3
Credit: Michael Lehet, FlickrDisney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park has officially begun demolishing its theme park within a theme park, DinoLand U.S.A.
Most of DinoLand U.S.A. closed last month as Walt Disney World Resort prepares to replace the area with Pueblo Esperanza, a Tropical Americas-themed land. Chester & Hester’s DinoRama (including the Fossil Fun Games), Chester & Hester’s Dinosaur Treasures, and TriceraTop Spin held their final day of operations on January 12, 2025.
The new Pueblo Esperanza area is set to include new attractions inspired by Encanto (2021) and an Indiana Jones reimagining of the DINOSAUR ride.
DINOSAUR, The Boneyard playground, Restaurantosaurus, Dino-Bite Snacks, and Trilo-Bites will remain open through the end of 2025, giving guests time to say goodbye to the land that opened alongside Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park on April 22, 1998. Character greetings also remain available in DinoLand U.S.A.
As of February 12, 2025, heavy equipment has arrived at the former Chester & Chester’s DinoRama, now covered with green construction walls and rolling hedge planters. According to BlogMickey, at least two large excavators were visibly peeking over the temporary walls.
The excavators haven’t moved dirt yet, but work should begin anytime. Construction crews have already disassembled parts of the TriceraTop Spin attraction and removed some carnival game booths from the area.
The end of DinoLand U.S.A. actually began long before last month’s closures. Rumors started when the Primeval Whirl steel mouse roller coaster, which joined Chester & Hester’s DinoRama in 2002, ceased operations in 2020. In 2019, Walt Disney World Resort reduced the attraction to seasonal operations, only opening the ride during the busiest times of the year.
In March 2020, Magic Kingdom Park, EPCOT, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios shuttered due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Disney parks reopened in July, but Walt Disney World Resort confirmed that the Primeval Whirl was gone for good.
Attraction vehicles were removed from the roller coaster, and it was demolished by the end of the year. Construction walls blocked its former location until January’s DinoLand U.S.A. closures.
Are you excited about the new Tropical Americas land at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park? Share your thoughts with Inside the Magic in the comments!