Epcot’s New Neighborhoods Debuting for 50th
Walt Disney World has announced that the four new Epcot neighborhoods will officially debut on October 1, 2021 as part of the 50th Anniversary festivities. This post will offer a refresher as to what this means, what the company is promising, and when these neighborhoods will realistically take shape.
As a reminder, the news of four “neighborhoods” in Epcot is nothing new. Four years ago at the D23 Expo Parks & Resorts panel, the company announced the overhaul of Future World and flashed concept art on screen. Two years ago at the same event, Disney released new concept art and the above color-coded “map.” That map remains accurate since it was simply a colored overlay of the then-existing Epcot.
Both pieces of the aforementioned concept art no longer reflect the “vision” for Epcot’s transformation. We don’t know what the current plan is, as Disney has not released anything new to supplant the old plans. However, we do know that aspects of the previous concept art have been scaled back or cut entirely. Today’s announcement sheds some light about what’s still planned for Epcot and what isn’t…
As part of the transformation, Epcot’s Future World will be no more, replaced with three new neighborhoods: World Celebration, World Nature, and World Discovery. These neighborhoods will pair with World Showcase, which will continue to exist in its original 1982 through present-day form.
Today’s news has two components–the first being that beginning October 1, 2021, the park will be unified with these four neighborhoods. According to Walt Disney World, these neighborhoods of World Showcase, World Celebration, World Nature, and World Discovery “are filled with new experiences rooted in authenticity and innovation that take guests to new destinations, where the real is made fantastic in a celebration of curiosity, discovery and the magic of possibility.”
In actuality, three of the four neighborhoods are largely filled with construction walls. Regardless of fluffy language, the second item of interest regarding this announcement is it offers rare nuggets of what to expect from the new neighborhoods when they’re actually finished, what not to expect, and what’s debuting on October 1, 2021.
Here are details via Walt Disney World, followed by our commentary…
World Showcase
- World Showcase continues to be a celebration of culture, cuisine, architecture and traditions, infused with new character-centric offerings.
- An expanded France pavilion features the new Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure attraction, where guests feel as if they shrink to the size of Chef Remy and race through Gusteau’s restaurant. This officially opens October 1, 2021.
- Joining this family-friendly experience in the France pavilion is a new restaurant, La Crêperie de Paris, offering both table and quick service options and a menu from celebrity chef Jérôme Bocuse. This officially opens October 1, 2021.
- Also in the France pavilion, the classic “Impressions de France” film is joined by “Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along,” directed by Don Hahn, producer of both the animated and live-action versions of this tale as old as time.
- “Harmonious” is one of the largest nighttime spectaculars ever created for a Disney theme park. Performed in World Showcase Lagoon, the show celebrates the way Disney music inspires people the world over, featuring familiar songs reinterpreted by a culturally diverse group of 240 artists from around the globe. “Harmonious” features massive floating set pieces, custom-built LED panels, choreographed moving fountains, lights, pyrotechnics, lasers and more. This officially debuts October 1, 2021.
- Regal Eagle Smokehouse: Craft Drafts & Barbecue is a fast-casual restaurant at the American Adventure pavilion, serving classic American backyard barbecue and home-style craft brews. In some circles, this restaurant is also known as “Regal Eagle’s Distinctly Patriotic Smokehouse: A Salute to All Foods, But Mostly Barbecued Meats.” If that’s too wordy, some fans have taken to simply calling it the Muppet Meatry. Great names, gotta admit!
World Celebration
- World Celebration will offer new experiences that connect guests to one another and the world around them.
- The Epcot entrance plaza welcomes guests with open pathways and sweeping green spaces that beautify the entryway. Bridging the past, present and future of EPCOT is a new fountain at the base of Spaceship Earth with three majestic pylons. The entrance plaza also features new lighting and music, as well as flags flanking the fountain featuring six original Epcot icons.
- Spaceship Earth transforms at night into a Beacon of Magic with new lights shining across the geodesic sphere’s reflective panels. These lights connect to one another in a symbol of optimism resembling stars in a nighttime sky. This debuts October 1, 2021.
- Creations Shop is the park’s new retail location, replacing MouseGear. The store is inspired by Mickey Mouse and features a bright environment with large glass walls allowing sunlight to pour in. Artistic homages to Mickey are throughout the shop, including large murals.
- Adjacent to Creations Shop is a new-look Club Cool Hosted by Coca-Cola. Club Cool invites guests to taste drinks from around the world, bringing the global experience of Coca-Cola to life.
