Disney Draws Inspiration from New Orleans for New Princess & Frog Ride – I Traveled There to Learn About It

Splash Mountain is now closed at both Disneyland and Walt Disney World. The attraction will be replaced by a new Princess and the Frog-themed attraction called “Tiana’s Bayou Adventure” based on the 2009 Disney Animation film.

The attraction will be deeply rooted in the culture and history of New Orleans, Louisiana which also inspired the film. Disney has gone to great lengths, including countless research trips to New Orleans, to tell a grounded story.

New Orleans Inspiration Tiana's Bayou Adventure

The “Princess and the Frog” movie is deeply rooted in the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. Disney is taking the same care with the new attraction. Both the Disney Animators that worked on the film and the Walt Disney Imagineers now working on the attraction were and are engaged with the people and history of the city.

Recently I had the opportunity to join a team from Walt Disney Imagineering in New Orleans during a recent trip to see the sources of inspiration for the new Princess and the Frog attraction.

Over the course of multiple days, we enjoyed food, music, and a look into the history of the city. After years of enjoying jazz, learning the history, and of visiting the area themed to New Orleans at Disneyland, this was my first time visiting the city.

What follows is my recount of the multiple days of experiencing the culture of the city that inspired the Princess and the Frog film and upcoming Disney attraction.

Disney’s Connection to New Orleans, Louisiana

Disney Legend John Goodman, and character voice in Princess and the Frog, said “New Orleans is a city that lives in the world’s imagination”.

The city took hold of Walt Disney’s imagination. He was a frequent visitor to the city in the late 1950s and found inspiration there for the first ever Audio-Animatronic robotic figure. He was captivated by a wind-up mechanical bird in an antique store and had one of his Imagineers deconstruct the bird to understand how it worked. That fascination led to the birthplace of the incredible Audio-Animatronics we see throughout the Disney theme parks today.

Walt loved the city so much that he created the New Orleans Square area, home to the Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion attractions, in Disneyland. The mayor of the real-life city was on hand for the dedication in 1966 and made Walt an honorary citizen. The land was the last Disneyland project that Walt Disney opened before he passed away.

Prominent New Orleanian Louis Armstrong had a strong Disney connection. He recorded an album, “Disney Songs of the Satchmo Way” (coincidentally the first song is Splash Moutain’s current theme song, “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah”), received a Mousecar recognition award from Walt Disney himself, and performed several times at Disneyland After Dark.

Other prominent New Orleans musicians with a Disney connection include Kid Ory who also performed at Disneyland, Dr. John who performs the title song in Princess & the Frog, and Jon Batiste who won an Academy Award and Golden Globe for the original score of Pixar’s film Soul.

Disney will release the new Haunted Mansion movie which was largely filmed in New Orleans later this summer.

Disney’s History of Research

Disney has a long history of taking inspiration from real sources for their films and theme park attractions. This tradition of drawing inspiration from the real world for films dates back to Walt Disney’s era. During our trip, Disney Animation VFX Supervisor Marlon West shared stories from working on the original Princess and the Frog film.

Walt Disney Imagineering following in the steps of the filmmakers that went before them isn’t new either. The Pixar creative team behind the Cars film went on a road trip down Route 66 and later the creative team working on the Cars Land at Disney California Adventure followed that same route to take inspiration for the land. Walt Disney Imagineering also does extensive original research. During the design of the Aulani – A Disney Resort in Hawaii, they built out a trust dedicated to gathering information and getting the Hawaiian culture right.

For a company telling stories about talking cars and trumpet-playing alligators, the need for research may not feel necessary but Carmen Smith, SVP & Executive Creative Development Product/Content & Inclusive Strategies explains “we don’t do realism, we do believability.” Even the most fantastical elements need to be grounded for a great story.

The fear with diving so heavily into research and presenting so many levels of detail to park guests within a nine-minute attraction is that it may feel academic and suck the fun out of a thrill ride. Disney seems to anticipate this potential side effect of layering in the history. Smith shared “we’re not here to give our guests a history lesson” but the authenticity is in the attraction for those who want to dig deeper into the history. If you know New Orleans, you’ll see it in this attraction.

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is New Version of Splash Mountain

The Splash Mountain attraction was based on the controversial “Song of the South” film that has not been distributed in the United States in years due to its rosy depiction of the post-Civil War south. In an effort to remove all references to the film in the parks and to celebrate one of their popular princess films, Disney is retheming the attraction to Princess and the Frog. The attraction is coming to Disneyland Park and Magic Kingdom Park in 2024. Read more about the reopening date for Splash Mountain here.

Disney Imagineers are crafting an original story for the Princess Tiana attraction that starts where the film left off. The ride centers on Princess Tiana, Louis the Alligator, and Prince Naveen going on an adventure through the bayou as they prepare for a Mardi Gras celebration.

