If you’ve ever wandered upstairs at Columbia Harbour House—maybe with a plate of chicken strips or a bowl of clam chowder because, let’s be honest, this place is one of the most underrated dining spots in Magic Kingdom—you know exactly why that second floor has a kind of cult following. It’s quiet. It’s cozy. It’s air-conditioned. And for years, it offered one of the best views of whatever construction Disney happened to be working on behind the scenes.
But not anymore.
In a move that has guests talking all over social media, Disney has now frosted over the second-floor windows overlooking the Frontierland and Tom Sawyer Island construction zone. This update was first reported by Blog Mickey, who visited Columbia Harbour House to check out the ongoing tree clearing across the river—and found the windows almost completely blocked out instead.
For a restaurant that’s always been a sort of hidden hideaway for park-watchers, this is a major visual shutdown. And depending on how closely you follow the big Frontierland expansion plans, it also raises some questions about what Disney is trying to keep out of sight.
Let’s break down what changed, why it matters, and what it means for anyone hoping to keep an eye on Disney’s biggest construction project in Magic Kingdom.
A Fan-Favorite View, Suddenly Gone
If you weren’t familiar with the upstairs seating at Columbia Harbour House, here’s what made it special: it had windows that looked directly toward the area where Disney is clearing land and preparing for the massive Magic Kingdom expansion. Over the last few months, this area has become a nonstop scene of tree removal, dirt-moving, crane work, and construction staging.
Blog Mickey shared a recap of what used to be visible:
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Cranes hovering over the treeline
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Piles of demolition debris
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Large-scale excavation
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Heavy equipment moving soil and concrete
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A clear look into the stretch of land Disney is transforming
And just as the clearing ramped up—and interest from fans grew—the view disappeared.
Photos taken for Blog Mickey’s update show newly frosted, opaque windows covering the exact areas that once gave guests an unobstructed look into the work zone. The frosting isn’t decorative, and it isn’t themed. It’s functional. The goal appears to be simple: prevent guests from seeing what’s going on outside.
Why Would Disney Frost the Windows?
This kind of move isn’t unusual for Disney, but the specific location makes it more noticeable. Columbia Harbour House has never been marketed as a construction overlook (obviously), but regulars know it has always had an accidental front-row seat for whatever was happening beyond the river.
Disney typically hides active construction for a few reasons:
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To protect guests from seeing unthemed industrial work
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To prevent early glimpses of areas that aren’t ready to be revealed
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To maintain full control of how and when updates are shown
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To reduce photo-taking opportunities during messy early stages
Right now, the Frontierland/Tom Sawyer Island area is in what many fans call the “ugly phase”—there’s dirt, debris, machinery, fencing, and absolutely nothing that resembles finished Disney storytelling. Window frosting keeps that entire process off-stage.
Whether the windows will stay frosted for months or longer is anyone’s guess, but with the scale of this expansion, “temporary” could mean a while.
This Is All Happening Because Frontierland Is About to Change Dramatically
If you’ve been following the evolution of Magic Kingdom, you know the expansion behind Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is a big deal. Disney has already confirmed that the area will eventually include:
Piston Peak National Park
Inspired by Planes: Fire & Rescue, this will bring natural rockwork, forest environments, and the firefighter-themed story into Magic Kingdom in a brand-new way.
Villains Land
A long-awaited zone dedicated entirely to Disney villains—finally giving characters like Maleficent, the Queen, Jafar, and others a permanent themed area of their own.
Both concepts are huge and require an enormous amount of land clearing, infrastructure movement, and earth reshaping before construction can even begin. That’s the phase happening right now—the part Disney prefers guests don’t see.
The Frosting May Block Views Now, But Fans Will Get Even Better Ones Later
Here’s where Blog Mickey’s report gets especially interesting: while the frosting prevents guests from looking out through Columbia Harbour House, this won’t last forever—because starting in 2026, guests will get even more dramatic construction views from a place no one can block: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
When the coaster reopens after its scheduled work, the queue and the attraction itself are expected to include multiple sightlines into the expansion zone. Not small glimpses—big, sweeping views. And since it’s an outdoor ride, frosting and cover-ups won’t be an option.
So the hiding isn’t permanent. It’s just happening during the early stages, when the work is still structural, messy, and not park-ready.
How Fans Can Keep Track of Construction Without Those Windows
If you were relying on Columbia Harbour House as your personal construction balcony, don’t worry—there are still ways to watch the project unfold.
Blog Mickey points readers toward one of the most consistent sources for construction coverage: Bioreconstruct, the well-known aerial photographer who tracks theme park development from above. His photos capture full overviews of the entire Frontierland work zone, including:
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The scale of tree removal
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Truck staging areas
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Excavation pits
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Land grading
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Early infrastructure placement
Until Disney’s expansion becomes visible from guest areas, these aerial updates will be the clearest way to see what’s really happening.
The frosting of Columbia Harbour House’s windows marks a noticeable shift in how much of the Frontierland expansion guests can see for themselves. While the move may disappoint fans who loved using that second-floor seating area to monitor progress, the timing suggests Disney is preparing for the next round of major construction activity—activity they’re not ready to display yet.
But this is only a temporary obstacle. Once Big Thunder Mountain Railroad reopens in 2026, guests will have an entirely new vantage point into what will eventually become Piston Peak National Park and Villains Land. And at that point, Disney won’t be able to hide the transformation even if they wanted to.
For now? Lunch at Columbia Harbour House just got a little less scenic—but the future views are shaping up to be worth the wait.
