At first glance, there’s not much space in the Magic Kingdom that isn’t being used for something, especially with the recent closures of the Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island to make room for Piston Peak.
Piston Peak ©Disney
However, upon closer inspection of the park’s map, there are some areas that are woefully underutilized!
Stitch’s Great Escape
The show building at the front of Tomorrowland that once held Stitch’s Great Escape has actually been home to three different attractions over the years. Mission to Mars, a clone of the Disneyland original, opened in the Tomorrowland space in December of 1971 and operated until October 1993. It was replaced by the beloved by many (and reviled by others) EtraTERRORestial Alien Encounter from 1995 until 2003. The attraction was retooled into Stitch’s Great Escape in 2004, and remained in operation for the most part until 2018. The space has remained vacant, short of some limited meet & greets, leaving a huge piece of real estate at the front of Tomorrowland vacant.
©Disney Stitch’s Great Escape
Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor
Just across from the former Stitch’s Great Escape sits Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor. This attraction, housed in the building that once held the CircleVision theater and Timekeeper shows, isn’t technically abandoned, but its minuscule wait times may make you do a double-take to make sure.
Monster’s Inc. Laugh Floor
As if those wait times aren’t enough, Disney is currently constructing a massive Monsters, Inc. land in Hollywood Studios, which will make the Laugh Floor superfluous. Much like Stitch’s Great Escape, it feels like this massive piece of Tomorrowland real estate could be used for more.
©Disney
Mickey’s PhilharMagic
While this may sound like blasphemy to 90s kids, this 3D film featuring Donald Duck flitting through Disney Renaissance films, including The Little Mermaid, Beauty and The Beast, The Lion King, and Aladdin, as well as Peter Pan, and later addition Coco is showing its age. Given the dearth of available space in Fantasyland, this space could arguably be much better utilized.
PhilharMagic
Fairytale Garden
Finally, there’s the Fairytale Garden area near the castle. This spot, which has hosted several different character experiences over the years, is currently home to a meet & greet with Mirabel from Encanto. While the footprint here isn’t large by any means, it definitely feels like it could be used for something more.
Mirabel in Magic Kingdom
The Magic Kingdom may initially appear like it has no further room to grow, but these abandoned areas in need of new life are hiding in plain sight. Stay tuned to DFB for more on the Magic Kingdom’s evolution.
5 Abandoned Places in Disney World in Desperate Need of Life
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Philharmagic is great fun. Now that we don’t have , Muppets, Honey I Shrunk the Audience and Its tough to be a bug (the latter being replaced soon, I know) I think we need this show as something a little different to all the rides. Whole families, from young to old, can do this attraction together.
Bite your tongue! Philharmagic must stay. You need places to sit and relax and enjoy a show. Not everything can be about the rides. That’s what makes WDW a place for Families!