Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Breaks Down Again
Remember that disastrous preview of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, Disney’s replacement for Splash Mountain in The Magic Kingdom? It broke down, animatronics malfunctioned, fire alarms sounded, and the press and online influencers were evacuated from the ride, as reported on Park Hoppin’. Well, today wasn’t much better because, according to WDW Pro of That Park Place, the ride broke down again. WDW Pro posted a picture of the attraction on X, saying that the water was drained and Disney cast members were “blocking access to the bridge to try to prevent more videos and photos” from getting out. Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is scheduled to officially open on June 28, 2024, though it’s unclear if Disney will attempt to fix it by then.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is broken again today. Water drained, Disney cast members blocking access to the bridge to try to prevent more videos and photos from getting on the internet. Too bad That Park Place has journalists on the ground. pic.twitter.com/Klh0TGfgT7
— wdwpro (@wdwpro1) June 4, 2024
Here’s where it gets truly sad: according to Jonas J. Campbell, also of That Park Place, the ride eventually opened again… without water.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is currently running with guests, but with no water on the big drop.
I never thought I’d see that happen.
Video credit: Ron Bradley pic.twitter.com/IGu0CYyA8c
— Jonas J. Campbell (@JonasJCampbell) June 4, 2024
What a nightmare for Disney (and a laugh riot for the rest of us). This is two days in a row with reports of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure breaking down during previews, along with the problems it had over the weekend. And when they finally get it going, it doesn’t even have water. This is a ride people were already biased against because it was replacing Splash Mountain, a legendary attraction that was voted the most popular theme park ride on Earth. How do you imagine those people feel seeing it run without water, the main feature of Splash Mountain? I said this yesterday, but it’s maddening that Disney would allow an attraction in this poor a state to open, even just for previews. The bad press this is getting them is devastating, and it’s all their fault. So far, there’s been no mention of delaying the debut of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, but unless they get themselves in gear and fix it, I don’t think they’ll have a choice. That this is happening while Universal Studios is advertising its Epic Universe makes it even worse; Orlando may no longer be synonymous with Disney World by the time they’re through.
