Why Epcot reigns supreme, no matter how neglected

[DisneyFive]

Still #3 for us behind MK and HS. (It used to be #4)

It keeps growing on us though. It does have my #1 favorite ride in all the parks, Soarin, but besides that and Test Track the attractions are super limited. The countries have all been explored by now, been there, done that. However, there is something about it that just feels comfortable. I think the park handles the crowds well, and with all the gardens it is fairly welcoming overall.

Dan

 

[Jules76126]

Epcot is my favorite park. Always has been. We love walking over at night just to enjoy the atmosphere of World Showcase. It feel like it really transports you to another place. There are also so many different options for food and entertainment. I also feel like it feels less crowded as the pathways are wider. We typically stay BC so the walk over can't be beat. I fell even more in love with the park after doing two College Programs there. I agree that it could use some love and I do think that Disney is working on plans for that. Also Wonders of Life pavilion is used for special events so I am not sure they would ever make the a ride/attraction again, but there are plenty of other areas for improvement.

 

[fla4fun]

Another Epcot fan here. I have been visiting WDW since it first opened, and I remember being so excited about the opening of a second park. It was love at first visit. Yes, it could use a little love (and there are plenty of rumors around that say it will get some) but even in its current state I spend more time there than in any of the other three parks, including MK. There is definitely a different vibe there and it just "clicks" with me.

 

[FrancoFun]

Our first trip to WDW was only 3 years ago, and we spent 1 day at Epcot.

Despite it not being overflowing with rides and attractions, it was by far my son's favourite park (he was 7 at the time). So much so, in fact, that he decided that he would much prefer to do two days at Epcot this summer instead of 2 days at MK. He really wants to be able ti visit the World Showcase in more detail, and ride some of the other rides more than once.

I'm cool with that. I'll take pictures galore, shop, and eat. And I won't feel like I am in a rush trying to do it all.

 

[Bullseye]

Another one here to say that Epcot is my favorite park and WS is my favorite place in WDW. One thing I love about Epcot is it's open space unlike MK where I always feel cramped. It's like a constant sea of people to wade through at MK. We just rode FEA and new Soaring last week for the first time and really enjoyed both.

 

[Elizabeth Smith]

When my family took our 9-day trip back in 2007, Epcot was our first stop, the day we arrived. I remember my brother and I holding hands and skipping into the park because we were so happy to be there. I remember eating at Rose and Crown, my brother got a terrible leg cramp, jumped up from his seat and nearly knocked over the table. He was about 6'5", even back then. Everyone in the place was starting at us, because he was also yelling. One of my favorite memories from WDW.

 

[Planogirl]

Epcot was by far my favorite park at one time. I loved Horizons and the World of Motion and Spaceship Earth. Cranium Command was amazing and so was Imagination. My favorite country pavilion was Norway.

Much has changed. I took it all in stride until Norway pretty much disappeared. That was pretty much the last straw for me.

It will be interesting to see what Disney does with Epcot going forward. It's always good to see that so many people still appreciate it.

 

[izzylovesmickey]

I'll add to the love. We took our kids for the first time when they were 7 & 9. Epcot was their favorite park They loved the Kidcot stuff and thought that speaking to the CMs from the various countries was such an awesome thing. We didn't go back to WDW until they were 17 & 19 and it was still their favorite park. Now with both of them going to be over 21 they have a different focus (they like to drink around the world!) but still love Epcot the best.

 

[WorldNoFace]

Epcot was by far my favorite park at one time. I loved Horizons and the World of Motion and Spaceship Earth. Cranium Command was amazing and so was Imagination. My favorite country pavilion was Norway.

Much has changed. I took it all in stride until Norway pretty much disappeared. That was pretty much the last straw for me.

It will be interesting to see what Disney does with Epcot going forward. It's always good to see that so many people still appreciate it.

Oh man, Horizons and World of Motion. That takes me back. As a kid I always picked the underwater option at the end of Horizons

 

[WorldNoFace]

When my family took our 9-day trip back in 2007, Epcot was our first stop, the day we arrived. I remember my brother and I holding hands and skipping into the park because we were so happy to be there. I remember eating at Rose and Crown, my brother got a terrible leg cramp, jumped up from his seat and nearly knocked over the table. He was about 6'5", even back then. Everyone in the place was starting at us, because he was also yelling. One of my favorite memories from WDW.

So funny how the oddest things end up being some of the best memories, isnt it?

 

[WorldNoFace]

I absolutely love your post. I have two boys (6 and 9) and they love the attractions that they have after the rides, especially test track. They love simply trying out all the cars! I really wish they would show some love to the Journey Into Imagination Pavilion. Everyone loves the water jumping area, but it needs some attention!

Oh yes the jumping water - another great "thingy" you can easily lose track of time watching/playing with!

