Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure Opening, Construction Photos & Info
Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure is a family-friendly trackless dark ride under construction in EPCOT at Walt Disney World. The attraction will debut as a Streets of Paris expansion to France’s World Showcase pavilion. This covers everything you need to know: when it’s likely to open, photos, concept art, and answers to common questions. (Updated December 28, 2020.)
As background, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure is the clone of Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy at Walt Disney Studios Park at Disneyland Paris. Some differences between the two are possible; it’s common for Imagineering to tweak clones upon learning what works or doesn’t. The Disneyland Paris version includes the table service restaurant Bistrot Chez Remy, which will not be coming to Epcot.
Walt Disney World announced this version of Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure a few years ago at the D23 Expo, following construction permits and rumors leaking. The attraction and Streets of Paris section is being built as an expansion to the France pavilion, using space behind the existing theater plus the vacant plot next to the Morocco pavilion. Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure is a “pure” addition–nothing is being replaced by this expansion…
In terms of Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure’s substance, speculation is not required given that Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy debuted over 5 years ago. The concept is guests shrinking to the size of a rat, scurrying through a restaurant in a trackless dark ride. It’s a frenetic, high energy experience with some oversized kitchen items as physical props, plus 3D film on a series of giant screens.
When announced, the ride system was first of its kind for Walt Disney World. Since then, both Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance and Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway have debuted with similar trackless dark ride components. In terms of a comparison, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure is more similar to Runaway Railway–except with more dimensional props, but also more ‘flat’ screens.
Above is a look at the Streets of Paris concept art released for the expansion. While elements of this (such as the Remy character fountain) are similar to the area added to the Walt Disney Studios Park, the layout is different as are the specific dining and shopping options. Only the attraction itself is a clone.
We’ve experienced the attraction many times over the last 5 years at Disneyland Paris, and you can read our comprehensive thoughts in our Spoiler-Free Review of Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy. If you’re really excited about Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure coming to Epcot, perhaps refrain from reading that and simply form your own opinion once experiencing the ride for yourself.
Aside from Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, the big addition to the Streets of Paris expansion will be La Crêperie de Paris. This new crêperie will feature the cuisine of celebrity chef Jérôme Bocuse, the son of Paul Bocuse and operator of the pavilion’s Chefs de France and Monsieur Paul restaurants.
La Crêperie de Paris will feature a menu inspired by the Brittany region of France, and will offer both table service and a quick-service window. The restaurant will serve both sweet crepes and savory galettes. If this crêperie is on par with the other dining options in the France pavilion, it’ll be a winner!
Originally, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure was slated to open in Summer 2020. This was officially announced by Walt Disney World, and “Coming Summer 2020” banners were added to the construction site. Due to the multi-month closure, that plan was scrapped. Since reopening, Walt Disney World has not added a new “coming ___” banner.
However, Walt Disney World officials and Imagineers have repeatedly reiterated that Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure will open in 2021.
The latest “update” comes via Emily Jacobsen, creator of “Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical.” Her social media clip quickly became a worldwide phenomenon, inspiring others to share their love for the “Little Chef” through music. (In a rare move, Disney even got in on the fun). Yesterday, Emily vacationed at Walt Disney World and was surprised with a sneak peek of Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure.
This is notable not because we’re serious TikTok enthusiasts, but because in the video above, neither Emily nor the Imagineer are wearing hardhats or construction safety vests. That’s not simply an oversight or done for PR purposes. It means that the attraction is finished and has been turned over to Operations.
Before you get too excited that the ride will open at any day now that it’s completed, there are some important caveats. Prior to opening, it’ll need to test & adjust, train Cast Members, and more. Under normal circumstances, all of that takes about 6-8 weeks.
More importantly, the timeline for Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure has not been dictated by construction progress, but by when it’s most logical to debut the blockbuster new attraction. It could’ve opened months ago had Disney desired. Until Walt Disney World has a better idea of when operational normalcy will be able to return, we’re not expecting a specific opening date for Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure to be set or announced.
Our expectation is that Walt Disney World will schedule the grand opening date for Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure at a time when it’s likely physical distancing requirements and capacity reductions will be gone or at least significantly relaxed. At this point, we’re probably looking at around Summer 2021 for that.
It’s possible that Walt Disney World could silently ‘soft open’ Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure in Spring 2021 and operate it for months while pushing off the gala media event and public promotion for a more opportune time. That’s a definite possibility, as is debuting the attraction during the 2021 Taste of EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival.
