We Only Skip One Ride at EPCOT, But We Avoid Several Shows
“EPCOT will always be in a state of becoming.” That’s an out-of-context Walt Disney quote about his utopian city of the future. It’s also what Walt Disney World now uses to justify change and sorta explain to tourists why the park is a hodgepodge of old and new, popular characters and classic dark rides, international and intergalactic flavor.
As a result of EPCOT’s eclecticness, there’s a lot about the park that’s taste-specific. There are the legacy attractions from or with roots in the circa-1982 EPCOT Center mission of ‘edutainment’ (education plus entertainment). Then there are modern thrill rides and family friendly fun with characters from hit Pixar, Disney, and Marvel movies.
A lot of the longtime Walt Disney World diehards are fervent fans of the former but not so wild about the latter. By contrast, many first-timers have no clue what’s up with the older attractions but love the new stuff. The end result is that pretty much every EPCOT attraction is polarizing, with some people loving attractions that others skip every time, and vice-versa. This is true throughout Walt Disney World, but it’s definitely most pronounced at EPCOT where there are two dramatically different audiences.
For our part, we are old school EPCOT Center enthusiasts. We are the stereotypical fans who grew up on the Walt Disney World of the late 1980s and 1990s, and love what EPCOT Center once was and, to some extent, still is. We’d give a lot to go back in time and experience the extinct “boring” rides one more time.
We’re also realists who understand that change is inevitable and must happen so that the park comports with contemporary guest expectations. Oh, and we also have a toddler–meaning we see EPCOT through the eyes of a new guest who loves a lot of the new offerings. Suffice to say, we have a foot in each world, and are making this list from a middle ground perspective. If World Showcase had a Switzerland pavilion, this blog would occupy it.
With that in mind, we want to start by addressing a number of attractions you’ll likely find on other versions of ‘what to skip at EPCOT’ lists, and discuss why those may or may not appeal to you. Just because something’s old doesn’t mean it won’t resonate with a Walt Disney World first-timer today. Likewise, just because something is new doesn’t mean it’ll be your new favorite thing.
Divisive EPCOT Rides We Do NOT Skip…
Spaceship Earth
There are very few rides we do every time we visit EPCOT, but Spaceship Earth is one of them. Despite this, it made our List of 10 Attractions That Have Aged Poorly at Walt Disney World. That’s not because we dislike the substance of the attraction–it’s because Spaceship Earth is ~5 years overdue for a necessary refurbishment. The track is in rough shape, the descent has been unfinished for over a decade, and the “interactive” video finale is a blast from the past. Spaceship Earth feels woefully outdated.
Those aren’t the criticisms the average guest who dislikes Spaceship Earth would cite as their rationale, though. Instead, they’d point to the slow-moving dark ride that highlights how human communication has evolved via Audio Animatronics and historical scenes as being “boring.” One might argue that aspects of the attraction, ironically enough, fail to connect with guests due to storytelling that’s clunky, pacing that’s a tad too slow, and a conclusion that fails to inspire.
We vehemently disagree that Spaceship Earth is boring. Humanity’s shared story is a compelling one and the ride’s location inside Epcot’s iconic geodesic sphere is really cool. Not only that, but it’s one of the few remaining Audio Animatronics-heavy attractions in all of Walt Disney World, and we think there’s something impressive and novel about seeing dozens of robots in fully-realized physical environments.
For that alone, we’d recommend giving Spaceship Earth a chance. For most first-timers, it’ll be a ‘warts and all’ attraction at best…but that ‘best’ can still be really, really good!
Living with the Land
Living with the Land is a leisurely ride with variety and charm. There’s an Imagineered opening act with Audio Animatronics animals, but the bulk of this boat ride presents the history of horticulture and future of farming. In so doing, you go through the greenhouses at EPCOT to see firsthand the innovative growing techniques, cross-breeding of high-yield crops, and a cornucopia of vegetables, fruits and fish (it’s an atypical cornucopia) farmed around the world.
