The Unfortunate Truth About EPCOT Right Now

EPCOT is one of Disney World’s largest parks, and it’s had a lot going on lately.

Many people love EPCOT for its seasonal festivals throughout the year. You can experience different countries and cultures around the World Showcase, and ride amazing attractions like Frozen Ever After and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure. However, we have to be honest — EPCOT isn’t all sunshine and roses right now, and it hasn’t been for a long time.

What Happened to the EPCOT Transformation?

About five years ago, Disney announced that EPCOT would undergo a massive transformation, including renamed sections of the park, new attractions, festival buildings, and so much more.

The pandemic closures in 2020 did put a pause on the construction progress, but then Disney announced the transformation would be complete by the end of 2023 to celebrate Disney’s 100th Anniversary.

Well, 2023 came and went, and now we’re almost to March and there’s no sign of the EPCOT transformation being completed in the immediate future. CommuniCore Hall and CommuniCore Plaza are coming along, but they still look like they have a ways to go. Here’s a look at the recent construction. Clearly, the exterior is still incomplete.

The biggest problem, though, is that Disney hasn’t announced any NEW construction timeline for this project other than that CommuniCore Hall and Plaza will open in 2024. This leaves us all in limbo, wondering if DISNEY even knows when this project will actually be done. It definitely doesn’t inspire confidence in us, that’s for sure.

Check out everything that’s been created as part of this transformation since 2019 here!

Uh, Disney? What About These Projects?

Speaking of the EPCOT Transformation, there have been NUMEROUS parts of this transformation that have been postponed, canceled, or even worse, mentioned and never spoken about again.

One of these projects was an update to the park’s iconic ride, Spaceship Earth. It would include new music, new narration, and a new focus on the moments and ideas that have really shaped human history. As of now, this change has been postponed indefinitely. Disney originally planned to close Spaceship Earth for refurbishment in May 2020,  but the COVID-19 pandemic forced those plans to change.

The PLAY! Pavilion was also supposed to be part of the EPCOT transformation. This was described as a digital metropolis full of games and experiences that would allow guests to interact with Disney characters in tons of different ways.

However, we have no idea what’s happening with this attraction. It was supposed to open on October 1st, 2021 for Disney’s 50th Anniversary, but when that didn’t happen, it was expected to open with the rest of the transformation by the end of 2023. Then THAT didn’t happen, and we honestly are wondering if Disney has just quietly postponed this project indefinitely, too. 

The last update we want to highlight is that we were also supposed to get a Mary Poppins dark ride in the UK pavilion, but that’s also been postponed indefinitely. At this point, we’re really starting to doubt if this ride will ever come to fruition.

EPCOT’s transformation has certainly changed since it was first imagined, but we’re hoping we’ll still get to see these projects happen at some point.

Here are 5 major EPCOT announcements that we were missing at last year’s Destination D23 event

What’s up with Test Track?

Disney recently announced that Test Track will be getting reimagined, with references to the old World of Motion attraction. While this is super exciting, especially for fans of the original ride, we’re waiting for more information.

Why? Well, as you may have noticed, Disney tends to quietly abandon its projects. At this point, we’re wondering if it’s actually going to happen.

At this time, Disney has only announced that this reimagining will be happening, but we have no idea when or how long it’s expected to take. Will they group it in with the rest of the transformation construction and call it part of the EPCOT transformation? Or will they wait until the final construction walls come down just to put up more? We’ll have to wait and see.

What is Disney really going to be doing to Test Track? Here’s what we know!

EPCOT Festivals Are Being Shortened

One of the biggest reasons people love EPCOT is because of the four festivals that happen throughout the year. We’re just about to jump into the second festival of the year, EPCOT’s Flower & Garden Festival, but there’s been a change.

This year, the festival runs from February 28th through May 27th. That’s a WHOLE MONTH earlier than it has ended in the past. While some Disney fans don’t mind this change, several fans were disappointed by the shortened festival.

Disney hasn’t shared when the Food & Wine Festival will start, so we’re wondering if they’ll be extending the length of that festival or if Disney just wants more downtime between the two.

Learn all about the Flower & Garden Festival here!

We’re always keeping you updated on all the latest Disney news, ESPECIALLY when it comes to EPCOT, so be sure to stay tuned to AllEars!

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How do you feel about EPCOT right now? Tell us in the comments!

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