Disney World Removes Railroad Track & Riverboat, Walls Off Rivers of America
One week after closing, the Rivers of America, Tom Sawyer Island, Liberty Square Riverboat, and Walt Disney World Railroad’s Frontierland Station, work is underway and construction walls are up at Magic Kingdom. There are a a few new notable changes worth sharing as Imagineering gears up to start on Piston Peak and Villains Land, and we’re going to quickly cover those here.
As we previously reported, permits have already been filed for the demolition of Tom Sawyer Island. In the days since that area closed, countless workers have been spotted on the island, with boats transporting items away. As is normally the case, a variety of teams from Operations, Imagineering, and the Walt Disney Archives tag various items for reuse, preservation, or resale to collectors.
So John Stamos and Neil Patrick Harris might end up getting into a bidding war over the entire windmill (kidding but only kinda), iconic signage will end up in the Archives, and trash cans could see second life at Lakeshore Lodge or Fort Wilderness. Once Tom Sawyer Island is fully picked over by all of these various groups, the rest will be demolished. (Well, aside from what intrepid contractors can sneak out.) Although we don’t have any on-the-ground intel, that process is probably completed by now.
Otherwise, we’ve seen work over the last couple of months already starting backstage. From the ground, it’s been difficult to discern just how far along progress is in this area closer to on-stage areas and the guest-facing side of the Rivers of America. This is something we covered recently in Massive Magic Kingdom Land Clearing Beyond Big Thunder, which offers an aerial view of the work to show its full scope and scale. We’re surprised at just how much land has been cleared already.
Now, we have another batch of eye in the sky photos courtesy of friend-of-the-site bioreconstruct, the go-to source for aerial theme park photography (a highly recommended follow who graciously provided the helicopter shots here)…
Let’s start with a high-level establishing shot, which offers an update on progress from our last look a couple of weeks ago.
To orient yourself, this is of Magic Kingdom (Big Thunder is lower left) and the area to the northwest of the park. The Magic Kingdom side of the image shows Frontierland and the Rivers of America, making the rest of the photo the area that’s (truly!) ‘Beyond Big Thunder.’
There’s a lot of land cleared in the photos. The areas nearer the parks will be laydown yards supporting the construction of Cars and Villains Lands. The far right is a new retention pond that’s being created for displaced stormwater capacity lost due to the infill of the Rivers of America. The top middle shows the new routing of Floridian Way, which is a major multi-year project aimed at easing congestion. It presumably also opens the door for another Seven Seas Lagoon resort.
Taking a closer and more overhead aerial view, we can see one full gravel laydown yard and a portion of another that will be adjacent to the project site. These are in low-lying areas to the northwest of the Rivers of America, necessitating additional work to establish usable gravel laydown yards in the first place.
There will be three gravel laydown yards in total around the northwestern perimeter of Magic Kingdom. Two will be located beyond the berm, meaning outside of Magic Kingdom guest areas, with the third laydown yard within Magic Kingdom along the northwestern banks of what’s currently the Rivers of America (lower left–all trees currently).
These gravel laydown yards will be used for construction equipment, heavy machinery, materials staging, earth-moving, etc. One will become a parking lot for construction workers and field office for Walt Disney Imagineering. The laydown yards themselves will eventually become suitable for future development, too.
Zooming in even further and we have the first ‘newsy’ photo, which reveals two major developments.
Second, construction crews have removed portions of the railroad track behind BTMRR and other sections of the closed portion of the Walt Disney World Railroad. I’m a little surprised this particular section of track was removed, unless crews need direct access to Big Thunder?
As a reminder, “shuttle mode” operations of the Walt Disney World Railroad have now begun as of July 7, 2025. This is due to the temporary closure of the Frontierland Station, which is occurring to accommodate Cars and Villains Land construction. The staging areas and the construction sites are on opposite sides of the railroad tracks, hence the closure.
