Carousel of Progress Fans Capture Close-Up, Walkaround Footage Before Attraction's Closure

Following the closure of Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress for a major reimagining, superfans shared close-up footage of the Magic Kingdom attraction they captured when they were able to walk around the theater.

Rare Carousel of Progress Footage

The first “walkaround” video shared by the YouTube channel Carousel Club was filmed on the morning of March 9, 2022 (before cosmetic updates to the finale), but not shared until July 6, 2026 — the day after the ride closed. This particular footage was captured by fan TJ, while fellow Carousel Club members filmed other videos they will presumably share later.

The group was able to capture this footage by securing an otherwise empty Carousel of Progress theater immediately after the park opened or during evening fireworks.

When given permission from the ride’s Cast Members, they walked around in front of the stage and used extensions to get their phones close to the animatronics and scenery. They did not climb onto the stage but did manage to get their phones between the scrims and curtains of the turntables, offering rare unobstructed views of the scenes. It should be noted they did sit down when the theater was moving.

“All this while being careful not to accidentally trip the infrared intrusion sensors lining the front of the stage,” TJ wrote in the video description. “There were however several instances throughout doing these where my shirt did brush across the lip of the stage as I was leaning over causing this to happen.”

This version of Carousel of Progress has been running at the Magic Kingdom since 1994. The ride’s finale has changed several times, but the other scenes only saw minor updates since its 1964 opening at the New York World’s Fair. They were set in the early 1900s, 1920s, and 1940s.

The reimagined ride will now have scenes set in 1969, 1985, and 1999, followed by the Possible Future. A new introduction inspired by the 1964 special “Disneyland Goes to the World’s Fair” will feature a Walt Disney Audio-Animatronic.

The final performance of the 1994 Carousel of Progress was on July 5, 2026. Construction walls went up the next day and the PeopleMover narration changed.

Check out our last look at Carousel of Progress and watch the final show below.