Bluey Comes to Disney World in 2026!
Bluey is coming to Walt Disney World in 2026! This exciting news for families with small children, as the popular pups will finally make their first-ever meet & greet appearances in the parks. This offers an update on where things stand and what’s happened since with Bluey, Bingo and the Heeler family in WDW and Disneyland.
The announcement of Bluey coming to the Disney Parks was first made during last year’s holiday season. Things started out promising enough for the prospects of Bluey’s arrival at Walt Disney World. Less than a month after the announcement, Bluey and Bingo made their debut on the Disney Cruise Line!
You can find these characters onboard Disney Wonder sailings originating from Australia and New Zealand through 2026. The pups are available for character meet-and-greets and a clue-filled game that ends in a paw-some dance party where you can unleash your flossing skills. So pack your bags—this holiday is perfect for kids, mums, dads… and even grannies! So it’s great and all that Bluey and Bingo have been aboard the Disney Wonder for several months now, but what about Walt Disney World?!
Per the original announcement, the producers of Bluey are working closely alongside BBC Studios and Disney on a number of special activations for fans to enjoy. Details about how guests can meet Bluey and her family at Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World Resort will be shared “in the months ahead.”
It’s been a long wait–over a year–since that original announcement, but Disney has finally revealed where and when Bluey will come to Walt Disney World in Florida and Disneyland in California. Here are full details, starting with the latter…
Bluey Debuts at Disneyland on March 22, 2026
Beginning March 22, 2026, experience the world of Bluey as the Fantasyland Theatre in Disneyland Park transforms into Bluey’s school. Join the fun of Bluey’s best day ever during the fair at Bluey’s school, where you can see The Grannies, dance with Chattermax, eat fave foods inspired by the animated series at Troubadour Tavern, and more.
Throughout the day, Bluey and her sister Bingo will take the stage alongside a troupe of comedic actors and musicians to bring the best of the music and games from Bluey episodes to life.
Get in on the family fun and dance along with the sisters, play fan-favorite games like Keepy Uppy, or go on adventures in a life-sized gnome village or fairy garden.
Bluey Comes to Walt Disney World in Summer 2026
As part of the Cool Kids’ Summer 2026 special event at Walt Disney World Resort, you’ll be able to take a fun excursion to Conservation Station in Disney’s Animal Kingdom, where you can play and dance with Bluey and Bingo! Play some of your favorite games from Bluey episodes with a fun animal twist, like butterfly keepy uppy.
Grab the whole family and snap some pictures alongside your Blue Heeler pals to remember this one-of-a-kind adventure. Plus, as part of your wild excursion, step outside to discover an experience with animals native to Bluey’s home country of Australia!
Unlike at Disneyland, no exact date has been shared for Bluey’s arrival at Walt Disney World. Typically, the summer season starts on or around Memorial Day weekend. This year, Cool Kids’ Summer started on Tuesday, May 27th. That was one day after Memorial Day. However, that was strategically chosen after Epic Universe debuted at Universal Orlando–Walt Disney World didn’t want to get buried in that news cycle.
Our expectation is that the 2026 Cool Kids’ Summer will start on or before May 22, 2026. That’s the Friday before Memorial Day, and it’s when Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run is set to receive a new Mandalorian & Baby Yoda mission; it’s also likely to be when Soarin’ Across America debuts. May 22, 2026 is the odds-on favorite for Bluey’s debut, but it could always happen earlier or later. Nothing’s certain until officially announced!
What follows is our previous updates on Bluey at Walt Disney World, preserved for posterity…
Walt Disney World previously announced the New Magic of Disney Animation Coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios in 2026. With this, Animation Courtyard will be reimagined into “The Walt Disney Studios,” a newly-designed outdoor space.
This entire area is inspired by Walt Disney Animation Studios in Burbank, California and the award-winning short “Once Upon a Studio.” It’ll invite guests into a whimsical version of the studio where, with the animators away, the characters come out to play. All of this sounds fantastic–from the production gallery to the indoor playground and more.
But that’s not really the point of this post. If you want to read why we’re excited about ‘The Magic of Disney Animation’ attraction and Walt Disney Studios area, read this.
Given that Animation Courtyard was previously the obvious landing location for Bluey at Walt Disney World and that closure date is only two months away and the company still has not announced when Bluey will arrive, we can safely rule out Animation Courtyard as the location.
Honestly, with each passing week of silence, we’re wondering if Bluey is still on the table for this year at Walt Disney World and/or Disneyland. It’s still possible that the characters will come, albeit to a totally different location. Or that they’ll slip into 2026.
