Are we ready for a new attraction in Disney World or what?

Okay, so we’ve already had a few new attractions open in the past few years. Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at EPCOT keeps blowing our minds. TRON Lightcycle / Run in Magic Kingdom has taken us into the grid and back again. We can’t wait to experience Journey of Water — Inspired by Moana at EPCOT. But we might be most excited about the work being done on the former Splash Mountain to create Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. So let’s see how “Almost There” the attraction is.

Let’s take a look at the timeline of construction we’ve seen so far on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure!

January 2023

It all started when Splash Mountain closed FOREVER. Construction walls were up by the next day teasing Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. Those walls had the Tiana’s Foods logo on them, which is part of the story of the new ride. There was also a big change on the Magic Kingdom park map removing Splash Mountain and replacing it with the new attraction and its opening timeline.

When we walked around the ride a few days later, we could already see signs of construction. At the time, the restrooms at the ride’s exit were still open, but a large green scrim was put in place to hide work being done in the queue area.

So work began pretty much as soon as Splash Mountain closed.

February 2023

On February 1st, we noticed new Tiana’s Foods signs placed all along the construction walls. Tiana’s Foods is Tiana’s employee-owned company, where she and her employees work together to make food products and help members of the community become business people. So this is a nod to the new ride’s storyline.

We also noticed much taller construction walls at this time, blocking more of the view of work being done on the attraction.

We also noticed that some props in the Splash Mountain queue line were tagged for inventory and removal. It’s still unclear if these will be repurposed for the new ride or completely replaced.

About a week later, we spotted cranes working on the site.

We took a ride on the Walt Disney World Railroad later in the month and got a better view of the work being done. The windows and exposed areas of the queue line were blocked with sheets — PLUS we heard construction noises taking place indoors.

The queue was looking COMPLETELY different. Most of the hanging birdhouses in the trees were gone, and the walkable queue space was being widened.

Some painting was also going on at the time.

A LOT was going on with the ride in February. It was full speed ahead!

March 2023

We saw a lot of scaffolding going up around the main structure of the ride as crews started adding new theming to each level.

At the bottom of the hill, the water was drained, and that area was partially covered in tarps, wooden beams, and more scaffolding.

It’s coming right along.

April 2023

Disney previously announced that a tiara-topped water tower would be added to the ride, and we started seeing some of the construction work being done for that. There were fewer blue scrims around the scaffolding, and more scaffolding was added.

A much more visible change happened later that month. The tree stump that was at the top of Splash Mountain was completely removed.

Of course, there was a lot more work being done, but now we’re starting to see BIG changes, which leads us into May and then June.

June 2023

Okay, so in June, the BIGGEST change yet happened at the construction site of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. Remember that water tower we mentioned? Well, that water tower was revealed in June and it’s pretty impressive. 

There are some details on that water tower, too, that we just love. The two stars at the top of the water tower represent Ray and Evangeline. Oh, our hearts! The back of the tower says, “Never, ever lose sight of what’s really important,” which is a quote from Tiana’s father in The Princess and the Frog.

The back of the Tiana’s Foods water tower in Magic Kingdom says “Never, ever lose sight of what’s really important” pic.twitter.com/JwDasnJFEO

— Disney Food Blog (@DisneyFoodBlog) June 27, 2023

July 2023

Work continues on the ride, including scaffolding on some of the structures.

The queue is also really busy with construction workers and vehicles, although we’ve seen part of it used as storage, too.

So A LOT has happened in just the first half of 2023 on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, and we can’t wait to see what other updates we’ll find as work on the ride continues. Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is set to open in 2024, so we still have a little longer to wait, though. Stay tuned to DFB for ALL the updates.

Disney Didn’t Share These Details About Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Ride — But We Will

Join the DFB Newsletter to get all the breaking news right in your inbox! Click here to Subscribe!

What do you think of the work being done on the ride so far? Let us know in the comments!

The post 16 CHANGES We’ve Seen at Tiana’s Bayou Adventure So Far in Disney World first appeared on the disney food blog.