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    (5/10/13) Westcoaster has a good update from Disneyland this week as they check out the progress over at Big Thunder Mountain. The big crane has been removed (MORE...)
    (5/6/13) Good news for Disneyland fans… Space Mountain was reported as being reopen for riders on Friday evening. In other news (MORE...)
    (4/29/13) Westcoaster drops into Disneyland this week and checks out the Iron Man Tech exhibit as well as gets a peek at the new track (MORE...)
    (4/24/13) The future of Space Mountain is a bit uncertain. The Disneyland website only shows it closed through today (April 24th) listed as “Space Mountain – Pending” and no listing for being closed beyond (MORE...)

Ride Rehabs - These dates are not guaranteed to be 100% accurate.
Big Thunder Mt – NOW CLOSED through 10/30/13

General Park News - (5/6/13) Good news for Disneyland fans… Space Mountain was reported as being reopen for riders on Friday evening. In other news on select dates this month (May 5, 10, 11, 12, 17, 18 and 19) there will be a special reserved viewing area on Main Street USA for those with Glow with the Show ear hats. The glowing headware will be incorporated into the “Magical” fireworks show on these nights as part of the ongoing Limited Time Magic events.  (Availability is on a first come / first served basis of course).
    (4/29/13) Westcoaster drops into Disneyland this week and checks out the Iron Man Tech exhibit as well as gets a peek at the new track being installed on Big Thunder Mountain. The really funny thing is that the Iron Man exhibit has been the first thing added since Innoventions first opened to cause people to line up outside the building, willing to wait in a line to get in and see it. Now who says Disney’s purchase of Marvel was a bad idea?
    (4/24/13) The future of Space Mountain is a bit uncertain. The Disneyland website only shows it closed through today (April 24th) listed as “Space Mountain – Pending” and no listing for being closed beyond that date. That said… a reader who visited the park the other day quizzed several CMs in Tomorrowland about Space Mountain and was told by several that it was expected to be closed for several weeks to try and make some safety fixes to the access catwalks inside the mountain. There is a good report over at MiceChat detailing what has been doing on at the Disneyland Resort since the DOSH inspections and the ill-timed closures of several major attractions last week by local management that made the confusion even worse.
    (4/15/13) Lots of cool Iron Man Tech and Stark Industries posters have been added to the outside of Innoventions at Disneyland as the park opens the new Iron Man Tech Presented by Stark Industries exhibit today. As a special promotion, guests who visit from now through April 19th will get to take home a special Iron Man 3 movie poster as well, while supplies last. I’ve been told that part of the exhibit is a cool augmented reality booth that was previously set up at an Iron Man exhibit in Hong Kong last week allowing guests to line up to get “suited up” as Iron Man.
    (4/15/13) Tinker Bell and all her fairy friends will appear at Pixie Hollow at Disneyland as well as Tinker Bell’s Magical Nook at the Magic Kingdom from April 15-21st as the next Limited Time Magic event. Click here to see the official announcement and times the Disney Faires will be making appearances in each location.
    (4/12/13) What sounds like perhaps the most awesome Disney themed dining experience took place the other day at Disneyland. It was called the “Ghostly Retreat” and was a special Club 33 event to honor Marc Davis that was held INSIDE the Haunted Mansion. Dinner started off with a ride through the stretching room that opened up to reveal a huge 34 seat dining table set up in the portrait corridor. The event included special guests, photo ops and more… including a very special round-trip ride on the Doom Buggies while the table was reset for dessert, which was a sight so awesome… you almost might not want to eat it. A crystal ball made from a clear sugar orb with chocolate mousse inside next to a piece of chocolate which has Madame Leota’s face screened onto it, with purple spun cotton candy hair. All this, placed onto a special plate rigged with color changing lights. I am so… SO… JEALOUS! Oh I wish I could have been there to see this.
    (4/10/13) This week’s Limited Time Magic event at Disneyland (Apr. 8 – 14) will feature a number of “Long-Lost Disney Friends” making a return appearance inside the park at the Big Thunder Ranch Jamboree in Frontierland. The list includes Esmeralda, Copin and Frollo (Hunchback of Notre Dame), Pocahontas, John Smith, Meeko and Ratcliffe (Pocahontas), Robin Hood, Friar Tuck, Prince John and the Sherriff of Nottingham (Robin Hood) as well as Scrooge McDuck and Ludwig Von Drake… and a few others that will be kept as surprises.
    (3/29/13) Disneyland released an interesting bit of information a few hours ago, claiming that a new exhibit was being added to Innoventions starting on April 13th… courtesy of Stark Industries. The exhibit will be called Iron Man Tech: Presented by Stark Industries and it will give guests a chance to see Tony Stark’s Hall of Armor, featuring Iron Man suits Mark I through VII, the same suits all featured in the new Iron Man 3 film hitting theaters on May 3rd.  Through special technology, guests will get to virtually ‘suit up’ and try out pieces of the Mark 42 Iron Man armor, including test firing the repulsor blasts. (Squeeee!!)
    Ok, nerdgasm aside… I’m really hoping that Disneyland will use this stage (where they will actually bring in set pieces from the new film) as a launching point for a fun little story to help launch the creation of the rumored Iron Man attraction expected to eventually replace Innoventions in Tomorrowland, and thus giving the Marvel Universe some proper roots to grow from within Disney’s magical kingdom.
    (3/28/13) This is kind of nuts... but a disabled man who became stuck on It’s A Small World at Disneyland for about 40 minutes when the ride broke down was able to successfully sue Disney for $8,000. Apparently Disney Cast Members were able to evacuate the other passengers off the boats and out of the attraction, but as someone who is dependant upon a wheelchair, they were not able to evacuate him right away. This all sounds pretty obvious to me... as I wouldn’t expect Disney CMs to be able to perform miracles or have Mr. Scott beam him to safety, so the safest place for him at the time was to stay put.
   Unfortunately the jury did not agree and awarded him the $8k in the case. As part of his argument they said he suffered from Dysreflexia, “a condition experienced by those with spinal cord injuries caused by stress and overstimulation”. I’ve never heard of Dysreflexia myself before this, but it sounds like a visit to any theme park is about the worst thing you could do to yourself, as your day will be filled with stressful moments and an abundance of overstimulation as you move from attraction to attraction.
   Now I do have sympathy for anyone forced to listen to that song over and over again... but he was only in there for about 40 minutes. I once timed the normal ride duration on It’s A Small World between 15-18 minutes. So essentially this fellow made off with eight grand for enduring the same experience one would have by riding it voluntarily twice, back to back. Just saying...
    Hopefully Disney will appeal this one and win, because this also sets a somewhat dangerous precedent for future potential lawsuits against the amusement park industry. If one man can sue for $8,000 for sitting on small world for a little over a half hour, just wait until all those people who got stuck for hours on Windseeker rides around the nation last year try to file their own lawsuits against the respective parks for their own traumatic experience.
    (3/22/13) Okay, this is way way WAY cool. A project that took nearly four years time has been finished to recreate Disneyland’s Space Mountain experience (queue and all) as an HD 3D Animation. The result is simply wonderful to watch... especially if your an ex-SoCal resident who now lives too far away to get my regular Space Mountain fix in person.

