Best EPCOT Attractions & Ride Guide

Here we cover the pros & cons of EPCOT’s rides & shows, must-dos, and more. If you’re visiting Walt Disney World, you need to know which attractions to prioritize, and what to skip. This rates & reviews everything in the front of the park and World Showcase. (Updated September 11, 2025.)

We’ve updated this ride guide now that the overhaul of EPCOT is over and the three new neighborhoods have debuted in Future World at the front of the park, along with several new attractions. This includes Test Track 3.0, Moana’s Journey of Water, and Luminous: Symphony of Us–all of which debuted within the last year. There’s also Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, Space 220 Restaurant, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, and a bunch of other stuff.

This should help give you an idea of which EPCOT attractions are must-see for you–which includes headliners and sleeper picks–and which ones you won’t have time to do. If you’re planning a visit to Walt Disney World in the coming year, it’s important to note that things are changing on a regular basis. Just right now, Spaceship Earth is closed for a multi-month refurbishment until late 2025 and we’re hoping that there’s a ride reimagining or two in 2026. We update this guide regularly, but if you want all the latest news and updates, we recommend subscribing to our free email newsletter.

Epcot has headliners and less-popular attractions that many guests overlook, but that are worth checking out. We recommend experiencing as much as you have time to experience, even if we don’t rate it highly. Epcot has a deceptively high number of “things to do,” even though it’s actual attraction count is significantly lower than the Magic Kingdom, so it’s quite likely that you’ll experience fewer attractions in Epcot than you expect.

If you’re wanting to know how we would spend an ideal day in Epcot, read our 1-Day Epcot Park Itinerary. We could spend an entire day simply wandering around the park, not doing any attractions. (We’ve quite literally done exactly that several times.) However, that touring plan covers an actual, substantive day in Epcot.

This guide to Epcot’s attractions should give you an idea of which attractions are must-see for you, and which ones you won’t have time to do. Note that this list only covers Epcot. Here are the other parks:

• Magic Kingdom Ride Guide
• Disney’s Hollywood Studios Ride Guide
• Disney’s Animal Kingdom Ride Guide

If you have children, you should also consult our full list of attractions with height requirements at Walt Disney World.

A lot of the things to do in Epcot are in the form of World Showcase entertainment. If there are adults in your party, expect to spend a decent amount of time in World Showcase absorbing the atmosphere and cultural experience.

If it’s ‘Festival Season’ at EPCOT (which basically encompasses the entire year save for a few weeks), you should stop to enjoy the special offerings during these events. Here are the various events along with their approximate annual timeframes:

• EPCOT International Festival of the Arts – Mid-January through Presidents’ Day
• EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival – Beginning of March through Memorial Day
• EPCOT Food & Wine Festival – Friday before Labor Day through Saturday before Thanksgiving
• EPCOT Festival of the Holidays – Black Friday through December 30

World Showcase is often viewed as boring, but we vehemently disagree with this perspective. It’s just a different type of theme park experience; one that is meant to be slowly sipped and savored (literally and figuratively) as opposed to chugged. If the bulk of your day at EPCOT is spent racing from ride to wrong, quite bluntly, you’re doing it wrong.

This guide assumes that you have a full day to spend in each of the Walt Disney World theme parks. You may have more or less time depending on how many day tickets you purchase and whether you add on the Park Hopper option (read our Walt Disney World Ticket Guide to determine which tickets are best for you).

Numerical scores are on a scale of 1 to 10, and only take into consideration overall quality relative to that specific type of attraction. Dark rides are judged against other dark rides, roller coasters are judged against other coasters, etc., to create a relatively level playing field. Attractions are rated based upon how much their target audience will enjoy them. You get the idea.

With that in mind, let’s go through the attractions, starting in the front of the park in what used to be Future World (and is now World Celebration/Nature/Discovery…but nobody uses those names) before continuing to World Showcase…

Future World Attraction Ratings

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (10/10) – This new family-friendly Marvel roller coaster replaces the old Universe of Energy pavilion, which is now the Wonders of Xandar pavilion. This a “storytelling coaster,” which is to say it’s a roller coaster with show scenes that’s suitable for most guests and thrill levels. While the flow of the roller coaster is smooth and the ride vehicles move in tandem with the screens, the ride will still cause motion sickness issues for some people.

