Epcot World Showcase...What did your kids think???

[revelstoke]

Our kids are DD2, DS7 & DS8...

We are wondering...did your kids like the World Showcase?

Which "lands" were there favorites...which were the least enjoyable?

What about the KidCot craft centres? Which are the ones to spend the time at?

Would like to hear your experience...Thanks

 

[rhiansmom]

When DD was 4 she hated EPCOT. Cried pretty much the entire time that she wasn't asleep. We spent maybe 1/2 a day there. Needless to say when we went back when she was 5 I wanted to try Sorin but afraid of the EPCOT disaster we had during the previous trip.

However here comes the saying "what a difference a year makes" EPCOT was our favorite place this time. She loved Sorin (never mind the fact that I had to bribe her with the MK castle they sell) and we just had a blast hanging out in the countries!

We skipped most of the shops but ate treats along our walk. We also would stop and listen to the music or mini shows. She loved trying out the toys for sale at the little booths and we had many cute mini photo shoots during our walk (yes, I'm an addicted scrapbooker).

At Innoventions we spend hours playing and being kids. She loved the figment ride and we played for another hour or so in the play/computer area outside the ride.

We did the living with the land tour which was nice because it was quiet and we were able to have some great mommy and me time. She was the only kid on our tour and got to let ladybugs go, feed the fish, eat mickey cucumbers and she learned a lot! After the tour we did the ride but could have skipped it because we had seen it all behind the scenes.

The kidcots were great the second day (DD on day 4 of our 10 day trip packed our bags and was ready to go home) while she colored her masks and the thigns that attach to it I was able to walk around a bit (never too far from her) and look around.

She enjoyed the Living Seas area but got scared when I asked her to pose inside the fake shark and had a major major meltdown. (geez, it's just a plastic shark!) After going back to Turtle Talk she calmed down... I'm not even goign to suggest it this year!

Rides we did in EPCOT included Sorin (after being bribed the first time she realized she enjoyed it and loved the orange field smell), Figment, Livin with the Land, and the boat ride in Norway. Also in Norway (I think) she enjoyed playing on the ship.

I'm looking forward to going back to Norway and hope that the year wait doesn't make her swing back to hating it again!

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

I'm kind of embarassed to admit this, but DS6 really didn't like WS last year. Part of it may have been that it was beastly hot that day, and there's a lot of walking around outside. Part of it may have been that we picked the wrong things -- we saw the show in the American Pavillion (noone liked it) and an outdoor dance show at the American Pavillion (great, DS liked that, but kind of uncomfortable because of the heat), explored most of Japan (DS was bored but a good sport) and ate dinner at Marrakesh (everyone else liked it, again DS was a good sport). Because of the heat, that's all we did.

Future World, on the other hand, was something of a "suprise hit". We could easily have spent two days there.

I think on our trip this summer we'll skip WS unless there's a relatively cool day. If we could an early morning there -- say 8:00 before it got hot I'm sure we'd enjoy it, but otherwise the most we'll do is drop in for lunch or dinner.

 

[DisneyMommyMichelle]

My 1 yr old loved looking at everything, big colors and space to get out of the stroller and wander around everywhere

 

[disneymom3]

My kids love WS! They had a blast seeing all of the different shows. The storyteller in China was a total riot! We also saw a troupe in Italy that they absolutely loved. We saw the Drum show in Japan that was really neat and listened to a band somewhere else. There was also a tin toy exhibit in Japan that they enjoyed seeing and another display area that they really liked, but I don't remember what it was. They loved the ride in Mexico but hated the one in Norway. They were somewhat forgiving though because we were able to tie Vikings into it and we had just studied them in history.

Our plan to convince them that WD was a really cool thing and to buy ourselves more time to see the sights was that we told them we would buy a different kind of candy from each country and try it out. That got them in, but all the fun stuff to see kept them interested and there were several countries that we didn't end up getting candy from.

 

[My2Cinderellas]

We spent a day wandering the world showcase, the girl's favorites were Miyuki, the candy sculptor in Japan, and the Dragon Acrobats in China. They enjoyed the guy with the chairs in France, maybe because he picked me as a helper for the beginning. we also tried to do chocolate around the world, they had fun browsing for candy. we did the kidcot stops and passports, they enjoyed that, but there really isn't much "craft" to it beyond coloring the mask.

One day or a couple of partial days was enough for my kids. it will be a few years before we get back, so they will have a different perspective on it next time. i could have easily spent another 2 or 3 days poking around the WS, I didn't get time to really shop or relax with a drink, we geared the day's events to the kids.

 

[Cinderella]

My kids love WSC - they like making the masks at Kidcot, and they also like getting the passports and getting them stamped at each country. They like Norway, Mexico and Morroco best.

 

[Stephres]

My kids, 3 and 6, love the world showcase. There are some characters there for the younger one (Belle or Sleeping Beauty in France, Alice, Mary Poppins or Pooh in England, Jasmine or Aladdin in Morocco and Snow White in Germany) and they both liked the Kidcot stops. As long as you have a good stroller for the little one, they should have fun!

 

[joemo]

DS6 loved it this year - we brought the Epcot passport and he had a blast getting the stamps and signatures! The Chinese CM was the best, really took time with DS and told him all about his year (he was born in the year of the rabbit).

DS also loved Figment, Soarin and Test Track.

 

[mytwotinks]

My kids love the world showcase! We spent 2 entire days there of our last trip. I think that they enjoy slowing down a little bit and just walking around and looking. We found several interesting and really affordable little fun things to buy. We all like snacking in the different countries!

 

[lauritagoddess]

My DS who was 3.5 loved World Showcase, just loved Epcot overall. We just wandered from pavilion to pavilion taking a look at everything. He liked going in the stores. He liked the ride in the Mexico pavilion, the one like It's a Small World. And I got him a pair of maracas there that he had alot of fun shaking throughout the rest of the day. He liked meeting characters, Jasmine and Aladdin in Morocco, Snow White in Germany, Mulan in China, Pooh, Tigger and Alice in Wonderland in U.K. He had also had a blast in Future World. He already told me that on our upcoming trip he wants to go to Epcot the first day, he loved it there so much.

 

[java]

One year we were calling ourselves the "get picked" family in EPCOT. My ds got picked to march with the minute men at the American Adventure. He was the leader of the march and got to hold a riffle. Then he got picked to play an instrument in China. DD got picked to help the performers in England. It just kept happening. I tell my kids they were particularly adorable at that time But they love it all. Favorites of DS(12)Japan- it's colorful and amazing designs and the Anime doesn't hurt either! DD(8) loves and I mean loves France. She loves the perfume shop, seeing Belle, the movie all of it! DS(3) loves Norway- the boat playground and the ride and he also loved the miniature train outside of Germany. And the Baby just went along for the ride last time lol. We spend about 2 afternoons strolling around the WS. If you really go into the area you can find things you never saw before. It is all good in our opinion. We liked the kidcot stations better when they used to do a craft from that country. My kids got a big kick out of that. But they like the mask too.

 

[benjyt]

Since WS is one of my favorite things to do, I really have to think of ways to keep my DS happy! We took him last October at 30 months - it was much hotter than we'd hoped - and he had a lot of fun before we all overheated. The hedge maze in UK was very fun for him, and he enjoyed playing with the Thomas the Tank Engine toys in The Toy Soldier shop. At that age, he is happier exploring at his own pace than waiting on attractions to interest him, so WS is pretty fun - as long as it's not too hot!