    (3/4/13) The Disney Parks Blog has confirmed that a special 50th Anniversary Event for Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room will be held at the Disneyland Resort on June 28-29. Click here to find out more about how to attend.
    (2/25/13) ThemeParkHD is back, with the same camera they used to shoot the amazing Test Track 2 video at Epcot, and takes us on a POV ride through the newly refurbished Splash Mountain at Disneyland. Check it out below!

    (2/11/13) FastPass attractions at Disneyland and California Adventure have begun putting up signs to notify guests that they will begin to enforce the 1-hour window printed on the FastPass tickets. We saw this go into effect last year at Walt Disney World as well, as an anticipated move about a year-ahead of the test launch of FastPass+.
    Previously, one could get a FastPass ticket for 1pm to 2pm, but simply hold onto it and come back at any point later in the day and still use it, even though this was never the original intention of the system. I don’t know if this is a sign that the Disneyland Resort will also launch FastPass+ in about a year for Summer 2014 or not, or if this is just their way to trying to apply the same set of rules to all the parks in the US. Time will tell, but consider yourself warned that when it comes to FastPass tickets, you use them or you lose them from now on.
    (1/28/13) A fun new POV video showing off a ride on the Matterhorn’s left track has been posted to YouTube and embedded below. Check it out.

    (1/7/13) A fun collection of artwork pieces by SHAG created for the Haunted Mansion’s 40th anniversary a few years ago have been collected into the latest update at Disney & More this week.
    I’ve got one more you may also enjoy… a nice homage to the original Haunted Mansion attraction poster created by one of my favorite SoCal artists, Sam Carter who merged the classic Haunted Mansion look with our favorite GhostBusters. Who you gonna call?

2013 - Fantasy Faire - (3/12/13) Westcoaster has posted a great walk-through update of the new Fantasy Faire at Disneyland. Simply put, it looks awesome in photos and has to be even more impressive in real life. (I wish I could, but a trip to SoCal just isn’t in the cards right now…)
    (3/4/13) Cinde rella and Rapunzel check out their new digs at Fantasy Faire this week. Rapunzel poses in front of the mini tower replica while Cinderella gives us a look at the inside of the new Royal Hall. It will all open on March 12.
    (2/21/13) Westcoaster is back and takes us on a quick tour of Disneyland to check into the latest goings on at Fantasy Faire (which has some incredibly bright and beautiful paint now applied), the Big Thunder rehab and more.
    (2/19/13) This week we have a quick look at the progress on Fantasy Faire as posted to ThemeParkOverload, along with some comparison photos of the model on display at Blue Sky Cellar over at DCA.
    (2/13/13) The opening of Fantasy Faire, the new mini-land just outside Fantasyland will open in about a month and is already looking fantastic. Check out a great collection of construction images along side the concept art posted to Disney & More this week. While there is still a lot of work left to do, the new buildings look fantastic and are highly detailed.
    (2/6/13) Ahead of the opening of  the shows and character meet ‘n greets of Fantasy Faire, Belle will begin to make new appearances inside Disneyland, decked out in a brand spanking new formal ball gown designed just for her. Look for Belle to show off her new outfit starting February 3rd.
    Disney also tells us all about Maurice’s Treats, a new snack shack inside Fantasy Faire opening on March 12. The new eatery will feature special strawberry or chocolate twists, a cheddar garlic bagel twist, as well as Boysen Apple Freeze drinks… served in the same style mugs as LeFou’s Brew in Florida’s new Fantasyland… and is actually the same drink as well with a new name… for a third time, as this is also the same drink as served in Cars Land as Red’s Apple Freeze.
    (2/4/13) According to the Disney Parks Blog the new Royal Theater show in Fantasy Faire will open on March 12th and show off new tales of Beauty and the Beast as well as Tangled. Click here to read more.
    (1/29/13) Disney and More takes a look at what we can expect to find at the new Fantasy Faire at Disneyland opening this Spring.
    (1/18/13) Disneyland offers a peek at the new Royal Hall, a new Princess themed Meet ‘n Greet area being added to the park as part of the Fantasy Faire expansion.
    (1/11/13) A construction updates on Fantasy Faire has been posted to Westcoaster this week, along with a look at the last day of operations on Big Thunder Mountain… for the next 10 months at least.
    (12/14/12) A construction update from all around Disneyland showing off the progress on Fantasy Faire and Indy’s return from rehab has been posted to Westcoaster.
    (8/3/12) The Disney Blog has posted some very nice pictures showing off the incredible scale model they’ve built showing off what Fantasy Faire will look like when it opens next year.
    (8/26/11) Disneyland has announced plans to replace the Carnations Plaza Gardens Stage area with an expansion of Fantasyland called Fantasy Faire in 2013. The area will be re-imagined into a fantasy village square area that will feature the ‘Tangled Tower’ and feature the Royal Ribbon Parade event where guests can dance with Belle or Rapunzel, or visit other Disney princesses like Snow White, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. Sounds like a good idea to me as the old Carnations Plaza has been quite a dead spot in the park for a number of years now and could really use the makeover.