Not exactly the stuff that excites the kids these days. And honestly, I don’t blame casual guests who are not into this sort of thing. $100+ for admission to a theme park to see plants and learn about agriculture? The concept itself is a hard sell, and with that description, a lot of first-timers won’t even bother giving ~20 minutes of their valuable vacation time to this.
That’s unfortunate. Living with the Land is informative, interesting and inspiring–a true testament to human ingenuity. The leisurely boat ride won’t “click” with everyone, but if the above description has you at least mildly intrigued, we’d encourage you to give Living with the Land a chance. At the very least, it’s a way to get off your feet and relax for a bit, and you typically will have a short wait in line.
Oh, and everyone should experience Living with the Land: Glimmering Greenhouses, which is the Christmas ride overlay during the EPCOT Festival of the Holidays. During evenings in late November and December, Living with the Land: Glimmering Greenhouses has one of the longest lines in EPCOT–for good reason.
Journey into Imagination with Figment
If you’re visiting EPCOT for the first time today, it’s hard to understand the popularity of this annoying dragon. Regardless, we don’t skip Journey into Imagination with Figment because it’s a little hit of nostalgia, and a reminder of when the ride was actually good. Oh, and our daughter has already become a huge Figment fan and she has no frame of reference–she love the character and any Figment ride is better than no Figment ride to her.
Setting aside our personal biases, Journey into Imagination with Figment is not the pinnacle of Walt Disney World. It’s a substandard Fantasyland-style dark ride. It will almost certainly not be your favorite attraction at Walt Disney World, or even EPCOT. Opinions will be even worse if you have high expectations predicated upon fan hype for Figment. So don’t do that.
But do do Journey into Imagination. For all of its abrasiveness and issues, there’s still a certain charm and whimsy to the attraction and its titular character. It’s also one of the few family-friendly rides in EPCOT that both appeals to kids and typically has a low wait time. Just like our daughter, you may end up loving the attraction and Figment, too!
The Seas with Nemo and Friends
The Seas is a pavilion with multiple aquatic exhibits, Turtle Talk with Crush, and dark ride retelling of the Finding Nemo story with a few scenes projected into an actual aquarium. There are other high tech scenes and memorable effects, but this is probably overselling the attraction.
The aquarium is awesome, awe-inspiring, and so forth. It’s also something you can explore at your own pace, so if you or your kids aren’t awestruck by aquatic life and the majesty of the ocean, you can leave quickly. But it’s dark and cool in here, making it the perfect respite from a hot and humid Florida day.
Turtle Talk with Crush is an underrated interactive show. It’s fun for parents and kids, as part of the humor goes over kids’ heads, and there are a lot of “kids say the darndest things” moments. We used to skip Turtle Talk often as solo adults or childless couples because it’s a bit awkward without children. Now that we have a daughter, Turtle Talk is a must-do. And honestly, even childless adults should make a point of seeing it at least once. It’s fun and funny, and no one actually cares that you don’t have kids. Walt Disney World is for everyone!
As for the ride itself, it’s only okay. There’s nothing annoying or offensive about it; it just isn’t memorable. It is pretty low stakes, and for that reason, we don’t recommend skipping it (nor do we do so ourselves). That’s really all there is to say about it.
Gran Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros
This is a boat ride featuring two of the Three Caballeros (Jose Carioca and Panchito) with Mexico’s culture as a backdrop as they search for the third caballero (Donald Duck). Gran Fiesta Tour weaves culture together with Disney characters in a fun experience for anyone who likes boats, Mexico, fiestas, or waterfowl. And who doesn’t enjoy at least one thing from that trio?!
Gran Fiesta Tour is a minor attraction tucked away into the Mexico pavilion and the biggest criticism of it is typically that it’s a minor attraction. The wait time reflects that, though, as does just about everything associated with the ride. It features a tie-in to an obscure movie, doesn’t offer Lightning Lane, and has zero hype.
