Walt Disney Global continues racing in opposition to development of the Piston Top ‘Automobiles’ house of Frontierland and Villains Land, attaining a significant milestone: complete demolition of Tom Sawyer Island. Months after the Rivers of The usa closed over the summer season, new aerial footage divulge that each and every construction at the extinct enchantment is long gone as of the beginning of Christmas at Magic Kingdom. Right here’s the newest, plus our remark about what’s subsequent.
Let’s get started through temporarily bringing you on top of things with what’s modified between summer season and these days. The Rivers of The usa, Tom Sawyer Island, and Liberty Sq. Riverboat closed again on July seventh. Nearly right away thereafter, partitions went up alongside a portion of the waterfront in Liberty Sq. and Frontierland, and crews set to work to empty the Rivers of The usa. That used to be more straightforward mentioned than achieved, as hurricane season ended in it being refilled a couple of instances.
Building partitions, scrims and scaffolding then went up alongside all the walkways in Frontierland and Liberty Sq., making it tough for visitors to look into the undertaking website. That’s when demolition of Tom Sawyer Island started in earnest, again in early October. Through the beginning of the Christmas season, the buildings had been all long gone, with handiest bushes and the island itself last. Now there’s not anything left of Tom Sawyer Island.
With perspectives from ground-level now most commonly blocked, we take to the skies above Magic Kingdom for a glimpse over the development partitions. Those overhead footage & video come courtesy of eye within the sky footage from friend-of-the-site bioreconstruct, the go-to supply for aerial theme park images…
Let’s get started with a high-level organising shot.
This view is from outdoor Magic Kingdom, more or less at the back of Tiana’s Bayou Journey and Giant Thunder Mountain Railroad. This displays the massive expanses of grime the place Rivers of The usa and Tom Sawyer Island as soon as had been, in addition to the overall laydown backyard that we’ve been looking at make growth because it performs catch-up to the opposite ones.
We’ve coated those laydown yards and drainage necessities broadly as a part of the allowing procedure for this undertaking over the process the closing year-plus. As a refresher, the allow for all of this used to be issued through the South Florida Water Control District (SFWMD) in Wintry weather 2025, giving Imagineering till February 17, 2030 to redevelop the realm.
We’ll circle again to the SFWMD allow in a minute, and the way the growth we’ve noticed so far mirrors what’s been prior to now coated in those filings. Earlier than that, we need to get started through overlaying a couple of new updates as of December 24, 2025.
The primary is that the undertaking website has expanded to a space of land at the back of “it’s a small global” and Haunted Mansion, north of Fantasyland (decrease left within the above photograph). That is without a doubt for Villains Land, which has a extra nebulous structure and footprint than Piston Top, which has clearly-defined limitations (and a structure) between Haunted Mansion and Giant Thunder.
Apart from one piece of detailed-yet-vague thought artwork, we all know a ways much less about Villains Land. We don’t know the points of interest it’ll characteristic, the place they’ll be constructed, or simply how a ways the land will lengthen in every route.
According to this land clearing–and the truth that there are already massive display constructions up right here, it’s most probably secure to think that every other display construction can be constructed at the back of Haunted Mansion and “it’s a small global.” That’s simply the secure wager–and logical structure for the land.
The second one is this has in large part switched gears from a demolition to an earth-moving and site-prep undertaking. There’s nonetheless somewhat of particles and tree elimination to be achieved the place the north island as soon as stood, however it’s most commonly grime (and possibly some gravel) at this level.
It’s like a throwback to the Massive EPCOT Grime Pit that we ‘loved’ overlaying for the easier a part of 5 years. Handiest this one is even larger! The opposite distinction right here is this isn’t only a Large Magic Kingdom Grime Pit, but in addition a Large Magic Kingdom Mound of Earth (rolls proper off the tongue).
Suffice to mention, there’s extra selection to the terrain on this undertaking website. There’s a space of darker grime the place the south Tom Sawyer Island complicated as soon as stood. This large mound can be leveled as a part of the grading segment of the undertaking that may shape the basis of point floor for the Piston Top Automobiles Land.
The 3rd is that we’re beginning to see the undertaking website(s) encroach on each Giant Thunder Mountain Railroad and Haunted Mansion.
As famous above, Piston Top will necessarily be to the south of those points of interest, the place the principle Tom Sawyer Island complicated as soon as stood, at the side of the guest-facing part of the Rivers of The usa. A big walkway between Haunted Mansion and Giant Thunder Mountain Railroad will shape the northern boundary Piston Top, offering a trail between the ones two present points of interest and a connection to Villains Land.
With Giant Thunder Mountain Railroad slated to reopen in Spring 2026, it’s anticipated that development crews will get started at the groundwork for this pathway quickly–making a 2d set of partitions throughout the present partitions round Giant Thunder. In taking a look on the aerial footage, you’ll be able to get a coarse thought of the place those will want to pass earlier than the trip can reopen.
The walkway for sure may not be finished (and even began) earlier than Giant Thunder reopens. It wouldn’t make sense to take action, because it’d block get admission to to the Automobiles development website. However prep-work will have to start at the Giant Thunder Mountain Railroad aspect because it’ll be more straightforward to achieve this whilst the curler coaster is closed.
When you glance intently on the footage above and beneath, it sounds as if that crews have already torn up a portion of the walkway round Giant Thunder, together with the go out trail. This may simply be variances within the pavement, however it seems like grime to me. If that is so, they’ll want to do paintings at the go out house walkway earlier than BTMRR can reopen. (And naturally, development partitions will want to pass up alongside the Piston Top undertaking website.)
