Hardcore Disney fans have offered their verdict on the park’s new Tiana-themed log flume ride before it officially opens to the public later this month.
Molly and Alan McCormack, who run the Mammoth Club YouTube channel with co-host Max La Due, ventured to Walt Disney World in Florida to try out Tiana’s Bayou Adventure.
The attraction, which updates Tiana’s story from the 2009 animated film The Princess and the Frog, occupies a space where Splash Mountain once stood.
Some Disney fans see it as a fitting replacement for its predecessor, which was themed to the 1946 Disney film Song of the South. The film was filled with racist clichés about African Americans and plantation life.
Molly and Alan state in their YouTube review that while Splash Mountain was also beloved by many and brought back memories considering it was installed in 1989, the new and improved attraction centered around Disney’s first black princess ticks a lot of boxes.
Molly and Alan McCormack, who run the Mammoth Club YouTube channel with their co-host, Max La Due, ventured to Walt Disney World in Florida to try out Tiana’s Bayou Adventure.
The attraction, which updates Tiana’s story from the 2009 animated film The Princess and the Frog, occupies a space where Splash Mountain once stood.
Molly and Alan say in their YouTube review that while Splash Mountain was loved by many, the new, improved attraction centered around Disney’s first black princess ticks a lot of boxes.
After trying out the water ride, Molly says, ‘Regardless of how you feel about Splash Mountain, not everyone felt welcome. (Tiana’s Swamp Adventure)…it was such a joyful trip.’
In their YouTube video, Molly and Alan give viewers a tour of the attraction from start to finish.
After trying out the water ride, Molly says, ‘Regardless of how you feel about Splash Mountain, not everyone felt welcome.
‘(Tiana’s Swamp Adventure)… was such a joyful and beautiful journey. The colors are amazing, the animatronics are amazing.
“It still feels like a classic nostalgia ride… strangely it feels like Splash Mountain, but it’s better now.”
In their YouTube video, Molly and Alan give viewers a tour of the attraction, which opens June 28, from start to finish.
In one scene, they visit the gift shop and show off some of the products on offer.
Some of the featured items include jewelry, hot sauce made by a famous New Orleans chef, and a $15,000 painting of the cast of The Princess and the Frog completed by a local Louisiana artist.
Elsewhere in the YouTube tour, the pair show off the greenery outside the attraction, with a lily pond, a small community farm, mature plants and swamp trees to set the scene.
Returning to the attraction, Molly and Alan explain that it’s the same as Splash Mountain “in terms of the 50-foot drop and the log flume vehicles you’re taking, but it has a whole new story revolving around Princess Tiana.” “.
“Tiana’s adventure in the swamp takes place after the events of The Princess and the Frog… and Tiana is doing well,” Alan said.
As they make their way through some of the different sets before lining up for the ride, the couple are clearly impressed by the attention to detail, thinking about every element.
At one point they point out a framed letter on the wall of Tiana’s office written by Prince Naveen, while in another room they find themed posters and photographs of Tiana’s family.
During the video tour, one of Disney’s ‘imaginers’ and assistant construction manager named Addison tells Molly and Alan all the details of the trip.
He explains: “I think you’ll find there’s been a significant change because it’s a whole new story here at Tiana’s.
Molly and Alan explain that it’s the same as Splash Mountain “in terms of the 50-foot drop and the log flume vehicles you’re taking, but it has a whole new story revolving around Tiana.”
YouTube creators advise park visitors to ride the log flume “several times to really understand all the details.”
In one scene, they visit the gift shop and show off some of the products on offer.
After trying the ride for yourself, Molly and Alan give it a rave review.
‘It’s the same shell, but it’s a whole new place and a whole new application for the place itself.
‘We are actually here in the outer gardens. for Tiana’s Co-op and that’s the Tiana Foods company, so they grow their own food here, process it and ship it.
“As you experience the queue and then descend into the salt mine, which was purchased by Tiana’s Foods Co-op, you will be able to embark on a journey to help Tiana find the last missing ingredient for her big celebration to celebrate Mardi Gras .
‘My favorite part without a doubt is when you go down the first drop and enter the Bayou for the first time.
“You’ll see everyone’s favorite alligator, Lewis, trying to tell you something that’s around the corner and as soon as you turn that corner, it’s just an absolutely stunning display of all the new technology we have.”
After trying the ride for yourself, Molly and Alan, please give it a rave review.
Molly concludes: ‘Gor in this with an open mind. It very often happens that when there is a change or an attraction is replaced or reimagined, people enter it because they love the predecessor, they enter negatively here.
“So even if Splash was your favorite ride, even if you have a lot of nostalgia for that ride or classic family memories… Don’t hold that against Princess Tiana.
‘You can have good memories for Splash and also being excited and embracing what I think is a very good attraction.
“I think the music is wonderful, the animatronics are amazing, it’s colorful and this reinvention has breathed much-needed new life into this space.”
YouTube creators also advise park visitors to ride the log flume “several times to fully understand all the details” and to save time in line for expedited Lightning Lane passes.