This past week, Disney dropped a whole bunch of new information about Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, coming to Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. Because the amount of information that is now out there on the inter webs, we at Buster and the Banshee thought that we would do everyone a solid by consolidating all of that information in one place. If you have any questions about the ride, keep reading because you are bound to find the answer!
Also, in true Buster and the Banshee fashion, we will also include our own commentary on some the announcements, as we love to debate all things Disney Parks!
So without further delay, here is everything that you need to know about Tiana’s Bayou Adventure!
What is Tiana’s Bayou Adventure?
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure essentially is a re-theme of the old Splash Mountain ride. Instead of the previous “Song of the South” theme, it will now feature a storyline based on Disney’s “Princess and the Frog”. While some consider the re-theming to be “controversial”, I personally think that it is a smart move. I mean, how many people have actually seen “Song of the South”? If you are going to include IP in the parks, at least make it something that is relevant to today’s audience.
The attraction essentially is a flume ride, culminating in a 50 foot drop. Of course, that description doesn’t do the ride justice. Before you reach that final drop, your flume log will wind its way among the sights and sounds of “Princess and the Frog”. While we don’t have specific details around the various scenes, the old Splash Mountain ride was elevated by its elaborate theming and catchy tunes. I would expect no less from this new incarnation.
When Does it Open to the General Public?
The official opening day for the ride is June 28, 2024!
Who Will Be Able to Ride?
Guests must be at least 40″ tall to ride.
As of the time of writing this article, Disney has not officially stated what the level of accessibility will be for those with mobility issues. The old Splash Mountain ride was classified as “Must Transfer From Wheelchair/ECV to Ride Vehicle”. In addition, it had a special bypass for those in wheelchairs/ECV’s which allowed them to avoid the stairs. This bypass took you to the unload area where guests in wheelchairs/ECV’s would then board. I would expect Tiana’s to follow the same pattern.
In addition, some guests with mobility issues have reported trouble getting into the ride vehicle due to its high sides. It will be interesting to see if this changes on the new ride.
The old Splash Mountain ride warned people with high blood pressure, head/neck/back problems, motion sickness, or who were pregnant not to ride. While the new warnings have not been posted online yet, I expect the same ones to be in place for Tiana’s as well.
Will There Be Annual Passholder and DVC Previews Like There Were For Tron?
Yes. Here are the details…
Passholder Previews
There will be Annual Passholder previews on June 13 – 18, and 20. In order to ride, AP holders will need to join a Virtual Queue (similar to what the general public does for Tron and Guardians). There will be two opportunities for AP holders to join:
- AP holders with a Magic Kingdom park reservation will be eligible to join the first VQ at 7am
- AP holders with ANY park reservation will be eligible to join the second VQ at 1pm. AP holders do NOT need to be in Magic Kingdom to join the 1pm VQ. However, in order to enter MK to redeem their VQ, they will either need to visit the park for which they have a reservation first OR, for non-weekend dates, they can enter MK after 2pm. These are the normal AP park entry rules, so this should be familiar to most AP holders at this point.
Disney is allowing AP holders to have a Tiana’s preview VQ and one other VQ at the same time. This is an exception to the normal rule of “one VQ at a time”. This only applies to the AP preview VQ and will not apply to Tiana’s VQ once the ride opens to the public.
Note that because of the need to have a MK park reservation to join the 7am VQ, all park reservations for the Magic Kingdom on preview days are GONE. That means that if you weren’t able to snag a reservation by now, your only hope is to get a reservation to another park and attempt to join the 1pm VQ.
Buster’s Commentary
This process is different from what Disney did for AP previews for Tron. For Tron, AP holders reserved a return time in advance. This return time also guaranteed them entry to the park even if they didn’t have a park reservation on that day.
Honestly, I like this old system better. It provided more certainty to guests. Imagine traveling to WDW for the AP preview without actually knowing if you will get into the VQ. I would guess that this might dissuade people from coming from afar with no guarantee of getting to experience Tiana’s. It definitely gives an advantage to local AP holders who don’t have to make advanced travel plans.