This means you can no longer experience the Grand Circle Tour of the Walt Disney World Railroad until 2030 at minimum. We’re just happy the WDW Railroad isn’t closed completely (again). What’s also unknown is if the track will be re-routed around Villains Land, a new tunnel will be added, or even a new station. We’ve previously suggested that perhaps there will be a new in-park hotel back here adjacent to a new railroad station. But none of that is relevant to this track removal, which is so far closed to BTMRR and Tiana’s Bayou Adventure.
The other big development is that the Liberty Square Riverboat and Tom Sawyer Island rafts are now docked in the Magic Kingdom service canal. This is located next to the construction site behind Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
Walt Disney World has a proper dry dock area located on the northwest corner of Bay Lake, but there’s also this small secondary marina that the Liberty Belle sometimes uses within Magic Kingdom. This isn’t visible to guests from inside the park, in case you’re wondering.
Any potential future plans for the Liberty Square Riverboat have not yet been revealed, but teams at Imagineering and Walt Disney World are working together to evaluate and determine what’s possible according to the company. In a perfect world, it would’ve been permanently docked in front of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, but since that’s not happening, here’s hoping for Port Orleans or Disney Springs.
I’m not holding my breath at this point, though. There have been a lot of “rumors” about the future of the Liberty Belle, but I haven’t heard anything credible. One suggests it’s going to be relocated to the Grand Floridian. Another that it’s going to be used in the finale of Fantasmic. Finally, that this is the final resting place of the riverboat, and it’ll be demolished here.
While I’d love to be wrong, I’m inclined to believe that the Liberty Belle has no future at Walt Disney World. Its use cases are limited, since it’s not a watercraft in the traditional sense of the term. It needs the guide track to navigate waterways, so it’s either a matter of finding a home somewhere with a track or docking it somewhere and using it as a restaurant or aesthetic feature.
I’m skeptical any of that happens, especially given the associated maintenance costs. Best case scenario is probably it being disassembled and shipped off to a maritime museum. Maybe it ends up at the Mystic Seaport Museum in Mystic, Connecticut–a place I literally just learned about when Googling “best boat museum.” Again, would love to be wrong and have the Liberty Belle live on at Port Orleans or elsewhere at Walt Disney World. Hopefully the beancounters are boaties!
The final development is that construction walls are now up around the Rivers of America:
They’re difficult to discern from the first couple of high-level photos, but the final two show them better.
Basically, there are walls up everywhere but the waterfront walkway that offers a “shortcut” along the parade route between Liberty Square and Frontierland. They’re up pretty much everywhere else at this point, and that walkway probably isn’t far behind.
Walkways now extend from Haunted Mansion to the Liberty Square Riverboat landing, and again from the bypass bridge by the Tiana’s Bayou Adventure splashdown loop over to Big Thunder. For now, there are still plenty of in-park views of the Rivers of America, and we really hope that lasts until Starlight debuts, but it seems less likely by the day. Disney is moving fast on this one.
The good news is that a Walt Disney World spokesperson advised us that construction walls will not impact viewing areas for the new Starlight Night Parade in Magic Kingdom. They also shared that construction walls will not impact crowd flow or bypasses in Frontierland for those who do not want to see Starlight.
This means that the waterfront promenade in Frontierland will remain open for the foreseeable future. Presumably, construction walls will go up on the other side of the boardwalk, just like they have on the adjacent bridge heading towards Tiana’s Bayou Adventure and BTMRR. This is at least a small victory for those of us who appreciate this Frontierland ‘shortcut’ or were/are fearing the worst with crowdflow for Starlight.
These walls are going up faster than we expected, suggesting Walt Disney World is going to waste no time in draining the Rivers of America and demolishing Tom Sawyer Island. The walls will block most guest views into that, meaning we’ll either need helicopters or Lightning Lanes for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure for future updates!
This is all a bit bittersweet. On the one hand, I’m holding out hope that this view still exists in 5 days so I can see–and photograph–it in person one last time. On the other hand, it’s heartening to see Imagineering moving fast on all of this, and not just closing everything “early” and letting things stagnate.
I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but now that it’s crystal clear that this Piston Peak project is happening, we want it to be fast-tracked. Minimize the amount of time there’s construction blight in Magic Kingdom, avoiding a repeat of the Giant EPCOT Dirt Pit fiasco. The longer any project drags on, the more likely it is that to be budget-cut or value engineered into oblivion.
