Big news is coming from Walt Disney World ® this month. The Orlando theme park giant revealed plans for a makeover at Magic Kingdom’s ™ Fantasyland – the largest expansion in the 38-year history of the park.

Walt Disney Parks ® and Resorts Chairman Jay Rasulo gave details of the plans at Disney's ® first D23 Expo in Anaheim.

"Storytelling is the DNA of Disney dreams, and we're always exploring new ways to tell new stories in new places," Rasulo said.

With the new expansion, guests will be able to visit the Disney princesses in their own fairytale lands. There are also plans to build a castle like the one featured in "Beauty and the Beast."

Rasulo also announced that Disney ® would be taking classic areas of Fantasyland and revamping them along with the expansion.

So what does that mean for your favorite area in Disney ®? Well it looks like there will be lots of change coming in the next few years and tons of exciting new rides and attractions on the horizon.

Here are a few of the expected changes coming to Fantasyland in the New Year and beyond:

The Dumbo ride will be redone, and the Magic Kingdom’s ™ Fantasyland will feature a three-ring circus style enclosure to keep guests shaded and entertained.

Smaller princess-themed lands featuring Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Belle and Ariel have caught the attention of several Disney ® enthusiasts and is expected to be one of the highlights of the expansion.

And speaking of princesses, A “Little Mermaid” underwater attraction will also be opening in the same area where the “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” ride closed in 1994. The “Little Mermaid” attraction will also be opening at Disney’s California Adventure in Anaheim.

Guests will be able to meet and take pictures with Tinker Bell and her fairy friends in the expansion with “Pixie Hollow.”

Theme park expert and former Disney ® executive said it's also important to refresh the biggest theme park draw in the world, the Magic Kingdom.

"That is usually the first stop on people's itinerary, so keeping it fresh is important. You want people to still have Fantasyland so you have that generation to generation," Aldrich said.

"The expansion will clearly have an opportunity for local architects, engineers, contractors, so clearly affect the local economy in a very positive way from that standpoint," Disney ® Imagineer Jack Blitch said.

The new Fantasyland is set to open in 2013.

Stay tuned for more details on the Fantasyland expansion as well as other Disney ® changes coming in 2012.