2013 - Mickey and the Magical Map - (3/15/13) Disneyland has announced the opening date for the new “Mickey and the Magical Map” show at the park’s Fantasyland Theater will be May 25th.
   “Through theatrical wizardry, wonderful songs and inspired visuals, audiences will take part in Mickey Mouse’s surprising adventure as an enormous sorcerer’s map takes us on a journey to imagination. Each new direction of the compass reveals fantastic worlds of music, color, excitement and beloved characters.
Heading east leads to a swinging adventure with the coolest of jungle beasts, King Louie. Looking to the west, our hearts are inspired by the dreams of brave storybook heroines Pocahontas, Mulan and Rapunzel. North leads to a celebration of life “Under the Sea,” and a trip south takes us on a “Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride.”
As we arrive at each imaginative destination, all the colors of that place come alive in an homage to the characters and stories we love so much. Our journey is full of surprises as we discover along with Mickey the mysteries within this extraordinary, magical map!”
   If your visiting the park a few days ahead of the opening event, it can’t hurt to check by the theater to see if they may be offering up seats to see the final dress rehersals as well.
    (1/8/13) The Fantasyland Theater in Disneyland will add a new live show called Mickey and the Magical Map. The storyline involved Mickey as the apprentice of Yen Sid the sorcerer who has a magical map with the power to take dreamers to any place imaginable. In typical fashion, Mickey gets in over his head and stumbles into a new magical adventure. Look for the new show to open in Summer 2013.

2013 - Big Thunder Rehab - NOW CLOSED - (5/10/13) Westcoaster has a good update from Disneyland this week as they check out the progress over at Big Thunder Mountain. The big crane has been removed, which seems to indicate that all the heavy lifting to replace the track pieces has been completed. For those keeping “track” (get it!) the new track pieces were created by Dynamic Structures (part of Empire Ind.), the same group who rebuilt Space Mountain from scratch a few years ago, and also the group behind the Soarin’ ride system and the Radiator Springs Racers track system. (Fun Note: They were also the ones behind the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey system for Universal, now being cloned in Japan and soon in Hollywood, with the heavy lifting done by KUKA of course...)
    (3/18/13) A quick construction update showing off the work underway at Big Thunder Mountain this past week was posted to YouTube. Check it out below.

