Disneyland Ride Refurbishments and Closures- 2023

When you’re heading to the Disneyland Resort for your vacation, you might be wondering what attractions will be open and which attractions might be closed for refurbishments. Disneyland ride refurbishments are just part of life when you’re visiting the happiest place on earth. You’d hate to show up and find out that your favorite ride is closed! I’ve got a full list of Disneyland ride refurbishments and closures that I keep updated. I think you’ll find this list helpful on your next visit to the Disneyland theme park!

Disneyland does not release its Disneyland ride refurbishments calendar very far in advance. So, there’s really no way of planning your Disneyland park vacation around the Disneyland ride refurbishments. Usually, we have information on attraction refurbishments and closures about 4-6 weeks in advance. That being said, there are some patterns to when Disneyland usually closes certain rides for refurbishments and holiday overlays.

This post will give you all the up-to-date Disneyland ride refurbishments and information. Make sure you bookmark this page and check back often as things change quickly! I’ll also share information about the best time to visit Disneyland, discount ticket/hotel info, and other helpful information that will help you with your Disneyland vacation planning.

Showing up to Disneyland and finding out that your favorite attraction is closed for refurbishment is the worst! It’s so disappointing. I keep this list of Disneyland ride refurbishments and closures up to date so that you always know what to expect. It’s a good idea to bookmark this page and check back often so that you know what’s going on at Disneyland during your vacation. I think it’s better to find out about ride closures before you show up at the parks. That way you can adjust your schedule and expectations before you show up all geared up to ride something that might not be open.

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Why Does Disneyland Close The Rides?

There are a few reasons that Disneyland closes rides. The main reason is routine maintenance. Disneyland attractions can run up to 17 hours per day or even more! That’s a lot of wear and tear on an attraction. Just like your car needs regular maintenance and care to keep it running well and prevent minor problems from turning into major problems, rides at Disneyland are the same. They need some downtime occasionally to keep everything running smoothly.

Sometimes, Disneyland will close down a ride for refurbishments so they can keep things running smoothly. Sometimes attractions are closed for just a few days and other times they are closed for a couple of months or even longer. The amount of time that the attraction is closed is determined by what kind and how much maintenance is needed for that select attraction. Disneyland does release its ride refurbishment schedule about 6 weeks ahead of time. Which does make it hard to make plans if you’re wanting to make sure your favorite attraction is open for a specific date.

Luckily, there are some seasonal closures and some patterns that Disneyland follows with their ride refurbishments that can take some of the guesswork out of planning your Disneyland vacation around ride closures.

Seasonal Ride Closures

Disneyland ride refurbishments often happen with the seasons. It’s pretty common for water rides like Splash Mountain and Grizzly River Run to be closed for maintenance at some point during the winter. Since those rides aren’t as popular in the winter months when it’s colder, it’s the ideal time for them to be closed for maintenance.

January(after the holidays) and February are often referred to as the “refurb months” at Disneyland. This is because there are always a few temporary closures during these months. Because these months are technically in the “off-season” the parks are a little less crowded. So, when Disneyland ride refurbishments at scheduled during the first two months of the year, they affect fewer guests.

If you’re visiting during the early part of the year, you can expect lower crowds(good news!), but more rides will be closed for Disneyland refurbishments. It’s a tradeoff. If you visit during the summer or a busier time of year, you can expect higher crowds, but most rides will be up and running.

Holiday Overlay Closures

There are a few attractions that close consistently every year for a holiday overlay. We expect these closures because they happen every single year. So, it’s pretty easy to plan around them. If one of these attractions is on your “Best Ride Ever” list, you might want to plan your dates around these expected Halloween and Holiday seasonal closures. You can find my full guide to Disneyland during the Holidays here and my guide to Disneyland during Halloween Time here.

“it’s a small world”

Every year, “it’s a small world” closes towards the end of October so it can get dressed up for the Holidays! It will reopen in early November at the beginning of the holidays. It will close again for about a week after the holidays in mid-January to remove the Holiday overlay. Exact dates are always announced as the dates get closer.

Haunted Mansion

At the end of August the Haunted Mansion will close down for its transformation into Haunted Mansion Holiday. Haunted Mansion Holiday will open at the beginning of September with the kick-off of Halloween time. Haunted Mansion Holiday will close from mid-January until the end of January to remove the Holiday overlay. Exact dates are announced as the dates get closer.

