7 Ideas for a DinoLand USA Replacement at Animal Kingdom

Last fall, as I walked through the slowly fossilizing DinoLand USA area at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, my mind began to spin thinking of all the things Disney Imagineers could do with the half-dead space. After all, it has remained largely unchanged since Animal Kingdom opened in 1998. And with the recent departure of one of its most popular attractions (more on that below), the area is in dire need of new life.

First, let’s take a look at the backstory and current state of DinoLand USA.

DinoLand USA is one of seven lands at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. It’s located to the right of the park’s main entrance.

The area’s flagship attraction is Dinosaur, a relatively intense dark ride inspired by the 2000 animated Disney film of the same name.

Nestled within DinoLand USA is Chester and Hester’s Dino-Rama — think of it as a land-within-a-land. The area’s rides and midway-style games are themed to a slightly run-down traveling carnival.

Until 2019, Dino-Rama was anchored by Primeval Whirl, a pair of Reverchon spinning coasters.

The two side-by-side coasters closed for unexpected maintenance in 2019 but never reopened.

Disney confirmed last summer that the two Primeval Whirl coasters were permanently closed:

As of this posting, both Primeval Whirl coasters are still standing. The carnival-themed area is still home to one ride, a Dumbo-style TriceraTop Spin.

In addition to Dinosaur and the Dino-Rama rides, DinoLand USA is also home to The Boneyard playground (closed as of this posting due to the Covid-19 pandemic), the currently vacant Theater in the Wild, the Restaurantosaurus eatery and a few other small dino-themed food stands, shops and attractions.

I asked our social media followers what ideas they had for the future of the DinoLand USA area. Many of the responses overlapped with some of my own ideas (great minds think alike, right?). So below, I’ve detailed seven possible replacements for DinoLand USA at Animal Kingdom.


1. Zootopia

I read several recommendations for a Zootopia-themed land at Animal Kingdom. The 2016 animated film of the same name is filled with a cast of anthropomorphic animals and was a box-office success, grossing over $1 billion worldwide. The Zootopia universe seems like the perfect backdrop for a kid-friendly area.

© Disney

Disney has already announced plans for a “Zootopia+” TV series for its Disney+ streaming platform in 2022. And a sequel film is almost a given.

Needless to say, Zootopia is a franchise that’s just asking to be brought to life. In fact, a Zootopia-themed land is already under construction at Shanghai Disneyland.

An artist concept for the Zootopia land at Disneyland Shanghai. Image © Disney.

While we don’t know specific details about the Zootopia land at Shanghai Disneyland or what will be inside of it, the Disney Parks Blog post announcing the land revealed that “a new major attraction that will seamlessly blend Disney storytelling and state-of-the-art technology to bring this fan-favorite movie and its characters to life.”

The colorful area will also feature “entertainment, merchandise, and food and beverage offerings” inspired by the film.

Zootopia land under construction at Shanghai Disneyland. Photo © Shanghai Disneyland.

Though construction of the Zootopia land was halted due to the Covid-19 pandemic, work resumed over the summer. However, an official opening date has not yet been announced.

While the Avatar franchise has inspired a more serious tone within Animal Kingdom’s Pandora land, a Zootopia land would make for a kid-friendlier counterpart.


2. The Lion King

Few intellectual properties (IPs) can top the cultural impact The Lion King has made on the world. For spawning a slew of films, TV shows, video games and a wildly successful Broadway musical, Disney’s Lion King franchise is a lasting money-maker. So the fact there isn’t an actual Lion King ride at a Disney park is almost criminal.

Granted, The Lion King would overlap with Animal Kingdom’s existing Africa land, which is home to the Festival of the Lion King stage show. However, there is more than enough Lion King-specific source material to showcase in a land.

Festival of the Lion King show at Animal Kingdom. © Disney

In addition to the popular Festival of the Lion King show at Animal Kingdom, a few shows and other forms of live entertainment have popped up at various Disney parks around the world. But what Animal Kingdom and other Disney parks need is an actual E-ticket Lion King attraction. Or better yet, an entire land. And though the original film was released in 1994, the Lion King franchise is still very much alive with the live-action remake debuting in 2019.

Over the years, I’ve seen some incredible ideas for Lion King rides and attractions. The possibilities for elaborate dark rides, thrill rides, kid rides, restaurants, shops, etc., are nearly endless. And of course, the opportunity to incorporate some of the film’s animals into the area is just as exciting.

Lion King is a timeless IP, and I cannot fathom why Disney hasn’t taken advantage of that by building an entire land dedicated to it. But at this point, I’d be happy with a Lion King ride.


3. All-In on Dinosaurs

While Universal owns the unstoppable dinosaur franchise known as Jurassic Park/Jurassic World, that doesn’t necessarily mean that Disney can’t double-down on a dinosaur land.

The Good Dinosaur. © Disney

While Disney’s Dinosaur films (Dinosaur in 2000 and Pixar’s The Good Dinosaur in 2015) haven’t been nearly as successful (The Good Dinosaur was Pixar’s first “box-office disaster“) as the Jurassic Park and Jurassic World films, I think Disney could still pull off a dinosaur land if it took a different approach, perhaps one that was more educational. The Dino-Rama area could be replaced by a tamer-than-Dinosaur dark ride that was more family-friendly.