We love Gran Fiesta Tour and have practically zero complaints about it (we miss the old music, but that’s minor), but we also enjoy it for what it is. So long as you go in with the proper expectations, I cannot imagine being overly disappointed that allocated time to riding this.
EPCOT’s Only Ride We Skip…
Mission: Space
This is a simulator that sends guests crashing on Mars in the more intense version and orbiting Earth on the less intense one. It’s an interactive thrill ride on the intense side or an interactive leisurely voyage (like Soarin: Over Earth) on the less intense side. At least, that’s the objective way of describing Mission: Space.
We want to love Mission: Space. The concept of space exploration is undoubtedly cool, and who didn’t dream of being an astronaut as a kid?! Unfortunately, the execution leaves so much to be desired. The story itself isn’t compelling, the interactivity is phoned in and unengaging, and the visuals are underwhelming. It’s like a circa 2000s Sega arcade game on the back of a flatbed truck driven on I-4 by a typical Central Florida tourist.
Mission: Space isn’t exhilarating so much as it is discomforting–and the difference is huge. As repeat riders, the substance of the experience just is not worth the time commitment or physical punishment. With that said, if you’re a first-timer to Walt Disney World, it’s worth doing at least once. We doubt you’ll be itching to re-ride immediately, but it’s an easy one-and-done thrill-ish ride.
To Mission: Space’s credit, it’s unique and a fully-Imagineered attraction, which is more than can be said about several of the shows on the list below. Speaking of which, if it came down to it, we’d recommend skipping every single film on that list (except the last one) before skipping Mission: Space. Even though we’re not fans of it, the potential upside to Mission: Space is higher than those films.
Shows We Skip at EPCOT…
Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along
Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along is an absolute abomination, and we say that as kids of the 1990s who love the animated classic. The plot is an offensively bad piece of revisionist lore that spews forth the untold story of LeFou, which should have remained that way. As it turns out, it’s LeFou who was the puppetmaster of the entire story, working behind the scenes to bring Belle and Beast together, among many other things.
The story of Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along is far worse than a direct-to-video sequel, and proof that even Reddit fanfic authors who get downvoted into oblivion might someday see their awful dreams turned into our painful realities. The whole thing is painful to watch, and if you want to sing the admittedly great songs from Beauty and the Beast, just put on Disney+ or something. Avoid this at all costs.
As parents to a toddler who already loves Beauty and the Beast, one of my biggest fears is that our daughter will end up loving this. We’ve steered clear of it thus far (thankfully, the entrance is nondescript), but I’m not sure how long that’ll last. My hope is that Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along is put it out of its misery before that becomes an issue. Although I’d like to believe our daughter will exercise brilliant judgment and hate this, small children are infamous for having terrible taste.
Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival
This is not offensively bad. To the contrary, the material here is actually good and well worth watching. So if you need to get off your feet and into the air-conditioning, it’s a decent option.
But at the end of the day, these are literally just Disney and Pixar cartoon shorts that you could watch on Disney+ at home. The difference is that they’re shown in a 3D theater with some effects thrown into the mix. It’s a nice enhancement to high-quality shorts that are worth watching…when viewed at home. Not so much when you’re spending a ton of money on an expensive vacation.
Awesome Planet
Just like the nearby film festival above, Awesome Planet is a good option for getting off your feet and sitting in a theater. But if you’re already in The Land pavilion, why not just give Living with the Land a chance, instead?
What we like about this is that the film showcases the Earth’s awe-inspiring beauty and natural landscapes. In-theater lighting effects and an original musical score, plus narration from Ty Burrell as a realtor (ha!) pitching Earth is amusing.
However, there’s a ‘stock footage’ quality to the scenes, and it’s not even as good or memorable as something like Planet Earth. No one is going to put this in their Walt Disney World top 20, and the vast majority of you won’t even remember it upon returning home. That’s probably it’s most notable quality: it’s very forgettable.
