Tonight at the D23 Expo, news came out that a new nighttime parade is heading to Magic Kingdom! The new parade will debut in the summer of 2025. In this post, we’ll share the news and add in our own commentary in the coming days! First, the news:

In summer 2025, a brand-new parade will make its way to the Most Magical Place On Earth.

Broadway darlings — and former Disney Live Entertainment Cast Members! — Rachel Potter and Eden Espinosa graced the D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event stage during Horizons: Disney Experiences Showcase panel with this monumental announcement. The all-new parade “Disney Starlight” is coming next summer!

“Disney Starlight” will continue the nighttime spectacular legacy started by the “Main Street Electrical Parade” using the latest technology to tell new stories about the characters you love. All of this is brought to life by the magic of the Blue Fairy, in addition to beloved characters from Walt Disney Animation Studios films “Peter Pan,” “Encanto,” “Frozen,” and more.

Commentary

This one was easy to see coming but that doesn’t make a nighttime parade announcement any less exciting! The last stateside nighttime parade was the Main Street Electrical Parade at Disneyland, which ended in 2022. The last original stateside nighttime parade was Paint the Night, which debuted in 2015. I’m no math whizz but that will be a full decade once Disney Starlight debuts.

Coming back from Tokyo Disneyland, I’m always reminded of how much a nighttime parade can transform a park. I don’t expect Disney Starlight to match the unprecedented highs of Dreamlights but that parade is so good that a night at TDL feels complete without any fireworks or castle show. There’s an event feel that comes with nighttime parades, an exciting gathering. Magic Kingdom could use more of that – harmonious (no Epcot nighttime spectacular pun intended) moments.

Concept art for parades is tough to comment on. Even more than attraction art, parades and shows look fantastical. Pulling any information from it seems like a fools game, so naturally I’ll try. I’m hoping Peter Pan and Wendy are flying, just like they are in the art! The blue fairy is always welcome in a nighttime parade! Mirabel sure has a great smile in this parade! Okay, bit over.

Jokes aside, I’m very excited to see a new nighttime parade coming to Magic Kingdom. The park has been in desperate need of this for years and now it will finally come next year. We hope it’s a spectacle!

Are you excited for Disney Starlight? Let us know, along with any thoughts you might have, in the comments below! If you are planning a trip to Disney World, then check out our planning guide. Looking for discount Walt Disney World tickets? Check out this site! If you enjoy what you are reading here on Wandering in Disney please share this post with your friends, as well as like our social media pages. You can also subscribe to the blog via WordPress or email. You can do all of that on the right side of this page. Thank you for reading, we really appreciate it!