Fantasyland Expansion - April 2011

By now, anyone who has any sort of interest in Disney World knows about the new Fantasyland Expansion that is currently going on. Just in case you've been living under a rock, or completely cut off from the whole world of Disney, here's a quick rundown for you...

In 2010 it was announced that Fantasyland would be expanded and doubled in size. To make room for the expansion, there would need to be some eliminations - the biggest of which being the complete removal/shut down of Mickey's ToonTown Faire.
This will be the largest expansion to the Magic Kingdom to date. It is slated to open in phases beginning late 2012.
The new Fantasyland area will include permanent homes for many of the Princesses, as well as restaurants, shops and a few new ride attractions.

Mickey's ToonTown Faire closed forever in February of 2011, and Mickey and Minnie's Country Homes were demolished. Don't fret, though! They weren't evicted to live on the streets - their "real" homes are still safely located in Disneyland in California. Phew!
Goofy's Barnstormer Roller Coaster will be the only part of ToonTown that remains, although it will be reworked to fit a new circus theme.

Dumbo the Flying Elephant will move from its current, central location to the old ToonTown area with massive improvements! There will now be TWO Dumbo rides running at all times, to help alleviate those long lines. There will also be a grand circus themed interactive queue area to help kids (and their parents!) enjoy the wait to see the flying elephant.

The new Fantasyland is to include themed areas for the following movies/characters:
Beauty and the Beast:
-Be Our Guest Restaurant - Counter Service meals for lunch and Table Service for dinner
-Gaston's Pub - Likely to be snacks and Non-alcoholic beverages (there is NO alcohol served in the Magic Kingdom)
-Beast's Castle - Future meet & greet home for Beauty and the Beast characters? Not sure. Disney has reassured guests/fans that this new castle will not take away from Cinderella Castle in any way.
The Little Mermaid:
-Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid - new dark (indoor) attraction
Snow White:
-The Seven Dwarfs Mine Train - BRAND new state-of-the-art coaster! Will be a combination of indoor/outdoor coaster, and each car will rock independently of others in the train - much like mine cars would.
(Snow White's Scary Adventures will be removed, so there will still only be one Snow White attraction)

There will be new meet and greet locations for the Princesses and their friends, as well! Mickey's meet and greet was moved to the brand new Town Square Theater just a few weeks ago, which will be his new home in the Magic Kingdom. At this time, the princesses are hosting their meet and greets in the new Theater as well.

Here are some photos of the expansion - very exciting and fun!

artwork for the new Fantasyland expansion - set to begin opening late 2012

Beast's Castle was just constructed this past week!

Artwork for new Dumbo the Flying Elephant attraction

Aerial view of the construction going on - top spires of Cinderella Castle at the bottom, Tents from old ToonTown Meet and Greet areas are still standing in upper right corner. Large building in the center will be the home for new Little Mermaid dark ride attraction

Photo Credits:
All artwork photos and Beast Castle photo are from Disney Parks Blog
Aerial photo from Attractions Magazine - check them out as they have tons more photos, and even video of the expansion going on!

Thanks for stopping by! Have a Magical Day today °o°