Time for the world of tomorrow
- planmydisneyholiday
- Jul 29, 2019
- 9 min read
Next up EPCOT. There is two parts to EPCOT - Future World and World Showcase, so I will have two parts to this blog for each part. As with the other parks there is a range of attractions, character meeting points, shops and restaurants to enjoy.
In case you are wondering EPCOT means Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow or as I have come to learn it Every Person Comes Out Tired.
Attractions
Future World
First up the front part of the park Future World, and the first ride you will come across is Spaceship Earth.
Set inside the golf ball structure it takes you on the history of communication it is a constant moving ride (on occasions people may need support entering and exiting the cars) and is a very chilled ride, this a great place to get away from the weather, either to escape the rain or somewhere to get out the heat in air conditioning.
Future World is also split into two parts East and West. First up Future world East.
Future World East.
This is home to 2 big thrill rides - Mission Space and Test Track. Currently there is construction going on building a new Guardians of the Galaxy ride which will open around 2021.
Mission Space is a simulator that is a space trip to Mars. There is two levels green and orange. Orange is intense and green is calmer my experience is if you have any motion sickness go green. I felt dizzy after going on the orange ride and I do not suffer from motion sickness. It even has an interactive play area at the exit, so if any of your party cannot ride they can do something while waiting.
Test Track is a roller coaster in the style of a car safety testing facility it has high speeds (up to 65 MPH) and has tight turns.
There is a great hands on exhibition which changes it themes regularly called Innoventions it is about current technology and how it may help us in the future.
Future World West.
There are 3 pavilions making up the West side of Future World: The Seas with Nemo and Friends, The Land, Imagination!
The Seas with Nemo and Friends
The Seas with Nemo and Friends has many parts to it. There is a 5.7 million gallon aquarium filled with a range of sea life, a slow moving 'car' ride reenacting scenes from Finding Nemo, and Turtle Talk with Crush.
The clam ride has animations projected onto windows showing the aquarium and is one of the ways into the pavilion, the other way is though the exit.
Once in the pavilion there is a range of information about the life in the aquarium with hands on exhibition. Like Spaceship Earth a great place to get out of the weather.
Finally, Turtle Talk is where an audience can ask Crush from Finding Nemo questions, this is amazing to witness! The animation is fantastic, and the interaction between the characters and humans is outstanding.
The Land
There is 2 attractions in this pavilion Soarin' and Living in the Land.
Soarin' is a hand glider simulator showing scenes from around the world on an 80 foot IMAX 180 degree screen. It a very comfortable ride with small movement like a hand glider.
Living in the Land is a boat ride tour around the EPCOT greenhouses and the history of farming. It shows how Disney use little space to grow food and how we can farm in the future.
Imagination!
This is a family friendly ride about imagination including a lovable character Figment. It is a ride that includes animatronics with some smells, and sounds. Like Mission Space there is a hands on element to enjoy afterwards.
In the same pavilion there is a cinema screen showing Disney and Pixar short films.
Now for the second part of EPCOT the World Showcase.
World Showcase
The World Showcase is made up of 11 different parts each representing a country. Mexico, China, Germany, Italy, America, Japan, Morocco, France, United Kingdom, Canada. The architecture of each area is amazing and is inspired by real life monuments. It is 1.25 miles from China all the way round to Canada.
Each part has at least a shop, a restaurant or an attraction
In China, France and Canada there is a film showing the country. China and Canada show the film in a 360 degree cinema lasting around 14 minutes each, meanwhile the France film is around 20 minutes.
There are two boat rides in Mexico and Norway. In Mexico the ride is called Gran Fiesta Tour starring the Three Caballeros. It is a slow moving boat ride showing sights from Mexico with the three Caballeros, which is a film released in 1944, looking for each other. I personally believe that this will soon be updated to feature Coco or a retelling of the film, but nothing has been announced. The other boat ride in Norway is called Frozen ever After, and is a retelling of the movie Frozen, but this ride has a small drop at one point.
Finally, the last attraction in EPCOT is the American Adventure (it is not like the now closed Derbyshire based theme park) it is telling the past and future of America with songs and animatronics.
Characters
EPCOT like the other parks has it's own unique character meeting points, like all parks there is Mickey and friends, but there some characters you will only meet at EPCOT.
Firstly at the same location as Mickey in Future World West there is Baymax from Big Hero 6, and Joy and Sadness from Inside Out.
At the imagination pavilion there is Ralph and Vanellope from Wreck it Ralph.
You can meet Anna and Elsa, from Frozen, at the Norway bit of World Showcase.
In Mexico there Donald Duck dressed from The Three Caballeros, and in China you will find Mulan.
Princesses Jasmine is at Morocco and used to be with Aladdin, but he is currently not being advertised, and in Germany is a meeting point for Snow White.
In the United Kingdom you can meet Alice in the gardens, meanwhile in France you can meet Belle (in her blue outfit).
There is also dining with characters options which is detailed below.
Shops
There is a range of different shops throughout EPCOT.
At the different locations around the World Showcase you will find souvenirs based, or from, that part of the world. For example, my party found sweets that are exclusive to Japan in the Japan part of World Showcase.
There is like drinking steins, glass work, and clocks in Germany meanwhile there is football kits, tea sets, and knight sets in United Kingdom.
For general Disney souvenirs there is Mouse Gear in Future World East.
Restaurants
EPCOT has the widest range of restaurants throughout the park, because of the World Showcase there is tastes from around the world.
