Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at Disney World Set for Major Overhaul

May 07, 2024 in "Big Thunder Mountain Railroad"

Gallery / 5 Photos
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad overview

Posted: Tuesday May 7, 2024 9:40am ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

Walt Disney World's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is expected to close for an extended refurbishment later this year, which will see the ride closed for more than a year.

Although not yet announced by Disney, we expect plans to be confirmed soon, with the fan-favorite attraction closing as soon as September 2024. As always, be aware that timelines frequently change, so await official confirmation before making plans.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad overview

The Magic Kingdom coaster needs a significant renovation involving substantial work on the ride system. According to sources familiar with the plans, this long-planned refurbishment is crucial to ensure the ride's longevity and continued operation for years to come.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad's refurbishment project will likely begin soon after Tiana's Bayou Adventure opens this summer in Frontierland. The reopening of the former Splash Mountain attraction will bring much-needed capacity to the park, allowing operations the chance to begin work on Big Thunder Mountain. The refurbishment will be the longest in the ride's history and will likely mean the ride will be closed for over a year.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad overview

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad's most extensive refurbishment was over ten years ago, in 2012, when it closed for four months. Since then, the coaster has had numerous short closures to ensure continued operation until this year's major refurbishment.

Disneyland's Big Thunder Railroad underwent a similar major renovation in 2012, which saw updates made to the attraction, including new ride vehicles, track replacement, and repainting portions of the mountain itself.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad overview

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TrainsOfDisney23 hours ago

yeah I enjoy using the single rider line there but it’s a bit odd - it definitely feels like a “one party per row” kind of attraction.

Biff21523 hours ago

Agreed, hope they never do that, it’s only appropriate on rides with seats that are truly separated. I’m all for using a ride’s capacity but no one wants to wait an hour in line just to rub shoulders (and perhaps worse) with a stranger who waited less than ten minutes. They do it on Rat which I find a bit weird. Granted it’s a popular attraction but it’s a bit tight adding a third adult to each row.

Movielover1 day ago

Yeah... I know that. That's why I said I hope we get something else that's unique

HMF1 day ago

The TNT scene is in Paris as well, now.

neo9999551 day ago

A few years ago me and my family road and decided to play dead for the photo. However, we couldn't remember where the camera was so we just played dead for nearly the entire ride, cranking our necks as we were flown about - until we realized there was no photo to be had and cracked up for a good long while. One of my favorite times, but I do hope they add a camera.

Movielover1 day ago

I haven't seen anything detailing what the third lift will be. While getting the TNT Disneyland ending would be nice, I hope its something else that would be unique to WDW's.

TrainsOfDisney1 day ago

it’s adding new lighting and fixing a broken effect. Based on the art and description. We still don’t know what the third left hill is going to be correct?

MisterPenguin2 days ago

The way one is thrown laterally... you'd be thrown into the person sharing your bench seating, and they into you. This is unlike Cosmic Rewind in which you get your own bucket seat, and so, they put strangers in the same car. So, single riders sharing with a stranger on BTM isn't likely, I venture.

Disstevefan12 days ago

I am happy its finally opening in May. It has always been our family's favorite ride.

pdude812 days ago

First, I was responding to a poster complaining about other people being upset at how long refurbs take, and that we shouldn't be upset that they let the coaster get so run down because it's getting fixed. My point is that people can be happy they are finally fixing the thing but upset that it's taking so long or that it got that rough in the first place. But if we want to get into this specific coaster, why don't we compare to the retrack in Disneyland ten years ago that seemed to be a more significant upgrade, with additional effects, and took less time. It seems like it's going to have taken as long to retrack this as it did to build the ride in the first place.