For most people, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind will be an incredibly satisfying attraction from start to finish, with a queue and pre-shows that provide depth, a couple of wow-moment effects, hilarity & hijinks, and a compelling story set-up. The same is true for the roller coaster itself, which is satisfying in duration and has fantastic flow and fluidity. In large part, this is owing to the Guardians of the Galaxy characters, humor, and use of music–the roller coaster feels like it’s dancing, for lack of a better term.

Above all else, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind is flat-out, fantastic fun. It’s one of the most fun attractions in all of Walt Disney World. It hits all of the right notes, and is just a non-stop hoot from start to finish. Read our Spoiler-Free Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind Ride Review for more details, info, and photos of the blockbuster new attraction!

Test Track (8.5/10) – Enjoy a joyride where innovations of the future give away for the thrill of the open road. The attraction starts with educational queue exhibits celebrating the history of automobiles. Onboard the ride, you zip past scenic vistas, discover how new technology is shaping the way we connect with each other and the world around us. Then, get a glimpse into the future of mobility and the cities of tomorrow before zooming off on a high-speed race in the outdoor loop.

Test Track 3.0 is an iterative improvement over its immediate predecessor and, even though it lacks the character and cheekiness of the OG Test Track, it is still the top attraction of the trio. Both of the previous versions were getting tired when retired, whereas this feels fresh. Grounding the settings in the real world, as opposed to a cavernous warehouse, is a win. There’s also fan service and nods to World of Motion for old school EPCOT enjoyers.

Our view is that most guests will enjoy Test Track 3.0 slightly more than its predecessor, but some will miss the interactivity of customizing their own SIMcar and seeing how that performs on the ride. That was good, silly fun. Otherwise, there aren’t really any glaring problems with Test Track 3.0. There’s a couple of great and wow-inducing elements, but most of Test Track 3.0 is a just fine. The highlight is still the climactic outdoor speed loop. Many infrequent visitors won’t even realize Test Track hasn’t changed, as the speed loop is still the same as always.

Mission: Space (7/10) – Simulator thrill-ride that sends guests crashing on Mars. There are two versions: green (less intense/no spinning) or orange (more intense/spinning). This might be the least popular of all Disney’s thrill rides, but the orange version is pretty fun, if you can stomach it.

The green version was recently redone as an orbit of earth, and is marginally better than it was before, but still a subpar experience. The story itself isn’t compelling enough to put up with the green version–the thrills here are about the only draw.

Soarin’ Around the World (8.5/10) – A popular hang-glider simulator ride that offers a grandiose flight over amazing locations around the globe. The giant screen combined with the swinging and an epic score creates a believable experience, minus questionable CGI and bent architecture (if you’re seated off-center).

Nevertheless, Soarin’ is an absolute must-do for anyone who meets the 40″ height requirement and isn’t terribly afraid of heights. Do Soarin’ early or towards the end of the night when wait times start to decrease (in watching wait times the last couple of days, we’ve noticed it’s only ~30 minutes at the end of the night, versus peak waits of 90 minutes around lunch).

Living with the Land (8/10) — Slow-moving boat ride showcasing the future of agriculture. Living with the Land is a great attraction that weaves together elements of a traditional Disney attraction with a heavy dose of “edutainment” components (the original mission of EPCOT Center). I don’t have any interest in gardening, and even my curiosity is piqued by the experimental horticulture techniques showcased in The Land greenhouses. Living with the Land is a testament to human ingenuity, and it’s a shame that more people aren’t interested in experiencing this relaxed boat ride.

Living with the Land: Glimmering Greenhouses (9.5/10) – This is the Christmas overlay of Living with the Land, and we’re highlighting it separately here because it takes the normally polarizing LwtL and makes it more of a crowd-pleaser by adding Christmas lights, decorations, and festive fun. Whereas many guests are likely to disagree with our 8/10 score for the regular ride–either for it being way too high or too low, most everyone will enjoy the version during the EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays.

Awesome Planet (5/10) – Located in the Land pavilion upstairs from Soarin’ Around the World, right next door to Garden Grill. Awesome Planet showcases Earth’s beauty and diverse natural landscapes in a 10-minute film featuring some in-theater lighting effects and an original musical score. It’s breathtakingly shot, the score is relaxing, and narration from Ty Burrell as a realtor pitching Earth is amusing (especially for Modern Family fans).