- In the future, there will be a new view of World Showcase from Dreamers Point behind Spaceship Earth. (Currently behind construction walls.)
- In the future, World Celebration will feature a new Walt Disney statue plus “natural environments and global design elements” filled with Disney things. (Currently behind construction walls.)
- In the future, this enchanted garden will be surrounded new merchandise and dining locations, along with a newly reimagined festival area that will be home to ever-changing events in a unique new environment. (Currently behind construction walls.)
World Nature
- World Nature is dedicated to understanding and preserving the beauty, awe, and balance of the natural world. It includes The Land and The Seas with Nemo & Friends pavilions, as well as the forthcoming Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana.
- The Land pavilion film “Awesome Planet” showcases the beauty, diversity and dynamic story of Earth. The 10-minute show features in-theater effects and an original musical score from Academy Award-winning composer Steven Price.
- Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana will be the first Walt Disney World theme park experience featuring by Moana. This lush exploration trail will invite guests to meet and play with magical, living water. Water will have a personality of its own, helping guests learn how to protect the natural water cycle in a fun and engaging way. (Currently behind construction walls.)
World Discovery
- In World Discovery, stories about science, technology, and intergalactic adventure come to life.
- In an expansion of the Mission: SPACE pavilion, the new Space 220 Restaurant is a culinary experience offering the celestial panorama of a space station, including virtual daytime and nighttime views of Earth from 220 miles above the planet’s surface. Guests board a space elevator for a simulated journey to the Centauri Space Station, where they experience the “height of dining.” Once they arrive, guests enjoy meals and drinks while taking in views that are truly out of this world. Space 220 is operated by the Patina Restaurant Group.
- Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind will be the first “other-world” showcase pavilion at Epcot. The family-friendly adventure starts in the Galaxarium, a planetarium-like exhibition that explores the similarities and mysteries of the formation of Earth’s galaxy and Xandar. Guests will learn more about the treasures Xandar has to share — until the moment when the Guardians of the Galaxy arrive, and guests go on an intergalactic chase through space and time. The attraction will feature a rotating 360 degree coaster that focuses guests on the action, including the first reverse launch on a Disney coaster.
Guests can visualize these plans at Walt Disney Imagineering presents the Epcot Experience in the Odyssey Events Pavilion. Here they discover an exhibit showcasing the park’s future, post-transformation.
Right now, there’s not much to see in Epcot itself. The main sign of these new neighborhoods is–no joke–colored trash cans. The adoption of the new neighborhoods is thus mostly in name only at this point, and not really what interests us here. Rather, we’re focused on what else the announcement does or does not say.
Per Walt Disney World, “more information on other previously announced experiences coming to EPCOT will be provided at a later date.” You’ll have to excuse us for parsing this press release, but we’ve been starved for new info about Epcot, as it has been pretty much radio silence for the past year about many aspects of the transformation…
A few things stand out from this. First, what is not mentioned at all. That includes projects were already know were “postponed” indefinitely, like the Mary Poppins attraction and Spaceship Earth reimagining. There’s every reason to believe the Mary Poppins project is permanently cancelled.
However, the Spaceship Earth reimagining will need to be revived at some point, since there are overdue issues with the attraction that will need to be addressed in the not-too-distant future irrespective of the reimagining. The ride needs track work, among other things, and a lengthy refurbishment will be necessary within the next few years. If a year-plus closure needs to happen, it might as well include show scene updates.
Another surprise is that the Play Pavilion also is not included in the announcement. Post-reopening, this project has not been mentioned at all–neither as something that has been cancelled or is proceeding as planned. At first, our assumption was that Disney didn’t quite know how to handle the very hands-on pavilion with all playgrounds and interactive exhibits closed. That’s no longer an issue, so the continued silence around Play Pavilion is curious.
We have no clue what’s up with the Play Pavilion. Our understanding is/was that the project was pretty far along pre-closure, and would’ve had no issues making its planned opening date this year. However, the lack of anything official–or even rumors–makes us wonder whether this mothballed project will come to fruition, or will be “restored” to its status as a festival center.
Speaking of which, Disney announced last summer that the company would “take a different approach” with the multi-level Festival Center in World Celebration. One defining feature of that very vertical space was top-level Harmonious viewing and special events venues. This is mentioned in the press release, but simply as a “newly reimagined festival area that will be home to ever-changing events in a unique new environment.”
