This week saw the announcement everyone was waiting for – the opening date for World of Frozen, that also marks the transition of the Walt Disney Studios Park to its new identity – Disney Adventure World. There’s a lot to plan for! So we’re breaking down everything in the recent announcements that you need to know.

So what’s Disney Adventure World?

Disney Adventure World is the new identity for the Walt Disney Studios Park – and the date the park transitions to its new name (and opens the park expansions) is on 29th March 2026.

Why the park is having this amount of work done is a bit of a long story. When the Walt Disney Studios Park was opened in 2002 it was done on a bit of a budget and in a rush. As a result the park that opened was the smallest of the Disney theme parks world wide, and while it had some great attractions a lot of folks thought that it didn’t quite match up to the Disney standard. Since then, a lot of work has taken place to expand and improve the park. Additions that have already happened include the World of Pixar and its rides (opened in different stages), the Tower of Terror, and new shows replacing old (so long Animagique and Cinemagique, we hardly knew you…).

However despite these additions the park was still small, and many saw it as a half day park. Added to the issue was the some of the attractions got out of date pretty quickly (looking at you Studio Tram Tour), and the theming was, well, not Disney’s best I think it’s safe to say. Add into the mix that the ‘behind the scenes at the movies’ element that the park opened as was no longer a big draw theme park wise, as behind the scenes content on DVDs and YouTube took away the appeal. Over in Florida the old MGM Studios transitioned to Hollywood Studios to take this into account, and the Universal Parks started focusing less on the behind the scenes aspect and more on living the movies. So with an outdated theme and still a less then stellar experience, Disney decided it was time to give the old Studios Park a shake up and move away from behind the scenes of films to instead allowing people to live the stories in favourite films. The change of direction meant that a change of identity was felt needed – and Disney Adventure World was born.

A lot has already happened to help the transition to Disney Adventure World. The biggest change was the conversion of the old Backlot Area into Avengers Campus. But other changes have included the redo of the old Studio 1 into World Premiere, and the area behind this (formerly Production Courtyard and Toon Studio) into World Premiere Plaza. Also the redo of the old Studio Backlot tour into Cars Road Trip (my thoughts on this particular transition I’ll leave for another day…)

But the major work has been taking place behind construction walls at the back of World Premiere Plaza. This leads into brand new areas of the Park – an expansion that will double the park’s footprint. It’s when this opens (or at least some of it, more on that later) on 29th March 2026 that will see the park’s transformation to Disney Adventure World.

World of Frozen

The centrepiece of the expansion opening on 29th March 2026 is World of Frozen. This new World aims to transport you to Arendelle, the home of sisters Anna and Elsa from the Frozen films.

Disney have a good track record with Frozen lands – similar ones have opened in both Hong Kong Disneyland and Tokyo Disney Sea. The size and scope (and main attraction!) is going to be much closer to Hong Kong Disneyland – Tokyo Disney has budget resources that Disneyland Paris doesn’t so everything is on a grander scale out there! Having said that the Arendelle setting should be really convincing. And there’s lots of things coming as part of the new land:

