Tiana’s Bayou Adventure will debut at Disney World next month

Four years after Disney announced the attraction, Tiana's Bayou Adventure finally has an official opening date.

With a special video featuring the famous New Orleans-based St. Augustine High School marching band performing in the French Quarter’s historic Jackson Square, Disney Parks announced the new ride will open June 28.

The video filled with NOLA-themed celebration also included PJ Morton, one of the contributors to the attraction’s soundtrack, and members of the Chase family — legendary chef Leah Chase was one of the inspirations for Princess Tiana.

The new log flume ride is themed after the characters, stories, and setting of The Princess and the Frog and is set a year after the events of the 2009 film.

While Tiana’s replaces the previous ride, Splash Mountain, the new attraction completely transforms the area in Frontier Land into a celebration of New Orleans culture, music, and food. The ride’s story follows Princess Tiana, Prince Naveen, Louis the jazz-loving alligator and a whole cast of beloved and new characters and critters created for the ride on a peaceful float through the Louisiana bayou.

Along the way, riders will hear beloved music from the movie along with an original score of jazz and zydeco tunes from Grammy award-winning artists Morton and Terence Blanchard.

The setting is Tiana’s Foods, a food cooperative she created set on a salt dome, the top of which is the ride’s grand finale of a more than 50-foot drop. Tiana and her friends are throwing a community Mardi Gras celebration, but she desperately needs a good band. So, guests join Tiana on a raucous journey to find the bayou’s most musical critters to play in time for the party.

Imagineers have been ride-testing the attraction since March, and Disney Parks has been sharing updates on construction , storyline, and new animatronics since ride development began.

The opening of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is a long time coming for Disney World, which announced the new ride revamp in 2020 after decades of Splash Mountain. Much of the structure and flow of the ride will remain the same, but the new attraction celebrates an important era of Black history and culture instead of including characters and music from the racially offensive Song of the South .

Splash Mountain opened in 1992 and closed in January 2023 . The popular Magic Kingdom ride featured charming creatures, catchy music, a thrilling plunge and a chance to get splashed on hot park days. During its last days in operation, Splash Mountain garnered long lines and fans looking for keepsakes — containers of the ride’s water were even listed on eBay .

Good thing for die-hard log flume plunge ride fans: You’ll get the same thrills on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. And with how much time, effort and attention to detail Disney has put into bringing Tiana’s Louisiana to life, the new attraction is expected to be even more charming, have catchier music and star cuter, more talented critters.

More details are coming soon, including information about preview opportunities for cast members, annual passholders and Disney Vacation Club members on May 14.

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