Something Is MISSING in Disney World, and Only EPCOT Experts Will Notice It

Another piece of the old EPCOT has vanished…literally!

Over the last decade, EPCOT has transformed. For better or worse, additions like Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, Frozen Ever After, and Luminous: The Symphony of Us have integrated Disney intellectual property into the park’s DNA in a way it had never been before, while the complete redesign of the park’s center into the CommuniCore Hall has left the whole area looking completely different. This has some fans feeling like the park, as they originally loved it, is gone forever. Now, that may be true…symbolically, at least. 

Dedication plaques have long been important totems at Disney parks. Beginning with Walt Disney’s “For all who come to this happy place, welcome…” speech being immortalized over Disneyland’s entrance tunnels, these plaques have served as thesis statements for their respective theme parks, featuring the words of whichever Disney company head inaugurated them on to close to their opening day. Now, we’ve noticed that EPCOT’s dedication plaque has seemingly disappeared. 

Located just outside the park at the base of the flagpole, backed by Spaceship Earth, the plaque bears the words of then-Disney CEO Card Walker, spoken at the park’s grand opening ceremony on October 24th, 1982:

“To all who come to this Place of Joy, Hope and Friendship
WELCOME

Epcot is inspired by Walt Disney’s creative vision. Here, human achievements are celebrated through imagination, wonders of enterprise and concepts of a future that promises new and exciting benefits for all.

May EPCOT Center entertain, inform and inspire and, above all, may it instill a new sense of belief and pride in man’s ability to shape a world that offers hope to people everywhere.”

Now, those words are gone. We first noticed in mid-June 2024 that the plaque had been removed. This could be for something as simple as maintenance purposes. However, there’s also the chance that it’s not, and Disney may be replacing the plaque with something more in line with the park’s current branding. 

If and when EPCOT’s entrance plaque does return, we’ll be sure to check it out to see if Disney made any changes. Like we said, this could be a simple refurbishment, or it could be a bigger change. We’ll have to wait and see! Stay tuned to AllEars for updates. 

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Do you think the original EPCOT plaque should return, or should Disney erect something new that better reflects the park’s current direction? Let us know in the comments below.