DVC Previews
If you don’t already have a DVC preview reservation, it is already too late. But for completeness, here was the process.
DVC member previews are taking place on the following days: June 12, 1pm – 4pm and June 19, 9am – 12pm
In order to be eligible to attend the DVC member preview, you need to meet the following criteria:
- You need to be staying at a Disney resort on points on either June 12 or 19.
- You need to have made your resort reservation on May 12 or earlier
- You need to be eligible for “Membership Extras” (generally those who bought their DVC contract directly from Disney or who have a contract that is grandfathered in).
Those who were eligible were emailed information on how to register for the DVC previews. Everyone on the reservation as of May 12 were eligible to register.
Buster’s Commentary
Again, Disney make an odd decision with their process. Because you needed to have your reservation in place by May 12, two days before the DVC preview dates were announced, people who were holding off on booking their DVC reservations to align with the preview dates were shut out. I am not sure why Disney decided to do this, as they could have gotten a bump in DVC reservations if they allowed people to book after the dates were announced. The only reason that I can think of is that they wanted to limit the number of people due to limit capacity.
Will There Be a Virtual Queue?
At least initially, yes. But Disney has also said they plan on moving to a regular standby line “soon after” the ride opens.
Disney has stated that, when it opens, Tiana’s will have a Virtual Queue, similar to Tron and Guardians. This will work the same way as those rides.
- Everyone with a date based ticket or with a non-date base ticket and a park reservation will be allowed to join at 7am
- Everyone who is currently inside the Magic Kingdom will be allowed to join at 1pm
- Guests cannot be in more than one VQ at a time.
It is interesting that Disney is signaling that the VQ for Tiana’s will be temporary. I imagine that they are expecting that there might be an initial surge in popularity when the ride first opens. However, they must think that demand will level off after that first wave of excitement. This makes sense since the ride queue can hold quite a lot of people, so there probably isn’t as much need for a VQ as, say, Tron, which has a relatively smaller queue.
Will I Be Able to Purchase an Individual Lightning Lane?
No. Tiana’s is not included in the list of ILL rides.
Will I Be Able to Reserve a Lightning Lane Through Genie+?
Yes. You will be able to book a Lightning Lane using Genie+ if you purchase that service.
It is interesting that Disney decided to make Tiana’s Genie+ eligible, rather than forcing guests to purchase an ILL separately. On balance I think that this is a good thing for guests, as they don’t have to shell out more money just to ride this one ride via the Lightning Lane. However, I imagine that Tiana’s will immediately become the new most popular LL at Magic Kingdom.
It would not surprise me if, in order to book Tiana’s, you will need to do so right at 7am, similar to Slinky Dog Dash at Hollywood Studios. It would also not surprise me if, at least initially, Genie+ as a whole sells out more quickly at MK as people purchase it just to ride Tiana’s.
MK already has the largest LL inventory of any park, but adding more inventory certainly will help make sure that other rides aren’t selling out as fast. It will probably get easier to book, say, a Jungle Cruise or Peter Pan’s Flight or Space Mountain LL once Tiana’s comes online. That will be another benefit for guests and it will make buying Genie+ at Magic Kingdom even more attractive.
Will It Be Eligible for DAS (Disability Access Service)?
Most likely, yes.
While Disney hasn’t updated its DAS page to include it yet, it will most likely be added to the list of eligible rides. Splash Mountain was DAS-eligible, and most other rides with a Lightning Lane are also eligible. I don’t see why Tiana’s would be any different.
What About Beignets?
In order to celebrate the opening of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, Disney will be selling these classic New Orleans treats for a limited time. You will be able to find them at Golden Oak Outpost and the Friar’s Nook starting on June 28. I am hoping that “limited time” means forever, as I would love for Disney to incorporate food into the theming of this area!
Wrapping Up
That covers most of the news on this highly anticipated new attraction. If there are any questions that I might have missed answering for you, feel free to leave a comment, and I will do my best to answer them.
In the meantime, let the good times roll!
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