too much with the ride closing sometime next year.
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Disney first teased DinoLand’s removal during the company’s D23 event in 2022. Fans had theorized for years that DinoLand was on Disney’s chopping block, but the announcement still came as quite a surprise.
Originally, Disney intended to pave over DinoLand and build new rides and attractions based on Zootopia and Moana. Reactions to the news were mixed to say the least, with fans taking issue specifically with the idea of bringing Moana into Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
However, these plans were only first drafts, as Disney revealed a few years later that Moana and Zootopia had been swapped for Encanto and Indiana Jones. In 2024, Disney officially announced Tropical Americas, the newest land to be built at Animal Kingdom.
Much like Disney’s original plans, Tropical Americas will take over and repurpose some of the spaces seen in DinoLand U.S.A. This includes DINOSAUR, which will be transformed into an attraction inspired by Indiana Jones.
This is a fun little twist of fate, as DINOSAUR itself was a direct copy of Indiana Jones Adventure at Disneyland.
Will you miss DINOSAUR and DinoLand U.S.A.? Are you excited for Tropical Americas?