Yesterday, the Oriental Land Company (which owns Tokyo Disney Resort) made some big announcements about the future of the resort, which include plans to construct a whopping five new attractions in the next four years. While none of these upcoming attractions have specific opening dates (the press release announcing the new attractions simply says all of these new experiences will be completed by 2020 with one exception we’ll get to in a minute), it looks like some ambitious new projects are getting ready to kick off at Tokyo Disney resort. But first, let’s talk about what projects have now been confirmed to not be happening at the resort…
1. Frozen land has been cancelled (along with Alice in Wonderland)
Image: Disney
Though Frozen-themed projects at both Epcot and Disney California Adventure are nearing completion, it looks like Tokyo Disney Resort has had another look at their plan to bring the world of Arendelle to life at Tokyo DisneySea, and has opted to sadly Let it Go. In addition, it looks like the plans to construct an Alice in Wonderland-inspired maze and character meet and greet to Fantasyland at Tokyo Disneyland have also been scrapped as well.
No reason was immediately given for why this change was implemented (though rumors suggest that increasing construction costs thanks to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics played a part), but the good news is that Disney has announced some new plans that we are pretty excited about:
2. Beauty and the Beast’s new land (and new ride) get detailed
Image: Disney
The sole surviving concept from the original Tokyo Disneyland expansion plans announced last year is the new Beauty and the Beast area in Fantasyland. While details were scant in the initial announcement, the Oriental Land Company has finally let us know what guests looking forward to this new area can expect when it opens sometime in the next four years.
The headlining component of the Beauty and the Beast area will be a new dark ride that will allow guests to board enchanted serving dishes that will dance in time with the film’s well-known musical numbers all while following Belle on a romantic adventure deep into the enchanted Castle where she dances her way into the heart of the Beast, just in time to break the fateful spell.
Image: Disney
The ride concept sounds similar to other “film summary” style dark rides (like The Seas With Nemo & Friends or Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid), but instead of using Omnimover-style vehicles, it looks like this new attraction will use trackless technology to deliver a more exciting experience. Guests on these cutting-edge vehicles will now be able to move in multiple directions, as can be seen in the concept art above where guest vehicles are “dancing” around the table, presumably to the tune of “Be Our Guest”.
In addition to the new (as yet unnamed) ride, the new Beauty and the Beast area will also be getting its own version of Gaston’s Tavern as well as a new shop.
3. A new theater is constructed in Fantasyland
Image: Disney
Behind the new ride, a brand new theater for live productions will also be constructed in the coming years. Thus far, nothing has been revealed about the kinds of shows that will be housed at this new venue, but the official announcement does state that the productions housed here will be exclusive to Tokyo Disneyland, which means we won’t be seeing familiar productions like Disney California Adventure’s upcoming Frozen show or Mickey and the Magical Map, and will instead be looking forward to something completely new.
4. Big Hero 6 gets its first Disney park ride
Image: Disney
Though the Big Hero 6 film was quite the hit both in the US and internationally, this Oscar-winning feature hasn’t really received much attention at Disney parks beyond simple character meet and greets. However, it looks like Tokyo Disneyland will get the world’s first Big Hero 6 ride, which will be will be built in Tomorrowland between Space Mountain and the aforementioned new Beauty and the Beast area. This new attraction will be a musical flat ride, similar to Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree at Disney California Adventure, and is being described as a “whip ride” that will swing riders unpredictably round and round, with Baymax on hand to help guide the action.
5. Soarin’ flies in to Tokyo DisneySea’s Mediterranean Harbor with unique elements
Image: Disney
Over at Tokyo DisneySea, it has been announced that international Disney parks hit Soarin’ will finally be making its Japanese debut in 2019 (a year earlier than all the other announced projects). However, in an interesting development, this version of Soarin’ won’t just be a straight up clone of the American and Chinese versions of Soarin’ Around the World. In this new version of Soarin’, guests will be able to check out original scenes, and will also board unique gliders (as seen above) that have been designed to fit into the park’s Mediterranean Harbor theme.
6. High fashion focused Minnie Mouse meet and greet set for Toontown
Finally, it was announced that the Toontown area of Tokyo Disneyland will be gaining a new meet and greet experience in the near future featuring Mickey Mouse’s best gal Minnie Mouse. In this new meet and greet, guests will be able to visit Minnie’s fashion studio, which will have plenty of interactive elements for guests to check out. After they have taken a quick stroll around the studio, guests will then be able to meet and take pictures with fashion designer Minnie herself, dressed in an amazing costume showcasing the latest trends.
