2020 Opening Dates & Details for Resorts, Rides & Restaurants at Disney World
Walt Disney World has released 2020 opening dates, info & concept art for rides & restaurants, including Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser Hotel, DuckTales World Showcase Adventure, Toy Story Roundup Rodeo BBQ Restaurant, Space 220, Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along, and more.
Almost all of these additions will be opening at some point in 2020. A pair of restaurants at Epcot have received vague “this winter” opening dates, but with it already being the first week of December 2019, it seems highly unlikely that either of those are opening this year given the lack of concrete opening dates at this late stage in the year. (As we’ve continually stressed, “this winter” runs until March 19, 2020.)
Let’s start over at Epcot, the park in the biggest state of transition right now (and for the foreseeable future) at Walt Disney World. The first debuts there will come during the 2020 Epcot International Festival of the Arts, which we’ve repeatedly endorsed as our favorite event of “festival season” at Epcot…
There, a trio of new films will debut on January 17, 2020. Two of these are in World Showcase, with the other in Future World. The latter is “Awesome Planet” in The Land pavilion; this is a 10-minute film showcasing the Earth’s beauty and diversity with in-theater effects and an original musical score from Academy Award-winning composer Steven Price.
Next, “Canada Far and Wide in Circle-Vision 360” debuts (obviously) in World Showcase’s Canada pavilion. While technically new, Disney has also stressed that this is an update to the previous “O Canada!” film. Given that it’ll feature new hosts and narration by actors Catherine O’Hara and Eugene Levy (and not Martin Short), it’s likely to be fairly different. “Canada Far & Wide in Circle-Vision 360” will also have new scenes and a new musical score by Canadian composer Andrew Lockington.
Finally, “Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along” in World Showcase’s France pavilion will play in rotation with “Impressions de France,” which will receive an upgrade to 4K projection (arguably the most exciting news of all!). This is directed by Don Hahn, who also produced the animated and live-action Beauty and the Beast films. “Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along” features narration from Angela Lansbury, who played Mrs. Potts in the original film.
Continuing in Epcot’s World Showcase, the next 2020 opening will be Regal Eagle Smokehouse: Craft Drafts & Barbecue, which most people have simply been calling, “Regal Eagle’s Distinctly Patriotic Smokehouse: A Salute to All Foods, But Mostly Barbecued Meats ~ A Sam Eagle Craft Drafts & BBQ Joint.” Some might say the latter rolls off the tongue, so it’s no surprise that it’s been taking social media by storm. (You couldn’t even blame Disney if they changed Regal Eagle’s official name to that.)
No new details about Regal Eagle’s, aside from the above concept art. It looks nice and perfect for spring, although it’s currently a balmy 49º at Walt Disney World as I write this, and the idea of eating outside doesn’t sound all that appealing. Although on second thought, warming up by a delicious-smelling meat smoker does sound pretty glorious. See our recent Epcot’s Regal Eagle BBQ Menu Details for more info on what barbecue will be served once this restaurant opens this winter.
Bouncing over to Future World, we have the Space 220 Restaurant. Walt Disney World has not officially indicated that this will be opening in 2020, but anyone who has read our recent Walt Disney World News & Rumor Roundup knows why “this winter” almost certainly means February 2020 (at the earliest).
The only new details (to my knowledge) here are that Space 220 Restaurant begins by stepping into a special space elevator that will take you 220 miles above the earth’s surface, offering breathtaking celestial views. Guests will dock next to the Centauri Space Station, suspended just beyond the orbit of Mission: SPACE. Upon arrival, you will be guided to your seats past the grow zone, a spinning wall of produce that mimics Earth’s gravity and represents some of the fresh ingredients used by the restaurant’s culinary team.
Sticking with Epcot, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure is coming to an expansion in the France pavilion that also includes shopping and dining in Summer 2020. That’s not new news, but it’s something Walt Disney World has reiterated with this slew of opening dates, so we’ll restate it here. Given recent track records, it’s at least newsworthy that this hasn’t been delayed or moved forward.
Given that this screen-based, family-friendly trackless dark ride has been open at Walt Disney Studios Park for ~5 years (you can read our review of it here), there’s not really anything that Walt Disney World could truly “reveal” at this point regarding the ride, save for a precise opening date.
Next, Disney’s DuckTales World Showcase Adventure invites guests to join Scrooge McDuck, Donald, Launchpad, Webby and the nephews in search of priceless treasure. It’ll invite guests to join the DuckTales crew while discovering exotic destinations, exciting mysteries, and maybe even a few thieves, villains and supernatural guardians of ancient artifacts.
This will be the next iteration of the interactive scavenger hunt around World Showcase that previously featured Kim Possible and currently Phineas & Ferb. It’ll use the Play Disney Parks mobile app to further evolve the concept. We first reported rumors of this in the spring, and this confirms those.
Heading over to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, the upcoming Mickey Shorts Theater will show an original short film in the style of the popular Disney Channel animated series “Mickey Mouse.” The Mickey Shorts Theater will offer photo ops in addition to the film, plus some fun details.
