Refurbishments are nothing new at Walt Disney World, with every single ride and attraction at the resort closing down for a limited time at least once every few years for routine maintenance. However, 2019 has been a strange year at Walt Disney World, with lighter-than-usual crowds, and the return of an old Disney’s Hollywood Studios favorite at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. And though we didn’t think this year could get any more bizarre, it looks like not just one but two Walt Disney World attractions are now closed for an indefinite period of time thanks to mysterious issues that have yet to be explained…
1. Primeval Whirl (Disney’s Animal Kingdom)
Over a month ago on June 17, the Walt Disney World Resort released an advisory informing Guests that Primeval Whirl would be closed until further notice due to unspecified technical issues. And though we still don’t know exactly what is happening with this attraction Disney predicted that this attraction could open as soon as July 4, but of course, that never happened, and the attraction remains closed as we approach the end of July.
So what could be causing this sudden issue at Primeval Whirl? We don’t know for sure, but some have speculated that there is a mechanical failure happening somewhere on the ride, and Disney is waiting on a part to repair and get this attraction back up and running. This of course makes a lot of sense, and also explains why Disney is unable to provide a firm reopening date at this time.
Image: Disney
Though Primeval Whirl isn’t exactly the most popular attraction at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, guests with FastPass+ reservations for Primeval Whirl during this extended downtime will receive a replacement FastPass for an attraction of the same tier automatically in their My Disney Experience app.
2. Astro Orbiter (Magic Kingdom)
Image: Disney
Over on the other side of the resort, the Astro Orbiter at the Magic Kingdom closed down last week, and will remain closed as part of an unplanned refurbishment. However, unlike what is happening with Primeval Whirl, Disney has been a little more forthcoming about this unplanned refurbishment, saying that this attraction will likely open in about a month or so, with a tentative reopening date of August 15 2019 currently set.
Though the circumstances are a bit different, we’d guess there is another faulty part causing this refurbishment as well, as this attraction never opened after something went wrong during its regular opening procedures on Friday July 12th, and has remained shuttered ever since.
Image: Disney
However, the good news is that spinners don’t require specialty parts like roller coasters do, which is likely why Disney can predict a mid-August reopening date for this attraction so easily. As with Primeval Whirl guests with FastPass+ reservations for the Astro Orbiter during this extended downtime will receive a replacement FastPass for an alternative attraction automatically in their My Disney Experience app.
Though the vast majority of refurbishments are scheduled months (or sometimes even years) in advance, sometimes things happen the necessitate an immediate closure. And though its really weird that two of these unplanned closures are happening at Walt Disney World at the exact same time, it’s looking like both of these attractions will be up and running soon, and hopefully we won’t see any more unplanned closures at the resort in 2019!
