Update, February, 12, 2018:

Disney shared updates about Pixar Pier and PixarFest at D23 Expo Japan on Sunday. They released concept art for the Pixar Pier entrance (above) and announced it will open at Disney California Adventure on June 13. In addition to the neighborhood information we already knew, they confirmed the Inside Out neighborhood will be getting a themed attraction at a later date. And they also mentioned the midway games “will also be inspired by Pixar characters, including favorites from A Bug’s Life, La Luna, and WALL·E.”

As for Pixar Fest at Disneyland Resort, the celebration that kicks off on April 13 will include new fireworks called “Together Forever – A Pixar Nighttime Spectacular.” And the new float was announced for the beloved Paint the Night parade: it’s Incredibles-themed! Concept art for the spectacular float featuring the Parr family and Frozone is above.

Original post:

Disney’s California Adventure theme park is about to get a bit of a major make-over for 2018, as announced on the Disney Park Blog (via Slashfilm). The former Paradise Pier area, which contains popular rides like roller coaster California Screamin’, all set in a turn-of-the-century boardwalk-type locale, is going to be re-themed as Pixar Pier. Although this upgrade was announced at the D23 Expo, we are just now getting the details of what this upgrade will entail.

Pixar Pier will be split into four different “neighborhoods,” and they will be themed around three beloved Pixar Studios movies: The Incredibles, Toy Story, and Inside Out. A fourth section will also be included, and will “be a celebration of many of your favorite Pixar stories.” Since Cars and A Bugs Life already have their own lands within California Adventure, you can probably count those properties out.

The California Screamin’ coaster is getting an Incredibles makeover and will become “The Incredicoaster.” The ride’s queue building, which you can see in the image above, will be re-themed to reflect the mid-century modern house of the Incredibles from the film. Since the ride is a basic roller coaster, it’s unlikely the attraction itself will change much, although Disney says it will have “new character moments and a new look for the ride vehicles.”

The extremely popular Toy Story Mania will stay where it is, and the surrounding area will be re-themed to reflect the Toy Story series of films (which has part 4 hitting theaters in 2019). Meanwhile, Inside Out will be getting its own neighborhood, which will be found on the western side of the boardwalk and will include a new spinner ride. If one looks carefully at the concept art below, you can see a classic spinner type ride with the colored memory balls from the film.

The so-called “fourth neighborhood” will be showcasing the rest of the Pixar films, so expect to see movies like Up!, Ratatouille and WALL-E represented here. Mickey’s Fun Wheel will also be Pixared-up, with each of the 24 gondolas altered to show off different Pixar characters. One classic non-Pixar element will remain though, as the iconic face of Mickey Mouse will stay on the Paradise Bay side of the wheel. Meanwhile, the boardwalk games will all be given a similar Pixar upgrade.

Sadly, the Little Mermaid themed Ariel’s Grotto restaurant and the Cove Bar are going away, and will be transformed into a new, presumably Pixar themed restaurant. So what about the rest of Paradise Pier? It’s remaining as it was, but will now become it’s own land, called Paradise Park instead. This area includes Paradise Gardens, the Silly Symphony Swings, Jumpin’ Jellyfish, Goofy’s Sky School, Golden Zephyr, and The Little Mermaid ~ Ariel’s Undersea Adventure.

All of this is scheduled to open in the summer of 2018, just in time for The Incredibles 2 to hit theaters. This will given Southern California visitors and local annual passholders something to get excited about as we await the arrival of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge to the Disneyland Resort in 2019. And here’s a bit of pure speculation — with a Marvel themed land announced as coming to DCA, in the area where the Hollywood Backlot is now, could we see the Monsters, Inc. ride moved from there to Pixar Pier? Time will tell. But if it happens, you heard it here first!

Are you as excited as we are for this new change to Disney’s second California theme park? Be sure to let us know your thoughts down below in the comments.

Images: Walt Disney Company

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