Do You Know These Facts About Walt Disney World’s EPCOT Theme Park?

Where in Walt Disney World can you travel the globe, visit the future, and learn about nature?  

Disney’s EPCOT theme park, of course! EPCOT comprises a whopping 300 acres, making it fully twice the size of Disney’s Magic Kingdom theme park (although only about half as big as Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park).

While the concept for this eclectic theme park was inspired by Walt Disney, he sadly didn’t live to see the opening of EPCOT in 1982.  

Today, Disney’s EPCOT has soared far beyond its initial scope, and there are even more changes in store! Here are some of the most fascinating little-known facts about Disney’s EPCOT.

Ray Bradbury, the Imagineer?

Did you know about the Bradbury connection to Walt Disney World?

Ray Bradbury (the famed science fiction author who brought us Something Wicked This Way Comes, Fahrenheit 451, and The Martian Chronicles, among many others), was a friend of Walt Disney, who shared his passion for the future. They both contributed to World’s Fair in New York in 1964, and had a lot in common.

Later, when plans for EPCOT theme park were in the works, Bradbury came on board to help Disney Imagineers design the attraction that would later become Spaceship Earth. He worked on the storyline for the iconic ride, and even wrote the original script.

Bradbury loved that EPCOT represented hope for a better tomorrow, which is exactly how Walt himself viewed his Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow!

Credit: Disney Tips

Living with the Land’s Secrets

EPCOT’s Living with the Land attraction is a leisurely ride through the world of agriculture, where Guests can see the greenhouses where Disney grows the food it serves.  

Not the most riveting of Walt Disney World rides, to be sure, which is maybe why there’s never a wait for it. But there are some fun secrets that await those who take the time to explore this underrated attraction.

For example: there’s a house built inside Living with the Land. It’s a farmhouse that contains lots of Easter eggs (the number on the mailbox, 82, represents the year the Park and this attraction opened, while the dog is rumored to be based on one of Walt’s pets). There’s even a very detailed bedroom upstairs, believed to represent Walt’s childhood farmhouse bedroom in Marceline, MO.

When you pass the desert and farmhouse scenes, look up, and you’ll get a glimpse of the Kraft Lounge once used by visiting executives during Kraft’s sponsorship of the pavilion. Now, the lounge is only used by Cast Members, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a sneak peek!  

Recycled Ride Elements

Disney’s EPCOT has a history of repurposing old animatronics and attraction elements in new rides, and eagle-eyed Guests can spot them if they look.  

In the queue for Mission: SPACE, look for the logo for Horizons, which formerly occupied this spot. When you ride Frozen Ever After, look for the puffins – they’re the exact same puffins that appeared in the previous attraction to occupy this spot, Maelstrom (in fact, the ride vehicles are also the same). On Spaceship Earth, keep your eyes peeled for figures that are actually Disney animatronics of U.S. presidents in disguise!

So if you’re lamenting the loss of a favorite EPCOT ride, take heart: chances are, it’s not actually completely gone. You just need to know where to look!

That Time NASA Helped Create a Disney Ride

When you want to build a space ride, who are you gonna call? NASA, naturally.  

Walt Disney World relied on assistance from NASA’s engineers and astronauts when designing EPCOT’s Mission: SPACE attraction, so that the ride could be scientifically accurate as well as thrilling.  

NASA’s experts met with Disney Imagineers over the years leading up to the ride’s opening, providing tours and discussions about current and future space missions, and ensuring that the ride felt as close to actual space flight as possible.

Credit: Disney Tips

If Mission: SPACE’s centrifugal motion simulator is just a little too realistic for you, you can always opt to take the gentler Green Mission, or even skip the ride entirely and head to nearby Space 220 to enjoy views of the Earth over a relaxing meal.

Royal Treatment in Morocco

The Morocco Pavilion in EPCOT’s World Showcase is one of the most stunningly detailed of any country depicted in the Park. If you haven’t spent time getting gloriously lost in the wondrous alleys of Morocco, then you should really add this to your list for your next trip to Disney’s EPCOT!

Credit: Disney

One of the reasons for the pavilion’s beauty surely lies in the fact that Morocco’s king himself sent artisans to Orlando to help design the pavilion, and these artisans created many of the beautiful tiles and mosaics Guests enjoy throughout Morocco.

Bottom Line

For a while, Disney’s Hollywood Studios was the Park to watch in terms of exciting changes and additions. But now that Toy Story Land and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge have been completed, Disney’s EPCOTis the Park to watch if you’re in the mood for dramatic transformations.

We’ve already seen the former Future World divided into three separate areas (World Celebration, World Nature, and World Discovery), and the opening of the Space 220 Restaurant. Over in EPCOT’s World Showcase, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure and La Creperie de Paris have opened. And there’s much more in store!

While you’re waiting for the Park’s next transformation, knowing these fun facts will make your day in Walt Disney World’s EPCOT Theme Park even more memorable.