Smart Traveller

In the next posts in our series about Orlando’s Walt Disney World Resort, we’ll be taking a look at the Epcot theme park.

The name Epcot stands for Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow and the theme park, which opened in 1982, was originally designed to showcase the possible future development of technology. Although Epcot doesn’t look particularly futuristic today, it’s still a great place to visit. It covers a huge area and is packed with attractions, so ideally you should plan to spend at least a day, possibly two days there if you want to explore it properly.

Epcot is divided into two main sections: Future World and World Showcase. Future World is the first section of the park that you’ll see if you go into the park using the main entrance, and it is here that you will find the rides and attractions based on technology and science.

The Future World area of the park is divided into a number of “pavilions”, including the Mission: Space Pavilion, the Land Pavilion and the Spaceship Earth Pavilion (the large golf-ball style structure which dominates the park). Popular rides within the Future World section of Epcot include Mission: Space, Test Track, Soarin’ and The Seas with Nemo and Friends.

The second part of Epcot, World Showcase, is set around the huge lake and features eleven “pavilions”, each of which is themed on a different country: the Mexico Pavilion, the Norway Pavilion, the China Pavilion, the Germany Pavilion, the Italy Pavilion, the American Adventure Pavilion, the Japan Pavilion, the Morocco Pavilion, the France Pavilion, the United Kingdom Pavilion and the Canada Pavilion. These pavilions feature restaurants, gift shops and attractions based on the culture of the countries upon which they are themed.

There is a large car park outside of the main entrance to Epcot, so if you are travelling by hire car, you can park there. If you are staying in one of the resort’s hotels, you can take a shuttle bus to the park and Epcot is also accessible by boat from several of the hotels, Disney’s BoardWalk and Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park, and by monorail from the Magic Kingdom. However, Disney transportation can be very busy during peak hours, so travelling by rental car may be the easiest option.

Make sure that you pick up a park map as you enter Epcot, as the theme park is huge and can be disorientating.

In the next post in this series, we will take a closer look at some of the attractions that you can see in the Future World section of Epcot.

Image: Quinn Norton

In the final part of our series of posts about the Magic Kingdom theme park at Orlando’s Walt Disney World Resort, we take a look at the Mickey’s Toontown Fair and Tomorrowland areas of the park.

Mickey’s Toontown Fair - Rides and Attractions

Mickey’s Toontown Fair is the smallest area of the Magic Kingdom, but it still has a number of rides and attractions there. These are: Mickey’s Country House, Minnie’s Country House, the Toontown Hall of Fame, the Judge’s Tent, Donald’s Boat and the Barnstormer at Goofy’s Wiseacre Farm.

The Mickey’s Country House and Minnie’s Country House attractions enable you to take walk-through tours of the characters’ homes. You can meet Mickey Mouse in the Judge’s Tent and meet other Disney characters in the Toontown Hall of Fame.

Donald’s Boat is an interactive play area for young children, whilst the Barnstormer at Goofy’s Wiseacre Farm is a mini-rollercoaster designed for children.

Mickey’s Toontown Fair - Dining and Shopping

There are no restaurants in the Mickey’s Toontown Fair area of the Magic Kingdom, you can buy snacks and drinks from Mickey’s Toontown Farmers Market.

There are two shops in Mickey’s Toontown Fair which sell Disney merchandise: County Bounty and Mickey’s Toontown Fair Souvenirs.

Mickey’s Toontown Fair - Developments

According to wdwinfo.com, Disney has announced that most of Toontown will be removed during the next few years in order to make room for the additional attractions that the company is planning as part of its Fantasyland expansion. wdwinfo.com states that Mickey’s Country House and Minnie’s Country House will eventually be moved to the front of the park.

Tomorrowland - Rides and Attractions

The final area of the Magic Kingdom theme park, Tomorrowland, includes the following rides and attractions: Space Mountain, Tomorrowland Resort Indy Speedway, Tomorrowland Resort Transit Authority, Astro Orbiter, Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress, Stitch’s Great Escape and Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor.

The most popular ride in the Tomorrowland area of the Magic Kingdom is Space Mountain. This space-themed rollercoaster is more than 30 years old, but still pulls in the crowds, so make sure that you take advantage of Disney’s Fastpass system if you want to ride on it. Venture into Space Mountain and you’ll enjoy a high-speed trip that begins in the dark and takes you on a journey through the galaxy. There aren’t any vertical loops on this ride, but if you suffer from a neck or back condition, it may not be suitable for you due to the twists and turns.

The Tomorrowland Resort Indy Speedway is a miniature speedway track and you can race on it in a petrol-powered car. However, for a more relaxed journey, you can take a trip around the Tomorrowland area of the park on the Tomorrowland Resort Transit Authority ride.

Astro Orbiter is similar in style to the Magic Carpets of Aladdin and Dumbo the Flying Elephant rides, but is space-themed whilst Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin puts you in the middle of a video game-style shoot-em-up, in which you score points for hitting targets with your laser gun.

Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress, one of the park’s older attractions, is a 20 minute theatre show in which you can see an audio-animatronic American family demonstrating how technology has changed since the 1920s.