© Disney

Dinosaur could also receive an upgrade, perhaps new effects and a new storyline.

But as Disney in the last 10 years has focused on building new attractions and lands that feature popular IPs, a dinosaur movie-inspired land may be a tough sell.


4. South America

South America presents a plethora of unique ecosystems and species for Disney to gather inspiration from. While there may be some overlap with the existing animals at Animal Kingdom, Disney could focus on a specific area of South America — there are so many to choose from. And the many South American cultures the showcase are just as diverse.

If Disney was set on incorporating an IP into the land, it could feature the 2009 Pixar film, Up, much of which takes place in South America.

As Coaster101 writer Eric Wooley suggested, Disney could also retheme Dinosaur to become an Indiana Jones-inspired ride.

© Disney

Indiana Jones films have taken place in exotic locales around the world including South America. And Dinosaur uses the same ride system and vehicles as Indiana Jones Adventure at Disneyland. And I think it is a far superior attraction.

If Imagineers didn’t want the new land to be too focused, a South American area would be an optimal replacement to DinoLand USA.


5. Amazon Rainforest

At its core, Animal Kingdom celebrates and promotes wildlife conservation. So dedicating a land to the fragile and endangered ecosystem within the Amazon rainforest seems like a smart move for Disney.

Twitter user “The Main Entrance Cast” pitched some great ideas for the land, including another possible Indiana Jones-inspired Dinosaur retheme:

Retheme the whole area to Amazonia (featuring more bio-diversity than anywhere else on the planet). Retheme Dinosaur to Indy Jones trying to find an animal-themed McGuffin. Also create a rainforest environment with up-close animal encounters and adventure trails.

Disney would have so many educational opportunities at its fingertips — from rides to shows to animal encounter exhibits.

A walk-through attraction could take guests on a self-guided tour of a rainforest recreation.

The colorful Amazonian wildlife could inspire rides, shows, shops and more.

And imagine a zipline-inspired roller coaster taking guests through a densely wooded forest.

An Amazon rainforest-themed area seems like the perfect intersection of educational opportunities and exhilarating ride experiences.


6. Australia

Australia is known for its wide variety of unusual or rare animals, so leveraging the fascination with the cute (and terrifying) creatures from Down Under could be a huge hit for Disney.

Twitter user Paintervision had some great ideas for the area:

Dinorama is one of those “net loss” areas, that may improve the park experience just by being shuttered. My pitch would be to set the land in Australia. Keep Dinosaur but refresh it. Add new native animals and Aboriginal artifacts. Retheme the theater as the Opera House. Etc.

Add kangaroos and koalas. Turn the plain quick service into a themed BBQ place. In place of Dinorama, add a family-friendly desert race motor coaster (with AA animals) through the Outback.

While Disney doesn’t have an Australian-themed franchise in its portfolio, an IP-less land is not out of the question as we’ve discussed. An Australia-inspired area would offer Disney a slew of educational opportunities, and surely an E-Ticket attraction or two.

Since Epcot doesn’t have an Australia pavilion, an Australian area at Animal Kingdom would offer something never before seen at any of the Walt Disney World parks.


7. Under the Sea

While Epcot features The Seas with Nemo & Friends, that doesn’t eliminate the possibility of an ocean-inspired land at Animal Kingdom.

Disney would have two successful IPs it could incorporate into the land: The Little Mermaid and Finding Nemo. Sure, Finding Nemo has its own ride at Epcot. Why not add another at Animal Kingdom?

And while this would be a cheap (and a little tacky) move, Disney could enclose Primeval Whirl and retheme it to the Finding Nemo character Crush — think Crush’s Coaster at Walt Disney Studios Park (part of Disneyland Paris).

Nearby SeaWorld would be the main competitor to a marine life-themed land at Animal Kingdom. But competition so close hasn’t stopped Disney before.


Probably Not Black Panther

Lastly, a few people suggested the idea of replacing DinoLand USA with a Black Panther-inspired land. At first glance, the sub-Saharan African setting of the fictional Wakanda country seems like it would blend seamlessly within Animal Kingdom. And a “Panther” is rightfully a member of the Animal Kingdom.

However, that’s really where the animal tie-in stops.

© Disney/Marvel

When the Theme Park Duo Podcast Twitter account asked the legendary (and recently retired) Disney Imagineer Joe Rohde for his thoughts on a Black Panther-inspired land at Animal Kingdom, his thoughts were similar to mine:

While Black Panther might not fit into the fabric of Animal Kingdom, it would make for a great attraction or land at another park. Our very own Shane Joseph helped design an incredible concept for a Black Panther-inspired ride as part of CoasterRadio.com’s Ride Design Contest. Perhaps this is a glimpse into the future of Black Panther’s permanent presence inside another Disney park.


With source material as expansive as the Animal Kingdom (and the mythical offshoots), the possibilities for the future of DinoLand USA are endless.

What ideas do you have for DinoLand USA’s future at Animal Kingdom? Share your ideas in the comments section below.

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