Exploring New Fantasyland at Walt Disney World

The largest expansion in Magic Kingdom history was unveiled to the public on December 6, 2012, and if you plan to visit the Central Florida area, it’s definitely worth checking out. While two of the attractions – the Seven Dwarfs Mine Ride and the Princess Fairytale Hall – are opening in 2014 and 2013 respectively, the rest of New Fantasyland is open.

Here are the highlights of New Fantasyland:

Storybook Circus

Storybook Circus includes the relocated Barnstormer roller coaster and two Dumbos (upgraded with a fun, interactive queue as well as the FastPass system). Gone are the days of needing to wait in line in the sun for a spin on Dumbo – now kids can play in the indoor play area while you wait with a pager. Once it’s your turn to ride Dumbo, the pager goes off. My kids actually enjoyed the play area just as much as they enjoyed the Dumbo ride. You’ll also find a small splash area, an interactive character spot, and the Fantasyland station (for the WDW Railroad).

Enchanted Tales with Belle

I didn’t get the chance to experience this new interactive attraction, but it’s rumored to be one of the best attractions at the Magic Kingdom. Get here early, because the lines get longer throughout the day.

Be Our Guest

Be Our Guest is the newest restaurant in the Magic Kingdom. While you’ll need reservations to get in for dinner, lunch is counter service. We had dinner here a few weeks ago, and really enjoyed it. It’s also the only place in the Magic Kingdom that serves alcohol (beer and wine).

Under the Sea With the Little Mermaid

This ride is great for kids of all ages – you board a ride car and travel throughout the most popular scenes of the movie. My kids especially enjoyed the Under the Sea scene which is both colorful and cheerful.

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If you go:

Make sure you arrive early – because of all of the interest in New Fantasyland, the lines for all of the attractions are long. We walked right on to Under the Sea with the Little Mermaid at 9:15am, but saw a 2-hour wait after lunch.

Disclosure: My visit to New Fantasyland was covered by Disney as part of the New Fantasyland press event. All opinions are my own.

This is a guest post by Jodi Grundig of Family Travel Magazine. Photo courtesy Jodi Grundig.