Disney Youth Programs Blog

The largest Disney fan event in the world, D23 Expo celebrates all the wonderful worlds of The Walt Disney Company under one roof, including the best of Disney, Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars across film, television, theme parks, products, online, music, live entertainment, and more. D23 Expo 2019, which took place August 23-25, marked the sixth biennial Expo held in Anaheim.

We’re here to recap you on all the exciting news and share everything your students can look forward to when they visit the Disney Parks in 2020 and beyond! Take a look:

Planning

Planned to debut in late 2020, Disney Genie is a revolutionary new digital offering that will enhance the way guests (and teachers!) plan for and experience a trip to Walt Disney World Resort. 

Disney Genie will make planning easier and more fun by providing guests customized itineraries geared to princesses, thrill seekers, foodies, and more. Guests will even be able to tell Disney Genie what they want to experience, and it will quickly evaluate millions of options to present them with an optimal day.

Walt Disney World Resort

Following the limited time run of Epcot Forever at Epcot, a new nighttime spectacular called “HarmonioUS” will be the largest ever created for a Disney park. It will celebrate how the music of Disney inspires people the world over.

World Showcase at Epcot will also welcome the first attraction inspired by Mary Poppins in Cherry Tree Lane, which will join the United Kingdom pavilion as an entirely new neighborhood! 

The France pavilion will offer even more for your students to discover, including a new “Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along” in January 2020. And in summer 2020, the much-anticipated attraction Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure will open, as well as a delicious new restaurant called La Crêperie de Paris.

The film “Canada Far and Wide in Circle-Vision 360” will debut in January 2020 in the Canada pavilion with new scenes and a new story. In the China pavilion, “Wondrous China” will take guests on a spectacular journey across China, filmed and presented in a completely seamless 360-degree digital format.

In World Nature, the reinvention of Epcot will include Journey of Water, Inspired by “Moana.”  This first-ever experience inspired by the Walt Disney Animation Studios hit film will let students interact with magical, living water in a beautiful and inspiring setting.

And the Land pavilion’s new film “Awesome Planet,” which showcases the spectacular beauty, diversity, and dynamic story of the planet in World Nature, will begin welcoming guests in January 2020.

PLAY! pavilion at World Discovery is opening in time for the 50th Anniversary of Walt Disney World. In this interactive metropolis, students will discover a city bursting with games, activities, and experiences that connect them with friends and beloved Disney characters like never before.

Also at World Discovery in Epcot, an expansion of the Mission: SPACE pavilion, the new restaurant Space 220, will open this winter as an out-of-this-world culinary experience with the celestial panorama of a space station, including daytime and nighttime views of Earth from 220 miles up.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at Epcot will feature the first reverse launch into space! This thrilling, family-friendly attraction will feature a never-before-seen storytelling coaster that rotates to focus on the action – wherever it may be. 

A new pavilion at World Celebration will be the home base for Epcot’s signature festivals, providing a stunning view of World Showcase and an ideal spot to witness the park’s nighttime spectacular. This three-level structure will have one of the most remarkable designs at any Disney park and will fast become a new icon for Epcot.

World Celebration in Epcot will also feature breathtaking views at Dreamers Point, lush gardens, a wishing tree, an interactive new fountain and a new statue celebrating the legacy of the original dreamer, Walt Disney.

At World Celebration in Epcot, Spaceship Earth will remain the park’s grand icon but the journey will be transformed with new scenes reflecting the universal nature of the human experience. A new guide and all new narration will focus on the storytelling that brings people together.

Also at Walt Disney World Resort, we’ve got big plans for our multi-year transformation of Epcot. The park will be unified with four neighborhoods that each celebrate a unique aspect of what makes Epcot so special. World Showcase will continue to celebrate culture, cuisine, architecture and traditions from around the world. And where Future World currently stands, three new neighborhoods will spring up: World Nature, World Discovery and World Celebration. Find more details here.

Disneyland Resort

As Super Heroes assemble at both campuses, one of the iconic buildings in California will be the Avengers Headquarters. The building will become the future entrance to a brand-new E-Ticket attraction where guests will fly alongside the Avengers in an epic adventure to Wakanda and beyond when it opens in the next phase of development. Read more here.

Bob Chapek announced the first Disney ride-through attraction to feature Spider-Man will open at the Avengers Campus, beginning in 2020 at Disney California Adventure and later at Disneyland Paris. Avengers Campus will also feature Pym Test Kitchen where Pym Technologies is using the latest innovations to grow and shrink food. 

And for the first time, the Avengers Campuses will give guests a chance to meet Ant-Man and the Wasp – along with many of your favorite Super Heroes. Read the update here.

Here’s a new look at Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway coming to Mickey’s Toontown in 2022!  This first major Mickey-themed ride-through attraction will put your students inside the wacky and unpredictable world of a Mickey Mouse cartoon short where anything can happen.

The action takes place at the El CapiToon theater at Disneyland, where Mickey and Minnie are premiering their newest short, “Perfect Picnic”, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway is also planned to open at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World Resort in spring 2020. Read the full story.

Coming this spring at Disneyland Resort – an all-new parade called Magic Happens. The parade will celebrate inspiring moments of magic at the heart of so many Disney stories, featuring stunning floats, beautiful costumes and beloved Disney characters from “Moana,” “Coco,” “Sleeping Beauty” and more – all led by Mickey Mouse and the gang.   Full story here.

So, what are you waiting for? Gather your group and celebrate at Walt Disney World Resort with specially-priced Disney Youth Tickets. Be sure to sign-up for our e-newsletter for the latest and use #DisneyYouthPrograms when you visit to showcase your field trip of a lifetime!