• Frozen Ever After – the one ride in the new land is a boat ride, which takes you from Arendelle to the ice palace as Elsa creates a summer snow day. Timing wise in the Frozen canon, the events take place just after the first film. Frozen Ever After isn’t a new ride, it’s been in Epcot over in Walt Disney World for years at this point, and there’s a version in Hong Kong Disneyland too. The Paris version will be closer to the latter, with some amazing looking animatronics of the main characters. (The versions in Epcot have weird projected faces, although they are getting replaced next year). Frozen Ever After is fun boat ride, very family friendly (I don’t expect there to be a height requirement) and fun for everyone.
• A Celebration of Arendelle – one the bay just outside Arendelle there will be a show several times of day, featuring three Viking longships with a range of Frozen characters, including Kristoff and Olaf. The show will feature songs from both Frozen films, and sounds like a great way to bring the lagoon side setting of World of Frozen into the land.
• Royal Encounter – Inside Arendelle Castle you’ll be able to meet Anna and Elsa in their Queen outfits from Frozen 2. Hopefully this’ll be better managed than the brief period they had Anna and Elsa over in the Princess Pavilion (no I’m still not over that 3 hour wait). For Disneyland Paris guests who have never had a chance to meet this Royal Duo though this’ll be a great thing! I don’t think it’s been confirmed yet but it’s likely that this will be managed via the character virtual queue system as it’s likely to be popular!
• Roaming characters – As well as Anna and Elsa in the Castle there’s likely to be citizens of Arendelle roaming the land. This could include Oaken of ‘big summer blowout’ fame, and a cast member with Mossie, a cute baby animatronic troll. Given that roaming characters tend to get mobbed in Disneyland Paris it’ll be interesting to see how this pans out once the land is open!
• Wait, did I see an animatronic Olaf?! – Yes you did! An animatronic walking Olaf is going to be coming to the land. Olaf will definitely be part of the Celebration show. How much roaming he does remains to be seen, again I’d expect him to get mobbed but will be thrilled if I’m proved wrong!
• Nordic Crowns Tavern – The new quick service coming to World of Frozen allows people to create customisable bowls, as well as a number of Frozen themed sweet treats. The menu is said to be Nordic inspired, and the restaurant theming will tell the story of the Kingdom of Arendelle. If they do half as well with the theming here as they did in the restaurants in the Hong Kong and Tokyo Worlds of Frozen, then there should be lots of great details to discover!
• Arendelle Boutique – The signature shop for the land will be selling a range of Frozen themed items, including new items made exclusively for the land (although how long it’ll be until they start creeping into other onsite shops remains to be seen!) Among the souvenirs will be Runa, and interactive troll who can interactive with other Runas, characters and settings inside World of Frozen. They look dead cute. And yes I want one.
• The land theming – I think a massive draw of this land will just be walking around and enjoying the theming, as the amount of detail looks epic – from the fountain in the town square to the Ice Palace on the North Mountain. We’re looking forward to exploring everything it has to offer!

Disney Adventure Way

To get to World of Frozen guests will need to walk Disney Adventure Way, a new wide path that runs from behind World Premiere to the new areas of the park. But this is more than just a path! On it you can find:

• Raiponce Tangled Spin – This is a new ridge themed to Tangled. (Raiponce is French for Rapunzel in case you’re wondering!) In the ride you sit in little boats that spin under a canopy decorated to look like the lantern scene from Tangled and with Rapunzel’s paintings. A wheel in the middle allows you to control the spin of your gondola. If that sounds familiar, it’s because it’s essentially the same set up as the tea cups – except in this case you’ll be in boats! The graphics for the ride look very pretty for sure and it’s likely to be popular.
• Themed gardens – a number of themed gardens are coming to Adventure Way, including a Toy Story themed garden (near the Toy Story Playland entrance) and a Tangled themed garden (near the spin ride). There’ll also be an English themed garden featuring statues of figures from Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh, and 101 Dalmatians. As one thing the current Studios park lacks is nice outdoor places to sit, rest or burn off steam these sound like a welcome addition!
• Character themed entertainment – Adventure Way is going to host a number of different shows depending on the season. It could be Rapunzel and Flynn’s Musical Moment, Mary Poppins and the Pearly Band, or Miguel’s Festival Latina. There’ll be character meetings starting here later in 2026 too, and down Adventure way Minnie will march with her band playing Disney tunes. Any of those shows sound familiar? They should – they were all part of Disney’s Music Festival held over in the Disneyland Park this year! It looks like the Festival might have been used to test some types of entertainment. This may also explain why the Music Festival isn’t returning next year, Adventure Way is pinching some of the acts!

