That’s a lot of beignets.
The transformation of Splash Mountain into Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at both the Magic Kingdom and Disneyland has been one of the more controversial in Disney history. First announced in 2020, the refurbishment was initially met with resistance from some quarters who wanted the original ride to remain despite the controversy surrounding its source material. Following the newly revamped ride’s June 2024 opening, further divisive opinions have arisen about the attraction’s storyline and mechanical ability. Now, a new report alleges to have calculated just how much the ride’s transformation cost Disney.
In a piece for Forbes, Caroline Reid — a longtime theme park and entertainment journalist known for focusing on budgets and production costs for those industries — has revealed that she believes the overall budget for transforming Walt Disney World’s and Disneyland’s respective Splash Mountains into Tiana’s Bayou Adventure to have been approximately $142 Million.
Reid came to this approximate number by comparing costs for other Disney projects including the building of the Avengers Campus at Disneyland Paris and the refurbishment of Star Tours into Star Tours: The Adventure Continues (according to Reid, Imagineer David Jaraudias disclosed theme numbers on social media site LinkedIn) and calculating in mitigating factors like inflation.
She wrote, “Unlike Star Tours, the transformation into Tiana’s Bayou Adventure required extensive labor-intensive updates to the decor as well as the creation of new sets, 48 audio-animatronics and the five new songs. Several screens also show bespoke new computer-generated imagery (CGI) though, admittedly, it isn’t anywhere near as extensive as the new footage for Star Tours which was the focus of its upgrade. The manpower required to develop and install the new decor and audio-animatronics compensates for lack of CGI. Combined with seven years of inflation it should put the upgrade budgets for both attractions at approximately a similar level and, according to Jaraudias that came to $71 million…It would put the total spent on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure over the past four years at $142 million.”
According to Reid, who expressed an overall negative view of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure throughout her piece, “The reputational damage of this debacle is incalculable and that alone could make it one of the most costly theme park rides in Disney’s history.”
It should be noted that Disney typically does not release financial figures and construction costs for attractions, and has not released anything official regarding the cost of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure.
While we don’t know how much the Tiana’s transformation truly cost, we do know that we’re pretty big fans of the new ride. For the latest Disney news and more, don’t forget to stay tuned to AllEars!
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What are your thoughts on Tiana’s Bayou Adventure? Let us know in the comments below.
that’s a lot of money for a ride system that was already existing and is now inferior to Splash Mountain.
Its also a lot of money for a ride that is constantly breaking down! Its new and still cant seem to get through a day!