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LOOK FOR EXCITING NEW ATTRACTIONS, CHARACTER GREETINGS, DISNEY’S FASTEST ROLLER COASTER, PLUS AN ALL-NEW EPCOT NIGHTTIME SPECTACULAR

September 19, 2023 | 7 min read.

Walt Disney World in Florida is always coming up with new ways to delight their guests and this year is no exception. My son and I recently visited and experienced some exciting new attractions. We were happy to see that several favorite nighttime shows had also returned. 

Here’s what you can expect to find at Walt Disney World in 2023 and 2024.

Located in Tomorrowland in the Magic Kingdom, it’s the fastest roller coaster in a Disney theme park. The attraction’s 10-acre footprint is the largest expansion of Magic Kingdom since New Fantasyland opened in 2012.

During the ride, guests mount their own Lightcycle and race through eight Energy Gates against the Grid's most menacing Programs. It uses speed, visual effects, and pulsing music to create a thrilling ride. 

My son is six feet two-inches tall and muscular, and he barely fit comfortably on the Lightcycle. While the standard TRON Lightcycle / Run seats might not fit everyone, there’s a separate cart in the back of some ride cars that is more accessible. You can test out the TRON Lightcycle vehicle at the ride entrance.

The ride is very popular, so plan your visit carefully. You can utilize the park’s virtual queue or purchase a paid individual Lightning Lane pass to ride.

ROUNDUP RODEO BBQ AT DISNEY’S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS Roundup Rodeo BBQ is sure to be a favorite with families. Located in Toy Story Land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, the new restaurant serves barbeque-inspired comfort foods. The Toy Story table-service restaurant serves up toy-sized tasty dishes that will please even the pickiest eaters.

NEW AND RETURNING CHARACTER GREETINGS Character greetings have now returned as a part of the Walt Disney World experience. Moana greets children at Discovery Island in Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and Figment is now available at the Imagination! Pavilion. Other popular characters have a new home at Communicore Hall in EPCOT. Later this fall, Mirabel from Walt Disney Animation Studios’ film Encanto will greet guests in Fairytale Garden surrounded by whimsical décor inspired by La Familia Madrigal.

AAA Members receive exclusive discounts on attraction and concert tickets around town and across the country. Learn More

THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF DISNEY’S ANIMAL THEME PARK Disney’s Animal Kingdom turned 25 this year and celebrated with the return of entertainment shows at the park including “Festival of the Lion King” and “Finding Nemo: The Big Blue…and Beyond!”

OTHER RIDES NOT TO MISS If you haven’t been to Walt Disney World for a while, you’ll want to check out some of their other newer attractions.

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewinds at EPCOT opened in May 2022. This thrilling roller coaster, which is fully enclosed and uses a reverse launch, takes guests on an intergalactic race through the galaxy. The onboard audio features hit songs from the 70s and 80s.

The queue at this popular attraction is part of the experience. Without ruining the surprise, I can say that it was one of the biggest "How'd they do that?" surprises.

Since my son is a huge Star Wars fan, we couldn’t wait to ride Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance and Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run, which are in Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge at Disney's Hollywood Studios. The Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge neighborhood puts you right in the middle of a far-flung destination at the galaxy’s edge, an immersive experience that is sure to please Star Wars fans.

One of our favorite experiences was a visit to Oga’s Cantina, a spaceport bar with background music played by aliens and drinks crafted for intergalactic tastes. You’ll need a reservation to visit the tavern, so plan well ahead of your visit.

In the France pavilion at EPCOT, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure is another must-see attraction. During the trackless ride, which opened in 2021, guests feel like they have been shrunk to the size of a mouse and experience a thrilling adventure at the Parisian restaurant from the Pixar hit Ratatouille.

WHAT TO EXPECT IN LATE 2023
 EPCOT has been undergoing a multiyear transformation. The Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana, is the latest addition to the park. Opening in late 2023 in the World Nature section at EPCOT, Journey of Water isn’t a ride, but rather a new exploration trail where you can learn the story of water on our planet. This interactive experience allows you to discover water’s many roles, along with opportunities to interact with the water. Just like Moana, you may find that water has a mind of its own.

This fall, the new World Celebration neighborhood in EPCOT will be completed. The new World Celebration land, including Communicore Hall and Communicore Plaza, will host future festivals and gatherings at the park.

Disney will also introduce an all-new EPCOT nighttime spectacular later this year. It promises to be a dazzling display of music, pyrotechnics, lasers and lighting blended into a story that reminds us that we are more alike than different.

Whatever you plan to see at Walt Disney World, it helps to plan ahead with dining reservations and park tickets. At present, theme park reservations are required. Beginning January 9, 2024, theme park reservations will no longer be required for date-based tickets.