Reflections of China
Yet another Circle-Vision 360 film, this time about China. 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.
Reflections of China was slated for replacement 5 years ago with a new film made jointly for Shanghai Disneyland and Walt Disney World. Unfortunately, that still hasn’t happened. While we are actually quite fond of the current film, it’s definitely a bit antiquated and has some suspect stereotypes.
We don’t always skip Reflections of China, but probably do 90% of the time. As for you, it’s a good option for infrequent Walt Disney World visitors mostly due to the location–it’ll give you a needed breather while wandering World Showcase.
Canada Far & Wide
Yet another film, this time showcasing the majesty and diversity of Canada in CircleVision 360. Beautiful musical score plus narration by actors Catherine O’Hara and Eugene Levy that offers a whirlwind tour of the country.
The downside of Canada Far & Wide is that it’s not as conducive to getting off your feet. The upside is that it’s more original and less stock footage. Being fans of O’Hara and Levy, as well as the breathtaking beauty of the Great White North, we do watch this from time to time. (Usually when ducking in to avoid a storm!) We don’t necessarily recommend or recommend avoiding it.
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Your Thoughts
Which attractions do you skip at EPCOT? Are there are rides that you recommend first-timers to EPCOT don’t do? What about the many movies and shows? Do you agree or disagree with our advice? 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!
My husband and I did Misson Space Orange our first Disney trip together and decided it was a one and done. But last trip our 5 year old twins were tall enough for the green version, and they absolutely loved it! They thought we had actually travelled to space. So excited for moments like this for your family, when you get to change how you feel about everything based on their experience
Am a retired teacher and librarian, now in my 80s, and have been going to EPCOT since the early 1980s, The thing I miss most about the “olden days,” is that there is so little left that was both fun, innovative, and educational, Do you remember the movie on the Living Seas, and riding in the hydrolater? Kids had fun and learned something at the same time – now there is only the cartoon, Nemo. Also, the first Figment at Journey to Imagination, with the scent of roses, not skunk, and the beautifully lit flowers made of “shrinky dink” material,
Then there was the Kitchen Kabaret show, at the Land Pavilion, with its fun nutrition facts. The ride at the Norwegian
pavilion, with its trolls and its information on Norway was also educational and fun – and I think its overall shelf life is probably greater than that of Frozen. Oh, yes, there was the trip in the submarine at the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea ride. And, yes, as a former English and Social Studies teacher I still enjoy Space Ship Earth, but definitely think it needs to be added to bring it into the 21st century with its new technology and technological applications. While I still love EPCOT, am an annual pass holder and visit twice a year, it seems to me very sad that it has been so “dumbed down” – wonder how Walt Disney would feel about today’s incarnation?
Am a retired teacher and librarian, now in my 80s, and have been going to EPCOT since the early 1980s, The thing I miss most about the “olden days,” is that there is so little left that was both fun, innovative, and educational, Do you remember the movie on the Living Seas, and riding in the hydrolater? Kids had fun and learned something at the same time – now there is only the cartoon, Nemo. Also, the first Figment at Journey to Imagination, with the scent of roses, not skunk, and the beautifully lit flowers made of “shrinky dink” material,
Then there was the Kitchen Kabaret show, at the Land Pavilion, with its fun nutrition facts. The ride at the Norwegian
pavilion, with its trolls and its information on Norway was also educational and fun – and I think its overall shelf life is probably greater than that of Frozen. Oh, yes, there was the trip in the submarine at the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea ride. And, yes, as a former English and Social Studies teacher I still enjoy Space Ship Earth, but definitely think it needs to be added to brought into the 21st century with its new technology and technological applications. While I still love EPCOT, am an annual pass holder and visit twice a year, it seems to me very sad that it has been so “dumbed down” – wonder how Walt Disney would feel about today’s incarnation?
