I never thought I’d be here. I’ve covered Disney parks for years, spent countless hours analyzing ride systems and Imagineering decisions, and somehow never made it to Disneyland Paris. But when Disney invited me to a small media preview of their €2 billion transformation of Walt Disney Studios into Disney Adventure World, I did something a little crazy. I booked a last-minute flight to France, hopped a train to Marne-la-Vallée, and walked into a park I’d only ever seen in other people’s YouTube videos.
I’m glad I did. Because what I found at Disney genuinely surprised me, and not just in the ways I expected.
Disney Adventure World Review — Video
I spent an entire day walking through the new expansion as part of a small media preview, riding the attractions, trying the food, and taking in the entertainment. This is a first-impressions review based on that experience.
The Current State of Walt Disney Studios
Before getting to the new stuff, a quick note on the existing park, because it matters for context. Walking into the current Walt Disney Studios feels like stepping into the theme park of your dreams. And I mean that literally.
If you know the US parks well, everything feels familiar but shifted. It’s like one of those dreams where you’re in your house, but suddenly there’s a pool in the living room.
Why is Tower of Terror right next to the Partners statue? Wait, Toy Story Land has a parachute ride? Crush speaks French?
The park’s World Premiere entrance plaza has signage and iconography that looks exactly like Hollywood Studios, but different. It’s disorienting in a way that’s honestly kind of fun as a US parks fan.
But I instantly understood why this park was in need of an identity overhaul. As I walked through it, it felt small, and it’s oddly laid out. Walt Disney Studios opened in 2002 as the second gate here at Disneyland Paris, and to say fans didn’t love it is an understatement. Disney has added to it over the years (Tower of Terror, Toy Story Land, Ratatouille, Avengers Campus) but it needed something dramatic.
That’s what the €2 billion expansion is supposed to be. So the real question walking in was: does this expansion actually reinvent the park, or does it just feel like another bolted-on addition to a Franken-park?
Why Adventure Way Matters More Than You Think
Here’s the thing that I think most coverage of Disney Adventure World is going to miss. Everyone is focused on World of Frozen. And World of Frozen is great (I’ll get to that). But Adventure Way and Adventure Bay are more important to the success of this park than any single land.
The moment you step into the new expansion, it’s a different park. Adventure Way is the main promenade that extends directly from the center of the existing park, and the first thing that stuck out to me is the scale. This feels big and impressive. You can instantly see World of Frozen from across Adventure Bay, and Imagineering is doing something here that they haven’t really done at the US parks in a long time.
At Galaxy’s Edge, Pandora, and Cars Land, there are these huge iconic skyline reveal moments, but they only happen once you’re deep inside the land. They’re kind of hidden from the rest of the park. Here, Arendelle’s silhouette is instantly recognizable as soon as you step onto Adventure Way, similar to the silhouettes of the pavilions at World Showcase, but on a bigger, grander scale.
And that World Showcase comparison runs deeper than just sightlines. Adventure Way has this elegant, refined, very European vibe that I wasn’t expecting. There’s a brand new 40-minute musical score recorded at Abbey Road Studios that plays as you walk, and it genuinely elevates the experience. Tony Baxter once called Disneyland Paris Park “the beautiful park.” Adventure Way has an elegance that feels like a great complement to Disneyland Park in a way that the rest of Walt Disney Studios never really achieved. That’s a big deal.
What Disney did with Adventure Way is they created a great stage. But it’s really up to them to fill it with reasons people will want to stay and hang out around Adventure Bay. It needs to be like World Showcase: a place where you want to wander around, eat and drink, and stumble upon shows that feel spontaneous. I got a taste of that at the preview, and what I saw is very promising.
My Adventure Way Adventures: Tangled, Cocktails, and a 7.5-Acre Lagoon
As soon as you enter Adventure Way, to the right there’s a Tangled area. It’s not a big immersive themed land, but the color scheme shifts from jewel-toned greens to Rapunzel purples, subtly signaling the IP while fitting the feel of the broader area. The ride here is Raiponce Tangled Spin, which is basically Tangled Teacups. And look, I don’t like spinners. But I went on it. For science. For research. For Rapunzel.
