It’s time for our final blog of the year and, as tradition insists, we must look ahead to 2024 and highlight what we think will be the best new attractions, restaurants and hotels.
Regular Orlando visitors will already know that each New Year brings a host of the “latest and greatest” to Central Florida, and that will be no different once January rolls around again.
All of the main theme parks will have something new to offer, while next year will also see the opening of one of the most dramatic resorts in more than 20 years, along with a mouth-watering restaurant.
It all adds up to a super-exciting prospect for anyone with an Orlando holiday in the works, so let’s count down our personal Top 10 of the very best things coming through the door in ’24:
10. Cake Bake Shop – Here’s that new restaurant we mentioned, a hugely tempting emporium of one-of-a-kind hand-made cakes, pastries and other sweet treats, as well as savoury menu choices. It will be opening early in 2024 at Disney’s Boardwalk Resort (where the ESPN Sports Club used to be) and will feature tantalising creations from American super-baker Gwendolyn Rogers.
9. Evermore Resort – The last mega-resort to open its doors in the Orlando area was the magnificent Gaylord Palms in 2002, but it has been worth the wait to see its successor take shape just a mile from Walt Disney World. The Evermore is simply a vast resort complex of villas, condos and a luxury Conrad Hotel, all set around a superb eight-acre beach lagoon environment with all the facilities you could imagine.
8. Country Bear Musical Jamboree – Walt Disney himself worked on this original Magic Kingdom attraction in the 1960s, and the Country Bear Jamboree opened with the park’s debut in 1971. Ever since, it has been an amusing animatronic treat in the heart of Frontierland. Now, 53 years after it opened, Disney’s Imagineers are revamping the show, to be reborn later in the year as the Musical Jamboree, with classic Disney songs in the country music style of Nashville.
7. Communicore Hall & Plaza – The final part of EPCOT’S big five-year transformation will be unveiled in the first half of 2024, the crowning glory of an epic rebuild that has turned Future World into a three-part adventure, concluding with World Celebration. This includes the essential interactive elements of Communicore Hall and Communicore Plaza, complete with live entertainment stages, show kitchens and mixology bar, as well as the essential new character meet-and-greet of Mickey & Friends.
6. LEGO Ferrari Build & Race Experience – LEGOLAND Florida will be adding some classic scarlet racing thrills to their park next year with the addition of this iconic Build & Race offering. The Ferrari Experience has already proved a hit in each of the Denmark, Windsor and California LEGOLAND parks, and it will also put Florida guests in the driver’s seat to build, test and race their very own LEGO Ferrari with cutting-edge digital technology.
5. Tassie’s Underwater Twist – SeaWorld’s Aquatica water park will boast the unmistakable new shape of a giant water slide next spring, when Tassie’s Underwater Twist is due to open. This vivid underwater adventure promises an immersive whirl into the world of Australia’s Shark Bay, where riders will be able to glimpse schools of fish in the yellow-green seagrass as they swirl around a unique waterworld, all set to an inspiring musical score!
4. Phoenix Rising – Busch Gardens is keeping up its ratio of a major new ride every year with another coaster for 2024. Set in the Pantopia section of the park, where the former Sand Serpent ride used to be (next to the old Phoenix boat swing), it will be the park’s first ride with its own onboard music and lighting, whisking riders along 1,831ft of track at up to 44mph in suspended fashion and family-friendly style.
3. DreamWorks Land – Universal Orlando are putting all their creative energy behind a whole land next year, replacing the former Woodie Woodpecker KidZone with an area full of those happy-go-lucky DreamWorks characters. We’re already used to seeing the likes of Shrek, Fiona and Donkey, plus the cartoon cast of Madagascar, but they will be joined by Kung Fu Panda, the Trolls and more in an all-new realm that includes a child-friendly coaster, an elaborate play area and a unique character fest.
2. Tiana’s Bayou Adventure – The second new feature for the Magic Kingdom in late 2024 will be the complete remake of the former Splash Mountain flume ride, featuring Princess Tiana and friends in an elaborate celebration that follows on from the film The Princess & The Frog. Guests are invited to help Tiana set up the party in the course of a journey through the Louisiana bayou, culminating with the ultimate “drop in” to the party venue. Watch out for other characters like Mama Odie and Louis, the alligator trumpet player, along the way.
1. Penguin Trek – For the most imaginative and exciting makeover in town next year, we think SeaWorld will take the honours for the complete re-imagining of their Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin ride. Instead of a tame dark ride, guests will get a more dynamic indoor-outdoor experience featuring two fast-launch sequences in a ride vehicle that mimics a twisting, turning snowmobile ride. It will hit a top speed of 43mph and conclude in the icy realm of the park’s penguin habitat, so be ready for some chills to go with the thrills when you exit the ride!
So, those are the forthcoming highlights for Disney and Co. Now tell us what YOU are most looking forward to on the AttractionTickets.com Community Facebook page, on Twitter or Instagram.