This is another wildcard. New concept art hasn’t yet been released, and it’s unclear whether this will be a building or simply an outdoor space. The economy has turned around far faster than expected and travel is projected to continue booming in the years to come. Given that the Festival Center would directly generate revenue from dessert parties, private events, and who knows what else, it would seem like a savvy investment. But who knows. Here’s hoping they don’t throw down mulch & soil, add some food booths, and call it a day.
Finally, there’s no mention of opening dates, seasons, or even years for anything beyond October 1, 2021. We’ve been speculating for months now that TRON Lightcycle Run and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind will have their openings spread over two years, with one opening in 2022 and the other in 2023. (Both were supposed to open by October 1, 2021.) That continues to be our expectation.
While some of what’s mentioned could open in 2022, the Epcot transformation will undoubtedly extend into 2023. Perhaps 2024, depending upon the ultimate ambitiousness of the Central Spine/World Celebration plans. Here’s hoping we finally get some new concept art at the upcoming Destination D, but my guess is that won’t happen until next year’s D23 Expo. Perhaps the third time will be the charm in releasing accurate art for Epcot at that blockbuster event!
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YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think of Epcot officially debuting its 4 new neighborhoods on October 1, 2021? Is this an exciting development, or meaningless until construction actually starts/finishes? Looking forward to any of these projects coming to EPCOT? Disappointed about anything that has been delayed or cancelled? Do you plan on visiting during Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary in 2021? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
Tom, I am new to your blog, thanks to my Husband… But I have to express my gratitude for your articulate thoughts about all things Disney
We are excited to be able to share a trip November with our family and your insights ar most helpful
I am a DVC member for over 20 years and I am learning new things from you.
I truly appreciate you!!
Thanks for the kind words–enjoy your November trip!
I agree with PPs about the drinking at Epcot. I think for a long time, Disney didn’t know what to do with that park, and they needed someplace for guests with alcohol, and that became Epcot by default because its original mission was getting fuzzy. Now World Showcase is increasingly unpleasant. Hopefully they’ll figure out a way to repair that. Meanwhile, still no word on Spaceship Earth. As I recall, the original press release talked about “storytelling,” and my fear since then has been that Spaceship Earth would become a series of movie tableaux. I still don’t see anything that makes me think that’s out of the question.
Here are details about the now-cancelled Spaceship Earth project: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/spaceship-earth-closing-2020/
As for drinking, the best way to avoid that whole ‘scene’ is to avoid Epcot on weekends and/or start your day in World Showcase and then move to Future World (that’s also the better strategy). While I’m in no way averse to drinking, I agree that it’s gotten out of hand in the last 5-7 years.
I’m trying to be fair and patient, but it’s wearing thin. We have a big trip coming up this November, and I regret to say I’m having buyer’s remorse. It’s been over 2 years since we were last at the park. We’d expect to see lots of new attractions. There are some, but when my kids say they can’t wait to ride Tron and Guardians, I have to tell them that they aren’t done yet. They literally don’t believe me. It’s been more than 2 years, and they were active construction sites when we were last there. It’s comical … except for the fact that this is the most expensive Disney trip we’ve taken. So it’s actually sad.
There is a clear reason for the lack of discounts, charging for attraction admission, and the delayed opening of new attractions. It’s called COVID.
Disney lost a great amount of revenue due to the covid closures worldwide. Every penny of profit is critical to continue operating the parks/resorts and paying stock dividends to the blue chip investors. When Disney recoups their losses (plus interest) they will once again begin investing in park improvements/renovations.
Another covid induced impact is the loss of skilled labor. This is true not only for Disney but all businesses worldwide. Along with the loss of workers comes a slow down in the delivery of construction materials. The lead times for many materials are now several months and some are over a year. Remember, Disney is still cutting edge entertainment. Computer technology is not only integral but critical to maintaining their edge. When market shortages are relieved, Disney will be able to accelerate their construction schedules.
Until then the key word will be patience. Disney is a world class business. Like any business profits come first. But also like any business they need their fan base to stay true. The Disney dream is still alive. It’s just moving along slowly due to circumstances.
Then as a business, Disney should be concerned about their competitor up the street is doing.
Universal managed to continue building VelociCoaster during the closure (TRON Lightcycle Run is no more “cutting edge” than that) and opened it over the summer. They’ve resumed work on their new theme park, too.
The shortages you’re describing were not issues to the same degree back when these decisions were made in Summer 2020. The “loss” of labor at Disney was self-inflicted, occurring via layoffs.
