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Disney Imagineers Reveal How Fake Palm Trees Will Help Bring Encanto’s Casita to Life at Animal Kingdom
Disney Imagineers are using a little theme park trickery to make the Madrigal family’s magical home feel even more convincing when Tropical Americas opens at Disney’s Animal Kingdom in 2027. Alongside real landscaping, artificial palm trees of different sizes will help create forced perspective around the Encanto attraction, making the Casita and surrounding mountains appear farther away and larger than they really are.
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Imagineers explained that the tallest palm trees will be positioned closer to the Casita, while smaller trees with less color will be placed farther away near the mountain scenery. The gradual change in size and detail will help fool the eye into seeing more distance than actually exists. It is a familiar Disney design technique, but one that should be especially effective in the lush setting planned for Tropical Americas.
The new land, officially known as Pueblo Esperanza, will replace DinoLand U.S.A. and feature three attractions. Antonio’s Fiesta de Encanto will take guests inside the Casita for a new adventure centered around the day Antonio receives his magical gift of communicating with animals. The attraction will include multiple ride levels and will not have a height requirement. The land will also feature Indiana Jones and the Myth of the Jade Serpent and El Carrusel de los Animalitos.
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Between the layered landscaping, towering mountain scenery, and a mix of real and artificial plants, Disney is clearly leaning heavily into visual storytelling to make Pueblo Esperanza feel much larger than its physical footprint. The Casita may be magical in the movie, but at Animal Kingdom, some of that magic will come from carefully placed palm trees and a whole lot of Imagineering know-how.
Planning a trip to Disney’s Animal Kingdom to see Tropical Americas when it opens? Be sure to contact our partners at Get Away Today to help put together your Walt Disney World vacation.