I was pleasantly surprised. It helps that nobody in my gondola was aggressively spinning the wheel, but the artwork on the ceiling and the lantern lighting make this a genuinely well-executed flat ride. My recommendation: go on it at night, because it’s beautiful. Having good flat rides can really round out a park’s offerings, and I hope Disney continues this mini-land concept as they build out the bigger immersive lands around the lagoon.
There are walkways and alcoves for entertainment along Adventure Way, including a gazebo garden with a lovely Rapunzel and Flynn Rider show with live musicians. I saw a drum corps, a traditional French mime, and a Minnie Mouse marching band (which absolutely rips). Other members of the media told me they saw Peter Pan and Wendy walking around, and Disney has announced a new Princess Cavalcade coming to Adventure Way. That’s a good sign.
For dining, the big anchor is the Regal View Restaurant, which has princess dining (I didn’t get in), and the Regal View Lounge, which is Disneyland Paris’s first dedicated bar and lounge space. Whoever named this restaurant did a great job, because the decor is regal and the view of the lagoon is excellent. There’s a beautiful Sleeping Beauty mosaic, the whole space feels grown up and refined, and the grapefruit tequila cocktail I tried was excellent. Very tart, citrusy, but not too sweet.
This lounge is a win for grownups.
Adventure Bay itself, the lagoon, is 7.5 acres. That’s not nearly as big as World Showcase Lagoon’s 38 acres, but that size difference is actually a strength. It’s really easy to get from one side to the other. I love this type of layout for a park (multiple lands surrounding a lagoon), and we have two of those in Orlando already. I’m happy to see a third one here in France.
Right now, the stretch where the future Lion King land is being constructed does feel like a walkway with not much to do compared to the rest of Adventure Way. I think that’ll naturally be fixed once the Lion King land opens, but it’s noticeable today.
World of Frozen is Beautiful (With One Nitpick)
The land is beautiful. Full stop. The layout of the park gives you this bridge overlooking a fjord just in front of the castle, and I spent a lot of time on that bridge just soaking in the views. The rockwork and forced perspective of the Ice Palace really work and give the land an impressive feel while you’re inside it.
In terms of scope, this isn’t on the level of Galaxy’s Edge or Pandora. It feels much more like a World Showcase pavilion, but plussed up.
I mean that as a compliment, but also it introduces my one nitpick. World of Frozen has a very straightforward layout: a central walkway with the attraction, shops, the Anna and Elsa meet and greet, and the restaurant all really close to each other. On one hand, everything is really easy to find. On the other hand, it doesn’t really instill a sense of exploration, which is one of my favorite things a themed area can do.
At World of Frozen, what you see is what you get. But what you see is really good.
The walk-around characters here are fantastic. There’s Oaken, who will “yoo-hoo” with you, which I absolutely did. And then there’s what I think is the land’s sneaky star: Mossie, a bilingual troll who is just so adorable. I am now a true Mossiey fan. Disney needs to lean into these roaming characters and keep adding more. That’s what makes the land feel alive.
Frozen Ever After Brings the Heat
I have to be honest. I was not excited to ride Frozen Ever After here. I like the EPCOT version, but it’s a ride I’ve done many times over the past 10 years. It’s a ride I like, but I don’t love. It’s one where I’ll ride it if I have a Lightning Lane or the wait is short, but otherwise I skip it.
I was so wrong about the Paris version, and this was one of the best surprises of the trip.
It has the same beats, the same scenes, but the rooms are bigger, the scenery is brighter, the effects are fresher. The trolls look fantastic. Even the drop feels swifter and more thrilling. A lot of people at the preview were talking about the drop. I was recording with both hands like a lunatic and I bounced up in my seat. It was zippier and really fun. The attraction is also bilingual, and hearing Olaf speak French is kind of hilarious.