I still don’t love this idea (see Why the Rivers of America is Worth Saving), but it’s going to happen and there’s nothing we fans can do to change the course of this Piston Peak project except at the margins. Accordingly, I would love nothing more than for the future-former Rivers of America to be unrecognizable by January 2026, and cranes appearing on site to commence vertical construction. Get this done quickly to minimize the guest impact and have Piston Peak open ASAP.
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Your Thoughts
Thoughts on the future of the Liberty Belle or why Walt Disney World is ripping up the railroad tracks? What about how quickly walls have gone up, blocking most views of the water and island? Mourning the closure of Tom Sawyer Island, Rivers of America, and the Liberty Square Riverboat? Did you have a chance to say your goodbyes? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? 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!
this move is heartbreaking . a blatant disregard for classic Disney and open space in favor of a movie ride that could have been put elsewhere on the WDW property… sad
I completely agree with Verna
Water = High Maintenance. Therefore, there is absolutely no chance the River Boat will be put in water anywhere. My thinking it was the high cost of maintenance which doomed the Rive Boat and the Rivers of America.
Likely the River Boat will be scrapped. There’s a small chance it will be displayed somewhere on land to placate Disney fans, but the that’s the absolute most we could hope for. The boat would not be accessible to guests because, again, that would require more maintenance.
So the River Boat will be immediately scrapped or get landlocked with an occasional coat of paint until Disney feels safe removing and scrapping it at a later date.
Speaking of Disneyland — when do you suppose the Island and Rivers of America will be demolished there, too? After all, Disneyland ha a much bigger problem with room to grow than does MK!
Given that Disneyland just went to great lengths to preserve the Rivers of America during SWGE construction and it’s the stage for Fantasmic, probably not anytime soon. But never say never.
For whatever reason, Disneyland and Walt Disney World leadership acts like they have it backwards–Disneyland keeps finding new space for expansion as opposed to redevelopment, whereas WDW does the opposite. I think it’s safe for 20+ years. There are more obvious areas for expansion and updates.
“While I’d love to be wrong, I’m inclined to believe that the Liberty Belle has no future at Walt Disney World. Its use cases are limited, since it’s not a watercraft in the traditional sense of the term.”
Since Disneyland Paris’ Mark Twain Riverboat seems to be beyond disrepair they could at least use it overseas.
It’s extremely wishful thinking, but it’d be great for them to move the props and set pieces from the island over to Fort Wilderness to add to the recreation there (and placate those upset at the current changes). I mean, how about an actual “fort” at Fort Wilderness that you can explore? Or turning Discovery Island into a new and improved Tom Sawyer Island for Lakeshore Lodge and Fort Wilderness guests.
I’m actually glad the Liberty Belle is probably getting scrapped; it was already in sorry shape despite being used every day, and would otherwise just rot with no maintenance wherever they docked it, eventually turning into “the wreck of the Serendipity” paddle wheeler in the first Red Dead Redemption game.
Too Late Now You Could Have Had Done A Survey of whether to keep it or relocate it before you destroyed it completely. why when you have so much land to build on you could’ve left Tom Sawyer Rivers of America where it was at. A lot of regular tourists come every year are going to be very upset including me. could’ve updated it without doing away with it. Very unhappy with the decision to remove it.
they’re chasing Universal
If this project is done to Oriental Land Company standards, it will be a triumph. If it is done to Avenger’s Campus and Madame Leota gift shop standards, it will be a stain on the company/executives and people will be talking derisively about it/them for years, perhaps decades (like Paul Pressler and DCA 1.0).
It’s entirely up to Disney whether this is successful or not and how this project affects their careers and reputations.
This is a great point.
For those who aren’t familiar with the Madame Leota gift shop, it’s as if the project team saw CommuniCore Hall and said “hold my beer.” It’s really, really bad.
The Disney company deserves to go bankrupt.
I agree, the whole thing is a shame! Expand not destroy!
Glad to see WDW modernizing in spite of more construction blight. The Magic Kingdom definitely feels dated.
