Disney announces opening for Tiana's Bayou Adventure at Walt Disney World and a first look at new animatronics

Feb 13, 2024 in "Tiana's Bayou Adventure"

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Tiana's Bayou Adventure - Tiana Animatronic

Posted: Tuesday February 13, 2024 8:40am ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

Disney announced today that Tiana's Bayou Adventure will open to guests at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom in the summer of 2024 and at Disneyland later in 2024.

Tiana's Bayou Adventure - Tiana Animatronic

Splash Mountain had its last day of operation on January 22, 2023, and a summer opening of Tiana's Bayou Adventure represents an impressive timeline for the reimagining effort, months ahead of the original "late 2024" announcement.

The earliest and most optimistic estimates place opening around Memorial Day (late May) at Magic Kingdom, but Disney has yet to make any announcement beyond "Summer 2024."

There will also likely be various rounds of previews for Cast Members, Annual Passholders, Disney Vacation Club Members, Club 33, and it remains to be seen how the soft openings will fit into the timeline.

Disney also today shared a first look at the Tiana audio-animatronic that will be part of the attraction and also confirmed that there will be dozens of entirely new Audio-Animatronics figures. Along with Princess Tiana, Louis and Mama Odie, we will also see Eudora, Charlotte, Prince Ralphie, Prince Naveen, and others.

Watch the video below to see the new Tiana Audio-Animatronic in action.

The "coming soon" posters surrounding Tiana's Bayou Adventure at Magic Kingdom have also now been updated to include the new Summer 2024 opening.

Tiana's Bayou Adventure coming summer 2024 mural

With Princess Tiana at the helm, this new attraction “digs a little deeper” into her story after the events of the Walt Disney Animation Studios film “The Princess and the Frog.” It is Mardi Gras season at Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, and the bayou will light up for a journey full of music, Mama Odie’s magic, and a whole boatful – log-ful? – of new friends, in preparation for a celebration where everyone’s welcome.

Tiana's Bayou Adventure coming summer 2024 mural

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Epcot81Fan5 minutes ago

The previous ride had the villain literally trying to catch, murder, and consume the protagonist. I don’t think we need to wait until 6/28 to know this current version is significantly more juvenile in tone, tension, and drama. Besides, the giant princess tiara outside should have told you. Br’er Fox: Well, Br’er Rabbit, I expect I’ll just have to skin ya! Well, now, Br’er Rabbit, maybe I’ll just have to roast ya! You know, Br’er Rabbit, I think I’ll have to hang ya!

𝕴𝖒𝖆𝖌𝖎𝖓𝖊𝖊𝖗977 minutes ago

Yes, thank you. This is it exactly. I'm in awe. And everything is on topic and well-reasoned.

Professortango19 minutes ago

I appreciate that. I'm trying to understand the rules and what I read as clear and open antagonism towards me and am just trying to understand and be part of the discussion without offending anyone or the site.

mickEblu11 minutes ago

You are a patient man.

Professortango111 minutes ago

I don't think anyone is arguing that they are trying to hide the drop. I think the argument is that they making it seem less dramatic and downplaying the scary/thrill aspect that had been built up before. Not that it won't be as thrilling or scary or enjoyable, it just appears from what some have seen, that it has taken a different approach to the attraction's identity.

Professortango115 minutes ago

I am likely misremembering. Unfortunately, my cursory google search only shows me the ride photo and not the surrounding artwork that it was framed in.

LittleBuford15 minutes ago

There is no realistic scenario in which unsuspecting guests somehow won’t see the drop. It’ll be impossible to miss, especially with log after log of screaming guests hurtling down it. Yes, there’s more coverage than there used to be, but if camouflaging the flume was the Imagineers’ aim, they’ve done a rather poor job of it.

Professortango116 minutes ago

I was discussing the new information, which I was lead to believe was allowed per the mods last update. I simply said based on the new information, the on-ride photo art, I could understand why some feel that the drop is being downplayed rather than embellished as it was before. I then referenced the update from a little while back, the attraction poster, which discussion was allowed for on this thread as well. I think the ride, from what we know, will still feature cartoon cute animals in an exaggerated landscape filled with Disney songs. I'm not arguing that one iteration is more mature, just that the marketing for the attraction seems to be making a choice that reflects the current goals of Disney vs the marketing that reflected Disney's goals in the late 80's and early 90's. So I guess I don't understand the difference between discussing the factual artwork vs discussing the faction facade. If I say it feels like they played up the lushness of the facade you wouldn't have an issue with that. Or if I said they seem to pushing the food angle based upon the Tiana Foods and mural on the exposed fence, that would be fine. So saying it feels like the released artwork is making the final drop feel less scary and more light-hearted, should be in the same boat. Or log.

LittleBuford20 minutes ago

The ride photos have, as far as I know, never shown the flume narrowing the way you suggest. Given the angle from which the photos are taken, it would actually undermine the effect to show the top wider than the bottom.

TheCoasterNerd21 minutes ago

Thanks for sharing, I guess

𝕴𝖒𝖆𝖌𝖎𝖓𝖊𝖊𝖗9722 minutes ago

But you have to admit the drop blends in and is certainly not the center of attention. What's weird is that they put in so much extra stuff that even the water tower is hidden behind a giant tree. The whole attraction is like a lesson in camoflauge.

Epcot81Fan23 minutes ago

This ride is more juvenile than its predecessor.

James Alucobond27 minutes ago

It implies that you are repeating, amplifying, and spreading information that, in the future, will potentially be regurgitated as if it were fact, much like the many incorrect rumors surrounding, say, the yeti that were perpetuated over the years. It's not that you specifically have nefarious motivation. It is that there's absolutely nothing to it. It's not a fact. It's not a construction update. Instead, it's generally (though maybe not from you) an attempt to accuse the ride of being somehow less mature, more juvenile. Again, talking about the ultimate effect of the construction on the facade is on topic and totally fair game. You can say that it looks less impressive all you want. What is probably less on topic is parroting the same unsubstantiated claims about the designers' intent that you and others have repeatedly drawn from the ether across hundreds of pages. All of your "evidence" points to the effect, not the cause (or, perhaps more accurately, the rationale behind the cause).

Professortango134 minutes ago

You are correct, they are both examples of forced perspective. Getting large implies closer to the camera, so the wider waterway at the bottom makes me view it as closer to the camera, giving the impression of traveling towards me laterally. The previous surrounding artwork had the waterway narrowing to imply it was further away, making the movement look more vertical. Thank you for sharing the photo. I seem to recall the photo being in a cardboard book that encompassed the photo in an animated depiction of the attraction. I might be misremembering it's d confusing iit with the image below. I offer the image below not to start arguments nor make value judgements on which is better, merely to show what I had been picturing.