If you’ve been refreshing every rumor thread for two years waiting on real details about Animal Kingdom’s Tropical Americas overhaul, Disney keeps on giving.
During the Horizons: Disney Experiences Showcase at D23 Expo, Disney finally put official names on the three attractions heading to the land that’s replacing DinoLand U.S.A. And while there’s still no opening date, we now have enough meat on the bones to actually picture what’s coming.
Quick refresher: Tropical Americas was first announced back at D23 2024, and this year, Disney shared more concrete details on the upcoming land. The three rides are Antonio’s Fiesta de Encanto, Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent, and El Carrusel de los Animalitos, with Encanto and Indy serving as the headliners.
Antonio’s Fiesta de Encanto sounds like a genuinely sweet family ride. Guests will move through Casita, the Madrigal family’s magical house, celebrating Antonio’s gift before landing in a reimagined, rainforest-themed version of his bedroom. The film’s original voice cast is returning for the ride, and there’s no height requirement, so this is shaping up to be a ride the whole family can do together.
But let’s talk about the ride everyone’s actually losing sleep over.
Disney has officially confirmed the name of the attraction taking over the old DINOSAUR building: Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent. Here’s the setup, and it’s a good one. Indy finds a hidden passage inside an ancient temple, one that local legend says leads directly into the Mayan underworld. That same legend warns the passage is guarded by a mythological creature. Naturally, Indy goes in anyway. Naturally, the legend turns out to be true. The guardian has a name: Tsukán.
From there, things escalate fast. Guests get pulled through a portal straight into the underworld for an escape sequence loaded with bats, scorpions, fire, and snakes, building toward a full confrontation with Tsukán.
Disney Parks Blog gave fans a taste of just how intense that finale gets, sharing that “you may be asking, ‘why’d it have to be snakes?’ and Imagineers have a great answer to that,” adding that Chris “divulged that you’ll encounter the Tsukán throughout the attraction, including a final confrontation that will probably solidify your fear of snakes for the rest of time.”
There’s also a franchise first buried in here: the Indiana Jones Audio-Animatronic will be sculpted to actually look like Harrison Ford. No Indy animatronic has ever been built in his direct likeness before.
Parks photographer bioreconstruct recently posted a new aerial shot showing the temple facade taking shape, with those pieces sculpted and painted over months at Imagineering’s backstage offices before being lifted into place by crane over the surrounding rockwork.
And it’s not just photos. On September 11, 2026, Disney filed a new notice of commencement for the ride. The filing states that Buena Vista Construction Company, Disney’s in-house builder, is to “provide labor, material, and/or electrical for construction” at the address tied to Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent. These notices expire a year after filing, and it’s not yet clear exactly what phase of work this one covers.
We’ve now got names, story beats, and even animatronic details locked in, plus visible progress onsite. The next thing to watch for is an actual opening window, and given how much has already come together, that news might not be far off.
Which of these three rides has you the most excited? Let us know!
