Tropical Hideaway and Other Adventureland Thoughts

I...actually don't know how to categorize this post.

Slightly old news at this point, I know, but I’ve been thinking lately about the announcement earlier this year concerning a plan to gut Aladdin’s Oasis and replace it with something called the Tropical Hideaway. Details are sketchy so far, but the official announcement describes it as an “exotic traders' market” where Jungle Cruise skippers will hang out, and the accompanying concept art depicts tables and chairs for outdoor dining and what appear to be a few Tiki birds.

If you’ve been following this blog for any length of time, you know that my default reaction to these sorts of announcements is one of extreme skepticism—i.e. “You’re doing WHAT to MY PARK???”—but in this case, I’m actually all for it. The whole concept of Aladdin’s Oasis in Adventureland has never sat right with me, for a variety of reasons. Here are some of them:

• It’s an injection of animated fairytale IP into a land that otherwise at least pretends it’s going for realism. Make no mistake, there is no shortage of fantasy in Adventureland, but for the most part, if you squint you can pass it off as “There’s a lot we don’t know about the far-flung wild exotic parts of the world.” I don’t know exactly where the line is between that and twinkly fairy magic, but Aladdin is on the other side of it.
• The other Adventureland attractions consist of: a bamboo hut in a tropical rain forest, a riverboat tour through tropical rain forests, a ruined temple hidden deep in the tropical rain forest, and a treehouse kitbashed out of a shipwreck in a tropical rain forest. You may have detected a pattern. And then there’s Aladdin’s Oasis, which is: an opulent palace in the desert. It doesn’t fit, and not only because a desert is pretty much the opposite of a rain forest. The other attraction structures are presented as primitive, ramshackle, and/or ad-hoc, but a palace is a stable feature of a successful and sophisticated civilization. If we had a whole spectrum of “exotic” world locales, it might fit at the fancy end, but as things are, it's very much the odd one out.
• Adding insult to injury, they've barely used the place in at least 15 years. It's just taking up space.

And Adventureland sorely needs whatever space it can manage to claim. It is one of the most hemmed-in areas of a frustratingly hemmed-in park. What used to the be outer edge is now bracketed by the tramway, so there is no possibility of further spatial expansion. For such a small land, it is pretty densely packed with signature attractions, but with room for only a single walkway to contain the guests flocking to those attractions, traffic congestion is an inherent problem.

What this means is that with no ways left to grow, Adventureland can only be further developed by refining what is already there, and we are seeing exactly that. Several months ago, a few parcels of retail space were converted into seating areas for the Bengal Barbecue and a stroller parking spot, which has helped immensely with the traffic issue. And now the Tropical Hideaway is coming along to reclaim some of that retail space and conceivably add eating options to this underserved land.

More than that, though, the Hideaway looks like it has the potential to really tie Adventureland together into a functioning thematic unit. We already know from the name and description that it's going to incorporate elements from both its neighboring attractions, the Enchanted Tiki Room and Jungle Cruise. The concept of an “exotic traders' market” has some resonance with the Indiana Jones franchise, lines up well with the Adventureland Bazaar across the way, and would even be a reasonable excuse to keep some of the Aladdin theming, if they so choose. It's harder to think of ways they could involve Tarzan's Treehouse, but if we're honest, we have to admit that Tarzan's Treehouse is the least interesting thing in Adventureland and it's not a big loss if they don't reference it.

And there's so much they can do with such a space! Making a point of it being a Jungle Cruise skippers' hangout suggests that the skippers are being brought into greater prominence as bona-fide Adventureland characters, which is very exciting to me because I have long thought the themed lands need more in the way of “citizen” characters who aren't celebrities from movies. If they want to get really bold, they could let actual skippers actually provide some of the actual content...say in the form of a message board where new notices could be tacked up on a daily basis, creating a constantly evolving set of stories happening “off-screen” somewhere in the Jungle.

Here are a few other ideas. Call it the Dilettante's Tropical Hideaway Wishlist:

• A dedicated meet-and-greet corner for any and all Adventureland-compatible characters. This could even be a good excuse to start bringing out some disused costumes, like Baloo and Rafiki.
• Merchandise kiosks sub-let to unique vendors (instead of Yet Another Pin Cart, Yet Another Disney Plush Cart, etc.).
• A small stage for musical troupes to perform. Bring back the Adventureland Steel Drum Band!
• Tons and tons of details to reward the sort of guest who bothers to look at them. (Too obvious?)
• An auxiliary Dole Whip counter, just to take some of the strain off the main one.

I am running out of both coherent thoughts and time to write this post, so I will leave it there for now. To reiterate: I am pleased about this development, which is unusual in this day and age. Maybe it's not quite the Adventureland Amphitheatre, but I can't wait to see it!