“Pile Up” Issues Impact Disney’s Newest Attraction, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
Issues with Tiana’s Bayou Adventure keep piling up–and now, so are the ride vehicles. The Frontierland attraction has experienced hours-long closures every day this week, from Sunday, August 25, to Thursday, August 29.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure was plagued with maintenance problems even before it opened. Numerous Disney cast member and Annual Passholder previews for the Splash Mountain retheme were canceled as the ride had to shut down for repair hours before Magic Kingdom Park closed.
Technical issues continued after the Walt Disney World Resort attraction officially opened on June 28. Disney Park guests report ongoing, lengthy closures. A Virtual Queue or Lightning Lane Multi Pass reservation is supposed to guarantee a ride, but lately, it seems like only lucky guests get to adventure down the Bayou.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure faced weather-related closures on Sunday, August 25, but inexplicably shut down repeatedly in the following days. On Tuesday, the Splash Mountain retheme faced its worst day all week. Magic Kingdom Park opened without the water ride, which didn’t begin operating until the early evening.
On Wednesday, Redditor u/TripleFLi waited hours for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure to open. They were able to ride, but the attraction shut down immediately after, and ride vehicles piled up on top of each other:
Pile-Up on Tiana’s Bayou
“It was down for most of the day…,” the Disney Park guest wrote. “Just got off the ride so the photo is worse than it appears.”
Disney cast members later informed the guest that inclement weather forced the second closure.
“The ride broke down again right after I got off,” they explained. “…It shut down because of the weather forecast.”
On Thursday, issues continued. Redditor u/alexdionisos posted a screenshot of the My Disney Experience app, showing that the Princess Tiana ride was again closed indefinitely:
I know it’s a common joke but I truly think we’ll need celebration cupcakes when this ride can operate for two days in a row
I know it's a common joke but I truly think we'll need celebration cupcakes when this ride can operate for two days in a row
byu/alexdionisos inWaltDisneyWorld
Once again, the New Orleans-themed ride failed to open alongside Magic Kingdom Park. In the comments, disappointed guests shared their experiences trying to experience Tiana’s Bayou Adventure.
“We couldn’t ride it yesterday and I literally did every single ride at MK,” u/PoppyCake33 wrote. “Seems this ride is doomed.”
“It really is the main hiccup in a visitor’s MK day, especially if it stops several times and for several minutes,” u/Warm_Power1997 replied.
Some guests visited Magic Kingdom Park multiple days and still couldn’t ride Tiana’s Bayou Adventure.
“We were there last week – it was down for [Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party] and also down all day both of our MK days,” said u/Infinite-Dinner-9707.
“We’ve tried to get on it 3 days in a row unsuccessfully this week,” u/FarmersWoodcraft replied. “By the time the ride is up (usually around dinner time for us) we’re out at Disney Springs or EPCOT. It’s getting really old.”
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The Princess and the Frog (2009) attraction’s predecessor, Splash Mountain, experienced many of the same issues. Disney Parks fans hoped that Walt Disney Imagineers would redo outdated and worn ride elements instead of simply swapping the Br’er characters for Princess Tiana, Louis, Prince Naveen, and Mama Odie.
“It’s so bad,” u/sublimeshrub commented. “They didn’t even fix the issues Splash Mountain had, then they added layers of complexity on to the ride system. The ride system doesn’t work.”
“Hopefully they’ll keep the Princess and the Frog theming, but it really does seem like this ride needs a technical overhaul,” u/JediTempleDropout agreed.
Disneyland Resort has yet to open its version of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, which will be located in the newly renamed “Bayou Country” (formerly Critter Country). At D23 Expo 2024, Chairman of Disney Experiences Josh D’Amaro revealed that the log flume ride will debut on November 15, 2024.
Have you ridden or watched videos of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure? In the comments, share your take on the Splash Mountain retheme with us.
