Now that DINOSAUR and the rest of DinoLand USA are officially closed at Disney’s Animal Kimgdom, Disney fans are once again debating whether the new Tropical Americas land fits in the park. There’s been a lot of conversations about what Imagineering legend Joe Rohde, the lead designer of Animal Kingdom, would think of the project.
We have our answer! It turns out Rohde himself tried to get a Tropical Americas land added to Animal Kingdom for 15 years. Some of Rohde’s plans even included sacrificing DinoLand USA for a Tropical Americas land.
Read Rohde’s full comments via Instagram below.
While Disney’s current plans originated after Rohde departed Walt Disney Imagineering, it’s clear the overall vision has some similarities. DinoLand USA was an original land at Animal Kingdom. But, even Rohde didn’t think the land was untouchable. It’s fascinating some of his plans called for its removal too. We would have loved to see all his concepts.
We were big fans of DinoLand USA, DINOSAUR, and Restaurantosaurus. Probably more so than most. That said, we understand the desire for change. We just hope that the Tropical Americas, and its starring Encanto ride and Indiana Jones overlay, are high quality replacements.
There’s no question the debate about the Tropical Americas will continue long after the land opens. We’ll be the first to criticize any shortcomings, and we’ll continue to push for animals to be included in any plans at the park. But, we’re trying to go into the land with a cautiously optimistic attitude. We can all take Rohde’s opinion to heart. Enjoy those DinoLand USA memories. Just don’t let it stop you from making new awesome memories in DinoLand USA’s replacement.
