Castle repainting

[maleficent55]

I know this is wild, but I would absolutely cancel my very first trip to WDW if the castle was surrounded by scaffolding and cranes. After 3 canceled trips since November 2022, we are finally planning our 4th trip to Disney World in April 2026. We already have our resort booked and plans in motion but not airfare yet.

I dream of Cinderella's Royal Table (we can't eat inside the castle in Disneyland so this is a dream to me), and want to do a fireworks dessert party.
I know no one knows yet for sure when the repainting is happening, but in the past, how long does it take to transform the castle?

Lastly, would you cancel your FIRST trip to Disney World if the castle was under refurb?

 

[Joanna71985]

It's hard to say. The castle hasn't had a full painting in over 5 years (and a lot of it was done during the 4-month closure). But no- I wouldn't reschedule due to it

 

[Lindaleeann]

I know this is wild, but I would absolutely cancel my very first trip to WDW if the castle was surrounded by scaffolding and cranes. After 3 canceled trips since November 2022, we are finally planning our 4th trip to Disney World in April 2026. We already have our resort booked and plans in motion but not airfare yet.

I dream of Cinderella's Royal Table (we can't eat inside the castle in Disneyland so this is a dream to me), and want to do a fireworks dessert party.
I know no one knows yet for sure when the repainting is happening, but in the past, how long does it take to transform the castle?

Lastly, would you cancel your FIRST trip to Disney World if the castle was under refurb?

Hmmmm - Yup, I think so. If it were my first trip, I would most likely reschedule.

 

[Tom_E_D]

I know this is wild, but I would absolutely cancel my very first trip to WDW if the castle was surrounded by scaffolding and cranes. After 3 canceled trips since November 2022, we are finally planning our 4th trip to Disney World in April 2026. We already have our resort booked and plans in motion but not airfare yet.

I dream of Cinderella's Royal Table (we can't eat inside the castle in Disneyland so this is a dream to me), and want to do a fireworks dessert party.
I know no one knows yet for sure when the repainting is happening, but in the past, how long does it take to transform the castle?

Lastly, would you cancel your FIRST trip to Disney World if the castle was under refurb?

This article says the 2020 repainting took 4-5 months: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/disney-world-announces-cinderella-castle-classic-makeover/

 

[scrappinginontario]

Personally no, I would not cancel my first WDW trip if the castle were being repainted. I have never been to Disney when everything was open so it’s impossible to book when something isn’t down. To me while important, the castle is not the only reason we visit.

Also, the castle is much larger than what you are used to so it would likely close in segments for repainting, not the entire castle at the same time.

That being said, if you have already cancelled 3 trips in 3 years, you may not mind cancelling again and waiting for a later date?

 

[Disneylover99]

Lastly, would you cancel your FIRST trip to Disney World if the castle was under refurb?

No. That wouldn’t bother me.

No matter what the castle looks like, each trip back to the MK brings a tear to my eye whenever I see it. And I say that as someone who has seen it in the midst of construction countless times.

What if the castle looked perfect, but you found out that Cinderella’s Royal Table was closed for refurbishment during your trip. Would you cancel then?

 

[HopperFan]

This article & photos might help with visualizing ..... CASTLE PAINTING.


From article ...

"... Crews are forced to paint during daylight hours as the paint won’t dry properly overnight which has led to some less than desirable family photos, but by the afternoon the cranes are typically down and photos can resume."

 

[TikiRob]

I'm not sure how much it would impact your dinner. At night with the fireworks, I'm not sure you'd care with all the stimulation from fireworks and projections. And if you are worried about photos, AI can remove those cranes!

 

[maleficent55]

This article & photos might help with visualizing ..... CASTLE PAINTING.


From article ...

"... Crews are forced to paint during daylight hours as the paint won’t dry properly overnight which has led to some less than desirable family photos, but by the afternoon the cranes are typically down and photos can resume."

Thank you! Great visuals

 

[maleficent55]

Personally no, I would not cancel my first WDW trip if the castle were being repainted. I have never been to Disney when everything was open so it’s impossible to book when something isn’t down. To me while important, the castle is not the only reason we visit.

Also, the castle is much larger than what you are used to so it would likely close in segments for repainting, not the entire castle at the same time.

That being said, if you have already cancelled 3 trips in 3 years, you may not mind cancelling again and waiting for a later date?