    (2/13/13) Apparently Disneyland isn’t fooling around with the Big Thunder Mountain rehab as a picture sent in by a reader shows, a huge tower crane has been installed to help work on the coaster’s refurbishment project. I’m not sure I can remember ever seeing one of those inside Disneyland before.
    (12/19/12) Disney and More reports that the old Rainbow Ridge Mining Town building at the end of Big Thunder Mountain will be removed during the rehab. The old buildings, some of which were saved from the old Mine Train Thru Nature’s Wonderland attraction, are in poor condition, and new replacement town buildings will be created instead.
    (12/13/12) The Disney Parks Blog has confirmed that the rumored long term rehab of Big Thunder Mountain will take place in 2013. The ride will close on January 7th and not reopen again until Fall 2013. According to the report when Big Thunder reopens it will have a fleet of brand new trains, new track, and the mountain landscape itself will be repaired and restored. If the previous rumors hold true, the new trains could see a seat divided added as well as individual lapbars, bringing to an end the possibility of putting three riders in a single row.
    (10/17/12) Screamscape sources have dropped dates for the rumored long-term rehab of Big Thunder Mountain to us. If the schedule stays true, we could see Big Thunder shut down from January 7th, 2013 until October 30, 2013 for this nearly 10 month rehab. I’ve added this with other early 2013 scheduled rehabs on the way to Disneyland and California Adventure.
    (5/10/12) According to one Screamscape source, salaried members of management at Disneyland were informed of the rumored plan to take Big Thunder Mountain down for an extensive rehab from January 2013 and reopen it in Summer 2013. Or at least that was the plan… have to wait and see if the timetable of work that needs to be done will agree or not.
        (5/7/12) Ok, Here we go again. Maybe… or maybe not. You may remember last year when there were countless rumors swirling about Disneyland about a pending 6+ month overhaul for Big Thunder Mountain?  In the end… the major rehab ended up taking place at Matterhorn, and an extensive but shorter rehab is just finishing up on Big Thunder in Florida instead. Well… the rumors about performing the big rehab on Big Thunder at Disneyland have started again, this time claiming that the ride could go down for between 6-9 months, and may see it shut down in early January 2013. Anyone else hearing this?
    (6/28/11) Just a quick update on the rumored Big Thunder rehab project. While it seems that the immediate future will see Matterhorn being worked on instead, I did gather enough information to know that the Big Thunder track replacement project is also in development. I just don’t know if and when they will decide to pull the trigger on that project as well. Possibly as a follow-up in 2012/2013 once work on the Matterhorn is done.
        (3/29/11) A reader went by the park the other day and discovered the queue at Big Thunder Mountain to have been changed to use a strange new route. Upon asking the CMs about this, they were told that the changes were experiments to help plan out a possible future change to the queue. They also asked about the rumored re-tracking of the ride itself which was actually confirmed. They reported that Big Thunder would be closed between 9 to 12 months to perform the rehab, which could see it shut down for most (if not all) of 2012.
    (3/25/11) Adding a little more fuel to the speculation that Big Thunder Mountain is the ride preparing to undergo complete track replacement comes this latest rumor submission. According to one insider, there was a special 30th Anniversary party held for Big Thunder CM’s back in 2009, where Tony Baxter informed them that a major lengthy rehab on the ride was to come in the next few years that would include track replacement, refurbishment to the mountain structures, changes to the queue, widening the exit pathway and if the money was there, to even add some new effects / upgrades to the ride itself. The best right now is that if the ride were to close this year, it likely wouldn’t be until the fall or winter.
    (3/21/11) Big Thunder Mountain opened two years after Space Mountain did in 1979 and will turn 32 this year. I’ve got to wonder if Big Thunder will be going “under the knife” later this year for it’s own extensive rehab. Previously I have heard rumors about a push to revise the restraint system in the trains to feature individual lap bars and a seat divider, which would make it impossible to seat a group of three in a single bench ever again. Stay tuned while I attempt to connect all the dots and dig up a little more, since I would think that a pending 9 to 16 month long rehab would be a bit difficult to hide for too long.

2013 - Starbucks on Main Street - (12/11/12) The OCRegister reports that the Market House on Disneyland’s Main Street USA will close sometime in early 2013 for renovations, and when it reopens in late 2013 it will feature a Starbucks location inside.