 

[WorldNoFace]

Oh man ... I gotta keep away from Kidcot I guess! That made me laugh and cringe all at the same time.
OP, you are a man that gets EPCOT. It's my favorite as well. I have only recently had my first child (and not taken a trip yet) but I still remember how much my wife and I enjoyed waiting for what seemed like ages in the TT line just so we could enjoy the 10 minutes together creating the most ridiculously stupid looking car of the future, haha!

"Thingies" for sure.

Hahahahahaha @ the stupid looking car of the future. I let my kids create the cars - should see some of these things. If "Unpracticality" was a category, they'd score high in that one every time

 

[WorldNoFace]

great post. we have only been to WDW once but keep trying to go back!

our entire family liked epcot best as well. we are determined to stay at the yacht club and have booked park hoppers for our next trip... i am confident we will end up at epcot many times during our 9 night stay in december (if i keep saying it, it will be true).

on the day we arrived we went to MK for several hours, then returned for the full day the following day. i was exhausted, overstimulated and "over it" by the time i made it to epcot. i remember walking up to the entrance and thinking "three more parks?? i don't think i can do it". but it was lovely, green and peaceful. it was the "anti-MK" and we went twice that trip yet still did not get to fully explore all the pavilions.

Good luck! I hope your plans work out, and if they do, that you enjoy the whole Yacht Club-Epcot walking aspect. If i could afford to stay at one premium hotel, it'd be there for sure

 

[mdinme]

Count us as Epcot lovers too. I can hang out in Italy, Mexico, UK, for hours. Food & Wine obviously tilts the scale, but we went in April with our daughters softball team and we had 30 of us doing soarin, test track etc. just incredible.

 

[WorldNoFace]

Please don't do that - it is against the posted rules.
Your "little white lie" negatively impacts those of us who pay the high rates to stay at this hotel. It is very frustrating, - and unfair - to come "home" at the end of the day to simply circle the parking lots, or worse yet not find a spot to park our car, at the resort we are paying to stay at.

Got it. Can def. respect that

 

[asamford23]

Epcot is awesome... but it would be more awesome if it still had Horizons, the old Journey Into Imagination, and "Tomorrow's Child" at the end of Spaceship Earth!

 

[TiffanyA]

Epcot was by far my favorite park at one time. I loved Horizons and the World of Motion and Spaceship Earth. Cranium Command was amazing and so was Imagination. My favorite country pavilion was Norway.

Much has changed. I took it all in stride until Norway pretty much disappeared. That was pretty much the last straw for me.

I'm still really upset over the Norway redo. In a place that is supposed to celebrate nations and be about learning about other cultures, changing Maelstrom to FEA felt so wrong to me. I started going to Disney in the 1990, and Maelstrom quickly became MY must-do ride at Epcot. Haven't been on FEA yet, a bit out of protest.

 

[Tomh]

My first visit to EPCOT was 1984. I visited with my uncle and aunt. My uncle has always been the scientific type. He was / is a research scientist working in microbiology, but has interest in many fields. His enthusiasm for the mechanical and electrical genius that made everything work really got to me, and I fell in love with everything about Disney, not just because of the beauty, and fun, but because of the wonder of how it all worked. I developed a life long love for EPCOT during that trip.

I visited again in 1988 on a high school class trip, and loved it just as much then.

After that, it was 20 years before I returned to Disney. In 2008 I brought my family. My Daughter was 13 at the time, and when we were telling her about Disney, she wasn't at all interested in EPCOT. It was going to be boring, it wasn't like the other parks, there wouldn't be anything there that she would like etc. etc. Fast forward 9 years, and she absolutely loves EPCOT. DS whom didn't really like it that much his first few years, is now 13, and also loves the park.

 

[lars1989]

Epcot is awesome... but it would be more awesome if it still had Horizons, the old Journey Into Imagination, and "Tomorrow's Child" at the end of Spaceship Earth!

I loved "Tomorrow's Child"! I miss Walter Cronkite's voice on Spaceship Earth.

 

[laurabelle]

Love your post! I didn't go to WDW as a child, but started bringing my babies there in the 90's. EPCOT was a favorite of my husband and mine from the beginning, as we found ourselves with 2 sleeping babies in a double stroller while we sipped beer and enjoyed the fireworks. Fast forward as our kids grew, they fell in love with it too. Some of our fondest memories from their elementary school years: my oldest going on and on about Test Track, the German Blocks and the Belgian Blocks, first favorite big kid ride. One rainy afternoon our kids spent on the floor of Innoventions, watching Aibo robot dogs play. In World Showcase trying treats from different lands. Putting their dreams into the Dreamseeker's net during the Tapestry of Dreams (Nations) parade- I really miss those parades. My kids are adults now, and it remains our family's favorite park.