Credit: DisneyMagic Kingdom is getting closer to bringing back a piece of Fantasyland that has been unavailable to guests for months.
Big Top Souvenirs, the massive circus-themed merchandise location inside Storybook Circus, has been undergoing an extensive refurbishment. While Disney still hasn’t announced an official reopening date, the latest changes around the building suggest that wait may finally be nearing its end.
Most importantly, scaffolding has now disappeared from the exterior.
Construction walls are also starting to come down, and guests can once again see much more of the building that has been hidden during the project.
For a location that dates back to the massive Fantasyland expansion of 2012, its return will bring another familiar piece of Storybook Circus back into operation.
Big Top Souvenirs Is Almost Ready
That’s beginning to change.
All scaffolding has now been removed from the exterior of the building. Some construction walls remain, but Disney has replaced much of the previous construction barrier with rolling planters.
That’s usually a welcome sight when you’re waiting for a Walt Disney World location to reopen.
Crews have also removed walls that previously surrounded a planter near the entrance to Storybook Circus. Disney has added fresh mulch to the area, although some construction debris was still visible nearby.
Perhaps more importantly, scaffolding is no longer visible behind the tent.
Put all of those changes together, and Big Top Souvenirs certainly appears much closer to welcoming guests again than it did earlier in the refurbishment.
Disney Has Already Revealed the Refreshed Sign
Guests won’t necessarily have to wait until reopening day to see one of the changes.
The renovated Big Top Souvenirs sign has already been revealed.
That restored exterior fits into the broader work happening around this corner of Magic Kingdom.
Big Top Souvenirs sits in Storybook Circus, the Fantasyland area themed around the traveling circus featured in Dumbo (1941). The location has been part of the area since Storybook Circus debuted during the New Fantasyland expansion in 2012.
That makes Big Top Souvenirs a roughly 14-year-old piece of modern Magic Kingdom history.
While it doesn’t carry the same history as attractions dating back to Magic Kingdom’s opening decades, millions of guests have passed through Storybook Circus since its debut. Big Top Souvenirs has become one of the area’s most recognizable buildings thanks to its enormous striped circus-tent design.
Now, Disney is preparing to bring it back.
Storybook Circus Has Already Gotten Another Location Back
Big Top Souvenirs isn’t the only Storybook Circus location to receive attention recently.
Pete’s Silly Sideshow also underwent refurbishment work before reopening in June.
That makes the progress at Big Top Souvenirs even more notable.
Disney has been gradually restoring pieces of this section of Fantasyland, and the merchandise location appears to be the next major piece approaching the finish line.
Of course, there’s still one important detail missing.
Disney hasn’t actually told us when the doors will open.
Disney Hasn’t Announced a Reopening Date
As of August 17, Disney has not announced an official reopening date for Big Top Souvenirs.
Still, there are plenty of physical signs that the refurbishment is reaching its final stages. With exterior scaffolding gone, construction walls being reduced and landscaping receiving attention, there simply isn’t as much separating guests from the building anymore.
The latest construction progress also suggests the location will likely reopen soon.
That doesn’t give us a specific date, and Disney could still have interior work to finish before welcoming guests. Until Disney updates its operating calendar or announces a reopening, there is no confirmed day to circle.
But this project certainly looks much different than it did when major construction barriers and scaffolding surrounded the location.
For Magic Kingdom guests, that means another familiar part of Fantasyland is moving closer to its comeback.
Big Top Souvenirs has been part of Storybook Circus since the New Fantasyland era began 14 years ago. After months of refurbishment work, the circus tent is starting to look ready for guests again.
Now, we’re just waiting for Disney to officially reopen the doors.