2014/2015 - New Tomorrowland + Marvel - Rumor - (12/19/12) While Disneyland has admitted nothing just yet, another reader popped in with a rumor about the pending destruction of the Innoventions building. According to this story, there were told that the attraction would close down sometime in February from a CM on site. If true, I’d expect Disney to confirm this sometime after the start of the new year.
    (11/1/12) I’m not sure quite how right on the ball this rumor it, but according to our source we could see Innoventions at Disneyland closed down in February 2013 to demolish the structure and prepare the site for an Iron Man themed E-Ticket attraction. Timewise this sounds about right if Disney wants to have their first big Marvel E-Ticket ready in time for Summer 2015 when Avengers 2 hits the theaters. Rumor has it that while the Iron Man ride concept may not have been given the final green light, they have been told to get it ready to go and closing Innoventions would be the first step needed to begin work.
    (10/5/12) Need more evidence that something is in the works for Tomorrowland? A couple of guest reports have come my way this week with stories about being stopped by Disneyland survey takers and asked a short series of questions, all about Tomorrowland. Such as… what did they like about it, what did they not like, what do they think could be improved? 
    While we’re on the subject of Tomorrowland, I’m hearing that there is a very good chance that an Iron Man themed attraction may be given the final green light in the near future, with a construction timetable that would see work begin sometime in 2013. Could it be time for the Tony Stark and maybe The Avengers to take over Tomorrowland 2015?
    (9/12/12) While there is very little information leaking at the moment from Disneyland, the few whispers coming out do make it seem like almost a sure thing that a major revamp of Tomorrowland may very well be the next big project for WDI to tackle at the Disneyland Resort. Of course they are also said to be juggling a few other new attraction projects for other sections of the park as well as ideas for a major new land / expansion out behind Big Thunder at some point in the future. But face it… Tomorrowland really needs help now, and if the rumors are true, we may see Innoventions finally closed and demolition work get under way in about a year.
    So what could be included in a Tomorrowland revamp? Where there is always The Avengers and Marvel Comics Universe attraction ideas. There is also that Tron Legacy Lightcycle coaster ride being developed as the anchor ride for Shanghai Disneyland’s Tomorrowland. Plus lots of other ideas and Tomorrowland improvements from over the years could come to light. Stay tuned!
    (6/29/12) An anonymous tip sent in to Screamscape confirms that the word going around Disneyland is that Innoventions and Autopia are very likely to be walled off by this time next summer as they work to remove them, along with the old Peoplemover track around this area as well.
    (6/27/12) Near the end of the latest update at MiceAge this week, they talk about how Disney mangement is now casting eager eyes at how they can next improve Disneyland, in an effort to add some major new addition to that park and take advantage of what has been learned from the building of Cars Land.  As we’ve known for years, there are only two major sections of property left at Disneyland to build major new projects… behind Frontierland and in the Tomorrowland area. We know much of Tomorrowland has been under scrutiny since the last makeover in the late 90’s and according to MiceAge, WDI may be forced to admit that the time may have simply come to retire some older attractions to make way for new. We’re talking about the Innoventions building, the Autopia and even Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. The later of which, while a newer attraction, still suffers from very high operational costs and an extremely low hourly capacity problem that just can’t be solved.
    (7/1/11) Following up on a previous rumor we had last month, the Disney & More Blog now also believes that the Innoventions building may soon make way for the Stark Expo… as in Tony Stark… aka: Iron Man. So if this is still in the works, the question now is “When”? Disney isn’t one to waste a film series tie-in… so would they opt to open this as a tie in to the Avengers movie (May 4, 2012) or Iron Man 3 (May 3, 2013)? I’m inclined to think that Disney may have enough on their plate for 2012 already at California Adventure, but you never know. Plus, without knowing the scope of the attraction (it could just be a Marvel Character Meet ‘n Greet after all) it’s hard to really say much of anything just yet.
    (6/14/11) Rumor has it that some early concept work for another new Marvel comic based attraction concept may be in the works for Disneyland… and it’s not Iron Man this time around. If I had to guess, Disney may be planning on covering all the bases and betting on an attraction themed to the upcoming Avengers film.