Moana’s Journey of Water (9/10) – This might seem like a really high score for an interactive water exploration trail–basically, a glorified water play area. But keep in mind that these scores are for what each attraction is. Meaning that Moana’s Journey of Water is exceptional for a walk-through, not as compared to Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind. It should go without saying, but the latter is better and will be a more memorable part of your vacation. Nevertheless, Journey of Water is fantastic – a lovely little addition that captures the spirit of EPCOT, combining education and entertainment for a perfect “edutainment” experience for modern audiences.

The Seas with Nemo and Friends (6.5/10) – A dark ride in The Seas pavilion with the Finding Nemo characters trying to find Nemo. A variety of technology is used here, and the coolest scenes are the Angler fish ‘chase’ and the projections of fish into the Living Seas’ aquarium. Despite a couple of neat moments, the ride itself is a fairly uninspired CliffNotes version of the film. However, it’s a short ride that can be done easily later in the day, so there’s no reason not to do it.

Turtle Talk with Crush (8/10) – Kids interact with Crush from Finding Nemo in a screen-based attraction that mimics a water tank. The interactions are all about kids, and the “Living Character” Crush engages with kids excellently (really cool technology). We think Turtle Talk is just as enjoyable for adults, as part of the humor goes over kids’ heads, and there are a lot of “kids say the darndest things” type moments in every show.

Journey into Imagination with Figment (5.5/10) – Dark ride with Figment showcasing the power of imagination. This third version of Journey into Imagination isn’t as bad as the second, but doesn’t hold a candle to the original. Figment is obnoxious and can be grating, although the ride does have its moments.

Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival (3/10) – Cartoon shorts that you could watch on Disney+ shown in a 3D theater with some effects thrown into the mix. The shorts are delightful, but there are better uses of your time unless you need a break in the air-conditioning, which would be totally understandable.

Spaceship Earth (9/10) – One of the best classic attractions at Walt Disney World, Spaceship Earth is a slow-moving dark ride through Audio Animatronics-heavy scenes depicting the evolution of how humans communicate (more broadly, it’s really just about technological innovation) housed in Epcot’s iconic geodesic sphere.

The story of our changes in how we communicate is a compelling one, and besides a few cringe-worthy moments in the script, it’s very interesting and captivating for all guests. It stumbles a bit in the home stretch cheesy screen-based ending and lack of show scenes during this descent. Do Spaceship Earth in the afternoon or evening. Crowds entering the park in the morning tend to be drawn to it, leaving short lines later.

Beacons of Magic (10/10) – Sporadically throughout the evening, lights shine from within Spaceship Earth’s reflective panels as “stardust emerges to symbolize beacons of possibility and optimism” (in Disney’s words). Even setting aside the flowery language, this is awesome. These dancing light displays last only a few minutes each, but are visually stunning.

World Showcase Attraction Ratings

Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure (8.5/10) – This is a new family friendly trackless dark ride that debuted in an expansion to the France pavilion. It is a 3D attraction with some fast and sharp motion simulating a rat scurrying around a restaurant. The bulk of the ride is set in front of gigantic screens.

Some people love this attraction, finding it cute and charming. We agree to an extent, but feel its faults are very pronounced. The problem with Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure is the misuse of screens, and the poor balance of screens with physical sets. During most of the attraction, it feels like you’re simply parked in front of a giant screen–because you are! You can read our spoiler-free Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure Ride Review for more thoughts.

Frozen Ever After (8.5/10) – This boat ride in the Norway pavilion features characters from Frozen and takes guests to Arendelle (yes, a fictional country depicted in a real one in World Showcase) and immerses visitors in many of their favorite moments and music from the film. It’s a cute attraction with some cool Audio Animatronics figures and fun songs.

Frozen Ever After is still one of the most popular attractions at Walt Disney World, with waits regularly exceeding 60 minutes. While Test Track can command waits just as long, we recommend Frozen Ever After as of your top priorities for Epcot. You can read our spoiler-free Frozen Ever After Review for more thoughts.

The American Adventure (10/10) — The American Adventure is an Audio Animatronics-driven “montage” stage show of key moments in American history. The scenes are detailed and insightful, and impressive as they rise from the stage. This is a powerful show that may make the eyes of patriotic Americans leak a bit. American Adventure ranks as one of the all-time greatest achievements of Walt Disney Imagineering, and shouldn’t be missed by anyone.

There’s never a line for this show due to its enormous theater, but 45 minute gaps between showtimes mean you’ll want to consult a times guide before heading to American Adventure. Be sure to see the Voices of Liberty perform before American Adventure for the full, distinctly patriotic experience.

