For the second time in a few weeks, the Liberty Square Riverboat has been relocated to another backstage area at Magic Kingdom Park. This comes less than a month after the 52-year-old Walt Disney World Resort attraction closed permanently.
The Liberty Square Riverboat, Tom Sawyer Island, and the Rivers of America closed permanently on July 7, 2025, to make way for exciting additions to Frontierland. The new Piston Peak National Park, inspired by the natural beauty of American national parks, will feature two Cars (2006)-themed rides: a thrilling rally race and a family-friendly attraction. Some aspects of the Rivers of America will remain, including select water features and a barrel bridge, but much of the historic Disney Park landscape is set to change.
Soon after the closures, construction walls appeared around the Rivers of America. Guests noticed Walt Disney Imagineers surveying Tom Sawyer Island on foot and by boat, tagging set pieces for preservation or destruction. The Rivers of America was drained almost completely by August 4, revealing the tracks previously used by the Liberty Square Riverboat, which had also been temporarily parked behind Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
The changes extend beyond the park itself. Outside the Magic Kingdom, crews have bulldozed hundreds of trees to create space for a new equipment staging area and temporary office trailers. This area will serve as the base for construction on Piston Peak National Park and a new Disney Villains land, located beyond Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
The Liberty Square Riverboat has been parked behind Big Thunder Mountain Railroad for the last month, as Walt Disney World Resort kept quiet about the steamboat’s future. Would it be repurposed or dismantled? Fans speculated on the next step for the Americana-themed Liberty Square attraction.
On August 4, 2025, BlogMickey reported that the Liberty Belle had been moved from its temporary backstage location to a marina behind Magic Kingdom Park. Disney uses this marina for maintenance and repairs on the park’s watercraft transportation system, including boats that serve the Seven Seas Lagoon. Although a dry dock exists for repairs, reports indicate that it is in use, and the Liberty Belle remains afloat at the marina.
The boat was reportedly moved sometime between Sunday, August 3, and Monday, August 4. X (formerly known as Twitter) user @___Gestalt sporred the Liberty Belle in its former spot on August 3:
it’s parked in the channel between the Floridian and MK where the water parade boats are, just saw it from the monorail yesterday.
Walt Disney World Resort has not officially confirmed what will become of the Liberty Square Riverboat or revealed the grand opening dates for Piston Peak National Park and the Disney Villains land at the Magic Kingdom.
Do you agree with Walt Disney World Resort’s decision to close the Liberty Square Riverboat and Tom Sawyer Island? Share your opinion with us in the comments!
I never thought I’d be one of those “I’m done with Disney” folks, but my interest in returning to Walt Disney World has been at zero since the D23 announcements in August 2024. We’ll probably do a few more Disneyland visits, but the costs and indifference to longtime fans has me only wanting to maintain my interest in Disney long-ago history and phase out visits to actual Disney Parks. At age 63, I’m not interested in WDW obsession with out-Universal’ing Universal.