We’re drying our eyes still, but the time has finally come, whether we wanted it to or not.
Yesterday was the FINAL day to experience DinoLand U.S.A. as a whole in Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and now, the walls are officially up all around the land. There will be no more walking past some of the construction walls to make your way to Restaurantosaurus or DINOSAUR — it’s all closed off now to make way for the new Tropical Americas expansion. But what does that REALLY look like? We’re here on day one of the closure to check it out!
DINOSAUR was BUSY yesterday, and with the closure of this land, it means that a whole restaurant, a ride, and multiple meet and greets are now closed in the park. That’s not great in general, but it’s especially true since this park already has the least amount of rides out of all four parks.
When we walked up today, the entire area was now behind those infamous Disney World bushes.
You can no longer use the walkway that led to DINOSAUR and Restaurantosaurus. Instead, you’re directed toward the Asia section of the park and the Finding Nemo: The Big Blue…And Beyond! attraction.
So what was going on behind the walls? Well, Cast Members had one last chance to say goodbye to DINOSAUR…and Dr. Seeker actor Wallace Langham actually stopped by to share this moment with them!
They’ve also taken down the wooden sign for DinoLand USA on the directional signs around the park, as well as replaced the directional stickers on the temporary walls that said that Restaurantosaurus was open.
Not only that, but Animal Kingdom has officially gotten rid of any mention of DinoLand on its park map. A new park map now shows an all-green area with “Future Home of Tropical Americas” in place of where DinoLand used to be. It’s officially the end of an era, people!
However, this doesn’t mean there’s nothing to do in Animal Kingdom — far from it, actually! Pandora remains one of the coolest spots to check out, not only because of the two attractions there, but because of the incredible design throughout the whole land. We also recommend fully exploring the trails around the Tree of Life, as well as the animal viewing pathways — Maharajah Jungle Trek and Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail. Don’t forget to hop on the Wildlife Express over to Rafiki’s Planet Watch, too!
Looking for more recent Animal Kingdom news? Check out our posts below!
More Recent Animal Kingdom News!
- This Disney World Hotel Reopened One Restaurant…Then Announced A Closure For Another
- REVIEW: One of Our Favorite Disney World Restaurants Changed, and We Aren’t Too Sure About It
- This Disney+ Subscriber Perk for Disney World Tickets Ends SOON!
- Well, 8 Disney World Restaurants Just Got Pricier This Week
- Disney Released MAJOR Opening and Closing News This Week!
Be sure to stay tuned to DFB for all the latest Disney World news!
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While being nostalgic and loving the history of the parks, this closure was long overdue. The area was done on the cheap and it showed being far from Disney’s best work, in fact it was some of the worst. Let’s move forward to something that I anticipate will be far more impressive and enjoyable.