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Disney World with a wheelchair? Here’s how DVC made our trip easier and more fun

M y family recently returned from our first family trip to Walt Disney World since the start of the pandemic. Immediately after our last trip, in January 2020, my wife Dana experienced a severe MS (multiple sclerosis) flare that diminished her mobility, so she now uses a wheelchair outside of the house. Four years later, we headed back to the House of Mouse and discovered an even more accessible way to visit using Disney Vacation Club . 

For those not familiar, Disney Vacation Club (DVC) is Disney’s version of a timeshare. Unlike a traditional timeshare where you’re locked into a fixed week at a certain time of year, Disney utilizes a flexible, points-based system that can be used at over a dozen different Disney properties in Florida, California, South Carolina, and Hawaii at any time. 

DVC Explained: Is it worth it to join Disney Vacation Club? What to know about DVC.

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During our Disney World trip, we booked an accessible room in the sophisticated Riviera Resort – inspired by Mediterranean beach retreats along the French and Italian Riviera. Disney's Riviera Resort is a dedicated DVC property conveniently located between EPCOT and Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme parks. We could easily watch the colors changing on EPCOT’s Spaceship Earth from our room at night, and hop on the Skyliner gondola for quick and convenient access to two theme parks. Plus, my wife could roll right onto the cable car in her wheelchair.

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DVC Villas aren't traditional hotel rooms

Disney calls its DVC rooms a “home away from home” because they feature amenities not found in a traditional double-queen hotel room, such as a fully equipped kitchen (with full-size refrigerator, stove, microwave, and dishwasher), dining nook, and stacked washer and dryer. Our one-bedroom wheelchair-accessible villa had plenty of space for our family of four: myself, my wife, and our young adult daughters (ages 26 and 23). 

PLAN YOUR TRIP: When’s the best time to go to Disney World and Disneyland to avoid the crowds?  

Accessibility features included wide doorways and a large bathroom (with room to maneuver the wheelchair) with grab bars next to the toilet. This particular room had a tub with additional grab bars and a hand-held showerhead. When our daughter called housekeeping, they quickly delivered a transfer bench for the tub. Accessible rooms with roll-in showers are also available.

Dana said the space worked really well for her, especially after rearranging some of the side chairs and tables: “I had plenty of space for my wheelchair and walker.” This was the first advantage of DVC for our accessible Disney trip: the larger room, with about 820 sq. ft. and over twice the square footage of a standard Disney Deluxe Resort hotel room.

Because of its large size, the DVC villa was easily navigable in a wheelchair. The king-size bed in the bedroom was close to the bathroom and included a roll-under sink, and the clever queen-size Murphy bed and pull-down bunk in the living room provided bunks for our daughters. Four adults in our family were quite comfortable sharing this one-bedroom DVC villa. 

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Unfortunately, my wife had one bit of trouble with the accessible room: the bed height. The king bed was lowered for accessibility purposes. While this may help some, for her disability, a lower bed is much more difficult to get out of. We mentioned this to the front desk, and they looked into changing the bed height but couldn’t for safety reasons. 

Instead, they offered us a deluxe studio room with a standard-height bed just down the hall from our original accessible one-bedroom villa. We used the one-bedroom villa as our home base and the studio as our bedroom. 

DVC perks made the theme parks more accessible

In addition to the larger room size of the DVC villa, there were extra perks for DVC members that made our theme park visit even more accommodating for our family’s accessibility needs. There is a special lounge just for DVC members on the second floor of the Imagination! pavilion in EPCOT. The lounge offers free soft drinks and places to recharge your devices while taking a break from the crowds and sun. Gazing out of the glass pyramid are commanding views of The Land pavilion gardens and World Nature beyond.

During our trip, we experienced Moonlight Magic at EPCOT – a special after-hours event during which the park is open from 10:00 pm to midnight for DVC Members, which means shorter lines for rides and attractions. For us, the best part of Moonlight Magic at EPCOT was the certificates for free food throughout the park (each guest received three vouchers). 

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We redeemed the snack certificates at the Flower and Garden Festival outdoor kitchens and dined on chicken and waffles, Dole whips, peanut butter and jelly soft-serve, and strawberry rhubarb upside-down cakes. The smaller crowds during Moonlight Magic again made it easier to navigate the park in a wheelchair and see the topiary and garden displays. The evening hours were also much cooler for my wife, who’s sensitive to heat due to her MS.

Our family’s favorite experience during the whole trip was also a DVC-exclusive benefit. Atop DVC’s Bay Lake Tower is a lounge overlooking the Magic Kingdom theme park . Each evening it turns into “A Villains Lair” with themed cocktails, appetizers, and desserts. We treated this as our dinner and opted for the Wicked Wind Down with a cocktail, appetizer, and dessert for $55 per person plus a special reserved spot to watch the Magic Kingdom fireworks. 

