Why Doesn't Disney World Have New Orleans Square?

Disney Adventurer

Royal Street Bachelors Performing in New Orleans Square Disneyland

New Orleans Square is and was since opening one of the most popular sections of the original Disneyland. But despite its popularity, it was not replicated like most of the other parts of the park, when Disney decided to build a second park, the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World.

So why was this iconic land, home to two of the most popular Disney rides of all time, Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion not included in the plans for Walt Disney World?


One of the things that was taken into consideration when designing the Magic Kingdom was the geographical position of the park. None of the lands of Disneyland are based on areas anywhere near California, but some of its attractions are based on real-life locations near Florida. Disney Imagineers thought that due to this the attractions might not work in this location.

Skeleton In Cave Pirates of the Caribbean Disneyland

The most famous incident of this is Pirates of the Caribbean not being built for opening day. Disney assumed due to the real-life Caribbean being so nearby that the attraction would not be wanted or popular. This ended up being untrue, with the backlash due to its absence causing a version to be built in the park quickly.

New Orleans Square was also left out of the plans for Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom due to the same basic kind of thinking, that the real New Orleans was too close to the park for a land based on the city to work in a theme park.

The Muppets Great Moments in American History Showtimes Board Liberty Square Magic Kingdom Walt Disney World

Instead, the park would get Liberty Square, a still-operating land based on colonial and early independent America, with a redesigned Haunted Mansion included as what could reasonably be called a replacement.


Disney has since completely abandoned any hesitation about the geographic location of a park being something used to prevent attractions from being built. An entire theme park based on the history of California was built in California, a Paris-themed section was built in Walt Disney Studios Park in France, and even a New Orleans-themed resort in Walt Disney World. But this early hesitation by Imagineers is still represented by the lack of New Orleans in the Magic Kingdom, at least until the upcoming Princess and the Frog attraction replaces Splash Mountain.


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