Epcot with kiddos

[Mom2J&J]

Our WDW trip is the first week of June and right now, our Epcot day is our last day - Saturday, June 4th.

We are not hopping and actually did not plan on visiting Epcot because there didn't seem to be much our whole family could enjoy there. HOWEVER, plans have changed because of the possibility of Anna and Elsa moving to World Showcase in late May/early June.

So my question is this: What are some of your favorite things to do with your family in Epcot without Soarin? My family = me, DH, DS14, DS10, DD7.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts here.

MCB

 

[tripletmomsrock]

Here is our families favortie: Mission Space, Test Track, and Turtle Talk.

 

[Shellyb84]

Wandering around WS is my DD(6)'s favorite thing. She likes to do the Kidcot stations and get her passport stamped. There are a ton of pressed penny machines which is another favorite of hers.

 

[a742246]

Chinese acrobats, shows at Italy, France, Mexico, USA, the shows at World Showcase are all good! For A/C the movies at France, China, and show at the USA pavillion.

 

[Nebraska_Disney]

We pretty much avoid much of the World Showcase. We have given it a chance, but don't see the draw or what is so spectacular about it. Once we do the rides, Epcot is pretty much done for us. Not a fan of Illuminations either, so nothing really to stick around for later in the evening. A blah park for us.

 

[Hootch]

Many of the World Showcase pavilions have a Phineas and Ferb game that your kids might find fun. You are given and electronic communicator that shows pictures of different places in the pavilion. At some locations the communicator will make things happen like create puffs of smoke.

I think Sum of All Thrills is still in Innovations. You can design your own ride and plug the program into a simulator and experience it. It is best to go fairly early. The line can get backed up.

Test Track, Spaceship Earth, Soarin' (if it is open by then), The younger ones might like the Grand Fiesta Tour with Donald Duck. Our 16 year old son likes the Living With The Land ride so much he asked to go on the Behind the Seeds tour. I think everyone should see the American Adventure. The story is told well and the animitronics are amazing.

 

[Gillyrose779]

My boys are 5 and 6 and we love Epcot as a family- so relaxing and so much fun! We will be there then too!

Pick a Pearl in Japan is really neat

Special Agent Mission with Perry the Platypus-- you use a smart phone to go around the showcase and solve crimes

Club Cool to try the different Coke drinks around the world for FREE!- try the Beverly- wink wink

Check out all the cool cars at the end of Test Track and take pictures at the special scenes- you have them emailed to you for free

go to France and pick out a bunch of special pastries and have a picnic by the fountains.

Living the Land Ride- never much of a line, really interesting, and my kids enjoy it.

After Figmant, Mission Space, and Spaceship Earth there are games for the kids- it's funny b/c the games after Spaceship Earth are dated 1980s-90s games but my kids love them.

If you want a break from Epcot take the back entrance and stroll around the Boardwalk- grab a drink at Beach Club and relax on the beach. If you go later in the night you can see the entertainment at the Boardwalk or roast marshmallows and watch a movie at Beach Club- so fun and relaxing.

 

[msdroz]

We were surprised but Epcot ended up being my sons favorite park on our last trip when he was 8. He loved Innoventions, Phineus and Ferb activity, Cool Club, and passport stamping at all countries! I loved seeing him interact with cast members who were from different countries, he even said thank you in mandarin to a CM because he was learning it in school.

Have fun!

 

[GaryDis]

Chinese acrobats, shows at Italy, France, Mexico, USA, the shows at World Showcase are all good!

This. Too many people pass up the street entertainment. It helps to get the daily schedule.

 

[GaryDis]

Our WDW trip is the first week of June and right now, our Epcot day is our last day - Saturday, June 4th.

Any chance of swapping the days? While I've always thought there's plenty for kids to do, it's possible that they'll be spoiled by going to MK first. I believe Epcot should be first or second and always before MK. I realize that could be tough if you have valued dining reservations that you don't want to give up. And MK on a Saturday is likely crowded, so I wouldn't recommend a direct swap. Maybe EP <-> HS?

 

[Shellyb84]

We were surprised but Epcot ended up being my sons favorite park on our last trip when he was 8. He loved Innoventions, Phineus and Ferb activity, Cool Club, and passport stamping at all countries! I loved seeing him interact with cast members who were from different countries, he even said thank you in mandarin to a CM because he was learning it in school.

Have fun!

Epcot ending up being my daughter's favorite as well! She's not big on a lot of rides, so there was a lot of low key stuff there for her to do. I definitely want to try out the Phineus and Ferb activity next trip! Where do you get the communicator?

 

[Duckiedee]

My daughter loved Epcot at five - she can't wait to go back - one of her favourite restaurants was Rose and Crown.

 

[Gillyrose779]

Epcot ending up being my daughter's favorite as well! She's not big on a lot of rides, so there was a lot of low key stuff there for her to do. I definitely want to try out the Phineus and Ferb activity next trip! Where do you get the communicator?

