While there has been a bunch of hype for Universal Epic Universe as it prepares for a May 22nd grand opening, Disney is preparing its own slate of attractions to open across three of its four theme parks in the next five years or so. One of those projects is the reimagining of DinoLand USA into a Tropical Americas-themed area. This will wipe out the Dinosaurs (once and for all), bringing in an Encanto-themed ride and a retheme of the DINOSAUR attraction into an Indiana Jones-themed ride.
The project will be built in phases, with the Encanto-themed attraction first up. While there are three rides expected for the Tropical Americas-themed area of Disney’s Animal Kingdom, two will be built from scratch and the Indiana Jones-themed ride will be a retheme of the existing DINOSAUR layout and ride system.
Aerial Photos of Tropical Americas Construction
Right now, it looks like the demolition phase of the Encanto-themed area is getting ready to wrap up, with the building part of the construction project on the horizon. Thanks to new aerial photos from friend of the site Bioreconstruct, we can see that what used to be a theme park space with multiple dinosaur-themed rides is now back to dirt. This 3.5-acre plot will be the future home of an Encanto-themed ride that will take guests through the magical Casita Madrigal seen in the film.
In this first photo below, we can see that the site is sort of split into two areas – a relatively flat area that was previously the “on stage” Dino-Rama section of DinoLand USA, and a backstage area that still has some grade to it. The thought is that it will all be leveled to prepare for the construction of a large show building for the new Encanto-themed attraction.
Here’s a closer look at the “forward” half of the construction site. This is where the Dino-Rama roadside carnival was previously located. We can see that some of the buildings are still standing. They are expected to remain in place throughout the construction, and eventually receive a retheme to fit the Tropical Americas theme for the land. They were previously a gift shop and area restrooms. Walt Disney World has not announced what purpose they will serve in the future, but plumbing is expensive, so we’d expect that the restrooms will remain the same.
Here’s a reverse view of the construction site, showing the early infrastructure work and staging taking place in a backstage area. Previously, there were some trailers in this area that I think were utilized by entertainment.
Here are some more views of the area, one view from over the parking lot looking north, and one view from over Kali River Rapids looking south.
For everything you need to know about the Tropical Americas retheme project for DinoLand USA, check out our article below!
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