What is Tiana’s Bayou Adventure?

On June 25, 2020, Disney Parks announced that they would be replacing their classic log flume ride Splash Mountain with a new attraction based on their 2009 animated feature film Princess and the Frog. Though the Imagineering team was rather silent on the matter for most of this time, they finally revealed more information about this ride. If you’re currently out of the loop on another thing to put on your list of future things to do in Orange County, allow us to enlighten you.

What do we know about the new Princess and the Frog ride?

Anika Noni Rose, the voice of Disney’s first African-American princess, has confirmed that the ride is set to open at the end of 2024 during her appearance on Live with Kelly and Ryan: “I’ve been involved in the beginning, just talking about how we want it to be, what we want it to do, but, if I were to tell you anything else, I would be sucked into the ground, and you’d never see me again.” The team behind the attraction has confirmed it will be called Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, taking place after Tiana and Prince Naveen’s wedding scene at the end of the film.”Because if Tiana is throwing a party, it is the ultimate Mardi Gras party,” a senior creative producer for Walt Disney Imagineering directly stated about the project.

More information will likely be revealed at this year’s D23 Expo at the Anaheim Convention Center, which will be held September 9-11.

The change is controversial.

The reaction among both the general public and Disney fans has been highly mixed. Some people are looking for a little more adventure with Princess Tiana (if you know what we mean), while others want to #SaveSplashMountain. Pro-rethemers believe that Tiana and her friends are a more positive public image for African American people and that Disney needs to push this progressive attitude, while anti-rethemers say the original ride is a classic and Disney needs to stop trying to sweep their own history under the rug. Other people who are against the change state that, specifically for the Magic Kingdom version of the attraction, having a Princess and the Frog ride in Frontierland simply does not make sense, considering the movie takes place in New Orleans during the 1920s. In addition, a number of people have expressed discontent with the attraction’s name, calling it “generic” as opposed to a simple yet memorable name like “Splash Mountain.” When the Princess and the Frog movie was first released, some even called it insensitive for its voodoo themes.

While Splash Mountain’s last day in operation has not yet been announced, if you’re looking for more time- sensitive things to do in Orange County, be sure to head on over to Disneyland as soon as possible (or even the Magic Kingdom in Florida if you’re willing to take the long haul!) before America’s favorite water ride is history. 

What is your stance on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure? Let us know your thoughts by reaching out to us on Facebook or on Twitter!

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