Hi, love your list and I agree with most of it. But, where is Soarin’?? That one is hands down my fave. I love the music and the overall feel of the experience. Looks like I might be in the minority on Figment, who has always been adorable and fun to me, love the whimsy of him. However, and I’m old school here, I was disappointed beyond all measure when Journey Into Imagination changed to its current format. The original ride is sorely missed. One more thing to skip – Frozen in Norway. what a disappointment! For years I tried to get on that ride and when I finally did, couldn’t tell you how disappointing it was.
Make sure you visit and eat at Space 200… it is on my list every chance I get…
“The story of Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along is far worse than a direct-to-video sequel, and proof that even Reddit fanfic authors who get downvoted into oblivion might someday see their awful dreams turned into our painful realities.” – I spit out my drink reading this. Hysterical and unfortunately so so true.
Living with the Land is one of Disney World’s best rides. I am willing to die on this hill…
I second your opinion of Living With The Land and will stand with you on that hill.
Imagine how amazing it would be if it HAD a hill! (even a small one like in Pirates of the Caribbean at MK). Then no one would have to die!
My husband and I are both in our 60’s and we always do Turtle Talk with Crush! We love the interaction with the audience. Btw, no kids and no grandkids- just two adults who love Disney.
I wholeheartedly second your thoughts on Crush! I am also in the 60+ category, a season pass holder & a castmember and feel skipping Crush is to miss one of the best experiences on property.
It’s almost always a joy to watch the child-turtle interplay, but there is regularly a knonk-your-socks-off clever comment or reaction in every show.
I loved the ‘old’ EPCOT first going in 1985. Still going today. The Wonders of Life Pavillion was great, had humour and very informative, both by 7 yrd old son, his grandad, and myself enjoyed it??
Space Ship is always a must. Again informative and the animatronics are still good.
Mission Space is also good, with a real feeling of blasting off into space. The ‘video’ good be more exciting that goes with it though?
Maelstrom in Norway was far better than ‘Frozen’ again informative. Frozen in my opinion belongs in the Magic Kingdom or Hollywood Studios?
Epcot was about a fun way to learn about things an education! Today it is more about ‘fun’.
I absolutely love ‘roller coasters’ and exciting rides, but Guardians of the Galaxy does nothing for me at all, as it is mainly ‘theming’. Done it, don’t need to do it again.
Figment, I don’t get it today, although my son, now 45 still insists on going on it
Big screens, China etc, love them. ‘China’ inspired me to actually go to China and experience it for myself – amazing.
Living on the Land, again interesting. The start is engaging for ‘kids’ and gets them enjoying the ‘agriculture’ part. Well it worked for my 7 yr old son and again he still insists on going on it.
Pixar shorts like them, a good place to cool off and rest the ‘feet’ too, as said.
I could go on.
I still love the ‘feel’ of Epcot. but I prefer the old one though, with the open top bus going around and Roger Rabbit taking a ride with you etc. And the Energy Pavillion back in the day was awe inspiring, I appreciate though that it needed updating, I wish they’d done that and not replaced it with such an underwhelming ‘ride’ like Guardians of the Galaxy, sorry fans, just my opinion!
Today’s Epcot, the best of the new things are Soaring and Test Track.
I think if your daughter really loves beauty and the beast you will end up feeling drawn to the memory of her delight. It’s not so much that you will see it through her eyes but you will always carry the memories of her eyes watching it. Don’t understand why that is making me so misty.
Beauty and The Beast sing a long is horrible! I so wish Disney would bring back the France movie during “normal” hours. I also agree about Journey into Imagination. Disney needs to bring back the original or at least bring in a new version. The current ride is so bad,
they should be embarrassed.
Yup. It’s been at least six years since we’ve done Mission: Space. Our oldest is now tall enough to do the tame version so I guess we’ll do it. Once.
The Nemo ride grates on me but as a vehicle to the aquarium, sure, it’s fine (I know I can just walk through the gift shop but it has become a full-package experience for our family now.)