The group is in search of a missing ingredient for the celebration. “There’s a missing ingredient, but ingredients don’t always pertain to food” Charita Carter, the Executive Creative Producer from Imagineering, on the project shared.

The ride will feature familiar and new characters and present these characters with dozens of entirely new Audio-Animatronic figures as we share in our guide to the new Tiana’s Bayou Adventure attraction. The ride is set inside an old salt mine that Princess Tiana has transformed into Tiana’s Foods.

Throughout the attraction and queue waiting area, Disney is weaving in detail from New Orleans, Louisiana. Disney Imagineer Carmen Smith shared they are “creating a love letter to New Orleans.” Guests in the queue will also hear a period radio program and a call from Tiana to come help with the search for the missing ingredient.

The Splash Mountain ride building, track, and ride time are physically remaining the same though there will be changes to the exterior of the building including the addition of a water tower.

Bayou Inspiration

Some of the most memorable scenes from “Princess and the Frog” take place in and around the bayou. About an hour outside New Orleans, we traveled to the specific stretch of wetland systems that locals refer to as the bayou. This is the specific bayou that inspired animators working on the original movie.

We saw raccoons and alligators, snakes and eagles, in what was an incredible look into nature that inspired the new characters and original film characters. Our guide also pointed out the whiskey tree where rum runners met outside of New Orleans. Disney used that gnarled tree as inspiration for the tree that Mama Odie’s boat is perched in the movie.

Throughout our boat ride, we saw a number of alligators that got right up next to our boat. I was a bit terrified of the gators. You have to love the Disney Animator that saw these gators years ago when working on the original movie and thought that they would be the perfect inspiration for the music-loving Louis the Alligator.

New Music Coming to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure

Disney shared news about some of the collaborators that they are working with for the music of the attraction.

Disney announced that the new attraction will have an original song written, performed, and produced by PJ Morton. He commented on how fitting it is that the attraction is leaning so heavily into music considering their goals of representing New Orleans saying “You don’t get New Orleans without the music.” Morton also reflected on how much of an impact the music of Mary Poppins and The Little Mermaid had on him as a child and how he now gets to follow in the footsteps of the Sherman Brothers (music for Mary Poppins, it’s a Small World, Tiki Room) by creating a song for the theme parks.

Previously New Orleans native Terrence Blanchard played all the trumpet parts for Louis the Alligator in the Princess and the Frog movie and voiced a character. He is also a notable collaborator with director Spike Lee and worked on one of my favorite films, Inside Man. This seven-time Grammy winner and two-time Academy Award nominee is arranging and producing select songs from the movie and iconic themes from New Orleans, Louisiana for use in the queue.

Blanchard reflected on the impact of Princess and the Frog film and the first African-American Disney princess saying that the new movie gave “so many kids hope and pride” and continued that he feels “blessed to be a part of it.”

Both PJ Morton and Terence Blanchard are iconic musicians and New Orleans cultural ambassadors advising on the project.

Music Inspiration

In New Orleans, there is a tradition of handmade musical instruments. Music can come from anywhere and so can the musical instruments used to create that music.

At the New Orleans Jazz Museum, we saw examples of instruments like this. We also learned that these handmade instruments would be present in the attraction with some of the new animal characters playing them and used in the creation of the attraction as the source of some animal sounds throughout the attraction. We saw footage of the sound effects designers playing a call with string to make the noise of a frog croaking.

Also at the museum is a 1920s drum set that inspired the drums that Naveen’s little brother, Prince Ralphie, will play in the attraction.

The attraction will also feature Zydeco music, a special blend of rhythm and blues that was born in Louisiana.

Visiting Preservation Hall

During our visit, we also spent time at the historic Preservation Hall deep in the heart of the French Quarter. The venue hosts New Orleans Jazz concerts over 360 nights a year. The family business has supported the unique culture of traditional jazz in New Orleans, which developed in the local melting pot of African, Caribbean, and European musical traditions at the turn of the 20th Century.

While here we learned about the new music coming to the attraction. During this stop, we heard one of many great music performances during the trip. In the same way that music is constantly played at Disney Parks, music is constant in New Orleans, Louisiana. Unlike at Disney, the music played here is almost all live music. Really brings the city to life.

Inspired by the Art

The traditional and contemporary art styles of New Orleans inspired Disney. They specifically worked with artists from an organization called YAYA.

YAYA is an art collective that was started in 1988 as a free visual arts program to educate youth ages 5-25 on all disciplines of the arts and entrepreneurship as a “safe space for kids providing the training wheels for life.” The group started with refurbishing old furniture that they found on the side of the street. Today one of their signature projects is still refurbishing chairs and using them to express a feeling or vision.

Disney commissioned a chair from the organization to represent the new Tiana's Bayou Adventure attraction. The chair will be on display soon in Eudora’s Chic Boutique in New Orleans Square in Disneyland Park.

