A Construction Barge and Excavator Are Now Parked in the Seven Seas Lagoon as Magic Kingdom’s Ferryboat Dock Project Moves Into the Water

For months, Magic Kingdom's ferryboat dock expansion has been a story about dirt, fencing and paperwork. Now it is a story about a barge.

A rust red construction barge carrying a yellow excavator is now anchored in the Seven Seas Lagoon, right off the walkway guests use to reach Magic Kingdom from the ferryboat launch. Blog Mickey published ground level and monorail level photos on Tuesday showing the equipment in place, and the significance is hard to miss: the work has climbed off the shoreline and into the lake.

The construction barge and excavator anchored in the Seven Seas Lagoon, with guests walking past the green construction walls toward Magic Kingdom. Photo by Blog Mickey.

What is on the barge: Blog Mickey describes the load as an excavator, stacks of wooden cribbing, and "a tall steel pile that appears already driven into the lagoon bed." In the close up photos, the steel is standing upright on the barge itself, with the nearest column seated in a fabricated cradle on the deck rather than in the lakebed, so at least some of it reads as staged rather than already set. The outlet's read on the scene is blunt: "One thing the photos do make clear: work has shifted from land-based prep to construction actually taking place in the lagoon."

Why an excavator is floating in the lagoon

Blog Mickey reads the equipment as likely tied to the new dock called for in the project's approved permit. The outlet has described that structure as a new wooden dock for Cast Member use, alongside a possible expansion of the ferryboat guest queue. In Tuesday's update the outlet adds that the dock may also end up supporting additional watercraft along this stretch of walkway, though that part is unclear.

A closer look at the barge deck: the excavator, the stacked wooden cribbing, and a steel pile standing in a cradle on the deck. Photo by Blog Mickey.

The green walls keep growing

The construction walls that first enclosed the south end of the project have gotten substantially longer. They now run underneath the monorail beam near the walkway to Magic Kingdom's main entrance, passing directly beside the "Ferryboats" directional signage guests follow to reach the boat dock.

Railings and rope lines are funneling foot traffic past the enclosed zone, and the walkway itself remains open and busy. Blog Mickey ties the longer wall run to the broader queue expansion in the approved permit, which calls for the ferryboat queue to wrap around a section currently planted with greenery near the security perimeter.

The green walls now extend underneath the monorail beam along the walkway to the main entrance. Photo by Blog Mickey.

How this project got here

The timeline, per Blog Mickey's reporting:

• March 2026: Disney received approval from Florida's water management district for the ferryboat dock and queue expansion. Blog Mickey tied it at the time to long running rumors of a fourth ferryboat, which Disney had not yet announced.
• May 2026: Disney announced the fourth ferryboat, the Meg Gilbert Crofton, debuting in 2027.
• June 2026: Construction began with land clearing for a floodplain compensation area along the shoreline.
• July 2026: Green construction walls appeared, enclosing the south end of the project along the guest walkway.
• July 28, 2026: Blog Mickey published photos of the barge and excavator in the lagoon.

Where the fourth ferryboat stands

Disney settled the headline question back in the spring. On May 1, 2026, Walt Disney World announced a fourth Magic Kingdom ferryboat named the Meg Gilbert Crofton, after the resort's fourth president, with a 2027 debut. Disney's framing at the time: "For the first time since 1976, we're expanding our fleet of ferryboats that provide complimentary transportation between the Transportation and Ticket Center and Magic Kingdom." Disney said at the time that the vessel had been under construction at a Florida marina and was about to be shipped to property in pieces, with assembly, painting and final touches expected to take about a year.

What is still unsettled is anything beyond that boat. Blog Mickey notes that "It is rumored that the watercraft fleet will expand beyond just the new ferryboat." That rumor is about additional watercraft on top of the Crofton, not about the Crofton itself, which Disney has confirmed.

For now, guests heading to Magic Kingdom on foot get a working construction site as a view. The walkway stays open, though the green walls hide most of the land side work, so the barge is the part you can actually see on the way to the main entrance.

Sources

• Blog Mickey: Equipment Arrives for Magic Kingdom Ferryboat Dock Expansion Project
• Blog Mickey: Disney World Receives Approval for Magic Kingdom Ferryboat Expansion Project
• Blog Mickey: Walt Disney World Announces Fourth Magic Kingdom Ferryboat to Debut in 2027
• Blog Mickey: Magic Kingdom Ferryboat Dock Expansion Project Expands

Image credits: All photos by Blog Mickey.