BREAKING: NEW Experience Announced for Disney World!

Get your autograph books and cameras ready: Disney World will be adding some new characters to the parks soon!

Animal Kingdom

Mirabel will soon greet guests in Magic Kingdom, and we’ve got an update on the Figment meet-and-greet, but we’ve got some news for Disney’s Animal Kingdom too!

Disney has announced that Moana will be coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom! According to Disney, “just in time” for Animal Kingdom’s 25th Anniversary, they will be “presenting Moana” along the Discovery River.

©Disney

Specifically, this Moana greeting will start on April 22nd!

Disney said they’ll be “presenting” Moana along the Discovery River. While Disney’s image seems to present Moana standing on the ground in front of the Tree of Life, this language could mean that Moana will be appearing via some kind of flotilla. Another Disney release, however, indicates that Moana will “greet fellow voyagers on Discovery Island” and Scott Gustin (via Twitter) has indicated that it will be a meet-and-greet so perhaps that was just some unique language chosen by Disney during the initial media presentation.

Hi Moana!

We’ve seen Moana at Disney World a few times before for special events and in the Adventure Friends Cavalcade, but now it sounds like she’ll be setting up more of a regular residence in Animal Kingdom (at least for a period of time).

Moana in Hollywood Studios for Disney Plus Day

We can’t wait to say “hi” to Moana again once she makes her debut in Animal Kingdom. Stay tuned to our site for more Disney World updates.

Where to Find All the Disney Character Meet-and-Greets in Walt Disney World

Join the DFB Newsletter to get all the breaking news right in your inbox! Click here to Subscribe!

WE KNOW DISNEY.
YOU CAN, TOO.

Oh boy, planning a Disney trip can be quite the adventure, and we totally get it! But fear not, dear friends, we compiled EVERYTHING you need (and the things to avoid!) to plan the ULTIMATE Disney vacation.

Whether you're a rookie or a seasoned pro, our insider tips and tricks will have you exploring the parks like never before. So come along with us, and get planning your most magical vacation ever!

Save 25% on the 2023 DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining with code WDW2023.

Comment below an underrated character you wish you could meet in the parks!

Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. Today, we were invited by Disney World to attend their media event “All The Disney Thrills.” Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