Adventure Bay

The lagoon which Adventure Way leads to, and on which World of Frozen sits, is also getting some new experiences:

• Regal View Restaurant and Lodge – This impressive building is going to be home to some Princess dining for breakfast, lunch and dinner, offering a new setting to meet the Royal Disney ladies (and hopefully taking some of the pressure of Auberge de Cendrillon in the neighbouring park). For the first time in a Disneyland Paris park there’s also going to be a lounge bar attached to the restaurant. Both spots will offer great spots over the Lagoon, and views of the nighttime show (more on that in a bit). Don’t be surprised to see nighttime show viewing packages here! Menus have not been confirmed yet but it looks to be served at the table, not a buffet. Bookings are available now for those who have a Disney resort reservation.
• Meet and greet with Mickey and Minnie Mouse – Mickey and Minnie are getting themselves some new Victorian style threads as they’ll get to meet guests on the West side of Adventure Bay in a new pavilion. It’ll be nice if it’s a chance to meet Mickey and Minnie together as that’s not something you can do in Disneyland Paris at the moment.
• New dining opportunities – Along with the Regal View restaurant and dining in World of Frozen there’s going to be 14 more dining opportunities coming to Adventure Way and Bay! That’s going to include La Terrace Panormagique which should serve things like bread bowls and sandwiches (sounds great for winter!), and Cafe Luminosity is serving up speciality hot dogs and desserts. There’ll also be a number of carts serving a range of foods like stuffed potato waffles (because they’re waffley versatile. Shout out to you if you get the reference!) and Princess themed desserts. The current Studios Park really isn’t great for quick dining so it’s great there’s so many new options coming, I just hope a lot of seating comes with it!
• More character meet and greets – Disney have said that later in 2026 more character meet and greets will be present, alongside the Mickey and Minnie one I mentioned earlier. No idea who or when yet so watch this space!

Disney Cascade of Lights

I could have put this under Adventure Bay above but I feel it deserves its own entry! Disney Cascade of Lights is the new nighttime show coming to Adventure Bay.

Designed to be viewed in the round, this show will feature fountains, fireworks, drones and aquatic drones to share scenes from a number of Disney and Marvel films. The early tests are looking really good so interested to see what the show is like when it opens! It’s also getting a new theme song ‘We can be heroes’.

Of course it’ll be hugely popular and spaces will be at a premium, so don’t be surprised if Disney start selling spots in a set viewing area much as they do for Tales of Magic in the park next door. We also expect a viewing area set aside for the differently-abled.

Despite the thought of stressful space getting, the in the round setting should provide a more spaced out area to view the show from, and it’s lovely to see a regular nighttime show coming to the Disney Adventure World, as the Studios doesn’t have anything like that at the moment (just seasonal shows around Avengers Campus or the Tower of Terror).

What isn’t opening in March 2026

But wait, there’s more! While the opening of World of Frozen and Adventure Way will mark a massive expansion for the park, there’s still more to come.

This includes a new land themed to the Lion King, which will feature a log flume style ride retelling the story of the animated film. Disney have confirmed that they’ve started construction (although from aerial photos we’ve known that for a while). As a die hard fan of the Lion King I’m really looking forward to this area. As it stands we don’t have any opening date for this – the earliest I’d expect is some point in 2027 but realistically I think it’s more likely to be 2028 or beyond.

Also coming is an Up themed swing ride that will be on Adventure Way, that was announced earlier this year. Again, no word on when this will open, although I’d expect this to be quicker to construct than the Lion King areas as it’s just one relatively simple ride which is effectively a clone of one that already exists over in Disney’s California Adventure. It’s possible it might be in 2026, but I think it’s more likely to be 2027. (I hasten to add these estimates are just me guessing, I’m not privy to any information on this!)

The new expansion does also have space for future development too, although there’s no word from Disney if and when they’ll do anything about it. Original concept art for Adventure Bay included a Star Wars area, although the spot for that is now taken by the Lion King. It’s possible it might make a comeback though. Another heavily-rumoured possibility is something themed to Avatar, following from the Pandora over in Disney’s Animal Kingdom and the new Avatar area opening in Disney’s California Adventure. These are just rumours though and Disney aren’t talking! It’ll be interesting to see how this park develops in the future.