I couldn’t agree with Joel G more. We were at Epcot three times for our vacation last week and EVERY evening was full of drunk people. I was shocked at how much Disney catered to them and seemed to drop the ball on the family entertainment. I enjoy a good drink, but I can’t help but feel Walt would be pissed. The only plus side was short lines because everyone was at the numerous bars. No longer focused on educational or fun for my little family. I hope the new neighborhoods revive Walt’s core values.
Scott – I agree with your first couple sentences about World Showcase except for Three Caballeros. Three Caballeros is a wonderful film with excellent animation and beautiful music. Donald ogling in the film is comical and harmless. I would rather see Mexico leave Gran Fiesta alone and apply the funds to fixing Spaceship Earth since the ride system is in very poor shape, add more attractions to World Showcase, continue updating Wonders of Life/Play Pavilion, and bringing Journey into Imagination back to its pre-1998 glory.
I actually really love the idea of that multi-level building thing. I would love to see a unique architectural piece that could take over as a festival center. The space where the current festival center is could definitely house a new country pavilion instead.
I loved the look of the Festival Center, too.
Still think it would’ve been cool to have two buildings like that replacing Innoventions.
We were at EPCOT last Saturday. Unfortunately it seems to be turning into everyone’s drinking destination. There are roving bands of people in matching t-shirts drinking around the world. Disney seems to be promoting this, with the theater in Canada now a large bar and the back of Morocco is a bar as well. I’m fond of a good beverage myself but that isn’t my main reason for going to EPCOT. It was strange because even though the park was pretty crowded in the evening, it was still easy to get on a ride (walked right onto Soarin at 6pm) or get a table at a restaurant. However, the lines for the outside bars and Food and Wine kiosks were long everywhere. The World Showcase had gotten so rowdy by evening we chose to leave. That’s never happened before. Disney needs to come up with a comprehensive plan for how to keep EPCOT up to date and continue a Disney experience. Saturday it was more of a fraternity experience.
I still think the, “World,” naming convention is a perfect demonstration of modern Disney not thinking things through. World is not the word to focus on in World Showcase. Showcase is. It’s a showcase of the world. That’s pretty simple.
The new neighborhood naming convention should be X Showcase, not World X. Under the new convention, World Showcase makes no sense.
While I agree with you, I also think that the name change was totally unnecessary to begin with. It feels very much like a solution in search of a problem.
I have a trip coming up shortly and my husband loves Epcot, so was interested when I saw this come in my mailbox. After reading it, I wondered why Disney bothered to make an announcement at all. It only depressed me. They should’ve said nothing at all. Just draws attention to the lack of attention to Epcot. Last 2 times I’ve gone, I’ve tried to ignore all the walls and construction, plus I’m bummed about Mary Poppins. Please don’t get people excited about something then fail to deliver, or take forever with it. My opinion, anyway.
“I wondered why Disney bothered to make an announcement at all. It only depressed me. They should’ve said nothing at all.”
I thought the same, and my only conclusion is that they want to create the impression that more progress has occurred than is actually the case?
The problem with that is it’s easily contradicted by visiting Epcot and seeing those walls. It also invites disappointment among those who only read Disney’s official press release (which makes Epcot sound really far along in its transformation) without following blogs like this and others that track actual construction progress.
Tom,
Hope you don’t mind me saying but you seem a little bit more perturbed towards Disney recently. Are the constant cut backs, push backs, cost increases, etc. wearing on you too? Just noticed several comments recently via “no excuse for scaled back operations”, Epcot pushback being “ridiculous”, etc. I don’t blame you at all, just curious if I am misreading it.
Also, let me say that I agree with your assessment on Universal stealing their market share. This hardcore Disney fan is already starting to wonder if my trips going forward will be Universal trips with perhaps a day or two at Disney.
“…you seem a little bit more perturbed towards Disney recently.”
I wouldn’t necessarily say that. I’ve loved plenty of recent additions and am excited for upcoming ones, as well. I’ve also defended Genie+, perhaps to an unnecessary extent when I could’ve just sat back and let people voice their outrage.
The biggest thing that bothers me is the glacial pace of scaling up operations and resuming normalcy. This impacts everything from construction to entertainment, and will have long-term negative ramifications well beyond what we’re seeing today. There are short-sighted decisions that make near-term financials look better, but will have consequences down the road. That’s bad for current guests, and future ones.
