Disney has finally revealed their plans for the empty spaces at Disney’s BoardWalk. Beginning in late 2026, new spaces will begin to open in the western side of the BoardWalk. The new areas include a daytime activity space and nighttime lounge, a Basin retail store, and a quick-service restaurant.
Taking over the old home of Jellyrolls is Hurly-Burly, a space that will offer family-friendly activities during the day before transforming into a 21+ live music venue at night. Families will be able to enjoy trivia and other activities led by Disney cast members. At night, Hurly-Burly becomes a live music spot where guests 21 and older can enjoy coastal-inspired cocktails and light bites.
Taking over the old Promenade Fine Art Gallery is Basin. If you’re already familiar with Basin’s locations in Disney Springs or at the Grand Floridian resort, Disney promises that the BoardWalk location will offer unique interactive elements. The BoardWalk’s Basin store will have a custom bath tea blending counter, a make-your-own-soap station, and a soap embossing press for personalized finishing.
Finally, Disney teased that a new quick-service restaurant is coming to the BoardWalk! No other details were provided, but we can assume it’s taking over the old home of Big River Grille which closed years ago. Disney said more details will be announced later this summer.
There’s a lot to be excited about here! We’re thrilled that Disney is finally moving forward with updates to the west side of the BoardWalk. It has been in a sad state for years now. As for the new spaces themselves, they make a lot of sense.
Hurly-Burly will offer something for everyone. Jellyrolls only catered to the nighttime crowd, which left the space empty during the day. Hurly-Burly will wisely utilize the space during the day for activities, which gives guests enjoying a resort day something else to do. At night, Hurly-Burly will give adults another option. We’re not ready to call it a full replacement for Jellyrolls as Disney’s use of the world “unwind” makes it sound like it’ll be more tame. That’s not bad exactly, but the jury is out until we know how late it’ll stay open. Disney needs more late-night spots.
We’re most excited for the tease of a new quick-service restaurant. We’ve said for years that Disney’s BoardWalk Inn’s biggest weakness is a lack of quick-service food, particularly indoors. It seemed like a no-brainer to convert the empty Big River Grille spot into the resort’s primary quick-service venue.
Basin may be the least exciting of the three announcements to us, but that’s mostly because Basin already has a presence at Walt Disney World. That said, we’re glad something new is going in and it won’t be an empty storefront.