I left the ride wanting to go on it again. I went on it twice during a very packed preview and I wanted to go on it a third time. If the ride is a B at EPCOT, it’s an A here. The changes are that significant.
Olaf Melted My Mind (and a Show I Saw Three Times)
Another big surprise was A Celebration in Arendelle, the land’s main show that takes place on the small bay in front of the castle. Performers on three boats: villagers on one, Kristoff and Olaf on another, and Anna and Elsa arrive later. I had pretty neutral expectations for this.
This show is a delight. There’s charming original music (including new compositions by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, who wrote the original Frozen songs), some riffs on Frozen classics, and it’s surprisingly impressive in scale. The boats have great designs and move really dynamically, and there are fountains and pyrotechnics.
I saw this show three times during the preview. Partly because I was charmed by it. But mostly because the star of the show is the new free-roaming Olaf robotic character, who not only is voiced by Josh Gad, but can walk and balance and perform all on a moving boat.
Are you kidding me? This melted my mind.
Even from across the bay, Olaf looks like he stepped out of the movies.
But then I got to see him up close. And he is one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen in a theme park.He’s so expressive, so true to character. The way he dances, the way he shuffles his little feet as he walks. That’s not an efficient way for a robot to walk, and it’s a true feat of engineering. They didn’t compromise here. Even me, as someone who analyzes this technology and reads Disney’s research papers, the technology just melted away, and then there’s just the character standing in front of you.
I also somehow resisted the urge to stuff Olaf in my carry-on, which is a win for impulse control.
Disney told me this is still a preview of Olaf and they’re still working on the final guest experience. It seems like the plan for now is that Olaf will appear in the show. But either in the show or up close, Olaf is a reason to visit this park. He’s just that impressive.
The Food Situation (Honest Take)
I had dinner at Nordic Crowns Tavern, the quick service restaurant in World of Frozen. The theming is well done, but the food is fine. Fine with a capital F. I had salmon and crushed potatoes. Nothing to write home about, and honestly, dinner was probably the least impressive thing I experienced all day.
There was one bright spot though. A blue citrusy ice cream in a waffle bowl with crunchy sprinkles. This was truly delicious, like a Dole Whip but more tart.
World of Frozen at Night (and Why You Should Stay Late)
Walking out of that restaurant after sunset, though? World of Frozen shines at night. Disney’s so great with their nighttime lighting packages, and this is no exception. The snowflake fountain has new effects. The castle, the Ice Palace, it all shimmers and glows. And you can see it lit up from pretty much anywhere in the new part of the park.
The rest of Adventure Way is beautifully lit too. The trees glow. It’s such a great space to walk around, especially near the Tangled area. It gives me that EPCOT-at-night feeling, but different and distinct.
Disney Cascade of Lights: A Worthy Nighttime Spectacular
And then there’s the grand finale. Disney Cascade of Lights is the park’s new nighttime spectacular on Adventure Bay, and it’s kind of a mashup of Luminous and World of Color and Disney’s drone shows. There are fountains, projections, fire, fireworks, spotlights, drones in the sky, and drones in the water (a new innovation). The water drones glow and even shoot pyrotechnics, which is wild.
All of those elements dance choreographed to a soundtrack covering everything from Avengers to Zootopia. I even started crying during the Hercules section. “I Can Go the Distance” still hits. (Don’t judge me.)
I think it’s a really, really strong show. I do have one nitpick: the projected animations on the water screens are a bit too static compared to the incredible drone and pyro work happening around them. But that’s the easiest element Disney can update, and it’s a relatively minor note on an otherwise phenomenal show.
This is Disney Adventure World’s World of Color moment. A reason you want to go to this park and stay until the end of the day. There’s no other show quite like it, and paired with Disneyland Park’s Tales of Magic, Disneyland Paris now has two must-see nighttime spectaculars.
The Verdict: Disney Pulled This Off
I went into this preview most curious about what this park would feel like. Does this expansion really reinvent the park? Or would it just feel like another bolted-on addition?