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Our server (with impeccable villainous makeup) took our order and, since it was almost 8:00 p.m., said she would hold everything until after the fireworks. We headed to the terrace outside and had a bird’s-eye view of the spectacular complete with background music and narration. Dana’s eyes lit up describing the experience, “it was so great to see the fireworks from up there, it wasn’t crowded at all. I couldn’t see the (Magic Kingdom) castle, but the higher fireworks were some of the best I’ve seen.”

Following the pyrotechnic show, we returned to our table to find cocktails, charcuterie, pork belly sliders, hummus, and flatbread all waiting for us. Dana said, “The food was awesome.” After drinks and the substantial appetizers, our server delivered two slices of Seven-Lair cake (a seven-layer cake drizzled with salted caramel sauce) on our table with another two packaged to go. This was a smart move as the pieces were immense and became a special treat we enjoyed in our room on the last night, thanks to the full refrigerator and stocked kitchen. 

ROOM FOR EVERYONE: These 11 Disney World hotels are perfect for families of 5+

This DVC extra was easily the highlight of the trip – a relaxed way to see the Magic Kingdom fireworks while enjoying food and drinks.

DVC accessibility comes at a price

While the larger DVC villa, member lounges, and Moonlight Magic party all helped our family’s accessibility needs, Disney Vacation Club does come at a price, and the entry cost can be a barrier for some families. 

Depending on the number of points you purchase, the size of your family, and the type of resort, the investment can be substantial. For example, I used the cost calculator on the DVC website and created a package based on how my family typically travels, including a six-day vacation, our family of four, and flexible travel season. 

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I picked Disney’s Riviera Resort (where we stayed on this trip) as the home resort, and the calculator recommended a DVC membership of 250 points. The cost was $53,000, which could be financed using a 10-year loan with a 10% down payment for $755 per month. In addition, there’s another $2,215 in annual membership dues, which are $185 per month. So that’s nearly $950 per month, and we have not even purchased theme park tickets or food for our vacation yet. 

Before you get too sticker-shocked, the package quoted above presumes your family uses 250 points for a six-day trip to Disney's Riviera Resort every year, staying in that same one-bedroom villa. However, DVC members don’t have to use all their points in the same year. By banking unused points from previous years and borrowing points from future years, you can purchase a DVC membership with fewer points and not travel every year. Other accommodations, such as Deluxe Studios and Tower Studios, also require fewer vacation points per night. 

You do not need to stay at the same resort every time, either. After staying at Disney’s Riviera Resort, you might decide to try a different property such as Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas the next time and use fewer points. The flexibility in how many DVC points you need and how you use those points allows more options for families.

Remember, your DVC Membership will last far longer once you pay off your upfront costs – in some cases, up to 50 years. So when you sign up, you need to ensure you are ready for decades of Disney vacations.

Disney park accessibility

During this trip, we expected the Disney Parks to be accessible. Disney is famous for accommodating many types of special needs, including people visiting Disney World in a wheelchair. However, in the past four or five years, we’ve also realized that accessibility while traveling is not guaranteed (even when booking accessible rooms and experiences). 

We were thrilled to find many of the rides in the parks were fully accessible to those in wheelchairs. My wife could stay in her chair and roll right inside a Little Mermaid clamshell, onto a Jungle Cruise boat, into a Ratatouille ride vehicle, and more. Our DVC one-bedroom villa and special member perks, made the trip even more enjoyable and accessible for our family. 

MORE MAGIC: How to get extra time at Disney or Universal beyond the regular theme park hours  

However, even if you cannot pay the premium for DVC, there are ways to replicate some of these perks. There are larger, accessible accommodations just off Walt Disney World property at a lower price point, for example a two-bedroom villa with a roll-in shower two miles away at the Caribe Royale Orlando.

Disney holds After Hours events at the theme parks with limited numbers of tickets, shorter wait times, and free snacks similar to DVC Moonlight Magic. While not a lounge, for those who need to get away from the crowds or heat of the theme park, there are first aid stations with beds and nurses for a quiet respite from the park. 

For those who have the means, DVC offers a “home away from home” and plenty of perks that can make your Disney vacation even more accessible for those with special needs.

Disney World with a wheelchair? Here’s how DVC made our trip easier and more fun originally appeared on FamilyVacationist.com .

More from FamilyVacationist:

• How to plan a multigenerational Disney World trip
• Are Disney’s After Hours events worth the price?
• Best Disney World rides for big kids and grownups

The views and opinions expressed in this column are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect those of USA TODAY. FamilyVacationist.com and TourScoop.com are owned and operated by Vacationist Media LLC. Using the FamilyVacationist travel recommendation methodology , we review and select family vacation ideas , family vacation spots , all-inclusive family resorts , and classic family vacations for all ages. TourScoop covers guided group tours and tour operators , tour operator reviews , tour itinerary reviews and travel gear recommendations .

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Disney World with a wheelchair? Here’s how DVC made our trip easier and more fun