Are you ready to dream a fantastic dream again?! 

Disneyland

Fantasmic!, the nighttime spectacular at Disneyland Park that has been a park staple since 1992, is BACK after a lengthy refurbishment that began in April 2023,! Not only has it returned to the Rivers of America, but it’s also got some updated scenes, music, and effects!

April 2023 changed everything when Fantasmic!’s Maleficent dragon animatronic in the show’s finale caught fire and caused damage that forced Disney to rethink the show. It closed that month, and nearly a month later, on May 24th,2024, the show returned but not without a few changes. The Disneyland Resort invited us to experience these changes for a Fantasmic! media preview and we have A LOT to report! So on with the show!

Fantasmic! is back!

Before the show reopened, Disney revealed that Fantasmic! would be largely the same with improved special effects. We have to say the show looked great.

The new effects look great!

However, the company did promise some new music and new scenes, as well as the return of the Peter Pan ship sequence, replacing the Pirates of the Caribbean scene that had once replaced the aforementioned Peter Pan sequence. So now that we’ve seen the show, what’s it like? Take a look for yourself as Peter Pan and Captain Hook cross swords from high up!

Peter Pan sequence

The projections are looking better than ever.

Simba

The character floats also look gorgeous.

Rapunzel and Flynn Rider

Of course, it’s not a party without some Disney villain sequences. “Magic Mirror on the wall…”

Magic Mirror

Disney also detailed a change to the finale where Sorcerer Mickey fights off the evil Maleficent. The infamous dragon is now gone and replaced with new effects. Maleficent also soars high into the air.

Finale

There are still some fire effects, though.

Finale

If you’re looking to catch Fantasmic! in Disneyland, performances are held on most nights, but you’ll want to check the Disneyland app for times. Unlike Disney World, there is NO dedicated seating for the show, so if you want to get a good view, you’ll want to grab a spot early around Rivers of America. If you don’t want to stake out a spot early, you might want to consider a Fantasmic! dining package, which gets you a meal, as well as a reserved viewing area for the show.

We sorely missed Fantasmic! at Disneyland, so it’s incredibly exciting to see it back where it belongs. As always we’ll continue to keep you posted on Disney show news as well as all kinds of Disneyland updates, so stay tuned here at DFB to stay in the know!

Disney Just Dropped a MAJOR Clue About a NEW Character Meet and Greet!

Share some of your favorite (and not-so-favorite) Fantasmic! changes in the comments below!

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 the Disneyland Resort to attend their media preview of Fantasmic!. 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