The Phineus and Ferb activity is right before you head to the back entrance of Epcot- There are usually two people under big umbrellas with secret agent jackets on. I think it usually starts around 11am.

 

[Gillyrose779]

Another thing my kids did that is semi-Epcot related was the Pirate Treasure Hunt at Beach Club- I believe it started at 9 am- they got to go on a Treasure Hunt- without parents on one of the boats with other kids. They ended up going into the world showcase at Epcot- before it opened to search for pirate treasure. The boat went into the lagoon and docked around Mexico I believe and they searched through Canada. Such a cool memory.

For one of our future trips we plan on fishing at Epcot! You get to fish in the lagoon before the area opens. I just think that sounds so cool.

 

[Shellyb84]

Another thing my kids did that is semi-Epcot related was the Pirate Treasure Hunt at Beach Club- I believe it started at 9 am- they got to go on a Treasure Hunt- without parents on one of the boats with other kids. They ended up going into the world showcase at Epcot- before it opened to search for pirate treasure. The boat went into the lagoon and docked around Mexico I believe and they searched through Canada. Such a cool memory.

For one of our future trips we plan on fishing at Epcot! You get to fish in the lagoon before the area opens. I just think that sounds so cool.

We have the pirate treasure hunt cruise booked for our BC stay in July - glad to hear your kids enjoyed it!

 

[IrishNYC]

My 5 year old loved Epcot. Kidcot was one of the highlights of her time there.

 

[Princess Vespa]

Epcot is one of my kids favorites. I thought they would not like it either but they proved me wrong!
DS is 9 and DD is 7, but they have enjoyed it from the first time they went at age 2.
Mission Space, Test Track, and Turtle Talk are musts for them.
The Phineas and Ferb game around the WS is my sons favorite.
We try to do all the rides but they like to watch the shows around the WS. The music performance in Morocco and the Chinese acrobats are their favorite. The Kidcots are very popular with my daughter.

 

[dj-tx]

On our last trip my DS was 6 1/2 and he enjoyed the Kidcot stops to color and get his passport stamped. In China he really enjoyed the Kidcot spot because they took the time to talk to him and taught him how to say hello and thank you in Chinese. One cast member even showed him how to write a couple of letters and numbers in Chinese and one gave him an Agent P that she colored. We also did the Agent P's Adventure and really enjoyed it. He has asked to do Agent P again on our next trip. The movies in China and France are also something that we like to do. Spaceship Earth is one of his absolute favorites in all of Disney. He would ride that all day if I would let him. Epcot is one of our favorite parks, we usually do at least 1 1/2 days. Next trip we have 2 full days planned for Epcot.

 

[joannamet]

My boys are 5 and 6 and we love Epcot as a family- so relaxing and so much fun! We will be there then too!

Pick a Pearl in Japan is really neat

Special Agent Mission with Perry the Platypus-- you use a smart phone to go around the showcase and solve crimes

Club Cool to try the different Coke drinks around the world for FREE!- try the Beverly- wink wink

Check out all the cool cars at the end of Test Track and take pictures at the special scenes- you have them emailed to you for free

go to France and pick out a bunch of special pastries and have a picnic by the fountains.

Living the Land Ride- never much of a line, really interesting, and my kids enjoy it.

After Figmant, Mission Space, and Spaceship Earth there are games for the kids- it's funny b/c the games after Spaceship Earth are dated 1980s-90s games but my kids love them.

If you want a break from Epcot take the back entrance and stroll around the Boardwalk- grab a drink at Beach Club and relax on the beach. If you go later in the night you can see the entertainment at the Boardwalk or roast marshmallows and watch a movie at Beach Club- so fun and relaxing.

I agree with all of this! Epcot is my family's favorite. We hop there almost every day when we get tired of the other parks. Its so relaxing just to stroll around WS in the afternoon and evening. There are lots of places to sit in the shade with a snack and drink.

Kids ages 9 - 13 will love Agent P's Adventure and they can run around and do it on their own while you enjoy a beverage in the shade. Each adventure is located in in just one country. When that one is done you can decide to continue in another country or not. My kids wanted to do every country and begged to go back to Epcot every day. Younger kids will like it too but you'll have to help.

Mission Space is DDs favorite ride in all of Disney. The only ride we skip is Ellen's Energy Adventure but everybody should do it once. We even like Figment and Captain Eo. They're campy and fun. We never get tired of Living With the Land and Spaceship Earth. You could spend a couple of hours just in The Seas pavilion; there's so much to see.

 

[soniam]

As others have said, Agent P & Club Cool. Possibly Sum of All Thrills. It depends how tall your DD7 is. Our son loves shopping in the World Showcase. The shops are really cool. Japan is a video game loving boys dream, and girls like it a lot too. Each kid is different, so your kids may or may not like it.