News Tiana’s Palace Coming to Disneyland Later this Year

[BrianLo]

Unfortunately, the global creative strategy for WDI in 2023 appears to be:

- Every park around the world is a Magic Kingdom, just with other names

- Every land is Fantasyland

- Never let theme, place, time, or architectural integration stand in the way of adding characters

It’s happening all over the world in Epcot’s World Showcase/Future World (now random “neighborhoods”), DCA, Tomorrowlands, Adventurelands, Resort hotels, etc.

What made Disneyland so special and fundamentally different than other theme parks or children’s amusement parks were areas like Main Street, Tomorrowland, Adventureland, Frontierland, New Orleans Square, etc.

Areas that once had higher ambition and concepts than just places for kids (and now Disney “adults”) to see cartoon characters.

just lazy and sad.

I see your broader point, but in context of THIS specific project - this just reads like disdain for 'cartoons'? I feel like legitimate complaints are completely watered down when people just complain about absolutely everything; which in essence comes down to some people don't tolerate any change.

Really nothing else you say applies. This is the Magic Kingdom, it isn't a fantastical project, it also fits the time, era, place and the architecture is up to whether it's the D-imaginering team or not.

IP has never been limited to Fantasyland, it just so happens many of Walt's films were European Fairytales that meshed well together there. I take it though you think cartoons are better off contained there? Tiana's restaurant being placed in Fantasyland would actually be more nonsensical.

 

[mickEblu]

Maybe I’m reading too much into it but looking at the concept art it appears that they may be expanding the seating area into Magnolia park. I wouldn’t be surprised if they moved the main entrance to where the bandstand is now. It seems like it could be worse than I thought. In addition to possible tree removal, looks like the planter behind the bandstand may be gone. More importantly the whole feel of that area could change. The pathway from the train station would have to cut closer to where the middle of the park is now closer to the fountain. I wouldn’t be surprised if they moved the entrance to the restaurant to where the bandstand is now. I’m bracing for the worst. To modern Disney that area is probably a “waste of space” instead of excellent place making.

I’ve said many times that this area is my favorite place to hang out at the park. Especially when it’s calmer when HMH isn’t around. Just feels so lived in between the Mansion, French Market, train station and all the mature trees. Those planters and benches there under the trees are a great place to hang out and have beignet or mint julep. It feels like Disney wants us to pay to sit down. Not sure what’s going on but Disney keeps going after my favorite things at the parks. I can’t catch a break.

TOT - favorite ride at DCA
Splash - favorite ride at DL
Magnolia Park - favorite place to hang out at DL

 

[SuddenStorm]

Maybe I’m reading too much into it but looking at the concept art it appears that they may be expanding the seating area into Magnolia park. I wouldn’t be surprised if they moved the main entrance to where the bandstand is now. It seems like it could be worse than I thought. In addition to possible tree removal, looks like the planter behind the bandstand may be gone. More importantly the whole feel of that area could change. The pathway from the train station would have to cut closer to where the middle of the park is now closer to the fountain. I wouldn’t be surprised if they moved the entrance to restaurant to where the bandstand is now. I’m bracing for the worst.

I’ve said many times that this area is my favorite place to hang out at the park. Especially when it’s calmer when HMH isn’t around. Just feels so lived in between the Mansion, French Market, train station and all the mature trees. Those planters and benches there under the trees are a great place to hang out and have beignet or mint julep. It feels like Disney wants us to pay to sit down. Not sure what’s going on but Disney keeps going after my favorite things at the park. I can’t catch a break.

TOT - favorite ride at DCA
Splash - favorite ride at DL
Magnolia Park - favorite place to hang out at DL

It's almost like Disney is targeting each of your favorite areas.

I mean my two favorite things are Splash and '92 Fantasmic so I'm in the same boat.

 

[celluloid]

If this is the place with the Smashed potatoes at Disneyland, that is a shame. That was pretty good quick service food for Disney. Coming from Magic Kingdom the food at DL was one of the better differences.

 

[mickEblu]

I’d be interested to know if this area of NOS (Magnolia Park) and the area surrounding the train station is more or less untouched since it was built in 1966. Anybody know?

 

[mickEblu]

It's almost like Disney is targeting each of your favorite areas.

I mean my two favorite things are Splash and '92 Fantasmic so I'm in the same boat.

I guess the sooner we realize nothing is sacred /safe the better. It’s just sad though because when it comes to thematic integrity, placemaking or just sheer quality pretty much none of the recent changes can be viewed as objectively better.

 

[PiratesMansion]

I’d be interested to know if this area of NOS (Magnolia Park) and the area surrounding the train station is more or less untouched since it was built in 1966. Anybody know?

Pardon my ignorance. Is Magnolia Park the area with the fountain that is often co-opted to become part of the queue for Mansion, or is it something else?

