Disney World bookings for 2026 opened today! And naturally, this got me wondering—is 2026 a good time to visit Disney World? The real tricky thing about this question is that it means different things to different people. Is this going to be a once-in-a-lifetime trip? Is it an annual trip that you’re considering dropping? Is there somewhere else you’d like to travel, instead? In this post, I’ll approach this question from all angles, discussing the pros and cons of a 2026 visit to Disney World!
There’s Still Plenty To Come In 2025
Let’s start with the fact that 2025 isn’t over yet, and we’ve still got some good things to come this year.
New at Hollywood Studios beginning May 27 will be The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure and the brand new Disney Villains: Unfairly Ever After. These two shows aren’t really gamechangers, in my opinion, but the Villains show is at least shaping up to be a “must see”.
Later in summer 2025, the new nighttime parade, Disney Starlight, will debut at Magic Kingdom. Nighttime parades are awesome, but they definitely appeal to some segments of fandom more than others, and I think hardcore parks fans often overrate their significance. I’ve yet to hear someone watch Happily Ever After (the firework show at Magic Kingdom) and comment “My night was okay but a parade would have made it something special.”
Finally, there’s hope that the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster re-theme to the Muppets will be done by the end of 2025. This project doesn’t have a public timeline yet, but Muppet Vision 3D will close June 7, 2025.
Here’s How 2026 Is Shaping Up
At this point, you could basically consider the remainder of 2025 and 2026 as a single unit, as even those above-noted changes aren’t likely to really change things. (On that note, we’ve got a related post that helps you pick a time for a trip in the next two years.)
With that in mind, let’s move onto what we think about 2026 at Disney World…
2026 Will Probably Be A Good Year for Savings
Disney has offered a ton of deals recently, mostly for 2025, but 2026 will have “free dining” for kids the entire year. More deals for 2026 will come. Typically, deals should be a marginal consideration when planning your Disney World trip. Even if you’re on a set budget, your trip won’t vary much because of Disney’s deals unless you have absolutely no flexibility otherwise.
But what sets 2026 apart, in my mind, is that the upcoming changes to Disney World make 2026 a great year to really pull back on your trip. While I haven’t read this (editorial policy), Disney Tourist Blog has a post contemplating skipping visits to Animal Kingdom, something I’d certainly consider in 2026.
Overall, if you’re looking ahead to a bigger trip down the road, I can easily see deciding that in 2026 you’re going to just spend two days in the parks hitting some core experiences.
2026 Will Have at Least One Big Debut
On May 22, 2026, Disney will debut a new version of Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run. The details of this update suggest a much-improved ride experience going forward. While the core is the same (you’re on a six-person flight on the Millennium Falcon), everything else is going to see major upgrades, with new storylines and locations, plus an expanded role for the engineer.
2026 Will Be A Good Year for Stability
If you’re one to always look on the bright side, the bright side of not much changing in 2026 is that you’ll have a really good sense of what to expect. While there will always be smaller changes, the lack of a major debut in 2026 means that at least you’re unlikely to have a whole day ruined by not knowing how to join some virtual queue. You won’t have to refresh blogs and forums every day leading up to your trip to see exactly what ride is best to go to first at Hollywood Studios on a Thursday with light rain in the forecast. If you visited this year or last year, you’ll be glad to see things are mostly where you left them.
Bottom Line: 2026 Is Not The Year For a Once-In-A-Lifetime Trip to Disney World
If you can avoid it, don’t plan your once-in-a-lifetime trip to Disney World in 2026. This isn’t because 2026 will be objectively “bad”—in fact, it’s the following years that will have more specific “no go” dates—but because so much is set to debut in coming years that it’s definitely worth waiting a few years, if you can.
Animal Kingdom is going to be getting a new land in 2027. That will come with two brand new rides and a re-imagined third.
Sometime after that, Hollywood Studios will get a Monsters Inc. land, complete with a new coaster. And in the same, amorphous, post-2027 timeframe, Magic Kingdom will get new Cars attractions and a brand new Villains land.
There is, admittedly, a flaw in this reasoning—is it ever a good time to visit if you’re always going to wait for new things? Tiana’s Bayou Adventure debuted in 2024. TRON in 2023. Cosmic Rewind in 2022. There’s basically always something around the corner.