Your next step is most probably the usage of the ones large mounds to infill the previous Rivers of The usa waterbed. The previous waterway can be introduced as much as the previous island’s point, which goes to require much more grime, so be expecting much more large mounds to look because the undertaking progresses.
Along with that, crews will want to set up infrastructure and utilities, and do a large number of invisible paintings earlier than vertical development can start. Tropical Americas took about 10 months to head from land clearing to the beginnings of vertical development.
Our perfect wager is that Piston Top is just about a complete 12 months clear of going vertical. Truthfully, I’d be shocked and inspired if we see metal emerging above the development partitions through Christmas 2026.
I’d like to be incorrect and feature this paintings kick into a better equipment, however those initiatives are at all times slow-going…till they’re now not. The vertical level is what is going rapid. This occurs time and time once more, and but, lovers continuously query why issues are going so gradual…after which why initiatives have ‘speeded up.’
The underlying SFWMD allow is large in scale and scope, encompassing over 300 acres round Magic Kingdom and past. Alternatively, the true undertaking website handiest being about 14 acres.
The laydown yards and overall allow house are a lot larger than the brand new lands, although this nonetheless is the most important growth in Magic Kingdom historical past. With that mentioned, the footage right here don’t even do complete justice to the undertaking website plus staging spaces, as we don’t have a unmarried photograph that displays all the land that’s already been cleared or is being cleared.
As a refresher, there are 3 laydown yards across the northwestern perimeter of Magic Kingdom.
Two are past the berm, that means outdoor of Magic Kingdom visitor spaces, with the 3rd laydown backyard inside of Magic Kingdom alongside the northwestern banks of the previous Rivers of The usa. Those are used for development apparatus, heavy equipment, fabrics staging, earth-moving, and many others.
(As an apart, is it simply me or does Giant Thunder appear to be a toy plopped onto the grime within the above photograph? That is extra like Andy’s Yard than Toy Tale Land!)
There also are undertaking group trailers at the center laydown backyard.
That is similar to the trailer park and staging house at the back of Kali River Rapids in beef up of the Tropical Americas undertaking closing spring. Or the repurposed Famous person Wars: Galactic Starcruiser for the Monstropolis growth at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
I’ve been pleasantly shocked through simply how unobtrusive this undertaking is to this point.
You’ll be able to see the partitions when first coming into Liberty Sq., however the way in which that the brown scrim is about again alongside the shortcut approach it doesn’t stand proud of the principle thoroughfare of Frontierland.
It is helping that there’s a just right quantity of foliage between Frontierland and the previous Rivers of The usa or present undertaking website.
The end result whilst you’re strolling via this segment of the park, most likely to consult with long run UNESCO Global Heritage Web page, Grizzly Corridor, you don’t in reality realize all that a lot. Mix-in brown residing as much as its identify.
The development website is there, clearly, however this isn’t a big crater that instructions visitors’ consideration. It’s handiest outstanding alongside the waterfront prom, the place the brown scrims exchange what used to be as soon as a ravishing view.
Differently, that is completely not anything just like the Massive EPCOT Grime Pit. Now, if this drags on for ~5 years with minimum growth and the result is one thing similar to the trip model of CommuniCore Corridor, you’ll be able to be expecting my track to modify.
In the end, right here’s an aerial video by the use of bioreconstruct of the growth at the Automobiles and Villains Land undertaking:
Aerial video of website preparation for Villains land and Piston Top Nationwide Park in Magic Kingdom. As noticed from 3100 toes in a chartered helicopter. %.twitter.com/c9xeI48GWf
— bioreconstruct (@bioreconstruct) December 24, 2025
In the long run, it’s just right to look the Automobiles and Villains Land initiatives kicking into excessive equipment forward of the vacations…and in point of fact going Past Giant Thunder with the newest aerial footage, appearing the undertaking website increasing at the back of Haunted Mansion and “it’s a small global.”
Paintings has been impressively (visibly) rapid up till this level, with so much completed for the reason that summer season closure of Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of The usa. Alternatively, the following couple of months will have to contain infill and land grading, adopted through utilities and different groundwork for vertical development.
For the reason that, we’re most probably nearing the segment of the undertaking the place there isn’t a lot visual growth for some time. Very similar to what came about with Dino-Rama over the spring and summer season earlier than “explosive” growth turned into visual over the past month. This gained’t be as a result of Walt Disney Global has “bogged down” the velocity of the Automobiles or Villains Lands; it’s merely the character of the beast.
My hope is that Walt Disney Global continues to allocate as many sources as conceivable in opposition to the Past Giant Thunder growth. I would like not anything greater than for those initiatives to transport as temporarily as conceivable, with cranes showing on website to start vertical development through Fall 2026. Get this achieved temporarily to attenuate the visitor affect and feature Piston Top open ASAP. As a ways away as it sort of feels these days, each Automobiles and Villains land opening earlier than 2030 could be an enormous win.
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Your Ideas
Ideas on Disney demolishing Tom Sawyer Island and shifting ahead with infill on Rivers of The usa? Excited or upset that the Piston Top Nationwide Park is changing Rivers of The usa? For the reason that that is going to occur regardless at this level, do you hope it’s complete steam forward so we don’t need to bear a repeat of the Massive EPCOT Grime Pit fiasco? Do you settle or disagree with our evaluation? Any questions we will can help you solution? Listening to your comments—even whilst you disagree with us—is each attention-grabbing to us and useful to different readers, so please proportion your ideas beneath within the feedback!
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