At this point, we do not expect Bluey to debut in the Walt Disney Studio area next year, as she’s not a Disney animated character. That normally wouldn’t matter much as the company plays fast and loose with this type of thing, but given the “Once Upon a Studio” inspiration and how closely the parks are working with Walt Disney Animation Studios on this, we suspect it does make a difference in this case.
Perhaps Bluey’s arrival will be the big news of Destination D23 next month. It is worth noting that the return of Figment in meet & greet form was one of the highlights of the last Destination D23 two years ago. Stay tuned–we’ll keep you posted!
Prior to this, our hope had been that Bluey and Bingo would arrive for “Cool Kid Summer,” which is heavily aimed at young families (see our Guide to “Cool Kid Summer” at Walt Disney World). It would stand to reason that Disney would want Bluey, the most popular character with this demo at the moment, to be front and center during this celebration. Or so you’d think.
Cool Kid Summer sees the Goofy takeover of CommuniCore Hall, otherwise known as GoofyCore Hall. There you can dance and play along with Goofy in this immersive experience. Show off your best moves in DJ-led dance parties and join your favorite games with silly twists, like Loopy Limbo and Parachutes ‘n’ Pipsqueaks.
Over at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Cool Kid Summer will take place in Animation Courtyard. Families will be able to jump into energetic fun, with games and crafts that’ll keep kids moving and creating all day long. From magicians and jump rope performers to surprise character appearances, you never know what delightful moment is waiting around the corner. Keep the fun going as you join Mickey Mouse and Disney Junior friends at a lively indoor DJ dance party where little ones can move and groove.
Cool Kid Summer would’ve been the perfect time to roll out the blue carpet for Bluey and Bingo, and either CommuniCore Hall or Animation Courtyard would’ve been perfect locations.
Could you imagine a blue wrap on the exterior of BlueyCore Hall or a literal blue carpet leading through the DHS archway? Either would’ve beckoned guests into these locations, adding real meat to the otherwise kinda hollow Cool Kid Summer.
That’s what makes this so odd. It’s not as if Walt Disney World has a jam-packed slate and Bluey is being preempted by higher priorities. There’s not really anything else–Cool Kid Summer isn’t going to move the needle on new bookings, whereas Bluey and Bingo might. That’s how passionately some young families (the target demo!) feel about these characters.
However, we’ve seen this happen before. Disney announced the return of Figment as a meet & greet character back at the D23 Expo three years ago, and it took over a year for the character to finally arrive at EPCOT. Again, that happened around the time of Destination D23 (these are two separate D23 events–one in Anaheim, one in Orlando–each held every other year).
It was a similar story with characters from Encanto, who didn’t appear in Magic Kingdom until far too long after the movie was a smash sensation. That was also around a year, at least for the meet & greet, after Mirabel first appeared at Disneyland.
In both of those cases, there are somewhat valid explanations. The Figment decision was made relatively last-minute, and a costume had to be designed, as did backdrops. For Mirabel, the Fairytale Garden was redesigned to feature whimsical décor inspired by La Familia Madrigal. Still, there’s nothing that justifies just how long either character meet & greet took. The sad fact is that Walt Disney World moves glacially slowly when it comes to characters and entertainment. There are always no shortage of excuses, but zero sense of urgency.
So where does that leave the status of the Bluey and Bingo meet & greet at Walt Disney World? Honestly, who knows.
In all likelihood, there will be an announcement that Bluey and Bingo are coming, and then another multi-month delay in order to fabricate a space and bring the characters to life, or whatever. So even a summer announcement will likely put the character appearances in the fall.
It’s also entirely possible that Walt Disney World plans to paywall Bluey and Bingo, adding them to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party, Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, or Jollywood Nights. That would give those special events something new, and incentivize families to purchase tickets to those parties. I hope that’s not what happens, but it wouldn’t surprise me–especially not with Jollywood Nights, which has become more character-centric and still isn’t nearly as popular as the Magic Kingdom parties.
For what it’s worth, there is no actual need for all of this to take so long.
Blue and Bingo first appeared in a character meet & greet at last year’s D23 Expo. That experience was insanely popular, so it should’ve proven to Disney that demand for these characters is sky-high. But that’s not really the point.
More so, it’s that these character costumes have already been designed, as have backdrops and settings. All of this stuff has been designed and is already out there in the wild, which is precisely how Disney Cruise Line was able to deploy Bluey and Bingo in the span of only ~3 weeks from the original announcement. Now ~6 months later, there’s really no good excuse for radio silence from Walt Disney World. Bring Bluey and Bingo to Cool Kid Summer!
Ultimately, it’ll be interesting to see where Bluey ends up landing at Walt Disney World and Disneyland. My hope is that Disney bets big and goes bold on Bluey, and proves me wrong with a splashy, surprise announcement of Bluey and Bingo coming to the parks this summer. In case you can’t tell, I cannot wait to Bluey myself–and for our daughter to meet these lovely pups.
