EPCOT with Toddlers

[EPHomie]

We'll be taking a 2 and a 3 year old to WDW, we will have 4 day park hoppers. I haven't been in ages, but I wonder how much there is to do at EPCOT for a toddler? I remember a lot of it was boring to me as a 9 year old. I'd like to see the world showcase, but other than Nemo, it doesn't seem like there's too much that would hold their attention. Should I consider doing EPCOT as a half day, say, after AK or HS? I don't want them to get too bored.

 

[Fastpassminus]

DS is 3. & has been to WDW 3 times. His favorites in Epcot include

Nemo ( especially the aquarium & little play area)
Imagination ( he loves the song & all the games after)
Watching the fountain
Playing near the water fountains near Imagination
Meeting the characters
The boat ride in Mexico
The train in Germany
The drums in the outpost
Spaceship Earth
Coloring at Kidcot Stations
Illuminations

 

[glassslippergirl]

We love Epcot, but this trip, we plan to do a half day after AK with our DSalmost3. Last year, he liked seeing the fish in Nemo, coloring at the Kidcot stations, the Voices of Liberty (he tried to sing along), walking around inside the Morocco and Mexico pavilions, and playing in the kiddie water area. It was fun but didn't warrant the day we budgeted. I think this year we will go to AK in the morning, take a break after lunch, then go to Epcot for a leisurely evening.

 

[TXAKDisneyFan]

DD has always loved EPCOT, and Spaceship Earth is one of her favorite rides. (Her first trip to WDW was at 19 mos.) We have so many pictures and fond memories of her meeting characters, playing in and exploring the shops around the WS, with her face covered in chocolate from all the yummy treats,... Idk about other families, but EPCOT takes us days to explore (and we mostly stick to the WS). Very excited to take DD and now DS there next month!

 

[PollyannaMom]

My DS has always loved Epcot, and we do give it a whole day. Take spare clothes, as some of the fountains are designed for them to play in. And there are Kidcot stops for the little ones in WS. (I remember DS having a "passport" when he was younger that the cast members at those would stamp.) I think they'll love looking at all the fish in the Nemo area as well.

 

[Gillyrose779]

My kids love Epcot and they are now 4 and 5- it may be even their favorite! They love the games after the Figment ride and the "big ball" ride as they call it. The games may seem dated to us but they love them. My boys are also big on cars and LOVE that they can play in the cars in the spot after the Test Track ride- you don't have to ride the ride to go back there. Super sad to know they are closing one of the Innoventions buildings b/c they also love The Piggy Bank game- I forget the exact name but it is open through April I think. Oh and the dancing fountain is great to play with on a hot day.

This time around we are doing the Agent P game where they give you a smart phone to do secret missions throughout the world showcase. There is also a fun passport game the kids can do around the World Showcase but we have yet to do that too.

Now that I think about it - yep- Epcot is their favorite! On our 10 day trip coming up we are staying at BeachClub and plan to do 1 full day and 2 half days at Epcot.

 

[itchin2go]

Playing near the water fountains near Imagination

When my daughter was little, she would have played at those jumping fountains for hours if I had let her! We probably let her have a good 15 minutes and then we moved on. She loved it when she was able to "catch" the water. Good memories!

 

[tabistar]

We usually do all the kid stuff before lunch, then after lunch we head to WS and the kids both fall asleep in the stroller while dh and I cruise around. It's the only way we'd ever see anything in WS!

 

[kaybird]

Besides all the others mentioned, both my sons and grandsons could have ridden Living with the Land all day long!

 

[DYOBL0305]

DS is 3. & has been to WDW 3 times. His favorites in Epcot include

Nemo ( especially the aquarium & little play area)
Imagination ( he loves the song & all the games after)
Watching the fountain
Playing near the water fountains near Imagination
Meeting the characters
The boat ride in Mexico
The train in Germany
The drums in the outpost
Spaceship Earth
Coloring at Kidcot Stations
Illuminations

Our kids were 1, 3, and just-turned 6 on our trip and we got through Epcot in half a day. They loved a lot of the ones mentioned above, as well as TT, and having lunch at Akershus Royal Banquet (meeting the princesses), but there wasn't anything they asked to ride a second time. We might hold off on going back to Epcot until they're a little older, but I know for some families it's a must-do park.

