7 Major Ways Disney World Will Be Different In 2024

Planning for a Walt Disney World trip can feel like a marathon. Sure, it's the Most Magical Place on Earth, but when you're in the midst of making your 60-day-in-advance dining reservation at 6 a.m., it's easy to feel like it's all a bit much. However, as someone who has visited the parks numerous times for work, I'm here to say that planning ahead really is the key to making your trip as stress-free as can be (well, not as stressful). To do that, it's always good to know exactly what's coming in the world of Disney.

And, well, 2024 is set to be a pretty big year for Disney World, with multiple fan-favorite services returning and even a few new attractions to look forward to. Let's take a look at some of the biggest ways Disney World will be different next year.

The Disney Dining Plan Returns

After nearly four years, the Disney Dining Plan will return for trips beginning on Jan. 9, 2024. If you're unfamiliar, the Disney Dining Plan is a way to "pre-pay" for your meals at Disney World. You can add it to your Disney World stay, purchasing "credits" per night of your vacation that can be used for table-service and/or quick-service dining in Disney World.

There are two options you can purchase for everyone in your party aged 3 and over: the Disney Dining Plan and the Disney Quick-Service Dining Plan. Each comes with a resort-refillable mug per member of your party, but the regular dining plan includes a table service meal, a quick-service meal, and a snack per person per night of your stay.

On the other hand, the Disney Quick-Service Dining Plan includes two quick-service meals and a snack per night of your stay.

The Disney Dining Plan costs $94.28 for adults (ages 10+) or $26.69 for kids (ages 3 to 9). The Quick-Service Dining Plan costs $57.01 and $23.38 for adults and kids, respectively. These credits can be used in hundreds of locations across Walt Disney World Resort, with a complete list available here.

If you're visiting the parks during select nights this spring, you also may be able to save 50% on kids' dining plans with Disney's Kids Play and Dine for 50% off offer.

New and Updated Rides and Attractions

In 2023, we got a few exciting new additions at the parks. TRON Lightcycle/Run opened in Magic Kingdom in the spring, while Journey of Water | Inspired by Moana opened at EPCOT in October.

In 2024, we have a few new additions to look forward to. In late 2024, Tiana's Bayou Adventure will open in Magic Kingdom. The log flume ride takes over for the previous Splash Mountain but will instead continue the story of Tiana from The Princess and the Frog. The ride will feature audio-animatronics of both familiar and new characters, along with songs and other thrilling elements.

And Disney's Hollywood Studios will be receiving two exciting new updates. It's been announced that Star Tours will be adding new adventures to its ride, meaning guests could potentially visit new places and see new characters like Ahsoka Tano. The park will also be officially replacing Voyage of The Little Mermaid, which was a stage show that lasted from 1992 through 2020. It will be replaced by an updated version of the tale, The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure, in fall 2024.

Over at EPCOT, a massive years-long transformation will also finally be complete in 2024. The last element of this huge overhaul will be Communicore Hall and Plaza, which will be part of the newly opened World Celebration. Concept art has hinted at the area being used for potential live performances or meet and greets, but not much has been confirmed thus far. We'll find out more when it opens in 2024!

All-Day Park Hopping

Along with the return of the Disney Dining Plan, Jan. 9 will also bring the return of all-day park hopping. "Park hopping" at Disney World refers to going from one park to another. When purchasing your ticket, you can buy a Park Hopper ticket to visit more than one park in a day.

Since July 2021, park hopping at Disney World has required guests to wait until 2 p.m. to go to their second park. Starting Jan. 9, though, you'll be able to park hop any time of day and won't need to wait until 2 p.m.

Park Reservation Changes

In July 2020, Disney World reopened with a major change — the introduction of the Park Pass reservation system. Essentially, this change requires you to "reserve" the park you intend to visit on a given day. Without a Park Pass, you won't be able to enter the park... even with a ticket.

That will be changing come Jan. 9, 2024, when date-based tickets will not require a Park Pass reservation. When you purchase a date-based ticket, you're buying a ticket for a particular park on a specific date, so you won't also need to make a Park Pass beginning then.

While this doesn't apply to Annual Passes or non-date-based tickets, Disney did also share an update for Annual Passholders. Since 2023, Passholders have been able to visit a park without a Park Pass reservation after 2 p.m. (except on Saturdays and Sundays at Magic Kingdom).

However, starting Jan. 11, 2024, Disney will be introducing "good-to-go" days for Passholders. These select dates will be added to the Annual Passholder admission calendar and will be days Passholders can go to the theme parks without needing a Park Pass reservation.

New Restaurants

2023 brought several new restaurants to Disney World, including the Toy Story-themed Roundup Rodeo BBQ at Disney's Hollywood Studios. In 2024, you can expect new additions over at Disney's BoardWalk, including The Cake Bake Shop and Blue Ribbon Corn Dogs. Speaking of Disney's BoardWalk…

Hotel Makeovers

Over the past few years, we've seen some significant transformations at the Disney World hotels — and these will be continuing in 2024! Disney's BoardWalk is currently undergoing reservations, with new additions such as Carousel Coffee and updates to many of the hotel rooms.

While work on the hotels has been largely centered around the Disney Vacation Club properties, we have also been seeing updates to non-DVC rooms. This has included The Incredibles-themed rooms at Disney's Contemporary Resort and Moana-inspired rooms at Disney's Polynesian Village Resort.

If you'll be visiting Disney World in 2024, make sure to check out the official website to see the latest refurbishment updates. Keep in mind that the hotels are open during refurbishments, so you shouldn't find too much of a disruption even if staying at a hotel that's currently being worked on.

A New Disney Vacation Club Tower

One of the major new additions coming to Disney World in 2024 is the opening of a new Disney Vacation Club tower at Disney's Polynesian Village Resort. Work is currently well underway on the expansion, which has a beautiful view of Seven Seas Lagoon.

While Disney has not announced an official opening date for this new expansion, it should be ready for guests to visit by late 2024.