This Disneyland Ride Gives Me Anxiety and I Know I'm Not the Only One

As much as we love the Disneyland rides, there’s one in particular that gives us pause…

Bayou Country in Disneyland

While rides like Space Mountain and Matterhorn Bobsleds can divide fans due to their intensity (and the possibly painful experience of the latter), there’s one Disneyland ride that especially causes anxiety thanks to its high level of thrills and lingering effects.

Disneyland’s newest ride — Tiana’s Bayou Adventure — is a retheme of Splash Mountain in the newly minted Bayou Country (previously Critter Country). While the ride has an all-new story and is just a tad more inviting than its predecessor, it still has most of the same ride elements as Splash Mountain — including its problems.

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at Disneyland

Let’s start with the basics: When you walk up to this attraction, it’s hard to ignore the screaming riders plummeting down a 50-foot drop at a 45-degree angle and at a faster speed than Space Mountain. Whether or not you’re excited to be one of those riders, it’s enough to get your adrenaline going.

Then there are the two smaller drops within the ride that are much tamer, but still count as drops. Don’t let the fact that this ride is based on a Disney Princess — this is a thrill ride.

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure in Disneyland

With that said, we go on Disney’s thrill rides all the time and, aside from the three drops, the rest of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is pretty tame with some mind-blowing animatronics, fun music, and immersive theming. HOWEVER, the scariest thing about this ride is what happens AFTER the drops.

Louis

During the first two drops, especially, the likelihood of getting soaked is fairly high.

Playing the bongos

This is a water ride, after all. However, the Disneyland version is notorious for how soaked you can get. Unless you’re wearing a poncho and have all your shoes and personal belongings covered, the water is gonna get ya.

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure

Variables like where you’re sitting (good luck to front-row passengers) and how full your log is DO make a difference, but during the warmer days when the water is full and the logs are packed, good luck getting off the ride with a single dry spot.

The bayou at night

By the time you’re going up the hill to the big final drop, you may have already looked like you just took a shower.

Up we go!

We’ve had instances where our reporters were so soaked that they needed to buy new shoes and a completely new outfit, lest they walk around the park the rest of the day drenched.

We made it to the party!

Even the biggest thrill-seekers have some anxiety when it comes to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. The best advice for those looking to push through the anxiety? Wear a poncho, bring a change of clothes, and/or switch to flip flops or sandals when riding! Otherwise, happy swimming!