A character meet & greet will be great, easily posting triple-digit wait times, but here’s hoping there’s more meaty entertainment–like a cavalcade, stage show, dance party, or interactive experience–given the wait for the characters to come to Walt Disney World. Bluey is an international sensation, and its theme park presence should be treated accordingly.
Disney already regrets passing on the theme park rights to Bluey, Bob Iger loves synergy and acquisitions, Bluey’s current rightsholders are obviously open to immersive experiences, and Walt Disney World needs a near-term shot in the arm. But at this point, I’ll accept anything in the near-term, so a character meet & greet for Cool Kid Summer would suffice. I doubt we’ll get even that, so look for something during the Halloween or Christmas seasons.
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YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think about Bluey coming to Walt Disney World? Surprised the meet & greet hasn’t debuted yet, and appears that it won’t arrive in time for Cool Kid Summer? Does the Heeler family deserve a big presence in the parks? Think Bluey entertainment or characters would be good additions in Hollywood Studios, EPCOT, or Animal Kingdom? Hopeful that Bluey, Bingo, Bandit and other characters are added to entertainment or as meet & greets ASAP? Do you agree or disagree with our commentary? 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!
Thanks for the update-going to WDW soon, and was hoping they would be there for our little one; we know now not to bring it up.
But mostly wanted to comment loved seeing one of my favorite characters (Tobias) randomly hanging out in this post!
Celebrity spotlight would be the best place in my opinion. Olaf could take some time off and let space for Bluey
I’d love to see an additional AK expansion – Australia, and give Bluey a land with attractions, characters, and food. For Australia, AK could delve into marine life with thr great barrier reef!
Thanks for the update, Tom. I’ve wondered if there was something in the licensing for having Bluey in the US that Disney wasn’t able to work out, given that she hasn’t moved beyond cruises originating in Australia and New Zealand. Definitely disappointing, and I hope I’m wrong and this is a D23 announcement.
Also, Bluey is a girl, so there is a typo in this sentence: “At this point, we do not expect Bluey to debut in the Walt Disney Studio area next year, as he’s not a Disney animated character.”
Good point, and thanks for the catch.
For whatever reason, I can always remember that Kevin (Up) is a girl but Bluey sometimes trips me up!
I figure something more detailed must be up because Disneyland hasn’t started yet; I don’t think WDW not getting its act together ever prevented DL from moving forward on something before.
I wish I knew what was going on with Bluey on DCL, but all I know about maritime law comes from Barry Zuckerkorn. (Still waiting on an animated version of “The Trial of Captain Hook,” Disney!)
Well played on the reference.
Disneyland doesn’t need a sense of urgency because they’ve got the 70th. So it makes sense to hold off on Bluey there (unless they could’ve had it ready by winter), to wait until the initial celebration push burns off. Maybe August? Or after Halloween but before Christmas?
I didn’t realize Disney passed on the theme park rights to Bluey. I figured the rights were more complicated and that’s why they weren’t bringing Bluey to the parks. They had to hav known how popular Bluey is and how important Bluey is to Disney+.
I feel like that company-wide that they haven’t understood the animated and kids entertainment area very well since the Lasseter departure.
Thank you, Tom!! I have been wondering this for ages. They put Bluey on the Disney Jr ads on the rental strollers back in January, but she wasn’t in the show (and this false advertising disappointed my 4 year old), and I’ve been wondering ever since. I’ve been hoping for an announcement with Cool Kid Summer, or maybe a surprise appearance at a dance party or during early entry that gets reported on once it starts. I’d love to go back again this year to see the Rivers of America one last time, the Starlight parade, and Bluey and Bingo. But with Disney making no announcements on any of this, there’s no urgency to make me book a trip. And if you think Bluey might appear at a party instead, maybe I’ll wait for more information. I don’t get it. Bluey is the biggest character right now. I see a Bluey shirt every day on a different kid at our daycare. I put on a Bluey episode every morning while I do my girls’ hair. Why is Disney passing up the money?
P.S Heeler is misspelled (autocorrected?) as Heller a couple times near the beginning of the article.
It’s possible Bluey just appears at random, as a surprise, but that would make no sense to me. This is probably the most marketable character since Frozen, and Disney doesn’t have much else happening. I’d fully expect them to milk this to the greatest extent possible.
That’s what makes this all the more perplexing. I realize third party partners are involved, but it already got the green light for DCL, so how much more difficult could the parks be? It feels like Walt Disney World is asleep at the wheel (again).
Thanks for catching the typos–fixed them!