I laughed out loud reading Disney’s verbiage about a space in World Celebration being “filled with “Disney things.” LOL, I’m shaking my head and I’ve got no words to contribute that can compete with that! Thanks for the updates, Tom!
That’s actually my wording. There was a lot of flowery language in this press release, and I cut most of it out. I don’t recall what that originally said, but I believe it included “magic” and something else. Guess I got a bit lazy with the replacement wording!
I feel like they should be careful about slow-rolling this over the next few years considering Epic Universe is supposedly opening around 2024/2025. I don’t think an interactive water fountain and one new thrill ride (no matter how good it is) are going to compare to Super Nintendo World and whatever else gets put in the new park, especially given Universal’s track record on both thrill rides and family friendly attractions the last few years. And even though it seems like 2023 is their current goal for wrapping up Epcot changes, at least for what’s already been announced, it seems like Disney projects always get delayed and Universal ones come out at lightning speed, putting these two on a collision course. Disney should not want a head-on competition (for both guests’ and media attention) here. They should get this done quickly so the reaction will be “yay, the construction walls are finally down and Epcot’s looking great”, rather than meh these additions are nice, but I’m spending the rest of my week with Fantastic Beasts instead.
Even assuming the best Epic Universe timeline and the worst Epcot overhaul timeline, I don’t think they’re done around the same time. (Still, one is a totally new park and the other is, at this point, glorified landscaping–so not exactly and apples to apples comparison!)
The rest of your point is very well taken. Universal is lean, aggressive and poised to take market share from Walt Disney World in the long run.
I can’t believe Disney did not take advantage of all that time the park was closed to get more of the construction done. They had a prime opportunity. Tron and Guardians should have been ready for the 50th anniversary opening day Oct. 1. And I can’t believe how many of these new so-called additions are such non-attractions like a “Disney statue” or “a projection on the globe”. Really? You can’t ride these. It’s like Disney is just becoming one big fancy mall with cool decorations where the main focus is on customers buying merchandise and food. And the few new rides are so big and ambitious that they take forever to build and regular tourists don’t even get a chance to ride them without the latest technology to join a virtual queue or buy their way into access. And EPCOT should still hypothetically be called Future World, because if you go there now…all of their new “attractions” won’t be open until the future.
2 thoughts:
1) No details on what the Festival Center and thus World Celebration area beyond Spaceship Earth will look like. Are the plans as nebulous as they seem from this?
2) The Guardians of the Galaxy planetarium and ride sound interesting, but integration of the IP into Epcot continues to be extremely awkward. I’d sooner they just said “Look, it’s a cool roller-coaster featuring Marvel characters, and we snuck a planetarium into the budget!”
I’m really tired of being cynical, it’s been a long nearly 19 months now. I’m glad they are continuing to add and try to improve the park experience. More details will come over time and I’ll be patient.
I wish they would open a neighborhood, or at the very least pay homage to, Walt Disneys true vision for EPCOT. The futuristic view of the American city way into the future, at a time that we also have an established base on the moon and mars. Create some type of ride that lets us fly around the city and the planet bases as though they actually existed.
Disney has lost sight of this vision.
As our time gets closer to going, I am thrilled to see all your posts. You are doing a great job! Thank you.
Who knew that Pandora’s announcement-to-opening would seem fast? It’s mind-boggling to see a project extend an extra 2 years due to a park closure that was only a few months.
It’s ridiculous.
I can understand scaling back some ongoing plans with the uncertainty of the closure. However, the Central Spine of Epcot should not have been among them. They had to have known that the Big Epcot Dirt Pit would have to be filled in at some point, and used the opportunity with no guests in the park to accelerate work.
Are they essentially celebrating the debut of street signs with this neighborhood announcement? Seems analogous to saying the Lightning Lanes are complete because they replaced the FastPass+ signage. Can’t actually use them? Small detail…
It’s great they debuted some new retail, a restaurant, and the nighttime for spectacular in time for the 50th. Kudos.
Saying the neighborhoods are debuting next week seems like lame marketing puffery at its best, and quite disingenuous at it’s worst.
“Are they essentially celebrating the debut of street signs with this neighborhood announcement?”
You joke, but the only tangible sign of the new neighborhoods right now is colored trash cans.
Love Epcot, excited about the changes. I hope they continue to add dark rides to the World Pavilion. Germany, Japan? Also please update Mexico’s to Coco. I dare anyone to watch the 3 Caballeros! Donald oogling girls in bikinis on the beach is painful!