Splash Mountain Winter Refurb DOES NOT Mean Princess and the Frog Re-theming Has Started
Pre-pandemic, The Walt Disney Company announced big plans regarding the future of Splash Mountain. The company had decided that it was time to re-theme the ride and had chosen Disney’s beloved animated film Princess and the Frog as the successor. At that time, renderings were released that showed what this new ride may look like:
Splash Mountain has recently closed down for refurbishment at Critter Country in Disneyland leading many fans to speculate that Disney was quietly retheming the ride. However, according to a recent piece in the OC Register, that is not the case. .
Though Disney still plans on re-theming the ride, the current closure, which sees Splash Mountain closed until January 10, 2022 is just for the routine maintenance which is common for most attractions during the off-peak winter season. According to the OC Register this news was recently confirmed by Disney.
So this leads to the obvious and next important question, when is the Princess and the Frog makeover supposed to actually begin?
According to reports, Walt Disney Imagineering is still working on plans for the ride which will see a re-theming at both Disneyland and Magic Kingdom. This is a process that is expected to take quite some time and Disneyland has yet to announce timings for the overhaul on either coast.
COVID has set a lot of Disney’s projects back with Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway at Disneyland getting pushed back from a 2022 to 2023 opening. It’s much of the same over at Disney World where the opening of the TRON coaster, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind and several other EPCOT attractions have had construction times stretched out due to lengthy theme park closures.
As the OC Register speculates, it may be 2023 or even 2024 before the Splash Mountain project really gaines momentum. 2023 is likely to be a goal post for a lot of Disney projects at it will mark 100 years for the company.
So for now, guests to Disneyland can expect Splash Mountain to return in its current for to Critter Country in early 2022. Readers are encouraged to keep following along with us for additional news and updates!
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Source: OC Register