    (4/20/11) IGN has posted an interesting tidbid after an interview with the head of Marvel Studios mentioned that they’re looking forward  to having their characters become fixtures at Disney theme parks around the world.
    There is some interesting timing with this as well, as I’ve heard some early rumbling about an Iron Man themed attraction that may be in the design phase at Disney Imagineering, possibly for Disneyland. While I have no clue about the ride system(s) under consideration at this point, I have heard that the structure may be themed around the Stark Expo.  Hmmm… Stark Expo… Disneyland… would have to fit into Tomorrowland somewhere. Boy, wouldn’t that make a great replacement for Innoventions? Of course the bad news is that if Iron Man moves ahead... this means any Tron based attraction would be put on the back burner.
    (4/4/10) Disney knows that Tomorrowland is in need is a big “fix” once again, to undo some of the damage done during the last one as well as bring new life to the area… the bring it up to speed with today’s vision of The Future once again.  They’ve been busy addressing these issues one by one over the past few years with the introduction of Buzz Lightyear, the relaunch of Space Mountain and the return of the Submarines fleet now on a new quest to “Find Nemo”. Even Star Tours 2 will finally launch in the near future.
    That said however… there remains the sore spot in the middle of Tomorrowland… rotting away at the core of the land much like a cancer is the hulking remains of the old Rocket Jets / PeopleMover tower. The idea of turning the leftover mechnical bits of the Rocket Jets into a spinning animated light and music show died horribly long ago. Beyond anything else in Tomorrowland, I’ve always felt that this central tower was really the true heart of Tomorrowland. When the Pressler era management decided to close down the Rocket Jets and installed the “Meh!” Astro Orbiters at the ground level of their “New Tomorrowland” back in 1998, the core of Tomorrowland died.
    And if the Rocket Jets Tower was the heart of tomrrowland, then the rotting leftover Rocket Rods / PeopleMover attraction below it could have been considered the life blood of the land. Much like a system of arteries and veins, the old PeopleMover track system thread itself in, out and through virtually every single attraction in Tomorrowland and back again to the pumping central heart.
    The Rocket Rods briefly kept this track system alive for about 18 months or so before being deemed as a failure and shut down for good. The track however, still remains as a constant reminder and ‘eyesore’ of the dying land. There really isn’t a spot you can go anywhere in Tomorrowland and not see a section of this once thriving ride system.  Knowing this, WDI has apparently focused much attention on linking this network of infrastructure up with different new attraction concepts over the years to bring it back to life, as well as proposals to move the Astro Orbiters back to the top of the tower where it belongs. Much speculation has been placed on replacing the Innoventions structure as a major part of a possible new Tron attraction. Even new concepts to put something “fresh” into the Magic Eye 4D Theater to replace Captiain EO / Honey, I Shrunk The Audience are being looked into. All said and done, this could put Tomorrowland back on stable ground once again, and much like it’s Florida counter part, Tomorrowland’s new theme may be a bit more immune to the age of time by becoming a sort of SciFi themed Fantasyland for Boys concept.
    Again, this is all just still just a “blue sky” dream right now, but from what I’ve been told, the push from those involved is very passionate as everyone wants to bring Tomorrowland back to life, and Tron may be the key to opening up the checkbook. As always however, the key factor as to the success of failure of these efforts will lie entirely upon the box office reception the new Tron Legacy film receives. Disney is now poised to view this Tron revival on the same level as their very successful Pirates of the Caribbean films. Poised to turn this one film into a new tent-pole series of films, video games and all the marketing and merchandise opportunities that go along with it. Cross your digits Programs…
    (4/25/08) From what I’ve been told, a new future for Tomorrowland is finally on the way. The new Star Tours 2 concept is apparently just the first phase of a larger makeover for Tomorrowland. Once the new version of Star Tours opens the plan is to demolish the old Rocket Jet Tower to make way for an all new tower that will once again house a next generation Peoplemover ride station as well as the base unit to return the Astro-Orbiter back to it’s rightful place high in the sky on top of this new tower.