And Do younger generations even know who Tom Sawyer is? Or care?
Do people go to Disney for a history lesson?
Dear Frank,
I’m with you on expanding and modernizing the Magic Kingdom.
Yet…
the troublesome question is, WHY don’t people know who Tom Sawyer is.
But who Tom Sawyer is, is not important to the real issue.
Do children have to know who created swings, monkey bars and slides?
Tom Sawyer Island could be enjoyed by kids who never heard of him.
There are caves to explore, a fort to run around in with a secret passage, a challenging barrel bridge and even a small playground.
There’s also benches and trees for shade.
Those caves stimulate little imaginations.
That barrel bridge challenges young and old motor skills and instills laughter at ones self.
And just perhaps a few children would hrave been made curious to find out who Tom Sawyer was. Maybe that would open someone to reading and reading the classics.
No one goes on vacation for an education, but on the best trips you return home a little wiser.
My friend Jimmy Brogan had a line, “They say those who don’t study history are doomed to repeat it. They’re right. That’s why I had to take 9th grade History over again in summer school.”
I barely ever went on the Liberty Belle, but I did do a farewell trip on it last August. I also wanted to pay a farewell visit to Tom Sawyer Island, but inclement weather closed down the rafts to get to it that day. I was worried that my flawed knees wouldn’t be able to handle things like the Barrel Bridge anyway. It was certainly fun walking across that when I was younger, though.
I hate to be the harsh parent in the room but frankly you all need to get over this! The future attractions will be great! I am very much looking forward to them!
The idea that “…Anything Walt was involved with should untouched” is contrary to what Walt himself said regarding Disneyland ( and thus projecting to WDW): “Disneyland will never be completed. It will continue to grow as long as there is imagination left in the world”. I think updating MK in WDW to appeal to today’s youth and not be an exact replica of Disneyland is exactly what Walt would have done. Plus, if ya still wanna see Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island you can visit the original in Disneyland.
I think you miss the point Dan.
Yes the future attractions will be great BUT Walt bought a ton of land for expansion. It did not have to go down this way.
And I’m tired of hearing, “If you still wanna see Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island you can go to Disneyland.”
It strikes me a little bit like something Marie Antoinette would say.
@mickey1928. You’re right about that having a “let them eat cake” ring to it. Not all of us are able to easily shuttle back & forth from coast to coast like Tom Bricker can. I’m just glad after having to see the original Tiki Room on Disneyland vacations that it’s back at Magic Kingdom where I can visit it as a local. And that we’re finally getting our own version of the Indiana Jones ride.
“…the reduction in available capacity making the park feel more crowded…”
Exactly this! We thought that with the construction would keep guests away this year, but instead the parks feel more crowded and the ride times remain high or at a plateau all day (without the dips) because guests are forced onto the rides that are open.
Whoops!! That was supposed to be under @Drew! 😀
Another sad Disney “milestone”. Somehow, no mater how many waterfalls they cram onto it, Piston Peak will judt be anothet cartoon, a far cry from the bucolic beauty of the Liberty Belle, the island and the water. But that’s obviously what is wanted. Narratives and history are a thing of the past. Sorry Sam Clemens. Welcome to Palisades Park South!
Heh, did you realize you typed “mater” instead of “matter”, making an unintentional reference to Mater, the country tow truck from the Cars franchise which is replacing Rivers of America?
Was at a family gathering earlier today and discussing our past Disney trips, and Disney in general with my brother. One of my brothers colleagues who has younger kids has just returned from their “once in a lifetime” trip, and the thing he talked the most about was how much the trip cost him. I wonder what the impact, if any, will be on families planning their big Disney trips while this construction is ongoing. I could see a world where people delay visiting while the iconic park is under construction?
“I could see a world where people delay visiting while the iconic park is under construction?”
I wonder if this is precisely why work is moving so fast already, and if I’m going to end up being wrong–by over a year–with my 2030 completion estimate.
It’s one thing to have expansion beyond the boundaries of the park, or a giant dirt pit in EPCOT (the local’s park). It’s another entirely to have a huge section of walls in the middle of the castle park, along with the promise of two new lands that will excite families.
