Disney world to see major revamp

In a new retooling of a major expansion project announced last fall and expected to open in phases starting in late 2012, the Fantasyland section of Walt Disney World 's Magic Kingdom will add an indoor roller coaster and scuttle a proposed fairy-themed "Pixie Hollow" greeting area.

The moves are part of what Disney expert Jim Hill calls "more boy-friendly plans" by the Orlando theme park. which has gotten some amped-up competition from Universal Orlando's new Wizarding World of Harry Potter. The Magic Kingdom revamp will double the size of Fantasyland by its completion in 2013.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, the moderately intense "Seven Dwarfs Mine Train" attraction (shown above) will feature music from the animated classic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and a first-of-its-kind ride system in which vehicles swing back and forth along a twisting track.

"Disney will scrap a pair of elaborately themed areas where guests could dance with Cinderella or celebrate a birthday party with Sleeping Beauty's Aurora. Instead, the two characters will be given a new home together — along with some of the company's other animated heroines — in a new set dubbed 'Princess Fairytale Hall.' The meet-and-greet area will replace an original Disney World attraction, 'Snow White's Scary Adventure,'" the paper says.