It's just a hop, skip and a jump from Arabia, across the Indian Ocean and into the Pacific for a visit to Polynesia, where these Tiki totems hold court. These fellows have been part of Adventureland since the beginning, but they haven't always had a playful knack for squirting unsuspecting Guests.
In the late-90s, the Tikis were in need of refurbishment. Rather than bring them back just as they were -- wood statues that easily rot in the Florida weather -- Disney's Imagineers hit upon the idea of recreating the Tikis in Fiberglas... with a twist. Each Tiki was outfitted with a squirting water system, and the surface around them was replaced with absorbent Safe Deck.
Today, the Tikis have become a key element of the Adventureland experience and a must-do on sweltering summer days. Oh yeah... and they still produce those great jungle drum sounds.
As a child I always thought that it was very mysterious and mystical that the tikis produced those terrific beats. While I love the upgrades to both the structural and entertainment aspects of the tikis, I think part of their mystery has been lost with the transition.
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