As I wrote in my previous blog post, the next few will be written about my full experience at each of the 4 theme parks at Disney World.  My friend and I visited a couple months ago just in time for Disney to start celebrating it’s 50th anniversary at Disney World.  We chose to visit Epcot first because that was the theme park that opened later and closed later of the 4 theme parks.

We had an early check in at Pop Century Resort and checked in by 1 PM on the Monday.  We checked the schedule beforehand and knew that Epcot opened at 11 AM and closed at 10 PM that day, so we figured Epcot would be the best to visit as the other 3 theme parks closed at either 7, 8 or 9 PM.

Getting There

After checking in our resort and exploring it for a bit, we decided we wanted to visit Epcot.  To get there, we had to use the newly opened Skyliner where the station was located between our resort and the Art of Animation Resort.  The lines to get on the Skyliner at this time wasn’t busy and we were first in the wheelchair line to get on the accessible gondola to Epcot.  There are two entrances/exits at Epcot: Main Entrance or the one closest to the Skyliner station: Epcot International Gateway.  This entrance is less known so lines are shorter here.

With only 1 transfer at Caribbean Beach Resort, it took about 20 minutes to Epcot.  The first thing we did at Epcot before scanning our MagicBands to get in, was to get Disability Access Services (DAS) added to My Experience App and to both our MagicBands for the duration of our trip.  This allows us to use the virtual queue and come back using the Lightning Lane queue.  I also got a button to wear stating it’s my first time at Disney World.

Epcot

Epcot opened in October 1982 and was the second of the 4 parks to open at Disney World.  It was originally an acronym for Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow and is dedicated to the celebration of human achievement, technological innovation and international culture.

Epcot is quite massive and is twice the size of Magic Kingdom.  The whole park is divided into 4 areas: World Celebration, World Discovery, World Nature and World Showcase.  I will be listing all the main things that we did and what area it could be found in.

Epcot International Food & Wine Festival

(World Showcase)

My friend and I started here since it was located right at Epcot International Gateway.  The very popular annual 4 month long Epcot International Food & Wine Festival is the main event here.  Special kiosks are set up around World Showcase with food and drinks that reflect various countries.  The first thing we did was sample some foods from some of these 11 pavilions: Canada, United Kingdom, France, Morocco, The American Adventure, Italy, Germany, China, Norway and Mexico.

Since World Showcase is such a big area, we would go back and forth with the other areas when we wanted to sample more foods from different countries.  We first bought some Filet Mignon at the Canada pavilion which was quite good and had some apple cider at Appleseed Orchard.  Having small sample sizes meant we could try foods at more countries.

Later that day, we also got Remy’s “Cheese” Cake which is a new item out to promote the new Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure ride.  That was at Sunshine Seasons food court.  We also tried Tempura Shrimp Sando from Japan pavilion while my friend had a few other samples throughout the park.

Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival

(World Celebration)

After the first round of sampling foods at World Showcase, we visited the World Celebration area.  Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival is a 17 minute 4D show featuring 3 popular short films from Disney or Pixar over the years.  With 3D glasses on, we watched Get A Horse, Feast and Piper with wind, motion and 3D effects.

The accessible seating is at the back which is still a good spot to view the screen.  I have seen all 3 of these shorts before but it was still enjoyable to watch them again with the 4D experience, even though I did not transfer to a motion theater seat but stayed in my wheelchair.

Journey into Imagination with Figment

(World Celebration)

We then saw Winnie the Pooh character sighting from a distance before heading to our next attraction: Journey into Imagination with Figment.  This purple little dragon named Figment is the very popular mascot for Epcot since 1983 and is heavily featured in this attraction since it was redeveloped in 2002.  When we first enter the building, we pass by the sensory lab and the open house queue line area.

The ride vehicle was actually wheelchair accessible as I could be wheeled in and have my wheelchair secured.  We get to see Figment throughout this easy slow ride as we see get to see his imaginations with songs and visuals and through an upside down house.  Exiting the ride leads us into another big room with interactive imagination exhibits and displays.

Living With the Land

(World Nature)

We then headed towards The Land pavilion inside World Nature.  This conservatory inspired building is where we did the next 4 attractions all housed inside.  The first ride was Living with the Land ride.  It is a slow moving boat ride and was also wheelchair accessible where my chair was strapped in.

I really enjoyed this easy casual ride as it was also very educational.  The focus of the ride is on agriculture and how we can use technology to make it more efficient and environmentally friendly.  The ride takes us from a night through the rainforest to different types of greenhouses.  This ride is very similar to Jungle Cruise, another Disney ride.

Awesome Planet

(World Nature)

After a quick snack at Sunshine Seasons, we went upstairs to see Awesome Planet.  This is a 10 minute film showcasing Earth’s beauty with spectacular imagery and theater effects like wind, water, fire and smells.  The wheelchair seating is right at the back of the theater and provides a great view of the screen.

The Seas with Nemo & Friends

(World Nature)

Our next ride was The Seas with Nemo & Friends.  The wheelchair accessible ride vehicle is a giant pink clam that had a fold out ramp.  This fun casual ride leads riders on a journey to find Nemo.  We go through coral reefs and meet up with Dory, Marlin and other characters from the movie.  By the end, we finally find Nemo and exit into a giant aquarium with actual real fish.

Turtle Talk with Crush

(World Nature)

Turtle Talk with Crush is an interactive talk show type attraction.  We are in a theater like room with a large aquarium style screen.  There is accessible seating at the very front or at the very back of the room.  There is a host who greets us at the beginning and introduces the animated Crush turtle to the screen.

Crush then interacts with the audience by answering questions from the audience and entertains us with jokes and witty remarks.  This attraction seems to be geared for kids but it was still a fun experience to try.  We then headed to World Discovery where my friend went on the Test Track ride while I waited on the side.

Harmonious

(World Showcase)

We wanted to to go on the newly opened Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure ride when we headed back to World Showcase but since the park was closing soon, we just had enough time to see the Harmonious night time show.  This is a brand new 20 minute show that just started a month before our visit to celebrate Disney World’s 50th anniversary.  This show was a combination of lights, lasers, water and fireworks.

There was a wheelchair seating area so we got a great view of this spectacular show on the lagoon.  It was really great to hear some Disney music incorporated into such a great light show.  It was so amazing and it was a perfect way to end our first night at Disney World.

Final Thoughts

My friend and I only got to spend 7 hours at Epcot because of our hotel check in earlier in the day.  We could not do everything we wanted to do like trying the new Remy ride or eat at the new Space 220 restaurant.  With a new Guardians of the Galaxy ride coming to Epcot this year, it really does tempt me to come back sooner than later.