An already busy summer season kicks into high gear at Walt Disney World with the highly-anticipated opening of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. The ride, officially opening to guests on June 28, replaces Splash Mountain as the park’s headliner water flume ride, offering all the familiar drops while providing a fresh, new story for families to enjoy.
In January 2023, Splash Mountain closed at Walt Disney World, partly due to its controversial source material, Song of the South, and the racial insensitivities the film portrays. Removing that while adding Tiana’s Bayou Adventure allows Disney to bring a story more familiar to modern-day guests to the forefront of its theme parks.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure picks up where The Princess and the Frog left off. Princess Tiana requests everyone’s help in preparing a special Mardi Gras celebration. As it turns out, Tiana needs a special ingredient to make the party perfect, and riders set off to locate it. Throughout their journey, guests encounter a lively cast of critters, a New Orleans-inspired musical score, and more that weave together Tiana’s story and a deep appreciation for the culture of Louisiana.
Familiar Elements
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure replaces Splash Mountain in Magic Kingdom, featuring a new storyline and innovative Audio-Animatronics. The ride utilizes the recognizable structure and flume logs left by its predecessor.
Travel experts note guests’ excitement for new experiences while enjoying what Splash Mountain left behind. Travel journalist Megan duBois shares, “The ride will feature characters from the beloved Disney movie The Princess and The Frog, plus great music and, of course, the iconic drop that remains from the former occupant, Splash Mountain.”
Scott McConkey, nationally syndicated travel writer and founder of Miles with McConkey, believes Tiana’s Bayou Adventure will resonate with families traveling to Walt Disney World. “Our family is excited to experience Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. We love the idea of a classic log flume ride based on the film The Princess and the Frog. It has tremendous potential to become a new favorite attraction for families. Plus, we get to see more of Tiana’s story.”
Authentically New Orleans
After visiting New Orleans to join a team from Walt Disney Imagineering, Mickey Visit founder Gavin Doyle learned how Tiana’s Bayou Adventure intertwines with its Louisiana roots. Doyle explains, “The Princess and the Frog movie is deeply rooted in New Orleans, Louisiana. Both the Disney animators that worked on the film and the Walt Disney Imagineers now working on the attraction were and are engaged with the people and history of the city.”
Those New Orleans influences manifest throughout guests’ journeys on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, with the sweet aroma of fresh beignets wafting through the queue. Doyle continues, “Disney Imagineer Carmen Smith shared they are ‘creating a love letter to New Orleans.’ Guests in the queue will also hear a period radio program and a call from Tiana to come help with the search for the missing ingredient.”
Disney Imagineers centralized music as another essential element in bringing Tiana’s Bayou Adventure to life. Doyle shares, “Disney announced that the new attraction will have an original song written, performed, and produced by PJ Morton. He [Morton] commented on how fitting it is that the attraction is leaning so heavily into music considering their goals of representing New Orleans, saying, ‘You don’t get New Orleans without the music.’”
Several components add authenticity to Disney’s approach to integrating music into the attraction. “In New Orleans, there is a tradition of handmade musical instruments. Music can come from anywhere, and so can the musical instruments used to create that music,” Doyle notes. He continues, “The attraction will also feature Zydeco music, a special blend of rhythm and blues born in Louisiana.”
Guests will spot the Zydeco music and handmade instruments while encountering an ensemble of musical critters. Mickey Visit Content Director Lindsay Brookshier reveals the critters will play “a rendition of ‘Gonna Take You There’ from the Princess and the Frog film. This Zydeco musical take on this classic song features the fiddle, accordion, washboard, and other instrument voices that guests will enjoy as they float down the river under ‘dancing fireflies.’ This familiar song is played on makeshift instruments constructed from natural materials and some human-made found objects.”
How to Experience Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
In the ride’s earliest weeks and months during the busy summer season, guests looking to experience Tiana’s Bayou Adventure have two options: Virtual Queue and Genie+. Disney World employs its Virtual Queue system to allow guests to wait “virtually” for their return time instead of waiting in a traditional standby line. Tiana’s Bayou Adventure uses this Virtual Queue system, with boarding groups available daily at 7:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.
Walt Disney World visitors can also ride Tiana’s Bayou Adventure by purchasing Genie+. A paid service, Genie+ offers purchasers the ability to book designated return times for a ride’s expedited queue called Lightning Lane. Purchasing Genie+ includes access to most rides’ Lightning Lanes. But not usually the newest attractions.
“The most surprising news is that Tiana’s Bayou Adventure will be included as part of the regular Disney Genie+ lineup,” Brookshier notes. “This is an interesting approach as Disney usually uses a virtual queue and paid Individual Lightning Lane Access for all their new attractions. This is wonderful news and adds great value to the Genie+ service!”
Virtual Queue and Genie+ services help control crowds when a new ride opens to curb demand. A Disney spokesperson notes on the park’s official blog, “While a standby queue will not be available during the attraction’s initial opening days, we expect to open a standby queue soon after the attraction’s opening.” An exact timeline for when that would happen remains unannounced.