But what makes the 2027-2030(ish) timeframe different is the scale. We’re not talking about waiting for a single new ride—we’re talking about 3.5 lands and about 8 rides in the span of a few years. It’s probable that waiting all this out takes you into the next decade, but the flipside is that just waiting until sometime in 2027 already brings a new land and three new rides. I think that’s enough reason to really rethink whether you have to visit in 2026.
Alternatives to Disney World 2026
So, Disney World isn’t worth the once-in-a-lifetime trip. But what if you’re just doing your annual travel planning and it’s one of the place you’re considering. Fine for this year, but fine for another year, too. What are some good alternatives? Well…
I’d Take Universal Over Disney World In 2026
As with everything I write about Florida recently, it feels like this post is really about Epic Universe. The new theme park debuts at Universal Orlando Resort in May 2025. That brings that resort to three theme parks and one water park. When you look at the calendar at least, it basically looks like Disney has decided 2025 and 2026 can be Universal’s year.
I like Universal Orlando Resort. I’ve had several fantastic trips there. We’ll be taking our first trip to Epic Universe in June, so I can’t actually comment on the yet-unopened park yet, but if everything goes as expected then I think 2026 is a great time to check out Universal Orlando if you haven’t yet.
To be clear, this isn’t a comparison made in a vacuum of 2026, it’s about the fact that delaying your Disney World trip a few years has huge implications, while delaying a Universal trip a few years has minimal implications.
If your choice is Universal in 2026 or Disney in 2027 / 2028…that’s a closer call. I’d probably still take the later Disney trip in that instance, assuming it’s after Pueblo Esperanza opens at Animal Kingdom.
Don’t Forget About Disneyland (And Disney Cruise Line)
I’m in a biased state of mind as my last two Disney trips were to Disneyland and on the Disney Fantasy, but 2026 might be a good time to depart from your regular plans (if you’re a Disney World regular) and try either Disneyland or a Disney Cruise.
Disneyland will be celebrating its 70th Anniversary into summer 2026. Depending on which coast your on, what dates you pick, and whether you can justify a short, two-day trip, you might find a Disneyland trip a great way to save money (compared to a Disney World trip), maybe gearing up for a longer Disney World stay in coming years. Read more about planning a Disneyland trip here.
Disney Cruise Line continues to debut new ships, but they come at a cost. We’ve got a guide to picking the best Disney Cruise for your family.
It’s a Big World
It might be hard to tell from the amount of time I seem to spend eating Ronto Roasters, but I actually much prefer world travel (and even much domestic travel) to Disney travel. We’ve covered plenty of destinations on our sister sites here and here. I’m on a National Parks kick right now, so I’ll just plug Zion, Yosemite, and Acadia as my favorites from recent trips.
Where will you go in 2026?
All Your Other Disney World Planning Questions Answered
Don't be overwhelmed by Disney World planning! Take a second to check out our most important content and you'll not only be an expert, but you'll save big $$$ along the way.
Just starting out? Check out our Walt Disney World planning guide! If you're still picking dates, we've got everything you need to know about Disney World crowd calendars. For picking your hotel, check out our Walt Disney World hotels guide.
When it comes time to book we’ll help you find discount Disney World tickets. Decide whether you need a dining plan in our Complete Guide to Disney World Dining Plans! And don't forget to book those Disney World Advance Dining Reservations!
Don't forget to master your Disney World Lightning Lane Guide and Strategy a few months in advance. We'll keep you out of long lines so you can maximize the magical time in the parks! We've got park-specific guides as well: Magic Kingdom Lightning Lane Strategy, Epcot Lightning Lane Strategy, Animal Kingdom Lightning Lane Strategy, and Hollywood Studios Lightning Lane Strategy.
Know what to ride with our guides to: Magic Kingdom rides, Hollywood Studios rides, Epcot rides, and Animal Kingdom rides! Plus learn about the water parks with our guide to Blizzard Beach and our guide to Typhoon Lagoon! And for some some fun prep, check out our Ranking of Every Ride at Walt Disney World.
Finally, before you head out, be sure to check out our to-the-point packing list, 10 essentials you forget to pack for every Disney trip. And if you're interested in saving, there's no better list than our 53 Ways to Save on your Disney trip from start to finish.