Frontierland is home to two of the Magic Kingdom’s major E-ticket attractions, Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain, but the land still has some room for improvement.
One of the biggest areas for potential growth and development is Tom Sawyer Island. Tom Sawyer Island does present a couple of challenges, however. Just as with the Swiss Family Robinson Tree House in Adventureland, Tom Sawyer Island has a certain nostalgic value; it was a feature that was original to the park. It also offers a quiet escape, giving adults a place to go and relax, while at the same time gives kids an area where they can run around, explore, and have fun. There is also the issue of accessibility, with the only way of getting on the island being via raft. That being said, Tom Sawyer is not as relevant to today’s children as when the park first opened in 1971 and the island does offer a fairly sizable plot of land that could be put to better use.
To make the island more accessible I would be to construct a permanent bridge, near the exit of Big Thunder Mountain where the current Tom Sawyer Island boat dock is, spanning the Rivers of America that would allow for uninterrupted guest flow to and from the island. This would mean that the Liberty Square River Boat would no longer be able to make its voyage around the island (but I have other plans about the River Boat that I will explain later). With guests now easily able to get on the island, I would place something there that would make the area more worthwhile, an attraction that was supposed to be part of Magic Kingdom in its early design phases.
The Western River Expedition was meant to be one of the major highlights of Magic Kingdom, a boat ride on which guests would encounter cowboys, Indians, and other classic scenes of the frontier. Picture Pirates of the Caribbean set in the Wild West and that is what this attraction would have been like. This attraction would help to balance out the thrill-heavy attractions of Frontierland with something that the entire family could enjoy.
Another element of Frontierland that I would address would be the Diamond Horseshoe Saloon, which now sits empty for most of the year except when being used as a quick service eatery during the busy Holiday and Spring Break periods. The location was actually home to one of the park’s original shows back in 1971, the Diamond Horseshoe Revue, that featured old-western-style entertainment, with singing, dancing, comedy, piano-playing, and banjo-strumming; it was very similar to the format of the Hoop Dee Doo Review at Fort Wilderness today.
The Saloon originally featured a sit-down menu but was then changed to counter service until the location closed in 2003. I would bring back the counter service element of the Diamond Horseshoe along with the Revue show performed throughout the course of the day. The show would also now include a song-and-dance appearance by Woody, Jessie, and Bullseye from Toy Story to make it appeal more to children. Not only would this offer an additional entertainment and dining option for guests, it would also be a great place to escape from the Florida heat during the day.
Liberty Square:
This area of the park has changed very little from when Magic Kingdom first opened, except for minor tweaks to Haunted Mansion and Hall of Presidents. I would not change much here, but something would need to be done with the Square River Boat due to it not being able to travel around Tom Sawyer Island with the addition of a bridge connecting it to the rest of Frontierland.
What I would do with the River Boat is very simple and would bring back a show that was extremely successful and well-liked during its short-lived run a couple of years ago. Tiana’s Showboat Jubilee was a show that was performed to coincide with the release of Princess and the Frog. It featured a Madi Gras style procession through the streets of Liberty Square featuring Tiana, Naveen, Louis the alligator, dancers, and a live jazz band. The performers would then climb aboard the River Boat and perform various songs from the movie, with Dr. Facilier even interrupting the show at one point. I would utilize the River Boat for this sole purpose and have performances throughout the course of the day.
Stay tuned for my next entry as I finish my improvements of the Magic Kingdom with some tweaks to Fantasyland and major changes to Tomorrowland.
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