Disney World planned for May 26, 2026, to feel like a celebration across the entire resort. New attractions, updated entertainment, and long-awaited projects are finally opening to all guests today after weeks of previews and limited access. But right before the crowds arrived, several major attractions across Walt Disney World experienced extended downtime, raising concerns about how smoothly the parks would actually operate on one of the busiest kickoff days of the summer.
The timing could hardly be worse for Disney. Thousands of guests are entering the parks specifically to experience these new offerings, and many visitors have already dealt with frustrating ride closures just hours before the big launch day officially began.
Disney’s Summer Launch Day Finally Arrives
After months of announcements and weeks of testing, Disney is officially rolling out several major additions resort-wide today.
At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets officially opens to all guests. The attraction retheme replaces Aerosmith with Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, giving one of Disney’s most intense coasters an entirely new identity. Guests no longer need previews or special access to ride.
Hollywood Studios is also welcoming guests into the new Walt Disney Studios courtyard area, while Disney Jr. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Live! officially begins performances for the general public as well.
Meanwhile, over at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Bluey’s Wild World officially opens after several rounds of previews and virtual queue testing. Disney clearly expects enormous demand for the new experience, especially among families visiting during summer vacation.
That is what made yesterday’s downtime situation stand out so much. Disney is entering one of its biggest operational days of the year, while several attractions across multiple parks are already struggling to stay online consistently.
Haunted Mansion’s Closure Raised Concerns
One of the most noticeable issues that happened yesterday was at Magic Kingdom.
Haunted Mansion remained unavailable for roughly the first five hours of the day. Guests arriving in the morning quickly realized that one of the park’s most popular attractions was completely offline for a significant portion of operating hours.
That immediately caught attention because this is not the first recent issue involving the attraction. Haunted Mansion already experienced another strange shutdown not long ago, when the ride repeatedly closed for nearly two days.
Disney never publicly explained exactly what caused those interruptions, which has now led some guests to question whether the attraction may be dealing with reliability concerns behind the scenes.
That matters even more during peak periods. Haunted Mansion helps absorb large numbers of guests throughout the day, especially in Liberty Square and Frontierland. If the attraction experiences another extended shutdown today, congestion in nearby areas could build quickly.
Unfortunately, Haunted Mansion was not the only Magic Kingdom attraction dealing with problems.
Big Thunder Mountain Keeps Going Down
Yesterday morning, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was also listed as temporarily closed.
The attraction has experienced multiple interruptions since officially reopening on May 3 after an extended refurbishment that lasted around 16 months. Expectations were extremely high once Disney finally welcomed guests back onto the coaster, but operations have not been entirely smooth.
The biggest issue occurred on May 23, when Big Thunder Mountain suffered what many online fans described as an “all-out meltdown.” The attraction remained unavailable for most of the day, creating crowd backups around Frontierland and disrupting Lightning Lane plans for many guests.
Seeing the attraction temporarily closed again yesterday only added to guest frustration.
Big Thunder Mountain plays a major role in crowd distribution at Magic Kingdom. When it goes offline, guests naturally move toward nearby attractions like Pirates of the Caribbean, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, and Jungle Cruise, which increases waits on that side of the park.
Animal Kingdom Faced Its Own Problems
Over at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Kali River Rapids also remained down for approximately the first five hours of the park day yesterday.
That creates a difficult situation for Animal Kingdom, as the park is already operating with reduced attraction capacity due to the ongoing Tropical Americas construction project. Large portions of the former DinoLand U.S.A. area remain unavailable, making every operational attraction more important than usual.
When Kali River Rapids stayed offline, guests shifted toward the park’s other major attractions instead.
Once the water ride finally reopened, demand exploded almost immediately. At one point in the afternoon, the attraction reached a 90-minute wait.
That kind of wait time shows how badly guests wanted another major attraction available inside the park.
Disney Needs Attractions Running Smoothly Today
With so many new experiences debuting today, Disney will need to maintain consistent operations across all four parks.
Many guests planned vacations specifically around opening day for Bluey’s Wild World, the Muppets coaster retheme, or the new additions to Hollywood Studios. If those experiences encounter major downtime today, frustration could rise very quickly.
For now, guests are hoping yesterday’s attraction issues were simply bad timing rather than a sign of larger operational problems ahead. Because summer crowds are now pouring into Walt Disney World, Disney needs as much ride capacity as possible.
