Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is way better than Splash Mountain probably deserved
In 2020, Disney announced plans to reboot Splash Mountain, the beloved but controversial log-flume ride found in three of its theme parks. The decision sparked plenty of griping from curmudgeonly fans, largely because of the decision to focus the ride’s makeover around the 2009 animated feature The Princess and the Frog and its leading lady — Tiana, Disney’s first Black princess. Personally, I thought, It’s about damn time. Splash Mountain needed an update years ago, and no matter what antiquated OG Disney park fans claim, it finally has a worthy one.
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Tiana’s Bayou Adventure keeps the good parts of Splash Mountain — that final 50-foot drop and the resulting SPLASH! — while dropping the ties to Disney’s buried movie Song of the South, updating all the tech, and refurbishing the animatronics. The Walt Disney World version of the attraction, which opens to the public on June 28, keeps the same track, but fills it with a new story and radically updated technology. (Disney Parks says the Disneyland version will open in 2024, but has not yet set a date.)
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is a log-flume ride that floats parkgoers through locations inspired by the animated movie, as the ride gradually escalates in height and intensity. Going back to the frame of the old ride and seeing a new story and different characters there is like having a reunion with a high school acquaintance you only liked in certain settings, and finding out they’ve gotten a glow-up while also shedding some of their biased views. Do I still want to hang out with said high school acquaintance?
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