This was from the 2019 D23 ExpoThe dates for the next D23 Expo have been released. It will take place September 9-11, 2022. The venue will once again be the Anaheim Convention Center. The announcement was made on the D23 Twitter page.
D23 is the official Disney fan club. The D23 Expo is the bi-annual convention that celebrates all things Disney. A lot takes place during those three days. The new Disney Legends are honored. There are glimpses into the future of Disney-property movies and television shows. One of my favorite parts is the Disney Parks Panel, where tons of information is released about what changes and improvements will take place at the parks across the planet. There are plenty of exhibits, and there is information around every corner. I’ve attended the past two D23 Expos, and it is an incredible (and exhausting) time.
There are a couple of things that I find interesting from this announcement. First is the date itself. As I said before, the D23 Expo takes place every other year. The next one should have been in 2021, but Disney chose to wait an extra year. That shows me that Disney is taking long-term safety seriously. While we are all hoping that we will be on the other side of this by summer 2021, Disney is still proceeding with extreme caution.
The second thing that is interesting is also a little bit confusing to me. The next Star Wars Celebration was also moved to 2022. The dates for that are August 18-21. That is only three weeks earlier! Star Wars Celebration also will take place at the Anaheim Convention Center. That means that there will be two major fan conventions within three weeks of each other. There are plenty of people who will want to attend both, there is crossover between the two fandoms. I want to attend both! I’ve already joked with my daughter that we have less than two years to find the perfect RV so that we can camp out in California for a few weeks.
There is one other thing that surprises me. The 100th Anniversary of the Walt Disney Company will take place in 2023. (That’s where the 23 for D23 comes in, the Walt Disney Company was founded in 1923.) In the announcement on Twitter, it states “…as we give fans a first look at the incredible plans for the 100th Anniversary of the Walt Disney Company.” I would have thought that having the D23 Expo during the anniversary year would be part of those plans. Maybe it still will be, it could be that they will decide to go back to odd years in 2023.
Two years is a long time, and we all know that a lot can happen between now and then. Still, it is nice to know that Disney is being cautious. The dates for the 2019 D23 Expo were announced in March of 2018, so it was obvious that they were considering all angles by waiting to announce the dates for the next one. I look forward to the next celebration of all things Disney. The three days go by in the blink of an eye, and the whole convention is a lot of fun. If you’ve never been to the D23 Expo, consider making plans! You have time…