What’s Changing at Big Thunder Mountain While It’s Closed for a Year in Disney World?

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Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Disney World is currently closed and will be that way for at least a year.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is currently closed

Yeah, we know. That’s a BIG bummer, especially if you’re visiting Disney World this year. However, this is the first big refurbishment that the Magic Kingdom ride has had in a while, so Disney obviously has big plans for updating it a bit. Now, we’ve already noticed quite a bit of work happening on the ride, and we even have a hint of when we think it might reopen in 2026, but what will have changed with the ride then? Well, it turns out the answer to that is…A LOT.

Yes, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is going to be VERY different when it reopens. Here’s how.

Smoother track

Okay, so it was no secret that riding Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was a bit rough, enough to help some people pass kidney stones. OUCH. Well, we’ve already seen that Disney is removing the track, which means that track will be getting replaced with something that’s probably new.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad’s new track will be smoother

Disney has even filed a permit for work by Coastal Steel, a company that has experience constructing the steel for roller coaster tracks, suggesting that this is likely the case. So when Big Thunder Mountain Railroad reopens, it will probably feel a lot smoother.

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A new view

The roller coaster will also have a new view because a lot of Frontierland and BEHIND the coaster is changing. First, a Cars expansion is replacing Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island, so Big Thunder Mountain Railroad will have a great view of that.

©Disney

However, a new Villains land will be going BEHIND the ride, so when you ride it, you’re either going to get a changed view to hide the new land or you’re going to get to see the land from a unique perspective when you ride Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.

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New magic

Disney has said that “the attraction will reopen with a little bit of new magic.” We have no idea what that means, but it could mean that Disney has plans to add new effects, lighting, and enhancements.

Big Thunder Mountain at Disneyland

What we’re hoping for is that Disney adds the cool projection effects you can see in the Disneyland version of the ride. But we won’t know for sure until something is announced.

No One Knows This Secret About Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Magic Kingdom

So the truth is we don’t know about EVERYTHING that will be different about Big Thunder Mountain Railroad when it reopens in 2026, but we do know that it will be different, nonetheless. We’ll be keeping an eye out for announcements about the ride from Disney, so until then, stay tuned to DFB for more.

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What additions or updates would you like seen for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad? Let us know in the comments!

The post What's Changing at Big Thunder Mountain While It's Closed for a Year in Disney World? first appeared on the disney food blog.

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