Foundational work on the new Encanto ride at Disney’s Animal Kingdom has progressed, as shown in new aerial photos by @bioreconstruct on X.
Tropical Americas Construction
Bio snapped pictures of various DinoLand, U.S.A. remnants as the area is slowly turned into a new Tropical Americas land. The buildings that were formerly Chester & Hester’s Dinosaur Treasures will be rethemed. Billboards and signs were removed from the exteriors, but the buildings are otherwise unchanged.
Also to be rethemed are the buildings of Restaurantosaurus, which remains open, although the adjacent Dino-Bite Snacks did close. Bio’s photo provides a good look at just how big the eatery is. It will be converted into a brand-new quick-service restaurant.
In front of Restaurantosaurus is the empty plot of land that once held part of The Boneyard. This is the future site of a wood-carved carousel featuring various Disney animal characters. The carousel will be part of Pueblo Esperanza, a fictional village.
There’s a large trench with posts in the ground at the edge of the carousel construction zone. A small red building visible in the distance is the closed Trilo-Bites kiosk. Construction walls line a pathway cutting through the two construction zones from the entrances of DinoLand to the remaining Restaurantosaurus and DINOSAUR attraction.
On the other side of the pathway is the future Encanto ride, which takes over part of Chester & Hester’s Dino-Rama and former backstage space. Since the last aerial update, more concrete walls have gone up around paved sections of flooring. Some of these walls have black sheathing. There are piles of steel beams and sheets.
A large square structure is near the front of the construction site, closer to the rest of DinoLand. A rectangle of concrete is closer to backstage. But all of these concrete elements appear to be part of the same building.
The above photo shows how close to the water behind Disney’s Animal Kingdom the construction zone gets. In the foreground is Discovery River with amphitheater seating. The large building on the left is the theater for Finding Nemo: The Big Blue… and Beyond! Though the show is technically part of DinoLand, it will be unaffected by the re-theming.
DINOSAUR and Restaurantosaurus will close permanently in February 2026 — the last phase of the DinoLand closure.
Also check out recent aerial updates the Monsters, Inc. land and Magic Kingdom expansion.
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