Opening on November 15, 2024, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is a log flume ride based on the popular Disney animated movie The Princess and the Frog. Located in the newly minted Bayou Country, this ride opened a couple of months after Walt Disney World opened their version of the ride in Magic Kingdom.

Of course, it’s impossible to write a review of this ride without mentioning its legendary predecessor: Splash Mountain. How does this ride stack up against Splash Mountain? Is it better than its Walt Disney World counterpart? In this review, we’re going to dive deep into the ride’s story, themes, and execution. Let’s get started! 

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Background

In 2020, Disney announced that it would be replacing Splash Mountain with a Princess and the Frog themed attraction. Reactions to this announcement were mixed, with some Disney fans lamenting the loss of the legendary ride. As development began on the ride, expectations were high. Would this ride be better than Splash Mountain? Was it worth replacing one of the best Disney attractions of all time?

Personally, when I heard the news, I was both sad and optimistic. Sad because I was one of those people that enjoyed Splash Mountain. The closest Splash Mountain to me growing up was the one in Tokyo Disneyland (which still exists and is arguably the best version of it) and so I went on it a few times and also rode it on trips to Walt Disney World and Disneyland. To me, it was one of those rides that showed off what Disney was capable of. Created by legendary imagineer Tony Baxter, it was a masterpiece in theme park storytelling and design. 

But even then, I was cautiously optimistic about the new version of the ride. I like The Princess and the Frog so a whole attraction dedicated to that movie appealed to me. I will admit, however, that my excitement faded as more of the attraction was revealed. When Disney announced that the ride would have its own original story and not follow the events of the movie, I was skeptical. I had always thought the climb to the final drop of the ride would be amazing if it was set to the song “Friends on the Other Side” with the whole “Are you ready?” lyrics repeating over and over as you made your way to the final drop. 

Alas, that wasn’t the direction they went with, and when DIsney dropped the first on-ride footage of the attraction at Walt Disney World, I was massively disappointed. Empty spaces, not enough animatronics, dark scenes, tons of screens, and a sterile drop with no tension whatsoever. The only good part of the Magic Kingdom version, to me, was the finale. So when the time came for the Disneyland version of the ride to open, I approached the ride with low expectations, preparing to be disappointed. 

But let me tell you, it did not disappoint at all and was actually a pleasant surprise. 

The Story

Set one year after the events of The Princess and the Frog, Tiana has created an employee-owned food cooperative called Tiana’s Foods, which was located on a salt dome she purchased. The story goes that, on the day that guests visit Tiana’s Foods, Tiana is planning a large party as part of Carnival for the people of New Orleans. However, due to a mix-up, she is left without a band for the celebration. She and Louis then enlist the guests’ help to head into the Bayou to look for a band. 

The story is probably the only part of this attraction that lets me down. They had all the ingredients (pun intended) to make a tense, thrilling ride with high stakes. But what they ended up with feels very much lacking in any tension. Going into the Bayou to look for a band seems like a plot that was meant to sell merchandise rather than excite and entertain guests (and judging by all the plushies made of the critters in the bayou, that might be the case). 

Fortunately, the ride experience more than makes up for the lapses in story. While I lament the loss of a drop filled with narrative tension, the drop is still thrilling in and of itself, and the imagineers in my opinion did a great job with the story they had. I just wish it was tweaked to maximize the ride’s thrills. 

Queue and Ride Vehicle

The queue takes you through the offices of Tiana’s Foods. You pass by a kitchen where you can smell the scent of beignets. You then head for the salt mines where you board a log to begin your adventure. In the queue you’ll periodically hear announcements made by Tiana, Naveen, and Louis, which is how the layers of the story are imparted to guests. 

If there’s one thing Tiana’s Bayou Adventure does a lot better than Splash Mountain (again, in my opinion) it’s the queue. Tiana’s Bayou Adventure’s queue is a lot more colorful and is bursting with detail. Splash Mountain’s queue in comparison felt a little generic. Now, I’m talking about the queue that existed for Splash Mountain in Disneyland, because the best Splash Mountain queue, and the one that blows them all out of the water, is in Tokyo. 

That queue is even better than Tiana’s Bayou Adventure’s queue. But directly comparing the Disneyland Splash Mountain queue to the Disneyland Tiana’s Bayou Adventure queue, I think Tiana’s is better themed and adds a lot more context to the story (which is what a good queue should do). 

The ride vehicle, on the other hand, is your generic log that was also found in Splash Mountain, although this time the Brer Rabbit that used to be at the head of the log has been removed. It would have been nice if a frog were added to replace the rabbit figure, but that’s a minor detail that doesn’t matter in the long run. 

The Ride Experience

The ride starts with the log leaving the station and heading up a small lift hill. It then splashes down in the bayou and circles around the large final drop. The song Down in New Orleans is playing as you go through this part of the attraction. You then head up another lift hill where Tiana greets you and informs you that Louis is waiting up ahead to help us find a band for Tiana’s party. 

After cresting the upper part of the hill, you splash down into a river where you pass by Louis who is searching for critters who can join the party as the song Almost There plays. After journeying down the river, you then hear Mama Odie’s voice beckoning you to look for players for the party. You then drop down the first of three drops and enter the Bayou. 