So should I travel out for the opening on 29th March?

Honestly, this one is up to you. It’s very exciting being present for a new theme park ride or area opening. On the flip side though it’s very very busy!

Looking at the hotel package prices, as it stands there’s not been much impact by the announcement as packages were already pretty pricey for that date anyway (as are packages throughout the rest of the year). Park tickets wise though the tickets for that day are the most expensive they are all year apart from Christmas week!

If you do want to book to go our advice is to get booking now. I expect that the parks will get fully booked very quickly for that date, and it’s likely hotel packages will be in high demand. Click the link below to get booking (note that this is an affiliate link and we’ll receive a small commission if you book from here):

If you choose to go for the opening then just bear in mind it’s likely to be very busy – Disney will probably implement some sort of crowd control so we’ll need to see what happens. Also, new theme park attractions often have technical blips as they settle in to moving the crowds, so don’t be surprised to see some down time of the two new rides.

On the flip side, it’s likely that the Disneyland Park will be pretty quiet that day so it might be a good idea to visit the main park if you’re out there anyway and want to avoid the crowds.

From our point of view we’ll say in honesty as things stand we’re not planning to be out there for the opening. Aside from the high prices, as neither of us get on too well with crowds we’re opting to go a bit later when it’s likely to be less manic. Of course we’ll share our thoughts once we do!

Other things to consider

Here’s some other things we think it’s worth considering if you’re planning to visit the new Disney Adventure World for opening or soon after.

• It’s likely that the school and public holidays closest to the opening are going to be even more popular than usual – Easter, the May bank holidays, and the Summer 2026 holidays are likely to attract even more people than normal due to the new offerings. Again, book as soon as you can and plan for crowds.
• Use Early entry if it applies – There’s no news yet on if World of Frozen and the new areas will be accessible as part of early entry for hotel guests to the park, although I’d be very surprised if not. If it is and you’re a Disney hotel guest, use it! It could get you on Frozen Ever After with less of a wait. Having said that if you’re not bothered about Frozen then it might be easier in early entry to get on other popular rides in the park like WEB Slingers, Crush’s Coaster and the Tower of Terror.
• For our differently-abled friends – We expect all the new offerings to be accessible for those with mobility differences, although I expect wheelchair users will need to transfer for the two new rides. We also expect Priority Pass and Easy Access Pass to work for the rides, although the queues are still likely to be a bit longer when the rides are new. It seems likely there’ll be an area for Priority Pass holders to watch the night-time show too. One thing we would say is that the expansion makes the park footprint a lot bigger so expect more walking and standing. Remember to pace yourselves! Also, if you don’t like tight crowds maybe avoid the park on opening day.
• New annual pass tier and pricing – The offerings have led to a new tier of Annual Pass that only covers 1 of the parks (and has more block out days) as well as the Bronze, Silver and Gold Passes there were before. Also unsurprisingly the prices of the passes have shot up!
• Book early for dining a Regal View – if you’re a Disney hotel guest you can now book for up to a year from now, and as a new restaurant with princesses it’s going to be popular. If you want to dine there book it as soon as you’re able. Sadly I think offsite guests will struggle.
• Be prepared for the weather – This is a bit of a random one but Adventure Way and around Adventure Bay are wide paths with little to no shelter. So on a rainy day you’re likely to get rather wet, and on very sunny days it could be easy to get sunburnt! Remember to check the weather before you go and pack accordingly. Rain gear is a pretty sensible precaution no matter what time you go.

So that’s our guide to what’s coming to Disney Adventure World. Are you excited for this park expansion? What are you most looking forward to? Let us know in the comments below! And while you’re down there please subscribe to our blog too, you’ll get a free copy of our Magically Different Overview to Disneyland Paris Attraction Accessibility (typically £3). We’d love to see you at our YouTube channel too! And to support our future work (including us getting to Disney Adventure World) we’d love it if you’d consider leaving us a tip. Thank you!