The quality here is real. World of Frozen is great. Frozen Ever After brings the heat. The Olaf animatronic is a true innovation. The theming, the detail, the entertainment, it all hits. The Frozen food? It didn’t hit for me, but hopefully that improves.
Adventure Way and Adventure Bay are one of the most beautiful areas Disney has created, and they really distinguish this park. But this area will thrive or struggle depending on the strength of the entertainment and dining options available. What Disney built is a great stage. Now they need to keep filling it.
The best compliment I can give: Disney Adventure World has that new theme park feel. For a park that was in desperate need of an identity shift, that is a huge deal. Disney pulled it off and justified the new name. This is just Act 1. A Lion King land, an Up attraction, and more are all coming. But even as it stands today, the transformation is real and it’s impressive.
Should You Extend Your Disneyland Paris Trip?
Based on what I experienced, Disney Adventure World now justifies a full day at the park. Before this expansion, a lot of visitors treated Walt Disney Studios as a half-day park. That’s no longer the case. Between World of Frozen, the entertainment on Adventure Way, the Regal View Lounge, and Cascade of Lights, there’s enough here to fill an entire day.
A one-day park hopper between both Disneyland Park and Disney Adventure World is still doable, but it would feel tight now with so much to see. I’d recommend at minimum two full park days if you’re visiting Disneyland Paris after March 29, one for each park, so you can experience both Cascade of Lights and Tales of Magic. Both of those nighttime shows are must-sees, and you can only watch one per night.
Quick Reference:
- Opening Date: March 29, 2026
- Investment: €2 billion expansion
- New Lands: World of Frozen, Adventure Way, Adventure Bay
- Key Attractions: Frozen Ever After (upgraded), Raiponce Tangled Spin, A Celebration in Arendelle show, Disney Cascade of Lights nighttime spectacular
- Dining: 15 new dining locations including Nordic Crowns Tavern (QS), Regal View Restaurant (princess dining), Regal View Lounge (first park bar at DLP)
- Don’t Miss: Free-roaming Olaf animatronic, Frozen Ever After (significantly better than the EPCOT version), Cascade of Lights at night
- Skip: The savory food at Nordic Crowns Tavern (get the ice cream instead)
- Still to Come: Lion King land with water ride, Up swing ride
- One-Sentence Verdict: Disney Adventure World successfully redefines the park’s identity with a beautiful new expansion anchored by World of Frozen and the stunning Adventure Way promenade.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does Disney Adventure World open?
World of Frozen and the main expansion open on March 29, 2026. This is when Walt Disney Studios Park officially becomes Disney Adventure World. Not all 15 dining locations will necessarily be available on opening day, as Disney has noted they’ll open gradually.
Is Disney Adventure World worth visiting if I’ve been to EPCOT’s Frozen Ever After?
Absolutely. The Paris version of Frozen Ever After is a significant upgrade over the EPCOT original, with bigger rooms, brighter scenery, fresher effects, and a more thrilling drop. But there’s much more to World of Frozen than just the ride.
And World of Frozen is just one part of the expansion. Adventure Way, the entertainment, and Cascade of Lights add a full day’s worth of new experiences.
How long do I need at Disney Adventure World?
I’d plan a full day. Before this expansion, Walt Disney Studios was widely considered a half-day park. With World of Frozen, Adventure Way, the new entertainment, dining, and Cascade of Lights as the nighttime closer, there’s now enough to fill an entire day. A park hopper is doable but will feel tight.
Is the free-roaming Olaf available to meet?
Disney indicated during the media preview that the Olaf robotic character is still being finalized and they’re working on what the final guest experience will look like. You can see Olaf perform during A Celebration in Arendelle and potentially up close, but the specifics may evolve after opening day.
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What are you most excited to experience at Disney Adventure World? The upgraded Frozen Ever After, the free-roaming Olaf, or something else entirely? Let me know in the comments!
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