 

[mickEblu]

Pardon my ignorance. Is Magnolia Park the area with the fountain that is often co-opted to become part of the queue for Mansion, or is it something else?

Yes that’s it and I don’t even know if it’s an official name or anything. I think it might be like an unofficial official name

 

[PiratesMansion]

Yes that’s it and I don’t even know if it’s an official name or anything. I think it might be like an unofficial official name

Makes sense.

I know that there used to be an area with the bandstand roughly where NOS is now that was a proposed HM site that was called Magnolia Park, until it was lost to Jungle Cruise expansion. I didn't know that the name was also used for this fountain area.

Maybe the fact that it is needed for queuing area overflow (including over the summer for normal Mansion this past year!) will save it? Kind of a twisted, unfortunate reason to justify keeping it around, but I suppose we have to take what we can get sometimes with modern Disney.

 

[RobWDW1971]

They did release PATF as a major motion picture in 2009. It was a movie based in New Orleans with a plot involving a restaurant. And Disneyland had an entire land themed to New Orleans with several restaurants. No one thought to do this in 2010? And if so, why not?

Because at the time, the film was one of the weaker box office releases of that Disney/Pixar era, did not have any cultural impact, and was not a merchandise driver. It would have actually been odd for them to even consider making PATF a permanent addition to any theme park, just like nobody would have suggested a Bolt or Chicken Little attraction/restaurant (which both performed better than PATF).

Animated releases of the era (in 2009 dollars):

2005 Chicken Little $341M
2007 Ratatouille $647
2008 Bolt $328M
2008 Wall E $531M
2009 Princess and the Frog $271M
2009 Up $731M
2010 Tangled $575M

I can only leave it up to your speculation why 14 years later this particular IP deserves a major E ticket attraction, restaurant, and a retail store in two different lands.

 

[Mickey's Pal]

Bullcrap! Now you are f -Ing with something Walt and his original Imagineers worked very hard on- the look and feel of New Orlean Squares.

 

[Californian Elitist]

Bullcrap! Now you are f -Ing with something Walt and his original Imagineers worked very hard on- the look and feel of New Orlean Squares.

New Orleans Square* has already been f***ed with. Many times. The whole park has.

Time to accept these facts and move on.

 

[SuddenStorm]

I’d be interested to know if this area of NOS (Magnolia Park) and the area surrounding the train station is more or less untouched since it was built in 1966. Anybody know?

Time to do a deep dive on Daveland!

 

[mickEblu]

I’m calling it now. Paradise Gardens will be gone or reworked in the next few years. I know this because it’s my favorite place to hangout at DCA. Flo’s facing RSR is coming for that top spot though.

 

[Mickey's Pal]

New Orleans Square* has already been f***ed with. Many times. The whole park has.

Time to accept these facts and move on.

Sorry but putting a IP where it does not belong is by faar the worst change they could ever make to New Orleans Square.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Sorry but putting a IP where it does not belong is by faar the worst change they cpuld ever make to New Orleans Square.

I thought the perfect ideal of a theme park was no IP at all?

 

[Californian Elitist]

Sorry but putting a IP where it does not belong is by far the worst change they could ever make to New Orleans Square.

Still doesn’t take away the fact that the NOS that Walt Disney oversaw is gone and has been gone for decades.

How exactly doesn’t it fit?

 

[Mickey's Pal]

I thought the perfect ideal of a theme park was no IP at all?

I never said that. New Orleans Square has stood the test of time and has been a shinning example of the beauty of Disneyland and the care and love and attention to detail with that special touch from Walt you can still feel to this day.

New Orleans Square makes IP's (Pirates & Mansion) it doesn't need one forced in from a movie that was a box office bomb and is only going in because Disney decided to go woke.

 

[Mickey's Pal]

Still doesn’t take away the fact that the NOS that Walt Disney oversaw is gone and has been gone for decades.

How exactly doesn’t it fit?

Really? Did they tear all the buildings down and rebuild them? Nope. Did they remove Pirates and Mansion and the New Orleans trian station? No. Did they remove the beautiful views of The Rivers of America from New Orleans Square? No. Did they get ride of singers and bands that play? No. So please explain your point of view. I'll wait. I would LOVE to hear this.

 

[Practical Pig]

Then that's a blessing. The stacks are ill-conceived. Hopefully they'll be gone in the next version. And if no-one will see them - why?

OK, I just re-watched PATF and for the first time noticed that the riverboat style smokestacks on the Tiana's Palace concept art are seen in the movie briefly a couple of times. As we see the transformation from the decrepit sugar mill to the restaurant, the chimneys of the mill are redressed to the riverboat style. The glimpses are brief, but I'm going to have to take back my comment that the stacks are ill-conceived. Though "unnecessary" still comes to mind.