Location: Disney's Epcot Center is one of Disney World's four major parks in Orlando, Florida. It is located at 200 Epcot Center Dr, Orlando, FL 32821, northwest of I-4.
Cost: Single day passes are $97/person. Multi-day passes can be purchased at a discount allowing you to visit different parks on different days.
Description: Epcot is often described as a permanent World's Fair, with different pavilions focused on different cultures and innovations. It is divided into two main areas - Future World and the World Showcase.
The most obvious symbol of Epcot is the giant white ball which houses the ride "Spaceship Earth" - an interactive tour through the history of the world, highlighting major innovations that have changed history. The interactive part comes at the end, when the riders can answer several questions about their interests, and then receive futuristic projections about that area.
My favorite attraction was Mission: Space. This is the ride that comes closest to a roller coaster style ride in the whole park. It is basically a flight simulation in which the riders experience various g-forces as they blast off from Earth, slingshot around the moon, evade asteroids, and finally land on Mars. There are two different simulation machines (green and orange) which offer two different levels of intensity. Also, each passenger has a different role and has to perform his given tasks (pressing specific buttons) at key points during the simulation.
My daughters' favorite ride was Test Track. On this ride, the passengers design a car using computer graphics. They choose the style of car, design the basic outline, add and subtract different components to account for speed and efficiency, and stylize it with color, graphics, and gadgets. Naturally, they can't actually create your car for you, but on the Test track, they run your "generic" car through various tests and rank the stylized cars of the different passengers based on how they would have performed in that particular test.
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| Our Test Track car |
As you exit Future World, you can stop by the Phineas and Ferb booth to sign up for a mission with Agent P (Perry the Platypus) in the World showcase. You can do a variety of missions, but we did the Japan one. Using a smart phone, you can interact with different exhibits to find clues to help you accomplish the mission. Unfortunately, we had a technical difficulty near the end and never got to see how it ended.
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| Agent P on a mission |
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| Canada |
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| Japan |
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| Germany |
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| One of the many topiary exhibits |
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| Flower and Garden Festival |
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| butterfly exhibit |
Rating: 4 1/2 stars (out of 5)
Things You Should Know: - If you want to take pictures with characters, you can get Mickey, Goofy, and Minnie all together at the Epcot Character Spot. The line is long, but you can make it shorter with a Fast Pass; and you get one after the other without having to wait in line again.
- The evening fireworks/waterworks show is IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth. It takes place in the giant lagoon in the middle of the World Showcase, and is spectacular. There are no seats, but if you want a good view, you will want to camp out by the fence about an hour before the show starts. If not, it is a great time to go on the rides back in Future World because the lines are shorter.
- My wife claims that even the green level of Mission: Space was pretty intense, and thinks my older daughter and I were crazy for going on the orange level. We, on the other land, loved it.
- Fast Passes are available for most rides, and you can reserve three per visitor up to 30 days ahead of time once you purchase your tickets. I would recommend getting the Future World attractions as early as you can, and then you are free to get more throughout the day if they are still available.
- Parking is $20.00 so it may be worth checking your hotel's shuttle schedule.
Nearby: Universal Studios-Florida, Sea World Orlando, Discovery Cove, The Holy Land Experience
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