The Disney Adventure World expansion: the big picture explained

Disney Adventure World is simply the new name of the 2nd park at Disneyland Paris. It used to be called Walt Disney Studios Park. The name was launched on 29 March 2026.

Behind this change of name is a major building project. Disneyland Paris is transforming and expanding this park, in a project estimated at around €2 billion. The aim: to let visitors live big Disney stories, rather than the old film studio backlot.

In this article, I give you the big picture: why the park is being expanded, the timeline of each stage, what’s already open, what’s still to come and the answer to the question I hear most often (no, it isn’t a 3rd park).

Walt Disney Studios Park opened in 2002, ten years after Disneyland Park (1992). It was smaller and themed around the behind-the-scenes world of film. Many visitors found it a bit short to visit.

So Disney launched a major plan to transform it. The idea: add new, complete areas, increase the size of the park and change its overall feel. The park is moving from film studio sets to real adventures in big Disney stories, such as Marvel, Pixar or Frozen.

It was as part of this plan that the park took its new name on 29 March 2026: Disney Adventure World.

Here are the main stages of the expansion and what’s new at Disneyland Paris in 2026, from oldest to most recent. I only give a year when it’s confirmed. For the rest, I stay cautious: until a date is official, I list it as planned.

A land is a part of the park with its own theme, rides, shops and restaurants. Some areas already existed (such as Worlds of Pixar), others are brand new. Here are the areas of Disney Adventure World, in one or two sentences each. For all the details (rides, restaurants, tips), see the page for each land.

What’s already open

Avengers Campus: the Marvel area, open since summer 2022. Rides and restaurants to explore on the Avengers Campus page.

Worlds of Pixar: an existing area, now part of the new park. Find out more on the Worlds of Pixar page.

World Premiere: the park’s new entrance, replacing the former Studio 1. Details on the World Premiere page.

Adventure Way: the wide central walkway that links the areas and leads to the Adventure Bay lake. All the details on the Adventure Way page.

World of Frozen: the land themed around Frozen, open since 29 March 2026. It’s all on the World of Frozen page.

What’s been announced

The Lion King land: a new area themed around the film, announced by Disney. At the time of writing, no official opening date has been given. Keep an eye on the The Lion King land page.

Other new additions have been mentioned for the next phases of the project. Until they’re officially confirmed, I prefer to stay cautious and not announce a date.

No. Disney Adventure World isn’t a 3rd park. It’s the 2nd park, formerly Walt Disney Studios Park, that is being transformed and expanded. So there are still two parks at Disneyland Paris: Disneyland Park and Disney Adventure World.

The confusion comes from how big the change is. But you don’t pay for a new ticket for a third park: Disney Adventure World is one of the two existing parks.

If you can’t decide between the two parks for your visit, I compare everything in detail in my guide to choosing between Disneyland Park and Disney Adventure World.

To see how Disneyland Paris compares with other Disney destinations, have a look at Disney parks around the world.

And for details of each area, open the page of the land you’re interested in from the section above.