Work has begun on the new carousel coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom as part of the Tropical Americas land. The carousel will go where The Boneyard used to be, part of the fictional Pueblo Esperanza village.
Tropical Americas Carousel

Aerial photos by @bioreconstruct on X show concrete forms have gone up for the carousel.
The concrete forms outline future walls or foundational elements. They are located near a pre-existing concrete structure that was part of The Boneyard. Steel is staged nearby, some pieces already standing vertically.

A hole in the ground next to an excavator is surrounded by orange safety netting. More safety netting is around the concrete forms.

Within the forms, dirt has been patted down flat, but concrete flooring has not been poured. On the left in the above photo is a sidewalk sandwiched between construction walls, which leads guests through the construction zone to DINOSAUR and Restaurantosaurus.

The above photo gives a wide view of the remains of DinoLand and the Tropical Americas construction zones. On the left is the carousel site, in front of Restaurantosaurus. On the right is the DINOSAUR show building. The ride and restaurant will close next year and DINOSAUR will become a new Indiana Jones ride.
At the top of the photo is the Encanto ride building under construction where Chester & Hester’s Dino-Rama used to be.
Pueblo Esperanza Carousel
Disney has not announced the names of any of the land’s new rides, but we do know the backstory of the carousel. It was created by a local woodcarver and features several Disney animal characters as the ride seats.
One character is Kevin from Up. This figure was revealed at D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event in 2024, soon after the Pueblo Esperanza announcement.
The Pueblo Esperanza model is now on display at Walt Disney Presents in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. The carousel is located near the land’s entrance archway. To the right is Restaurantosaurus, which will be transformed into a hacienda. At the back left is Casita, the façade of the new Encanto ride. In the back right is the temple façade of the Indiana Jones attraction.
Disney said Tropical Americas would also get a new playground to replace The Boneyard. The land will open in 2027.
What are you most excited to see or experience in the new land? Let us know in the comments.
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