2016/2017/2018 - New Land / Frontierland Expansion - Rumor - (10/15/12) According to Screamscape sources, the plan on Disney’s long-term radar to build an entire new land behind Frontierland, all revolves around the success or failure of the new OZ: The Great and Powerful film coming in 2013. I’ve got to admit, the theme kind of fits too, as guests would have to enter the world of OZ by first going through Frontierland. This could be a very interesting development as many people have long wished for an OZ theme park experience. So how will the new film perform? I’ve got to admit that film trailer looks pretty awesome… and having Sam Raimi behind the lens can only help make this an awesome adventure full of great eye candy.

    (10/11/12) Assuming the much needed renovation to Tomorrowland gets green lit, we are left to wonder what may follow afterwards. We’ve heard rumors for years of a new project and upgrade for Fontierland, but also the possibility of adding an entirely new themed land beyond the berm behind Frontierland.
   The answer to both of these quests may very well lie with what ends up being a hit or a failure from Walt Disney Pictures over the next couple of years. As the tide slows on the Pirates film series, primary star Johnny Depp and director Gore Verbinski will be putting an all new version of The Lone Ranger in front of audiences in 2013. Disney also their finger in yet another pie with Oz: The Great and Powerful, a prequel of The Wizard of Oz directed by Sam Raimi in March 2013.
    Mix this with the rumors that the Marvel Universe may make a first Disney park appearance within the Tomorrowland project, rumors have it that Disney will have an eager eye upon both Lone Ranger and the new OZ film to see if either (or both) could prove popular enough to not only generate more films sequels, but serve as possible future theme park attractions.
    (6/27/11) With Cars Land and the rest of the big overhaul to California Adventure in the final 9 to 12 month stretch to completion, rumor has it that a major new expansion plan for Disneyland itself may be ready to get the green light very soon. I don’t know much yet, but it does not seem like this is yet another Tomorrowland revamp, but could be something far more substantial as well as increasing the overall size of the guest area of the park as well, which is a good move considering the crowds the park has been seeing as well in the last few years.

