Tiana's Bayou Adventure ride at Walt Disney World has an opening date — what to know
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is opening next month.
Disney Parks revealed in a May 12 video that the highly anticipated New Orleans-themed attraction, inspired by the 2009 Disney movie "The Princess and the Frog," will make its debut June 28 inside the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida.
The clip, set mostly in Crescent City, New Orleans, treats viewers to a spirited performance of dixieland jazz by NOLA's own St. Augustine High School Purple Knights marching band.
Five-time Grammy winner PJ Morton, who contributed to the attraction’s soundtrack, is also featured in the video.
The short clip gives viewers a peek at Princess Tiana herself — that is, a Disney actor portraying the beloved character made famous in the Disney animated movie. As the marching band plays, Princess Tiana dances with her pal Louis the alligator.
The video then zips over to Florida to conclude with stunning nighttime footage of Cinderella's castle inside the Magic Kingdom, ending with a moment in front of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure's opening date announcement comes a few weeks after actor Jenifer Lewis shared her excited reaction to seeing the animatronic version of the “Princess and the Frog” character she voiced, Mama Odie, for the first time.
“Oh my God. Here it is,” Lewis said as she greeted Mama Odie in a TikTok video posted April 24 by Disney Parks. The character moves and says, “Tiana sure knows how to make a party special.”
Mama Odie in the flesh — err, machine — then tacks on her signature chuckle to the end of her sentence, which Lewis admires and does back.
“Her movements! Everything is there,” she says.
Walt Disney World visitors won't be the only Disney fans to experience Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. The attraction is expected to open later this year at Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California.
Read on to learn everything there is to know about Disney's new Tiana’s Bayou Adventure attraction.
When will Tiana’s Bayou Adventure open?
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is scheduled to open June 28 inside the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, Disney Parks announced in the new video shared May 12.
The attraction will make its debut at Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California, later in 2024, according to Sarah Riles, the vice president of Disney’s Magic Kingdom, shared in a Disney Parks blog post on May 12.
What to expect from Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
The attraction will be unveiled in the same spot used by the Splash Mountain roller coast ride, which shuttered its doors in January 2023.
The new attraction, which make use of Splash Mountain's thrilling 50-foot drop, will follow Princess Tiana "on an adventure through the bayou as she prepares to host a one-of-a-kind celebration during Mardi Gras season where everyone is welcome," Riles wrote in her May 12 blog post.
The uplifting Tiana's Bayou Adventure will depict Tiana "after she made her own dreams come true" and will demonstrate to park-goers how "we all have the potential to make our dreams a reality," Riles wrote in an earlier blog post in February.
Tiana, she wrote, is "throwing a festive party during Mardi Gras season to thank her family, friends and the entire community for all the support they’ve given her as a successful business owner."
"It’s incredibly special that we get to celebrate with her," added Riles.
Disney has been teasing the many new audio-animatronic figures that will appear in the ride, including Tiana, Mama Odie, Juju the snake and Louis the alligator.
The ride will feature new original music from PJ Morton and Terence Blanchard and some of the marquee songs from the movie, according to Riles' blog post in February.
Among the movie’s most beloved tracks is “Almost There,” sung by Tiana, who was voiced by Anika Noni Rose.
Why did Splash Mountain close?
Disney announced in June 2020 that Splash Mountain would be closing and the park was planning to reimagine the ride’s interiors, replacing its original theme with “The Princess and the Frog.”
Splash Mountain was based on the controversial 1946 film “Song of the South,” widely criticized for its idyllic depiction of plantation life and Black Americans in the post-Civil War era. For its problematic content, “Song of the South” is not streaming on Disney+.
Splash Mountain closed in 2023, and on its final day, fans posted about waiting several hours to ride it once more.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com