Gran Fiesta Tour (7.5/10) — Boat ride featuring the Three Caballeros with Mexico’s culture as a backdrop in the search for Donald Duck. This mainly makes this list for the sake of variety and ease–it’s one of only two rides in World Showcase, and the only one that regularly has no wait. Gran Fiesta Tour weaves culture together with Disney characters to make for an enjoyable and more dynamic experience that appeals to a broad selection of guests.

Reflections of China (6.5/10) – This Circle-Vision 360 film about China is poetically narrated, and features scenes in China where Western camera crews typically are not allowed. It’s beautifully shot and scored, with a sweeping camera that envelopes guests in the action in a way not possible through traditional film. The 360-degree approach also adds repeat-ability to the attraction, since you can’t possibly see it all in one viewing. Reflections of China won’t be a favorite pick among families with small children, but mature adults should really enjoy it.

Canada Far & Wide in Circle-Vision 360 (6/10) – This is an update to the previous O Canada! film—with Martin Short removed, additional scenes & footage added, a musical score by Canadian composer Andrew Lockington, and narration by award-winning actors Catherine O’Hara and Eugene Levy. Canada Far & Wide offers a whirlwind tour of the country, with its natural beauty, cosmopolitan cities, and multiculturalism on full display.

Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along (0/10) – This new film that runs during the daytime hours in the France pavilion (before Impressions de France in the evenings) is quite literally the worst attraction at Walt Disney World. They should’ve gone the lazy route with this, simply playing an existing sing-along on the screen, as this is actively bad. (Read more about this and the next Canada & Awesome Planet movies in our Epcot New Film Reviews: The Good & Ugly.)

Impressions de France (9/10) — Wide-format film highlighting the culture and natural beauty of France set to a hauntingly beautiful score. Impressions de France is our favorite film in all of Epcot. Impressions de France has a beautiful, chills-inducing score, a digital projection, and breathtaking visuals. Impressions de France showtimes begin at 7 pm.

Luminous: The Symphony of Us (9/10) – The new nighttime spectacular in World Showcase Lagoon is Luminous: The Symphony of Us, which replaces Harmonious and IllumiNations. The name is a mashup of those two, and so too is the substance of the show…to an extent. Luminous features an assortment of songs from Disney movies, choreographed fountains, colorful lights, lasers, barges, fireworks, and more.

Luminous is very good, and should stick around for years to come. It fixes the mistakes of both of its predecessors to deliver a contemporary nighttime spectacular that’s moving, powerful, and emotionally satisfying with unifying themes and music that will bring guests together, whether they’re longtime fans or first-timers. Luminous contains a fitting message that’s in the spirit of EPCOT Center, and is an excellent way for all guests to end a day at the park.

Check out our Best Fireworks Viewing Locations at EPCOT for recommendations on where to watch. One of our favorite fireworks locations in EPCOT is the Japan pavilion (pictured above).

Finally, a big part of the Epcot experience is entertainment, especially in World Showcase, where performers are once again appearing.

Right now, you can enjoy the Voices of Liberty, Mariachi Cobre, Sergio, Matsuriza, and Alberta Bound. Other acts are slowly starting to return, but it isn’t even close to the same yet. If you are interested in knowing when particular acts are performing, check out this regularly-updated Walt Disney World Entertainment Guide.

And again, seasonal events are a huge part of the Epcot experience–you should absolutely plan for whatever festival will be occurring at Epcot during your Walt Disney World vacation. During these times of year, we often spend entire days at Epcot just enjoying the event! See our separate pages for the seasonal festivals that now are held the majority of the year at Epcot:

• Epcot International Festival of the Arts Guide (January to February)
• Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival Guide (February to Memorial Day Weekend)
• Epcot International Food & Wine Festival Guide (Labor Day Weekend to November)
• Epcot International Festival of the Holidays Guide (November to December)

Note that dates change year to year, and do not encompass the entire months listed above. Visit the above festival guides for exact dates, money-saving tips, info to enhance your festival experience, and advice for avoiding crowds during the festivals. If you want to plan a trip around an EPCOT event, we recommend choosing Festival of the Arts, Holidays, or Flower & Garden. The “flagship” Food & Wine Festival is, sadly, by far the weakest event of the year.

Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!

Your Thoughts

Which Epcot attractions are your favorites and which do you skip? Which are your favorite entertainment acts? Do you agree or disagree with our ratings? If you haven’t visited Walt Disney World yet, which Epcot attractions are you most excited to experience? Please share your questions and thoughts in the comments!