As we shared in our recent 2021 Taste of EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival Dates & Details post, one of the reasons we believe that event is running a month longer than normal (until July 5, 2021) is because we suspect that Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure is not expected to open until after that event ends. Walt Disney World likely wants to buoy attendance at a time of year that’s normally slow for EPCOT, since they potentially won’t be quite ready to open the Ratatouille ride by then.
That’s just our suspicion, though. The problem with debuting the attraction in the next few months or even announcing an opening date right now is that this is the type of marketable addition that generates buzz and prompts guests to book and plan trips. While there are some tourists visiting Walt Disney World right now, it’s mostly locals. This attraction won’t change that. Moreover, releasing an opening date–even a more far off one–runs the risk of backfiring or being lost amidst a sea of other news as traveling is not exactly top of mind right now.
Turning to construction progress, here’s a wide view as we depart the International Gateway Skyliner station.
In case you haven’t seen this in person, the entranceway to this expansion and the existing France pavilion are to the far left, and the Streets of Paris section is essentially dead-ahead, directly above the FriendShip boat.
Turning our gaze to the left, here’s a look at the entrance corridor, complete with the iconic Art Nouveau Paris Metro station entrance archway.
It’ll be interesting to see how this narrow and dead-end corridor works with the influx of guests trying to experience the new E-Ticket attraction in World Showcase. I love the idea of expanding the France pavilion, but I wonder if there will be crowd-flow issues once Epcot gets busier.
Here’s a look at the Streets of Paris section, which includes a glimpse at the character fountain. Work stopped on this during the closure, but has since resumed and there appears to be very little still to be done on the exteriors.
Since we captured these photos, very little has changed. This area is about 98% done, and work could be wrapped up whenever. Nevertheless, we’ll have another round of Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure construction photos in January 2021.
As you can see above, the finishing touches are still being put on the facade and around the entrance to Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure.
At this point, very little work remains to be done inside or outside the attraction. Additionally, this is a clone of an existing attraction. That means it’s a known quantity, and there should be fewer surprises during test & adjust.
The dining and retail in the Streets of Paris section is also ready to open whenever the attraction debuts.
La Crêperie de Paris looks pretty close to the concept art at the top of the post, minus flower, tables, and other little touches that will likely be added in the days before it debuts. This should be a good addition to World Showcase’s dining scene!
Ultimately, we’re looking forward to Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure and the Streets of Paris expansion at Epcot. The attraction is not the pinnacle of Imagineering–and it would’ve been more impressive before Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance and Runaway Railaway when the technology was more of a novelty to Walt Disney World fans. Nevertheless, it’s a reasonably solid family-friendly ride that’ll improve the attraction lineup in Epcot.
Adding another ride to World Showcase is the biggest upside to Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, in our view. If intellectual property and characters are going to be added to World Showcase (and they are), there’s literally no better choice than this movie. Ratatouille is a great as the movie itself is a love letter to Paris and should fit the pavilion well–much better than Frozen in Norway. That coupled with the Streets of Paris being a pure expansion without losing anything makes it a winner. If Imagineering iterates on the ride itself to improve some of our quibbles with it, even better!
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YOUR THOUGHTS
Are you excited for Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure? If you’ve experienced the version in the Walt Disney Studios Park, what did you think of it? If you’re an EPCOT Center purist, are you apprehensive that this will fit the France pavilion, or do you think it’s inappropriate IP for World Showcase? When do you predict that Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure will open? Do you agree or disagree with any of our thoughts? 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!
Could I volunteer in February to be a tester? Lol!!! My husband and I actually were testers for Epcot right before the opening!! It was interesting when the rides would stop!!!
I have a hopeful feeling that it’ll be open sooner than later. Maybe they’ll take the reservation route as they do with RotR for the first year. To hype the ride with this PR spot only to have the public wait another six months would IMO be strange and ultimately bad PR.
Why can’t it be open for this year? I’m just hoping it can just be already built and ready to go when we can book our trips to go to Disney’s Ratatouille adventure! Cause I think it be better if we know what day and date that it can be open for us to go and that way we can also know what date and day whenever it’s not super busy for the Grand Opening!!
Tom,
Do you think we can even wish for a Passholder preview!?
