NEWS: Disney to File Permits This Week for Magic Kingdom’s BIGGEST Expansion Yet

Magic Kingdom is going to be a whole lot bigger soon…

Cinderella Castle

The original Disney World park is seeing the biggest expansion in its history and honestly, we’re pumped! At Disney’s massive D23 event in August, Disney confirmed two new lands with attractions, restaurants, shopping and more would come to Magic Kingdom and we should get even more updates this week.

It all started at Disney’s D23 event in 2022. That’s when Josh D’Amaro, Chairman of Disney Experiences, revealed some “blue sky” ideas for a Magic Kingdom expansion and replacement of DinoLand USA in Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

Since these were only “blue sky” ideas, nothing had been confirmed. They were just that — ideas. But at the 2024 D23 event, that changed. NONE of the announcements in the Horizons showcase were “blue sky”; everything was currently in the works.

So on August 10th, that’s how we got the news that Magic Kingdom would welcome a new Villains-themed land and a new Cars area (completely different from the one at Disney California Adventure). The villain area will go “beyond Big Thunder Mountain” while the Cars area will replace what is currently the Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island.

Coming to Frontierland at Magic Kingdom, a new area themed to Pixar Animation Studios’ “Cars” will leave Radiator Springs and head to the wilderness with two new attractions including an off-road race.

Disney is wasting no time getting started on these projects. Now, according to the Orlando Sentinel, Disney is set to file permits for the expansion this week! It says, “Construction permits are being filed this week, Disney World said, and work will get into ‘high gear next year,’ leaving time to ‘experience the charm and nostalgia of Frontierland as it is today.'”

Back in April, Disney confirmed that they were filling a permit for storm drainage and other foundational work. Foundational permits like this are common before a new ride, attraction, or land so this makes sense as a first step.

Sometimes permits can have clues to what Disney is working on and for how long. We’ll be on the lookout for these in the coming days and let you know what we find!