 

[jrandall]

I actually am freaking out a bit trying to think of how we will get the whole park in one day. I feel like I need 2 full days there but we won't have the time. This is giving me hope that we may be able to see what we want in our timeframe. I have an older child who may be able to enjoy sone different things but also a 2 and 1 year old so will have to be mindful of what they will like. I know the seas area will be a big hit!

 

[sweetnjmom]

Without a park hopper, I'd have skipped it last trip when DS was 4. This trip we are planning to spend around 6 hours there... mid afternoon until Fantasmic. He LOVED the Seas and Turtle Talk. At 4 wasn't into the World Showcase and we mostly skipped. He LOVES learning about countries now so I'm glad we'll have time there.

 

[ariane37]

DS is 3. & has been to WDW 3 times. His favorites in Epcot include

Nemo ( especially the aquarium & little play area)
Imagination ( he loves the song & all the games after)
Watching the fountain
Playing near the water fountains near Imagination
Meeting the characters
The boat ride in Mexico
The train in Germany
The drums in the outpost
Spaceship Earth
Coloring at Kidcot Stations
Illuminations

The couple things I was going to add to this have been mentioned by other posters - Living with the Land and Spaceship Earth. Even if your 2 yr. old doesn't "get" the rides, he or she may very well enjoy riding in the boat (LWTL) and looking at all the colors/scenery in SE. Also possibly some of the things in Innoventions and definitely some of the many characters all around FW & SE! Both my boys now 9 and almost 13 have loved EPCOT since they were toddlers

 

[StirlingSilver83]

My DS8 Loves Epcot. He has been to WDW 3 times, this coming trip will be his 4th time and he still talks about going to Epcot bc its his favorite park. His first time there he was 3 and he loves it. He likes walking around World Show Case and going to the Kidcot Stations (thats new we just did that last year with him, I think that might be still a bit too old for 2 and 3 yr olds, but they do offer coloring stations at the kidcots.) His taste has changed some over the years his new favorite ride is Test Track. But when he was younger he loved Nemo, Figment, Spaceship Earth. They also have a playground area between future world and world showcase which he loves. Last year I think it was a Monster University theme. Plus they have the inside stuff which I am guilty of actually never going to in the 3 yrs we have been going to WDW, lol. I am making a point to get my butt in there this time around. I forget what its called though but its in future world by the character spot. They also have the boat that goes from future world into world showcase which is a nice break and my son liked to just ride on that. All in all Epcot is 1 of our favorite parks besides Magic Kingdom. We always designate 2 park days for it. But it really depends on what your toddlers are into and how you tour the parks.

 

[Lanie]

My son's favorite thing at Epcot was the MU play area in EPCOT, but that's only if you're going during the Flower and Garden.

 

[jrandall]

Where are the Kidcot stations located? I don't see them on the map? I may be missing them.

 

[itchin2go]

Where are the Kidcot stations located? I don't see them on the map? I may be missing them.

This is likely not 100% current, but it will give you an idea.

https://mickeysnewneighbors.wordpre...r-guide-to-kidcot-station-locations-and-tips/

When we were in doubt, we just poked our head into one of the shops in any given country, and they were happy to point us in the right direction.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

Where are the Kidcot stations located? I don't see them on the map? I may be missing them.

There is 1 set up in each country. Its just a table with cast members that are actually from that country and they stamp your passport and write something in their foreign language as well. They also have crayons an stuff there too. They are pretty small so you really have to look for them. A couple of the ones we had trouble finding was Morocco and Japan. But my kids had fun trying to track them down. For the 2 that we had issues finding we just asked someone to point us in the right direction. It was sort of like a treasure hunt for me kids, lol