Bob Iger and French President Emmanuel Macron have announced a 2.5 BILLION dollar expansion for the Disneyland Paris Resort.  It’s a big one folks . . . but is it enough?

The plan will be rolled out in phases beginning in 2021. We’ve been expecting something to be announced since Disney took over the operations and finances of DLP in June of last year.

The three major projects headed to the beleaguered Walt Disney Studios Park are Marvel, Frozen, and Star Wars themed lands. The Star Wars project should open in time for the 2024 Olympics in Paris. That’s sure to be a huge draw for the resort.

, 2.5 BILLION Expansion for Disneyland Paris – Star Wars, Frozen & Marvel to the Rescue
You can see the new Star Wars and Frozen lands at the back of the new lagoon. Speaking of the lagoon, it shows water fountains in a line . . . World of Color-ish show on the way?

Other developments are also expected with the expansion plan, but have not yet been defined. Disney Village will likely be rethemed and/or redeveloped and expanded, hotel developments are also likely as Disney continues to refine the themes and offer synergy tie-ins (like Cars, Marvel, or even Star Wars). A budget All-Stars style resort has long been planned and delayed and could also come with this plan. But the big question is what are they going to do for the Disneyland Park . . . beyond endless refurbishments?!

, 2.5 BILLION Expansion for Disneyland Paris – Star Wars, Frozen & Marvel to the Rescue
Marvel land had already been announced and is taking over the Rock n’Roller Coaster corner of the park with new Marvel themed overlays, rides and stunt show. Interestingly, there are NO PIPES on the Tower of Terror as many of us feared after the DCA Guardians overlay.  

After the calamitous opening of the Walt Disney Studios Park, something BIG has been sorely needed. Even with recent enhancements, the park remains the worst Disney park in the world. But the beautiful Parc Disneyland itself has not benefited from any major new attractions for more than 20 years.

, 2.5 BILLION Expansion for Disneyland Paris – Star Wars, Frozen & Marvel to the Rescue
Star Wars land is likely to be the biggest tourist draw . . . but look closely at the artwork and it doesn’t appear to be the same size and scope as the two American versions of the land. Rather than a Millennium Falcon in front of the main attraction building, there’s an X-Wing. This has us wondering if both attractions will be coming to Paris or only one . . . and which one at that?

But now that the Walt Disney Company has obtained full control of Disneyland Paris, it can no longer ignore the French destination as any failure is on their own neck. Will a 2.5 billion dollar investment be enough to catch up with nearly 20 years of stagnation and neglect? Star Wars, Marvel and Frozen (with a likely lagoon show) and some additional enhancements will no doubt go a very long way toward revitalizing the resort and making it a priority destination for many Europeans. But limitations in the scope of the plan are still less than what is currently being built and planned for the US parks.

, 2.5 BILLION Expansion for Disneyland Paris – Star Wars, Frozen & Marvel to the Rescue
The frozen land has a large mountain with Elsa’s ice castle on top. This is likely the show building for the ride, the village of Arendelle is at water’s edge with its castle to the right. But note the long walkway at bottom left which leads to the lagoon. While Toy Story Land is to the right, there’s essentially nothing to the left of the corridor except for some small structures (which are likely Outdoor Vending). Another large and mostly empty plot lies to the right of Arendelle and above Toy Story and Ratatouille.
, 2.5 BILLION Expansion for Disneyland Paris – Star Wars, Frozen & Marvel to the Rescue
This is more or less the layout for the new lands at the Studios park from what we can tell.

[clickToTweet tweet=”Major expansion for Walt Disney Studios Paris, but nothing confirmed for Disneyland Paris park. What would you like to see added? ” quote=”Major expansion for Walt Disney Studios Paris, but nothing confirmed for Disneyland Paris park. What would you like to see added? ” theme=”style3″]

Disneyland Paris Resort overview:

  • Pink: Disneyland Park
  • Blue: Walt Disney Studios Park
  • Red: Disney Village
  • Yellow: Disney Hotels
  • White: Potential Expansion Zone (Parks/Hotels/Village)

, 2.5 BILLION Expansion for Disneyland Paris – Star Wars, Frozen & Marvel to the Rescue

It’s mostly good news folks. After decades of lackluster additions, these three major projects are more than welcome. For that we can’t complain. But there are many questions still left unanswered and we are looking forward to seeing what else is coming to flesh out this plan for the entire resort.

[clickToTweet tweet=”Will the 2.5 billion dollar expansion of Disneyland Paris Resort be enough of a draw to bring the resort to profitability? ” quote=”Will the 2.5 billion dollar expansion of Disneyland Paris Resort be enough of a draw to bring the resort to profitability? ” theme=”style3″]

Merci de votre fidélité. A bientôt! See ya real soon!

Maxence Pinard – DLPwelcome 

& Dusty Sage

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Max
Maxence "Max" Pinard is a small shareholder of Disneyland Paris, and is the creator and reporter at DLP Welcome, which he founded in June 2009. Max has worked with MiceChat author and Disney and More Editor, Alain Littaye, since 2012 on many MiceChat articles. Max looks forward to continuing where Alain left off by bringing Micechat readers news and beautiful images from Disneyland Paris.