This is so helpful and gives me thought..thank you

 

[_19disnA]

I certainly wouldn't cancel a planned Disney trip due to the castle repainting. Based on some of the pictures posted above, it might be fun to get a few pictures with your family while work continues in the background. A view you probably won't see very often.

 

[Isthisnormalatdisney]

Canceling a whole vacation because a prop is being painted is wild. I can understand something like staying at a skyliner resort when it’s down or monorail resort when that’s down. Or a pool not being open. Maybe even a ride or two being down. But the castle….

 

[HadesFan]

I get it. It's your first visit, and the castle is important to you. It's like going to Paris and having the Eiffel Tower obscured. When I was a kid our family went to Niagara Falls. Two years later, they "turned off" the American side, so my dad decided that we needed to go see that. But, we had already been there so then it was a curiosity. I think the same applies here.

 

[slo]

This is tough to answer…..

If it was just me and another adult, I probably would. I love my perfect pictures in front of the castle and I’m sure you want that too.

If I’m taking a child, then probably not. The child doesn’t care about the castle being painted, they just want to go - you can always say Cinderella needs to work on her castle. Also, that child will never be that same age again, and the castle will always be there, so you can go again, when the castle is not having work done on it. You won’t have the perfect picture in front of the castle, but your child’s experience is way more important than that.

Good luck with making your decision

 

[hardcorestitch]

I know this is wild, but I would absolutely cancel my very first trip to WDW if the castle was surrounded by scaffolding and cranes. After 3 canceled trips since November 2022, we are finally planning our 4th trip to Disney World in April 2026. We already have our resort booked and plans in motion but not airfare yet.

I dream of Cinderella's Royal Table (we can't eat inside the castle in Disneyland so this is a dream to me), and want to do a fireworks dessert party.
I know no one knows yet for sure when the repainting is happening, but in the past, how long does it take to transform the castle?

Lastly, would you cancel your FIRST trip to Disney World if the castle was under refurb?

Guest: sees Cinderella’s castle full of scaffolding
Also Guest: (leaves)

 

[Minnie1222]

After 3 canceled trips since November 2022, we are finally planning our 4th trip to Disney World in April 2026.

How many more trips do you plan to cancel? If you are looking for the perfect time to go, I am afraid that may never happen.

would you cancel your FIRST trip to Disney World if the castle was under refurb?

 Yes, if the sole purpose of my trip is to see the castle (as in entering Magic Kingdom just to visit the castle, then immediately go back to the airport and fly home).

 

[maleficent55]

How many more trips do you plan to cancel? If you are looking for the perfect time to go, I am afraid that may never happen.


 Yes, if the sole purpose of my trip is to see the castle (as in entering Magic Kingdom just to visit the castle, then immediately go back to the airport and fly home).

unfortunately the first 3 trips were cancelled for unplanned very unfortunate reasons. Cancer for my mom, leg issues for my husband (double leg amputee) and then knee issues for my mother in law who was going to go at one point.
I've never cancelled for refurb issues, park issues, etc

and no, the sole purpose isn't just to see the castle but as a Disney purist, I feel like for a WDW first trip, the castle is a pretty big deal. I'm just considering all things right now.

 

[goofyernmost]

The castle, albeit an impressive looking building, is made of plastic. It has no appeal except visual. There are literally hundreds of exciting fun thing to see and do and experience in WDW that you are willing to miss out on because seeing that is more important than anything else. Does that mean that you will not go to EPCOT, DHS or Dak? None of those have a castle.

To me there are a multitude of reasons for not going there and none of them include "painting the castle". But to each his/her own. I can understand being disappointed but I really want to encourage you to not pass up on a great place because of that. I once went to Disneyland and my main focus was to see how Disneylands and Disney Worlds haunted mansion compared. I got there and found it shutdown to do the holiday overlay of the Nightmare Before Christmas. I truly enjoyed the rest of it and didn't let that one major disappointment destroy the abundance of other things to experience.

In other words, the rest of WDW is a much bigger deal. That said right now and for the next few years there are a lot of projects going on that are walled of at this point. So the odds of it being painted during the time you are planning is probably slim. They usually like to get projects like that finished before the time of the year that is warmer and my experience has shown me that winter time has fewer rain days and therefore more time to get it painted.

 

[elvispursley]

if it were me, I would not cancel. I’d see it as an excuse to book another trip!