New in 2025!

Named with a Disney-history-loving nod to The Firehouse Five Plus Two (a legendary Disneyland-performing jazz band comprised of equally legendary Disney artists), the “Disney Files Five Plus Two” is a periodic column highlighting five reasons Disney Files contributors are buzzing, plus two bonus reasons so we don’t ruin the bit. This installment highlights seven new Walt Disney World experiences that have Disney Files staffers excited about 2025, presented in seasonal order of the experiences’ anticipated debuts. (As the exact dates aren’t available at press time, our order, like our recollection of achievements in our youth, isn't precise.)

LATE SPRING

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Spaceship Earth Lounge

Few theme parks on Earth inspire Disney Files staffers to sit back, relax and raise a glass quite like EPCOT. So you can imagine how eagerly we’re anticipating the new Spaceship Earth Lounge scheduled to open later this spring. With décor inspired by the icon to which it’s attached, and with new culinary creations complementing crafted cocktails – all presented with sweeping views of World Celebration Gardens and a unique perspective of the nightly fireworks, this may be our new favorite “office.”

SUMMER

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Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away

Whether you’re a Main Street Electrical Parade purist or favored the glimmering, shimmering, carousel-ling symphony of SpectroMagic, you’ve probably missed the magic of nighttime parades at Magic Kingdom Park as much as we have. The void vanishes this summer, as the park debuts its latest sparkling spectacle: “Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away.” (And who doesn’t love Disney names with punctuation marks and taglines? Chef’s kiss.) We’re told that the Blue Fairy who turned Pinocchio into a real boy will weave the transformative magic of starlight through each fl oat and costume, illuminating a procession inspired by such fan-favorite Walt Disney Animation Studios films as Peter Pan, Encanto, Frozen and Moana.

SUMMER

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The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure

Following in the fin flips and footsteps of “Voyage of The Little Mermaid” (the live show that occupied this Disney’s Hollywood Studios theatre from 1992-2020), “The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure” once again draws its inspiration from the film that sparked the second golden age of Disney animation. More than just a new name (with a hyphen!), this is an all-new show with new sets, visuals and even musical numbers – including this theatre’s first performances of “Daughters of Triton” and “Kiss the Girl.”

SUMMER

Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After

We know what you’re thinking: how does Disney decide when to use a hyphen in a title and when to use a colon? Or maybe that’s just what weʼre thinking. Anyway, we’re keeping an evil eye on “Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After,” the new musical show opening this summer in the former home of Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Look for Cruella de Vil, Captain Hook, Maleficent…and plenty of mirrors in a show that promises wicked wit and fiendish fun.

LATE SUMMER

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Test Track presented by General Motors

You may spot new-look vehicles making test runs out on the track at EPCOT in the days ahead, as Disney Imagineers are nearing the finish line on their latest re-imagination of the thrilling attraction. Located inside the wheel-inspired pavilion that housed the World of Motion attraction from 1982-1996 and has since been home to two versions of Test Track (one presented by General Motors and one presented by General Motors product Chevrolet), the new attraction scheduled to open by late this summer aims to blend classic World of Motion inspiration with high-speed Test Track thrills. As for the name? It’ll once again be “presented by General Motors.” Disney Files staffers would’ve gone with “Test Track: A Motorcar Adventure – presented by General Motors,” but nobody asked us.

LATE 2025

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Pirates of the Caribbean-Inspired Tavern

Assuming we muster the energy to leave our seats in that Spaceship Earth Lounge at EPCOT, expect to find Disney Files rascals, scoundrels, villains and knaves (yes, we have more than one knave on staff) sailing the Seven Seas Lagoon to Magic Kingdom Park, where a new Pirates of the Caribbean-inspired lounge is scheduled make landfall in Adventureland late this year. Expect a sea-worthy selection of grogs and grub for bandits and bucs of all ages, and keep your good eye out for some mysterious and magical surprises.

WINTER

Zootopia: Better Zoogether!

Wait, TWO punctuation marks in one name? You have our attention, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park. We’ll be there this winter to see Judy Hopps, Nick Wilde and friends in their new “CarrotVision 3D” production inside the Tree of Life Theatre. (In the meantime, we have some business over at the Dino Institute. We hear it’s the last year to find our dino before that whip-wielding archaeologist shows up.)

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