Four New Pieces of Art Commissioned for Inspiration

In the spirit of wanting to be authentic, the Disney Imagineers brought an artist from YAYA into their blue sky inspiration process. They pitched Sharika Mahdi, a local artist, the project and then had her present it back to them in four different art canvas pieces.

Imagineering used these pieces of artwork to inspire their own work as they developed more aspects of the attraction. Several elements from the attraction draw direct inspiration from these art pieces including the Mama Odie Audio-Animatronic figure.

Inspired by History

Disney drew on real-life artifacts from the history of New Orleans to ground the story which takes place in the 1920s.

At The Historic New Orleans Collection, we saw artifacts from Tiana’s time like the “Woods Directory” that listed black-owned businesses and would have listed Tiana’s restaurant and food co-op. The collection was visited by more than a dozen Imagineers and has more than a million things representing the history and culture of New Orleans.

At the New Orleans Jazz Museum, the Imagineers literally found newspaper clippings sharing the news of a new water tower beside a salt mine in the same style as what will be found at the new attraction.

As Princess Tiana’s story is rooted in the real-time and place of New Orleans, the Imagineers were focused on getting the details right to pay tribute to the region’s history.

For the new attraction, Imagineers looked to the advertisements, artifacts, food packaging, and musical instruments from the museum informed Imagineers as they created props for the queue and attraction.

Inspired By the Food

Every meal during the trip was a new surprise of Southern comfort food. From gumbo to fried chicken to Shrimp étouffée to red snapper fish and of course beignets, I got to taste the foods that Tiana makes in the Princess and the Frog film. Though none were Mickey-shaped like the ones in Disneyland, the beignets throughout our trip left me in a food comma. Each time I went in fearing the cloud of powdered sugar and each time I finished covered in sugar yet delighted by the delicious pastry.

Food is also present as inspiration for the new attraction. The entire ride is built around the concept of Tiana’s Foods. Disney has also shared that the smell of beignets will be pumped into the attraction queue. Thankfully guests will also be able to buy beignets outside the attraction at Disneyland near the new Tiana's Palace restaurant. No word on a beignet stand for outside the Walt Disney World location just yet, but it seems like a no-brainer.

Real-Life Chef Inspiration For Princess Tiana

Chefs and Musicians are the real royalty in New Orleans. Real-life chef Leah Chase was used as the inspiration for Princess Tiana. Though Leah Chase passed away in 2019, we had the opportunity to meet other members of the Chase family.

Leah’s daughter, Stella Chase, and her family hosted us at Dooky Chase’s Restaurant where they have served presidents, prime ministers, musicians, and families from around the world. Notably, this was one of the first places that President Bush held a dinner in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

Leah Chase and her husband started the restaurant in 1941 as their own black-owned upscale restaurant inspired by those in New Orleans’ French Quarter. The premier location for authentic Creole Cuisine, the restaurant became a hub for music and entertainment, civil rights, and culture in New Orleans. All the walls feature art created by black artists. Stella Chase shared that her family believes “everyone should feel their worth and feel special.” To this day, the restaurant frequently hosts politicians, musicians, artists, and literary legends.

Mardi Gras Inspiration

The finale of the new attraction will take place during a Mardi Gras celebration. The Disney Imagineers previously visited during the Mardi Gras season and got to partake in the revelry of a day at the event.

Though we weren’t in New Orleans during Mardi Gras season we still got a taste of the celebration with a visit to the Mardi Gras World facility where massive Mardi Gras floats are built throughout the year. There were a number of Disney characters represented from previous floats though most had a Mardi Gras spin on them.

New Orleans is an inspiration

Disney is working hard to deliver an authentic story of New Orleans with the retheme of the Splash Mountain classic log flume thrill ride.

Though the story details in Tiana's Bayou Adventure may go unnoticed by some who just want to experience the thrill of the attraction or see their favorite Disney princess, the story beats and real-life connection to the film honors a culture that has inspired Disney so often over the years.

Carmen Smith shared her hope for those who ride the attraction – “We want people from New Orleans to say “Wow” they did their homework” and those who have never been to “want to come to New Orleans.”

Those who are curious about the backstory of Disney attractions and those with a history in New Orleans will appreciate the care and detail of the new ride. Anyone else will enjoy the fun music and visible touches that the city's history inspired. New Orleans has an inspirational culture that will now be woven into one of the most entertaining attractions at Disneyland and Walt Disney World.

This trip and the new details shared by Disney have me even more excited about the new attraction. I can see the level of care that they are taking to deliver a high-quality attraction that is authentic and fun. Be sure to also read more about the news released today about the new ride here.

I was hosted on this trip by Disney, but all opinions remain my own. We are constantly visiting the parks on our own and always remain unbiased. Trips like this give us the opportunity to provide you with additional context and details from Disney on their decisions.

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