Mickey Shorts Theater will take the place of ABC Sound Studio, which is the former home of Star Wars: Path of the Jedi and Sounds Dangerous (located next to Hyperion Theater).
Obviously, the main Mickey Mouse event in 2020 at Disney’s Hollywood Studios is the opening of Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway. Walt Disney World has announced that this attraction will debut on March 4, 2020.
A lot is already known about Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, and we won’t rehash that here. Suffice to say, this is the 2020 opening that we’re most excited for at Walt Disney World. Here’s hoping the ride concept lives up to its potential and does Mickey Mouse and friends justice!
Also coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios in 2020 is Toy Story Land’s Roundup Rodeo BBQ Restaurant. This Toy Story Roundup Rodeo BBQ Restaurant will be themed to a backyard barbecue with Andy and his toys inviting guests to participate in fun. We have more details and concept art from Toy Story Land’s Roundup Rodeo BBQ Restaurant.
Construction is well underway (and moving quickly) on Roundup Rodeo BBQ Restaurant backstage behind the Toy Story Land entrance sign (the one with Woody), so hopefully we’ll see this sooner rather than later. Toy Story Land could use more that’s indoors–especially in Florida’s summer heat and humidity!
Behind Disney’s Hollywood Studios, the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser Resort will begin transporting guests to a galaxy far, far away in 2021 in this new type of vacation experience that fully immerses guests in a 24/7 Star Wars story. We’ve been meaning to do another update on this project, but every time I take construction photos they leave something to be desired.
As we’ve said before, we’re really intrigued by the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser Resort. It’s something that appears envelope-pushing, ambitious, and risky…but also likely to be really expensive. We plan on doing it once (well, pending rate charts) just to see what it’s all about.
That wraps up the main 2020 openings at Walt Disney World…or at least, what we know about for now. It’s very likely we’ll see much more debut at Epcot in 2020 (and close at Epcot in 2020, for that matter). More on the entertainment and dining fronts is also highly likely throughout Walt Disney World, especially as the resort complex gears up for the 50th Anniversary in 2021. We’ll have more on all of that as Walt Disney World releases more details, so stay tuned…
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Your Thoughts
What are you looking forward to most in 2020 at Walt Disney World? Which of these restaurants or rides has you most intrigued? Anything you’re not interested in? Planning on heading to Walt Disney World next year, or sitting it out until the big 50th Anniversary celebration in 2021? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
Just letting you know the title says Mickey and Mickey!
Just letting you know this says Mickey and Mickey!
Hi Tom,
We’re visiting Feb 28-Mar 1…what are the odds they’ll have a Passholder Preview for Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railroad prior to opening? Fingers crossed!
It’s too early to say at this point.
I haven’t heard how testing is going on the attraction, but it really depends on when it’s ready to go–hopefully that’s before March 4, and we get some soft openings or AP previews!
We were at Epcot last week on media day. We went to see Impressions de France and I nearly had a panic attack when sign said attraction closed. I asked CM (young man) what was going on. He didn’t really have a good answer but said my husband and I were the 4th group in last 20 minutes to show deep concerns. Our biggest fear is that this beloved film would change or be done away with. Fortunately another CM, Conor saw my distress and came over and reassured us that the movie was being digitized and no changes made. He was a very good sport and talked me off the ledge. He graciously agreed to a picture and told us of his excitement of all the upcoming changes to Epcot where he’s worked for the last 10 years.
Oh boy, I have a Star Wars fan in our family that would love to stay at the StarCruiser Resort. And my son would love it too, probably! 😉
I like the restaurant experiences, myself, because we have to stop to eat and having a destination restaurant on the itinerary is another attraction for me.
I don’t get Epcot. Before anyone verbally bashes me, all I mean is that when Walt Disney passed, it must have had a complete identity crisis. Anyway, I’m looking forward to cherry tree lane, if that’s still on at Epcot. I am however getting tired of so many new restraunts. I know people eat, but I wish they would the new restraunts at the resorts instead of the parks or at least make sure all the tables are being used. When we stayed at AKL and needed a last minute reservation, they would not take us, even though they clearly had open tables. I usually plan everything way ahead of time, but sometimes, you need a bit of flexibility without giving up the convenience of eating at your resort and not being delegated to eating a burger or flatbread. Just saying..
Also, sorry for the typos etc. “would open”
“restaurant ” ugh, spellcheck on the blink!
Do you think Disney will add After Hours for Hollywood Studios in 2020? I see Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom both have spring dates posted already. I’m going the first week of June and grabbed Villains tickets but really hoping Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios will release dates for that week!
I am looking forward to M&MRR, Rat, and Smokehouse. You couldn’t pay me to stay at the Star Wars hotel.
25 years ago it would have been pretty laughable to suggest that Catherine O’Hara and Eugene Levy would by 2019 become the two most successful (and celebrated in pop culture) former SCTV cast members! And yet here we are.
Who would’ve thought that being the dad in American Pie would’ve given him such a career resurgence?!