I’m really interested to see if the imagineers have made any changes to this attraction. Unfortunately I feel that the average Disneyland Paris guest (who don’t have Rise of the Resistance, Forbidden Journey and Amazing Adventures of Spiderman nearby) won’t have the same issues that the more die-hard fans have.
I’ve been on it many times in Paris and whilst there is some good screen/set integration, the issues are too big to ignore like the black floors and the two big screen rooms with no set dressing whatsoever (the rooftop to kitchen scene and the Remy’s kitchen/champagne cork scene). As I’m from the UK, Paris is my local park and I really wished it could have been so much more when I first rode it and a real unique ride to be proud of but unfortunately this is not the case!
Having been on Mystic Manor in Hong Kong Disneyland since then, there really is no comparison and I hope all Disney World fans temper their expectations!
“…the issues are too big to ignore like the black floors and the two big screen rooms with no set dressing whatsoever…”
It’s impossible to tell whether the footage was recycled from WDSP, but what they’ve shown in the last couple of months has those same issues, sadly.
I wonder if all of these delays and Disney-driven “hype” over this attraction is going to lead to a lot of disappointed guests. This really isn’t that great of a ride! Far too many screens and far too few physical props. Measured against recent WDW additions like Runaway Railway, Rise of the Resistance, and Flight of Passage, this one is going to be a big let down.
The one thing Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure would have had going for it is the novelty of a trackless dark ride, but that’s gone now, too.
Still, Walt Disney World guests and fans tend to be pretty “forgiving” when it comes to mediocre attractions and World Showcase is starved for rides, so I could see this being reasonably well received.
It “feels” like Disney wants to give itself the ability to open Ratatouille quickly, having everything ready to launch at just weeks notice.
My guess is they will open it as soon as they start to feel a surge towards more normal operations and bookings — they just don’t know when that will be.
They may not wait for everything to actually be totally normal.
Opening would in fact be an important marketing message to prospective guests — it’s a way to signal to guests that WDW isn’t just a shell of itself with Covid restrictions, but that it’s a place ever becoming more magical.
With vaccine rollout just starting and with the seasonal viral factors, there is no way to know precisely when we can really start transitioning to normal. The most cautious health experts would tell you not to expect “normal” till fall or later. But spring isn’t outside the realm of possibility.
Seems Disney just wants to be ready to flip the switch quickly. They may not wait for traditional grand opening time of year. If Covid cases are plummeting by March, they could open in April. (For example).
“The most cautious health experts would tell you not to expect “normal” till fall or later.”
On a related note, I think it’s going to be interesting to see how/if Disney pivots here. If health experts are still encouraging caution but vaccines are widely available and the general public is exhausted and over this, will Disney modify its policies accordingly?
Personally, I have a very difficult time envisioning Summer 2021 not being normal. My expectation is that cases starting plummeting from seasonal highs by February, with the vaccine giving a further assist in March/April. That coupled with people being worn out from the last year (at that point) means normalcy one way or the other. Perhaps that’s overly optimistic, though.
Tom… you hit the nail on the head.
Disney is already more cautious than the Florida government requires.
IF numbers truly plummet BUT experts insist major precautions continue to be necessary.. hard to say what the public will accept and in which direction Disney goes.
By late spring, (May-June), based on all I’m reading, we may see vaccination rates anywhere from 30% of Americans to 65%. With children still not vaccinated.
So if infections are still 30,000+ reported per day, with deaths of “only” 200 per day… hospitals no longer overwhelmed, is that good enough to go back to “normal?”
I do think the closest-contact activities will remain suspended till we truly eliminate the virus. Talking about buffets, character meets, etc.
And last… wonder which goes away first, masks or social distancing. I don’t think they will both go away at the same time. I can see social distancing being reduced while keeping the mask requirement. (You can’t operate at 100% capacity with social distancing. But you can definitely do it with masks).
My best guess for summer 2021:
Fireworks and some entertainment returns
Reduced social distancing, increased dining capacity. (FP return? Unknown)
EMH return
Increased capacity to 50% (which is pretty close to normal summer crowds)
Masks remain required, at least indoors, queues, seated entertainment.
Our last pass over the area on the Skyliner was on Saturday, December 19th. Just as on our first passes over on Dec. 15th, Everything that a guest would see looks complete. The fountain was on, the lights were on at night. The rear areas showed no visible signs of work being done.
Interiors, of course can be quite different, just ask a Russian gent named Potemkin. But it looks 100% complete on the outside.
It’s done on the inside.