Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Closed at Disney World as Technical Issues Persist

Disney completely shut down its newest ride at the Magic Kingdom.

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Few expansions have been as exciting to watch unfold as Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at the Walt Disney World Resort. Originally announced in 2020, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure acts as the replacement for Disney’s legendary yet problematic log flume ride known as Splash Mountain.

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure officially opened on June 28, 2024, marking an exciting new chapter not just for the Magic Kingdom but the entire Walt Disney World Resort. This new ride takes guests on a journey inspired by Disney’s beloved 2009 film, The Princess and the Frog, complete with Princess Tiana and her friends as they all welcome guests to a massive New Orleans-style party.

Guests travel along the Louisiana Bayou and swampland as they search for the “missing ingredient.” The new attraction is an absolute blast, though its addition has been controversial within the Disney theme park community.

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure began early preview testing weeks before its official opening. This preview window was plagued with technical issues and extended downtime.

A video taken earlier this summer shows dozens of guests being instructed to evacuate the ride as emergency alarms blare in the background.

Brer Rabbit’s wrath rages on!

Brer Rabbit’s wrath rages on! 🤣 pic.twitter.com/hbDNrnLc59

— Ice Gator (@BlizzardArchive) June 25, 2024

As the ride’s opening date approached, these issues became increasingly concerning.

When Tiana’s Bayou Adventure finally did open, reliability started to improve, but the ride has struggled to operate consistently again this week, stirring up these initial concerns once again.

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On Tuesday, July 23, 2024, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure shut down hours before the rest of Magic Kingdom closed. This has been the case several days this week, with Tiana’s Bayou Adventure only operating a fraction of the standard Magic Kingdom day.

However, the new attraction was also completely drained, marking a total reset for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure.

Twitter/X user Showcase of Wishes revealed this, snapping a few photos of the attraction without water.

yes Tianas is closed with the water drained an hour before park closing pic.twitter.com/N497kJgloJ

— Showcase of Wishes (@ShowcaseWishes) July 24, 2024

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It’s unclear what exactly is keeping Tiana’s Bayou Adventure from operating on a consistent basis. The new ride is now weeks removed from its initial opening date, making its reliability a significant concern, not only for Disney but for guests visiting Magic Kingdom.

To make things more complicated and frustrating, guests can only experience Tiana’s Bayou Adventure for free through Disney’s Virtual Queue system. This system allows guests to make a reservation for a certain ride or attraction, giving them a callback time to come back and skip most of the line.

This system is utilized for most of Disney’s new rides and attractions, but Tiana’s Bayou Adventure’s reliability poses a problem for guests.

Magic Kingdom has two attractions featured on the Virtual Queue system: Tiana’s Bayou Adventure and TRON Lightcycle / Run.

If guests use their Virtual Queue reservation for Tiana’s but the ride fails to open, they will miss out on being able to ride TRON using a Virtual Queue.

Of course, if guests really want to experience both attractions, they can purchase Lightning Lane, but Virtual Queue allows guests to try out most new rides for free, as long as they remain open.

It’s unclear what the future of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure will look like. A second version of the ride is currently being built at the Disneyland Resort in California, but its opening date is yet to be announced.

Have you experienced Tiana’s Bayou Adventure yet? What’s your favorite Magic Kingdom ride?