How much time should I plan for Epcot with a 3 & 7 yr old?

[DawnM]

My kids loved Epcot!

Here is what we enjoy the most:

Universe of Energy
The Living Seas
Stop at the Kidcot in The Living Seas for a lanyard for the "charms"
Travel "around the world" and stop at each Kidcot for charms and stamps

Plan to see Myuki in front of the Japan center. She makes the most beautiful candy on a stick. Get there early so your kids can be right in front of the cart and they will get one! Look at the schedule for times.

My boys are now tall enough for Test Track and Space. I can go on Space 20 times in a row....no kidding!

Dawn

 

[mareed]

Epcot has also always been a favorite of my 2 boys since they were 2 1/2 and 5 1/2 which was our first trip. Our most recent trip was when they were 6 1/2 & 9 1/2, and it was still their favorite park (& ours, too!).

We really enjoy some of the simpler things like the train in Germany, watching the illuminated fountain synchronized to music, and the lights in the ground. These last 2 items are great to sit for a bit while DH and I enjoy a margarita from Mexico while the kids play with the lights, or enjoy the fountain & music. One trip, I videotaped them conducting the fountain like it was an orchestra - it was priceless!

Of course, we go for longer trips (avg 10 days) and have AP's, so we feel we can slow down and enjoy the ambience a bit more than if we were on a shorter trip, or feel we had to get maximum value from passes by only hitting the major attractions. We still hit the major attractions, and visit our favorites multiple times, but it's spread out over about 3 days for Epcot.

 

[Atchley]

You need at least a full day. My kids loved Epcot. They were 5 and 3 at the time. They loved the KidCot Funstops in World Showcase. The masks that they got to draw on and then to get a stamp and a piece for their mask at every country was really neat. And FREE! No one can pass up a free souvinier that kids love. Epcot has a lot of neat and interesting things for kids of all ages. My kids never once complained about Epcot. Your family will really enjoy it.

Have a great trip!

 

[mikesmom]

My son has gone there from age 7 on (he's now 23). He loved Epcot. Nobody has mentioned Innoventions. If your kids are at all into computers and other tech sort of stuff, they will LOVE it. computer games, interactives, robots,- all the stuff dear to the heart of the gadget types. For that matter DH loves it, too. One of the areas in WDW that has constantly changed and updated stuff! Could spend hours in there alone!

 

[crisi]

A favorite for us as well.

I'm assuming that this is your first trip. My advice would be to get hoppers and make your days as flexible as possible. We usually have Epcot as our evening park and make dinner reservations there. That way, if we want more time, we get to Epcot at 3:00 for 6:00 reservations. If we want less time, we are jogging to make our reservations (not likely, since we enjoy Epcot). Now we also schedule a morning there - with Soarin', Test Track and Mission:Space and a seven year old, we want to knock those off early before fastpasses run out. So with our morning and perhaps four afternoons/evenings, we might spend 2 1/2 days in Epcot - and we don't spend a lot of time in Innovations or browsing the countries (though the kids like Off-Kilter, the Chinese Acrobats, Comedia in Italy and the Japanese drums.)

We can also spend a lot more time in AK than a lot of people. But I find a day at MGM is usually wasted - not much we enjoy there - while other people love it. Which is why you want to build flexibility in your schedule. If no one LOVES Epcot, you should minimize your time there. If everyone LOVES it and no one likes MGM, spend less time at MGM and more at Epcot.

 

[Christy93]

Our children love Epcot. We usually go in the middle of our stay for at least a whole day. It's a nice break from the hustle of the MK park. We visit the countries, ride the small rides and Soarin! We enjoy walking through the countries. Our last trip we went to Epcot for 1 whole day and 2 half days. We enjoyed this park much more than MGM.

 

[rkandmjsmommy]

My DD fell in love with Epcot when she was 5, she LOVES test track, and now Soarin' and Mission Space. The kidcot in the countries is a must do every trip and its nice b/c DH and I can explore the countries while they color. There are boat rides in 2 of the countries. MY DS who will be 4 in June also Likes Epcot, MK is his favorite b/c of Peter Pan, but he LOVES figment, the Epcot ball and is hoping to be big enough for Soarin in Octber. I tell everyone to try Epcot, you may be surprised at how much your kids like it. have fun

 

[tazdeb]

I like to think of EPCOT as a fine resturant while the rest of the Disney Parks are fast food. The enjoyment is in the details. I think most people rush through it with their children looking for the "A" attactions. And after they do TT, MS, and Soaring, think the rest is kind of lame. What they dont realize is there twice as much live entertainment there as in any other park. Almost every country has some sort of live show be it the "living statues", bell ringers, acrobats, off kilter, mexican warriors, marching bands,candylady....etc... all of which want children participation. My children could spend a day just going from country to country watching the shows. And they are learning while there at it. They also like to EAT their way around the world, trying a little bit (we share) of local food from the take out places in each land. People have already mentioned the kidcot stations and the fact that there are more characters here than any of the other parks with less lines (Our favorite place is the walkway by the International gateway entrance that always has characters with no lines). Then there is the front of the park that is like 4 different museums/aquariums, with hands on features with buttons to push, experiments to try etc.....most people just rush by theses things. There is a great patriotic show in the American pavillion, a fountan show, a great fireworks laser show and is the only park that is easy to walk to from 3 great hotels. Spend just a 1/2 a day at EPCOT with childen?....GOOD IDEA..... The real reason I like it the best is it never seems crowded.....have fun.....TAZ

 

[mikymouse]

We took our DS6 and DD4 to Epcot and did the following:

11:30AM 12:30AM - Living Seas (Turtle Talk with Crush)
12:30AM-1:00PM - Walking slowly to Noway for Lunch
1:00PM - 2:30PM - Lunch with Princesses (including 20 minute wait)
2:30PM- 2:45PM - Norway Ride/Movie
2:45PM-3:15PM - Walking to Germany Snow White/Trains
3:15PM-3:30PM - Playing African Drums
3:30PM-4:30PM - More Living Seas
4:45PM - Dessert at Coral Reef
5:45PM - Done

The kids did enjoy the stuff we did but were constantly asking to leave.
As you can see we did not get to see alot(no big ticket rides), but the place is huge and the kids were tired. They might have had more energy if there was some more little kid stuff plus we should have done AM for energy level but had to plan around the lunch ADR. Hoping to go back and do it better next time but none the less if it weren't for the Princess Lunch I think they would have enjoyed one of the other parks better or I need to plan other stuff at Epcot. I would have liked to see the Mazes (in the UK?) and the Figment ride. DH & I want to come back for sure, we missed alot.