Exactly! And of course more recently, Schitt’s Creek slowly morphing from a quirky undiscovered Canadian gem into one of the highest-profile comedy series around is a pretty unbelievable story.
Actually bummed about the Showcase Adventure – our kids love Phineas & Ferb, especially Perry, and really love doing the Agent P showcase. We haven’t gotten into the new Duck Tales (gave it only a few minutes – couldn’t get past the new style of animation and their voices) – we’ve actually had DVDs of the original Duck Tales for a while and have had our kids watch those (they prefer Rescue Rangers though).
There’s no date, but I’m thinking there will be some extended time with nothing while they switch it over from Agent P, which means we might not even get to do Agent P one las time this February. I was hoping with a new Phineas and Ferb movie coming to Disney+, maybe they’d hold off changing it for a while.
we love the new ducktales. we loved the original as well, but we really like the animation comic-book style in the new version. it’s much better than the new mickey cartoons.
Hi Tom!
Any ideas on what kind of height or rider restrictions there might be for the Runaway Railway ride? Or when those might be posted? We have a family trip planned this summer and wondering if the whole family will be able to ride. Thanks!!
Hi Bridget,
I found on the My Disney Experience app, if you switch to attractions, it shows the Runaway Railway info and says Guests can be Any Height. I can’t imagine that would change. Also, since Mickey’s THE attraction, I would think they’d be wise and make it all ages, which appears to be the case.
I’m excited for this ride as well. Have a May trip planned and definitely wanted to be able to do this ride at least once, if not more.
Bring back THE GREAT MOVIE RIDE!!!!!
“Due to incredible and unprecedented guest demand, we will be retiring Impressions de France to make room for more showings of our highly popular Beauty and the Beast Sing Along show!”
Oh, believe me, I’m already mentally and emotionally preparing myself for the Disney Parks Blog post with almost those exact words in it late next year.
Part of me is disappointed that Impressions de France isn’t being updated to convey a sense of what France has become in the 40 years since the original film was shot. Another part of me is deeply relieved that the original, a perfect time-capsule gem from opening day will still be available, with its perfect score in tact. As much as I adore Beauty and the Beast, I’m just not at all excited to spend time on this in Epcot. I never understand why people spend valuable and expensive park time watching film clips that they likely have at home on dvd.
Unless/until I see something special from a new Epcot film, I’d FAR prefer no update to Impressions de France.
From my perspective, only about 5% of Impressions de France is dated (basically, the outfits). Otherwise, those are historic and cultural icons, most of which haven’t changed materially since the 1880s, let alone the 1980s.
i really hope the new toy story restaurant is character meals. the lines for the characters outside are always SOOOO long, and in the sun.
do we know any reason as to why MMRR was delayed so long? it was supposed to be summer 2019. is it simply because they took all manpower away to open SWGE earlier than expected?
All indications are that the Toy Story BBQ restaurant is not a character dinner, but I agree, it really needs to be. It would be way more fun than just looking at pictures of the characters on the wall.
“i really hope the new toy story restaurant is character meals. the lines for the characters outside are always SOOOO long, and in the sun.”
I’d agree with this. I don’t think WDW really needs more character meals, but this whole concept/theme/design seems really flimsy without characters. Perhaps I’ll be wrong, but what they’ve shown thus far instills little confidence. Characters would help prop that up.
“do we know any reason as to why MMRR was delayed so long? it was supposed to be summer 2019. is it simply because they took all manpower away to open SWGE earlier than expected?”
Nothing definitive. My guess is that it was less about manpower and more about diverting monetary resources. Slowing the pace of construction on Runaway Railway helps spread costs over multiple fiscal years, which could’ve been advantageous if there were construction overages for SWGE.
I agree they should add characters
i’m really glad to read i’m not alone here. i mean, we like character meals anyway (when you have kids, such a great alternative to meeting without lines since you have to eat sometime anyway). but they have a “core 4” already in place for the meal in Woody, Bo Peep, Buzz, and Jessie. they could still rotate meet and greets outside for those who don’t wish to eat a meal or can’t get in. throw in some green army men wandering tables and i think you truly have a winner. looking at Andy’s crayon art on the wall, which is about all the renderings amount to right now, is not a huge draw.
i think i personally would have rather they opened MMRR early and stuck with the “late fall 2019” window they originally stated for SWGE, which happens to be right about now with the opening of ROTR. we visited right after Dorian and, while for the two mid-30s adults in our family it was visually appealing and we enjoyed riding the Falcon, everything else fell somewhat flat for our group.
And it’s pretty clear that they need more diversity in character meals. Not only are most of them princess or some combo of the Fab5/7, but they need more generic ones for boys and non-princess girls.
Hi Tom! We’re in Disney started March 5th. Do you think Fast Passes will be available for Runaway Train or is that something Disney typically rolls out much later after a ride opening?
I wouldn’t be surprised if WDW doesn’t offer FastPass+ at first for Runaway Railway, either. Just a guess, but letting things settle before offering it on any of the three new headliners kind of makes sense.