Crews continue to add to the Encanto ride building at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. The brand-new attraction is under construction on the former site of Chester & Hester’s Dino-Rama in DinoLand U.S.A. The area will become a Tropical Americas land.
Encanto Ride Construction
Eventually, the Encanto ride will have a Casita façade. But for now, it’s just a grid of reddish-brown steel. The structure is already taller than the former Chester & Hester’s Dinosaur Treasures buildings, which will be re-themed and reused for the new land.
The structure now forms an L shape with the pieces added since our last update. A giant crane is on site to move pieces into place. On the left, a small construction vehicle is visible alongside a large pile of dirt and a temporary backstage building.
More Tropical Americas Construction
We also checked on construction at the old site of The Boneyard. The play area was completely demolished. This space will become Pueblo Esperanza, a fictional village with a carousel and a new playground. A large concrete pylon is on site among dirt piles, which has been there for several days now.
Crew members were working towards the back of the site, around temporary yellow safety fencing.
We also saw some electrical work underway behind scrims near the theater for Finding Nemo: The Big Blue… and Beyond! Though the show is technically part of DinoLand, it will be unaffected by construction.
DINOSAUR and Restaurantosaurus are the last remaining DinoLand offerings. Both will close in February 2026. DINOSAUR will become an Indiana Jones attraction. Tropical Americas is set to open in 2027.
Encanto co-director Jared Bush recently confirmed the original cast is returning to voice their characters for the ride.
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