As for the shows, I’ve still never done the sing-along or the shorts festival and don’t really see why we ever would (Both are pretty easy to walk right past without kids noticing them.) I’m definitely a much bigger fan of Awesome Planet than you are. Maybe it’s my own panicking over climate change but I get pretty emotional in the final beats of it.
This list pretty much perfectly sums up the way we like to experience EPCOT (well, OK, we don’t get Figment). My first visit to Epcot was in 1986 when I was 16, and I loved every single thing about that park right down to the stand-up films. Neither the husband or myself are big roller coaster people, and that’s probably why we still love Spaceship Earth, Living with the Land, etc. The REAL surprise is that our 18-year-old daughter would ALSO list those two rides as her two favorites at EPCOT! On our last visit in August, we got to try Guardians — I thought it was GREAT, but I’m unlikely to ride it again b/c it just does not do great things for the equilibrium or the stomach. The husband and daughter won’t even concede that it was GREAT, but just not for them. So bring on the slow rides for us boring people!
Understand most of the list although I enjoy the mission space for what it is but I think.its definately a ymmv ride given motion sickness.
I don’t get and am not sure I everwill get the pinkish purple dragon (or ride) but hey if you all want to spend 8 hours waiting for popcorn that’s your thing.
I quite like the 360 films but as with a lot of classic epcot think that it equally could use a bit of an update such as the film at living with the land and I love spaceship earth but the ending has to go!
Some people have mentioned American Adventure and as a non American I have mixed feelings on it. Its both a classic of animatronics but also very hokey and a bit naive in many ways-.uch as the end song is catchy it’s a once every few visits for me. Its a bit like the hall of presidents. I understand it as a historian and a tech fan but it doesn’t bring out the same sentiments as it might in someone from the US.
Taking out guardians of the galaxy, if I could go on only one ride in Epcot it would be spaceship earth. I still love it. I’m a little concerned they may botch an eventual overhaul. It also has only broken down once when I was visiting so a bonus there. Agree completely about mission space. I hate this attraction and skip it now that my kids have once and done it. Such a waste of a location and topic.
I know people are nostalgic about Figment, but that’s such a big area that could have a brand new ride with some type of movie IP that would be popular with more people. Keep the character in the park for those older folk, but there’s a reason the ride is always a ghost town.
Good thoughts and points on the attractions – for us, we reverse Mission: Space (we enjoy it) and Imagineering (DD refused to go it for several years because of the skunk smell sprayed in your face). though it is old, count me as one who loves Spaceship Earth. I once would have called it my favorite Disney dark ride and it’s still probably pretty close to the top of the list. Though we too have often missed the Canada and China movies, I still love them. Both shows are great and they are a part of the “old Epcot” that I grew up with.
Jared
Welp, don’t know what happened here but since I was trying to out myself as a Beauty and Beast Sing Along defender, might as well accept the shame of tech hiccups as well!
I think the sing along is high camp, and my husband and I think it is hilarious. (Also, the songs are undeniably great.) If you are someone who can find enjoyment in “so bad it’s good” type movies, you might just have a blast. As Tom says, a lot of this is taste specific a colored by expectations, but I had more fun at the singalong than listening to Spyro-lite shriek at me.
I agree 100% with your list. We do the Pixar films as we love the shorts- but you are spot on with our likes!!
Good list, but no American Adventure?
Skipping American Adventure would be distinctly unpatriotic. Therefore, it does not even belong in the conversation about things to skip. (Same reason Impressions de France isn’t on this list!)
Seriously though, American Adventure is one of the pinnacles of Imagineering and still stands the test of time. We’d never recommend anyone skip it. Impressions de France is more taste-specific, but I’d hazard a guess that skipping it is the default (sadly) by virtue of its showtimes. That’s why neither are discussed here.
If he had American Adventure on his “shows we skip” list, I would have unsubscribed from the blog and then hunted down his house with a pitchfork and torches! I think that show is one of Imagineering’s greatest feats ever (from the engineering of an entirely animatronic show, to the show itself, to the Golden Dreams song.