I’m still skeptical about Imagineering’s ability to move quickly after the last few years, but the circumstances have changed–and this might dictate a speedier approach.
It’s not just vacationers. Even passholders have been discussing whether to renew their passes for the next couple of years, during this phase of high construction. Our family has had this discussion, and right now we are leaning on taking some time off from WDW. With so many rides missing and walls up, the parks aren’t all that magical and inviting. I’ve told friends and anxious family members to wait until the dust settles before making their “first trip” here.
I’m curious how much construction actually bothers the average person. (Or honestly, if most of those people even know what’s going on on the ground before they book a trip.) We are taking our little kids for their second trip next spring, and honestly, we’re not too concerned about any of it. My kids are such a perfect age for WDW right now, and I don’t think it’ll bother them in the slightest. Maybe my husband and I are more pragmatic than some, but with all the chatter about people skipping WDW for the next year or two, we’ll happily take some construction walls and noise if it means smaller crowds.
JC, I don’t think it’s as much the construction work itself (not like how how you might be bothered by heavy machinery operating on a pristine island resort during what is supposed to be your peaceful honeymoon). But rather, A) the reduction in available capacity making the park feel more crowded, B) The presence of construction walls/etc. showing up in your pictures, and C) the idea that you’re mis-timing a once-in-a-lifetime (or childhood, or 5/10 years) trip by arriving just before some amazing new attraction or land is going to open. Tom’s comment speaks to this a bit, but I think “C” is going to be most impactful in the next 18-24 months or so — as these big new projects are taking shape, but none of them are actually opening. At every park but Epcot, folks planning trips for 2026 (and maybe 2027 and beyond) are going to be thinking “Will the Doors Coaster be open when we’re there? What about Encanto Casita or Indy ride? And (most relevant to this post), if I wait until ‘X’ date will my kids get to experience the new Cars land?” So it’s more of a FOMO thing than being annoyed by dust and beeps and jackhammers.
“Or honestly, if most of those people even know what’s going on on the ground before they book a trip”
This part. I don’t think the general public will have any idea this is going on until they arrive. While there are a lot of us who read Disney focused blogs, we are still statistically in the minority. Especially for those doing “once in a lifetime” or “rite of passage” vacations, I’d imagine the majority don’t know much more than is readily highlighted on Disney’s websites.
“…the reduction in available capacity making the park feel more crowded…”
Exactly this! We thought that with the construction would keep guests away this year, but instead the parks feel more crowded and the ride times remain high or at a plateau all day (without the dips) because guests are forced onto the rides that are open.
Totally think you make good points, Pete…and perhaps lots of people will postpone trips! My guess is that those people might actually be the ones who go to Disney more often, but who knows. Regarding non-Disney-people-planning-their-one-big-trip kind of families (as referenced in the original comment), I do think Disney fans overestimate how much things like construction and capacity and FOMO matter. I’d assume that the average person doesn’t consider that stuff a ton, or even know about it.
Case study, we were a possible “one-and-done” family until our trip a couple of months ago, and our primary consideration was (and still is) our kids’ ages. There’s a big difference between taking kids at 4 and 6, when they’re into characters and still need car seats anywhere else you go, and at 9 and 11, when they might not care about Disney stuff as much, it’s easier to take them elsewhere, it gets harder to miss school/activities, their tickets and meals get more expensive at Disney, etc. I’m probably a more intense planner than most (as evidenced by the fact that I’m here, ha), and I’m not sure I even scratched the surface of what was going on at Disney World and how everything works until we had already decided to go and booked a non-refundable stay renting DVC points. Just providing a different perspective!
Epic fail by the bean counter Iger and lack-of-creativity Josh. I can’t wait until the board actually does something constructive and gets rid of both those grifters. Anything Walt was involved with should be untouched. Expand, not destroy. Also, they should clean their hotel rooms instead of putting dirty dishes back in the cupboards, leaving visible dirty hand prints on doors, towels not replaced, sheets and blankets clearly dirty and just retucked from the prior guests. Disney, do better.
Doesn’t matter. They’ve already done irreparable damage.