???? - Tron LightCycle Coaster - Rumor - (4/15/13) MiceChat reports that the former plan to create a Tron themed LightCycle coaster may be back on track for Tomorrowland. Unlike the Shanghai version of the LightCycle coaster which will be enclosed inside a building, there is a chance that the Disneyland version could be a mix of indoor and outdoor locations, possibly reusing some of the old PeopleMover / Rocket Rods track locations. While I’d love to see a Tron coaster… I really do think that it needs to be all indoors to allow for the Tron themeing and special effects to really work and be impressive. Putting it outdoors for more than perhaps a moment would only serve to bring you out of that digital environment and ruin the theme.
    If this project gets approved, the proposed new expansion project behind Frontierland (rumored to be themed to OZ) may be put on indefinite hold.

???? - Star Wars Land - Design Phase - (3/23/13) According to a report on SlashFilm, the Disneyland Resort has been sending a few quiet surveys out to passholders to ask, “How interested would you be in visiting a Star Wars themed land at the Disneyland Resort?” Additional questions follow this to get a basis on which films in the series are your favorite, what kind of interesting Star Wars themed merchandise you might want to buy (housewares?!) and so on.
   With the rumors of a Star Wars Land now on for Paris as well as starting up in Florida, it only makes sense Disneyland would get in on the action as well. The obvious location within Disneyland would be to locate it in the the backstage area that fits between Space Mountain and Main Street. This site is hardly off limits for development as Disney Imagineering has pitched and almost built new mini-lands back there several times over the years, the most famous of which was the Hollywoodland area announced by Michael Eisner as part of the “Disney Decade” plan for the 1990’s. (NOTE: The infamous Hollywoodland would have had a copy of The Great Movie Ride, the Toontown Trolley simulator, Baby Herman’s Runaway Baby Buggy ride, the Superstar TV show and a Dick Tracy’s Crimestoppers ride.)
   That said... there is one other possibility to consider. I’ve heard rumors for a long time claiming that a large Star Wars themed land was under consideration as a major land for Disneyland’s 3rd Park project. To read more about that, click here and make the jump.

???? - Haunted Mansion Update - Rumor - (1/31/13) Haunted Mansion Holiday 2012 may be packed up and gone, but you can find an incredible video showing off the Halloween/Christmas themed revamp of the Haunted Mansion posted below to tide you through to next October. Just for giggles, you can compare how it looked in 2012 to how it looked back in 2002 to see what improvements and changes have been made over the years to the various scenes. (For example, the finale scene with the mirrors is totally different.)


    (1/8/13) A reader sent in an interesting question this afternoon that I thougt I’d share. “Do you know if/when Disneyland will add the CG Hitchiking Ghost FX to its Haunted Mansion a la WDW's new version?”
    A very valid question… as the new finale added to the Haunted Mansion in the Magic Kingdom has been very popular with guests as well as gaining acceptance from most Disney purists. But would a change like that “fly” with the protective California crowds, especially when it involved Walt’s original Haunted Mansion? 
    I asked around and was told that essentially it comes down to being just a matter of “when” and not “if’ it will happen.  With the massive overhaul of California Adventure now over, WDI has been focused on taking care of a number of important projects at Disneyland… like the new trains on Matterhorn, a much needed rehab on Indiana Jones, and now there are a lot of people involved with the 10 month restoration of Big Thunder Mountain.
    From the sound of things there is a bigger plan in the queue for Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion that will see the addition of a new and improved 3D audio system, the long anticipated addition of the Hatbox Ghost… and yes… the new digital Hitchhiking Ghosts finale. So be patient… good things come to those who wait.