Redwood Creek Challenge Trail

Redwood Creek Challenge Trail closes for a couple of weeks in August so that it can get its Halloween overlay. During Halloween time Redwood Creek Challenge Trail turns into Villains Grove during the Oogie Boogie Bash Special Events. It will be open during the day and look just like the normal Redwood Creek Challenge Trail, but on Oogie Boogie Bash nights it will become Villains Grove! This attraction is closed at the beginning of November for about 2 weeks to remove the Holiday overlay. Exact closure dates are announced as the dates get closer.

Current Disneyland Ride Refurbishments

Here’s a list of the current Disneyland ride refurbishments with a handy graphic. I update this list every single month so that it’s current. You can also check the Disneyland app or the Disneyland website for the current list of Disneyland ride refurbishments and closures.

Disneyland Park:

Disneyland Monorail: Closed. Reopens: TBD

July 24th: Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride Closes. Reopens: August 11th.

August 14th: Haunted Mansion Closes: Reopens: September 1st.

August 21st: Dumbo Closes: Reopens: August 22nd

Tarzan’s Treehouse: Closed for retheming. Reopens: TBD

Splash Mountain: Closed for retheming. Reopens: Late 2024

Disneyland California Adventure Park

Toy Story Midway Mania: Closed. Reopens: August 18th.

July 31st: Redwood Creek Challenge Trail Closes. Reopens: August 15th.

August 18th: Radiator Springs Racers Closes. Reopens: August 27th.

August 21st: Animation Academy Closes. Reopens: TBD

August 21st: Sorcerer’s Workshop Closes. Reopens: TBD

August 28th: Golden Zephyr Closes. Reopens: TBD

Splash Mountain Closure and Retheming

Disney announced in 2020 that Splash Mountain will be closing soon at Disneyland and at DisneyWorld and would be rethemed with a Princess and the Frog theme! Currently, Disneyland has not announced an official date that Splash Mountain will be closing. However, we do know that the reimagined attraction will open up in late 2024 as Tiana’s Bayou Adventure! Here’s some information from the Disney Parks Blog:

Guests are in for a true treat with local flavor when Tiana’s Bayou Adventure opens in late 2024. As Charita Carter shared, “in many ways, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is a love letter to New Orleans. Like the musical city that inspired this attraction, Tiana’s second act is about a community working in harmony to achieve something extraordinary. She reminds us of an immutable truth we can all relate to: ‘if you do your best each and every day, good things are sure to come your way.’ And that’s a melody we can all sing along to!” 

To be able to join New Orleans in the celebration of Black joy as we bring Tiana’s story to its roots is a full-circle moment I’m so proud to realize. Ted Robledo added that “the joie de vivre that animates this region so brilliantly not only inspired Tiana’s journey, but also our team at Walt Disney Imagineering.” It’s our intention to do that jubilant spirit justice when advancing the storyline of Princess Tiana at our parks.

Disney Parks Blog

A retheming of this size is sure to take quite a bit of time. I expect that the attraction will be closed for at least one year.

Disneyland Planning Help

I’ve got bunches of information on planning a Disneyland trip that will be so helpful for you! Start with my complete guide to visiting Disneyland. It’s a step-by-step guide for planning your vacation that will be helpful. Check out my top 10 Disneyland tips and my guide to when to visit Disneyland to help you pick the best time for your vacation! I’ve also got a post on rope dropping at Disneyland that’s very helpful.

Make sure you check out my downloadable touring plans if you’d like a step-by-step guide to the parks! 

Before you visit, you’re going to want to check out my post on Lightning Lane Multi Pass at Disneyland! This new system works really well if you know how to use it. Read my post that’s filled with tips and awesome information to help you use Lightning Lane Multi Pass at Disneyland like a pro!

I have a planning phone call that’s super popular! In this phone call, I can answer all of your Disneyland vacation questions and give you lots of tips and info tailored just to you and your group!

I hope this guide to Disneyland Ride Refurbishments and closures was helpful to you! Make sure you bookmark this page so you can check back often to see what’s going on with Disneyland ride refurbishments and closures! It’s so disappointing to show up to Disneyland to find out that one of the major rides like Matterhorn Bobsleds, Space Mountain, or Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is closed for maintenance! So, keep an eye on this page so that if something does end up being closed at least you have a little warning and can emotionally prepare yourself and your kids if one of your favorites happens to be closed.

Even if one of your favorite attractions does end up being closed for your visit, I know that you’re still going to have a great time! Disneyland has so much to offer. Between their amazing attractions and their exciting entertainment, there’s so much to do! So, don’t let something like some attraction closures get you down.

Make sure to check out my podcast for lots of Disney planning information! You can find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Just search for “Mix In Some Magic” Follow me on Instagram for more Disney tips and lots of Disney tips and fun!