One of the most popular restaurants at EPCOT is Akershus banquet hall, based at Norway in the World Showcase, because it is where you can have a meal with the princesses. The other character meal is over at The Land called Garden Grill where you meet Chip and Dale and some friends.
One meal with a view is Coral Reef which is in The Seas pavilion and has massive windows looking out into the aquarium. I have a couple of experiences here where I have been sat next to the windows and one where I have been away from the windows. I think the food is great but limited, if you are not a fan of sea food give this one a miss.
The rest of the waiter service (check my Blog about Disney dining) meals are all in the World Showcase they are based on the countries they are in.
In Mexico there is two restaurants one inside the attraction hall and one on the water front. Both offer Mexican specialties with some familiar choices such as steak. The restaurant on the waterfront, La Hachienda De San Angel, do offer a view to the evening show at EPCOT, so you might be able to time your booking to be with the show.
China also has two restaurants one counter service and one waiter service. Both offer a selection of Chinese food. You can find a brief description of the items on the menu at Disney's website.
In Germany there is Biergarten which is a buffet restaurant with performances by musicians through out the day.The food is very meaty with a lot of German specialties with a few family favorites for the picky eaters.
Italy also has two waiter service meals - Tutto Italia and Via Napoli. Like the other resturants they offer the countries famous dishes the main difference between the two is price, Tutto Italia is more expensive than Via Nipoli. I ate at Via Nipoli and was an amazing meal. One thing to be aware of is that there is a pizza kitchen separate to the other kitchen so meals are brought out when they ready from the different kitchens, therefore some meals may arrive before the others. This didn't bother us and the staff told us before we ordered, but we could other people complaining.
Liberty Inn is a counter service based at Amercian pavilion and offers the usually fast food items with some extras like steak, barbecue pork.
Next up is Japan which has one of my favourite restaurants - Teppan Edo - which is where your food is cooked right at your table and the chefs are always entertaining. Recently Takumi-tei restaurant has opened which is not available on the dining plan and you are looking at $60 + for a meal. Tokyo Dining offers Japanese food but the food is brought to your table. It also offers views of the evening show. There is also a counter service, Katsura grill, as an option as well.
Morocco has a range of options to eat as well, there is two waiter service and one counter service. I wanted to eat at Tangierine Cafe but never found the time to go, I wanted to try their Shawarma platters. the other two resturants are Restaurant Marrakesh and Spice Road Table. Like Beirgarten in Germany, Restaurant Marrakesh offer entertainment in the form of belly dancing while you enjoy a shish kebab (other food is available). Again Spice Road Table offers a similar menu, but is located on the waterfront so you can have a view of the evening show seated at your tale.
Monsieur Paul and Chefs de France are both waiter service restaurants in the France section with Les Halles Boulangerie-Patisserie, a counter service, offering baguette sandwiches and pastries. Monsieur Paul is a gourmet restaurant with a dress code to follow where as Chefs de France is a little cheaper also offering French cuisine.
As you continue round the World Showcase you may notice a little pub (the Rose and Crown) on the water front in United Kingdom. Where you can either enjoy afternoon tea or a pub meal. Bangers and mash, fish and chips, and shepherds pie are all a choice at this waiter service, also because of being on the water front if you book your meal at the right time you can have a seat while the evening show is going on. If you aren't feeling a full meal there is the Yorkshire County Fish shop - they call them chips and not fries here which confuses some Americans (I've seen one family fall out over eating here).
Finally, another of my favourite restaurants, Le Cellier Steakhouse in Canada. It is an amazing meal, but is extremely popular so needs to be booked in advance or a random time slot.
Shows
Like the rest of Disney EPCOT has shows throughout the day a lot of local music is played in the different countries so always keep an eye, or ear, out for that.
Unfortunately, EPCOT is changing the evening show which is why I have not referred to it during the dining section.
At the moment it is Illuminations which takes place in the middle of the lake in which the World Showcase is around, but this will be the last summer it is on with EPCOT forever taking over at the start of October. I have read that this is just a temporary evening show until the other one is ready, so this is something to keep an eye on in the next couple of years.
Pros and cons
Cons
It is a huge park and takes more than one day to complete.
Very little shade - In comparison to Animal Kingdom there is very little and in the hot sun the walk from one part of EPCOT to the other can be difficult.
Informative - It is slightly educational, which puts some people off,but makes it entertaining in a way only Disney can.
Too much choice - there is so many different food places to try that you can eat for a whole holiday just at EPCOT trying a new place each day, therefore something is missed.
Long lines - I know I have put this for every park but Soarin', Frozen Ever After and Test track are guaranteed to be long lines unless you have a fast pass and these rides have been at EPCOT for quite a while now. Use My Disney experience to keep an eye on wait times.
Pros
Great mixture of attractions - there are thrill rides (Test track), slow peaceful rides (Living with the land), and something for kids (Imagination!). There is something for everyone.
Unique character meeting points - Baymax, Joy and Sadness, and Mulan can rarely be found outside of EPCOT.
It is bigger than you think - Most of the World Showcase sections go further back than you think just by looking at it. There is an amazing waterfall view in Canada and gardens in United Kingdom, have an explore and you never know what you might find or learn.
Unique dining experiences - As you have seen the dining section is huge because of the amount of choice i promise you there will be something for everyone to eat at EPCOT.
Fantastic architecture - Looking round The Land or Imagination pavilions are completely different, and then there is the whole of the World Showcase which is so detailed that designers purposely made mistakes in Morocco because only Allah can make something prefect .
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