In the Bayou, we see that Tiana and Louis have found some critters for the party. The players they find consist of some bears, rabbits, possums, and turtles as a bunch of fireflies glimmer around the scene. Gonna Take You There is the song that plays at this point of the ride as you see fireflies dance across the Bayou. Tiana then tells us that she’s recruited them for the party, but says they need to keep searching for more band members. 

That’s when the second drop happens, which in the context of the ride is supposed to be the moment when Mama Odie shrinks us down to the size of frogs to be able to find more critters who can join the party. We then end up finding a couple of frogs playing various musical instruments. After finding them, Mama Odie makes us big again and tells us to head down the drop to get to the party. It’s at this point that the big drop happens, sending us down into the bayou once more.

After the drop we then get to the finale party scene. Here, everyone from Charlotte to the frogs we encountered when we were tiny are decked out and ready to celebrate! An original song titled “Special Spice” plays as riders float by a massive New Orleans mansion that features the major characters in The Princess and the Frog movie as well as the different critters who we found in the bayou earlier. The log then floats by Mama Odie who bids the riders farewell as they head back to the station. 

Thoughts

Like I mentioned in the story section, I don’t think the story fully capitalizes on the potential of a The Princess and the Frog ride. The lack of a clear villain, even in the presence of a clear goal for the storyline, sterilizes the ride and causes it to lack any tension or stakes. This makes the drop feel very unexciting in comparison to Splash Mountain’s drop. Tiana’s Bayou Adventure’s drop is basically us getting “bigger” again and needing to go down the drop to get to the party. The drop can only do so much to create excitement. Without a villain or stakes, the final drop feels boring. 

Granted, I recognize that they had to work around the original Splash Mountain track, which comes with its own restrictions, but I don’t think it would have been hard to include Dr. Facilier in the ride and use his villain song to heighten the tension of the drop. It all just seems like a missed opportunity and, like I also said, feels like a decision meant to sell merchandise. Or if they didn’t want to include a villain, maybe some kind of consequence could befall Tiana if she didn’t get a band for the party, just so that stakes could be included in the ride to add tension.

That being said, I think this version completely blows Walt Disney World’s version out of the water. I suspect the ride was built with Disneyland’s version in mind. I haven’t actually been on the Magic Kingdom version, but from watching videos of that version, there was a lot of dead space in the attraction and the animatronics weren’t spaced out as much. In addition, the pacing of the ride felt a little off.

At Disneyland, the animatronics felt more evenly spaced out, especially in the first sequence before the second drop. The pacing of the ride at Disneyland is also faster, leaving little room for dead space. 

While the story isn’t that engaging, I have to admit that they executed the story they had almost perfectly. The critter animatronics are adorable, with my favorite one being the little bear playing the drums. I love that the imagineers gave each character their own names and instruments. It just shows that actual thought went into each critter’s design, which I appreciate. 

While the ride used screens, they never felt overbearing. Each screen added to the atmosphere, theming, and fun of the ride. This is especially true of the fireflies that can be found throughout the attraction. One standout moment is the area before the final drop where the fireflies are dancing to Dig a Little Deeper. The combination of the screens and the music is just so fun!

Speaking of music, the inclusion of all the major songs on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is a huge plus. From hearing Down in New Orleans in the initial Bayou area, to hearing Almost There, Gonna Take You There, and Dig a Little Deeper, the ride felt very alive because of how it used the songs of the film. I love The Princess and the Frog’s soundtrack so hearing those iconic songs on the ride enhanced my enjoyment of it. The song at the end during the finale was also very catchy and fit the theme and story of the ride well. 

That finale was also absolutely jaw-dropping. I might actually prefer it over the Splash Mountain boat finale. The amount of animatronics that were utilized, as well as how expertly they used screens, was incredibly well-done. Including Naveen, Charlotte, and Eudora in the end as well was a nice surprise.  

I also love the use of the second drop to shrink us. That was such a good creative decision that they made and is a good example of how to work within the restrictions given to them. The mixture of sounds and lighting to signify the shrinking, as well as the large frogs and fireflies that accompany the next scene dancing to Dig a Little Deeper had me smiling the whole time. 

And that’s the thing about Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. It’s not without its faults, but at the end of the day it’s just so much FUN. The music, the theming, the atmosphere, the animatronics, and the drops are just so enjoyable that it’ll leave you with a grin on your face. 

At the end of the day, that’s what theme park rides should do. They should leave you smiling from ear to ear, eager to experience the ride all over again. I personally still miss Splash Mountain, but I’m not going to harp on it any more. What we got is, in my opinion, an imperfect but solid replacement for that ride. I’m sad it’s gone, but I’m not mad that Tiana’s Bayou Adventure exists. 

Conclusion

To conclude this review, I just want to say that Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is a great addition to Disneyland. It was time for Splash Mountain to go, and I’m happy this ride replaced it. Like I said, it has some wasted potential and has areas that need improvement, but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t excited to go down the bayou again. Whether you’re a fan of the movie or not, you need to ride this ride when you go to Disneyland.

6.5/10

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