Stitch’s Great Escape is an 18 minute show featuring animation and audio-animatronic figures, in which you will join an intergalactic security firm transporting criminals - young children may find this attraction frightening.

Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor is a family comedy show featuring characters from the Disney movie. You can text a joke into the show beforehand and it may be used during the show.

Tomorrowland - Dining and Shopping

The main restaurant in the Tomorrowland area of the Magic Kingdom is Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe, a counter service restaurant which serves hot dogs, burgers, chicken dishes, fries and other meals as well as drinks and desserts.

You can also buy drinks and snacks from The Lunching Pad, noodle bowls, stir fries and other Chinese food from the Tomorrowland Terrace Noodle Station, or ice creams and drinks from Auntie Gravity’s Galactic Goodies.

There are a number of shops in Tomorrowland where you can buy souvenirs.

Don’t forget to stop off at the shops in Main Street USA to stock up on Disney merchandise before heading back to your hotel or hire car.

Image: William M

In our third post about Disney’s Magic Kingdom theme park in Orlando, Florida, we’re taking a look at the Fantasyland section of the park.

Fantasyland - Cinderella Castle and Rides

Fantasyland is particularly suitable for young children, as many of its rides are gentle and based on characters from popular fairy tales. The best-known attraction in Fantasyland is Cinderella Castle. The second floor of the castle is home to Cinderella’s Royal Table restaurant, one of the Disney venues which operates character dining (i.e. Disney characters are present in the restaurant during the meal).

There are a number of rides in Fantasyland: “it’s a small world”; Peter Pan’s Flight, Snow White’s Scary Adventures; Cinderella’s Golden Carrousel; Dumbo the Flying Elephant; The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh; and the Mad Tea Party.

“it’s a small world” is best-known for featuring one of the most irritating songs ever written. Once you’ve been on the ride, you won’t be able to get it out of your head. The ride takes you on a boat ride around the world, past animatronic dolls dressed in various national costumes. It lasts for about 10 minutes and is particularly suitable for families with young children.

Peter Pan’s Flight is one of the most popular rides in the Fantasyland section of the park. It’s one of Disney’s older rides and is less high-tech than many of the rides in the park, but it still has a magical feel to it. Guests travel in  “pirate ships”, which fly through the Darling’s nursey, over the city of London and into Neverland. Queues tend to be long for this ride, so take advanage of Disney’s Fastpass system.

Snow White’s Scary Adventures is another of the park’s older rides. On this ride, you’ll travel through scenes from Disney’s animated movie in a mine car. It’s a great family ride, but some very young children may find this ride a bit too frightening. They will, however, enjoy Cinderella’s Golden Carrousel, where they can ride on one of 90 beautifully decorated horses.

Dumbo the Flying Elephant is similar in style to Adventureland’s  Magic Carpets of Aladdin ride, and will take you up above the park in a gondola designed to look like Disney’s famous elephant, whilst The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh ride takes you on a journey through 100 Acre Wood in a “hunny pot” car to see all your favourite characters from A.A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh books (watch out for Woozles and Heffalumps!).

Finally, no trip to the Magic Kingdom’s Fantasyland is complete without a ride in one of the Mad Tea Party’s spinning tea cups. The ride itself spins, but you can also make your own tea cup spin by using the controls inside of it.

Fantasyland - Other Attractions and Shows

Fantasyland’s other attractions are: Mickey’s PhilharMagic, Storytime with Belle, Ariel’s Grotto and Pooh’s Playful Spot.

Mickey’s PhilharMagic is a 3D movie featuring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Ariel from “The Little Mermaid” and many other Disney characters. Storytime with Belle is a small show, in which Belle from “Beauty and the Beast” tells a story. Children can dress up and play an active part in this show, which is held in Fairy Tale Garden, close to Cinderella Castle. The area outside of the castle is also the venue for the Dream-Along with Mickey show, which is performed several times each day.

You can meet Ariel, star of “The Little Mermaid”, in Ariel’s Grotto, which is decorated with an under-the-sea theme, and toddlers can let off some steam in Pooh’s Playful Spot, a themed playground area.

Fantasyland - Restaurants and Shops

The main restaurant in Fantasyland is the Cinderella Royal Table restaurant, but there is also a counter-service restaurant, Pinnochio Village Haus, which serves pizzas, chicken strips, fries, salads and a range of desserts and drinks.

You can also buy cookies, ice creams and drinks at Mrs Potts’ Cupboard and drinks at The Enchanted Grove.

Shops in Fantasyland include Pooh’s Thotful Shop, where you can buy a range of Winnie-the-Pooh themed gifts, and Seven Dwarfs Mine, which sells Snow White-themed merchandise. Children can also get a Disney-style make-over in the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique in Cinderella Castle.

Fantasyland - New Developments

Disney is planning to redevlop and expand the Fantasyland area of the Magic Kindom during the next few years. According to wdwinfo.com, Disney has announced that a new ride based on “The Little Mermaid” will be constructed and other attractions which enable children to interact with their favourite Disney princesses and villains will be added.

In the next post in this series, we will be looking the other two areas of the park that you can explore before heading back to your hotel or hire car - Mickey’s Toontown Fair and Tomorrowland.

Image: Simsim2009