Has Epcot reached a new level of depressing?

[klitteral2009]

Interesting thread. We just came back from our first adult only trip this past weekend. We always love WS and were thrilled to get to spend time drinking and snacking and enjoying the countries for once! However, while I was walking around I found myself looking at all the unused space and things that hold no interest for me (I'm looking at you Captain EO and Nemo) and wondering what its going to take to show Epcot some love? Don't get me wrong, It's my second favorite park but looking around, I can see what the OP is saying. So much space is wasted and sitting in assumed slow decay, that its just a bummer. I also found myself wondering if its harder for Epcot to keep up with 'the future' as technology moves SO fast now. As soon as they would/will refresh an attraction or introduce another, it would already be old technology by the time it was finished and ready for the public. When we go with the kids, we do spend time in Future World riding SE, Figment (my youngest loves it), TT, and Living with the land. Beyond those things we spend the majority of our Epcot day playing Agent P missions (which we adore and have an absolute blast playing as a family) and wandering around World Showcase going to the Kidcot stations and snacking. I do hope the Imagineers are working on a solution and put to use some of those abandoned pavillions. We love Epcot, and will continue to spend time there each trip, but some new exciting things there are hopefully on the horizon.

 

[midnightlouise]

I really hope it hasn't, but I admit I am kind of worried because every time I go, it seems like there is something else missing and there are more unused buildings. And I won't lie, I am bitter about the loss of Maelstrom. I just can't get excited about a Frozen ride that is several years in the future. It was a good film, and I have no objections to a Frozen ride in general, but I just don't like the fact that it's in World Showcase. Part of the beauty of World Showcase is that you feel like you've traveled to another country. I'm having a hard time picturing any scenario where a Frozen ride will leave this vibe intact. I guess that's the real loss for me. Maybe I'll be wrong. I hope so. In the meantime, I'm still going to go to EPCOT, and I'm sure I'll still have a good time.

 

[MrKnight]

I can agree (for the most part) with the OP strictly in regards to FW, however, I do not agree nor believe that there is anything wrong or "depressing" about WC whatsoever, in fact, WC is one of the most successful and well done concepts on WDW property.. FW on the other hand has been a MAJOR challenge for WDW in recent years, mostly due to the fact that the land is too large, the buildings are too large, most of the attractions are aging and becoming outdated at a record pace, and the few attractions that have been updated (or replaced) have not always been the right ones. I believe that it is safe to say that Epcot's FW has been neglected for years over other WDW projects such as MK's Fantasyland expansion, major changes at DHS, and even AK's expansions. In order to FIX FW once and for all, WDW will have to focus the same amount of time, creativity, and most importantly $$$$ that it has in it's other parks.. Hopefully the next big round of major updates, expansions, and developments will occur at Epcot's FW and then we will have exciting days ahead!

 

[Planogirl]

Whether you consider Epcot sad or not depends on what you expect. I find it extremely sad myself.

Epcot used to be my favorite park anywhere. Yes, it has changed but not for the better in my opinion. I won't go into why because I've certainly whined about some of that enough but personally if I never go back to Epcot I'm fine. Disney has much better to enjoy.

 

[MataHari22]

I do think there are some valid points. For me, Epcot and Hollywood Studios are both depressing compared to how they used to be, I think. I do miss the attractions at The Wonders of Life Pavillion. Would love to see something better than Captian Eo, that has just got to go. Test Track is ok, but I liked the original version better. I loved Maelstrom, was sad to see it go, but I really hope the Frozen ride will be good. I think it should have been placed in HS, not at Norway in Epcot. Mission Space, I cannot ride the intense side, it would make me ill, and the calm side was just boring. Don't get me started on Journey into Imagination. They just cannot keep closing things and not getting new attractions.

 

[Goofy'slady]

Depressing...no but this thread might be.

 

[sray563]

About Legacy.... My mother passed away almost 13 years ago. I still love being able to see the family portrait, which includes her, every trip my family makes to Disney World. It's as if she's there with us.

 

[A W Reezy]

I might be super boring... But I can ride Spaceship Earth 2 hours straight. Along with Living With The Land.

With that being said, folks like me are easy to please and don't find EPCOT depressing at all.

 

[Rosebud123]

I understand your complaints, but I love it! Love Soarin' and Test Track, think Mission Space, Spaceship Earth, and Living with the Land are nice, and really enjoy walking around WS!

 

[3DisneyFanz]

I do think there are some valid points. For me, Epcot and Hollywood Studios are both depressing compared to how they used to be, I think. I do miss the attractions at The Wonders of Life Pavillion. Would love to see something better than Captian Eo, that has just got to go. Test Track is ok, but I liked the original version better. I loved Maelstrom, was sad to see it go, but I really hope the Frizen ride will be good. I think it should have been placed in HS, not at Norway in Epcot. Mission Space, I cannot ride the intense side, it would make me ill, and the calm side was just boring. Don't get me started on Journey into Imagination. They just cannot keep closing things and not getting new attractions.

If this had started off with how depressing HS was I would have totally agreed. It still has 4 of my favorite rides but I certainly feel better with the hat being gone.

 

[Torgue]

Epcot was my family's 2nd fav park for many years and we always planned 2 full days on every trip. Then we spent a week at DLR. The option of walking from our room directly to Soarin' all week and being able to ride multiple times with no wait changes things a bit. After riding the Cars ride many times too it made TT very depressing. We only visited Epcot one day in 2014 and are only planning one day in 2015. I asked my DD13 what she wanted to do at Epcot this year and her response was maybe get some fish and chip followed by some school bread YUM!. She also mentioned riding Figment because she really liked it when she was 5 and 6. Then she said it had been a few years since we did all the Kim Possible stuff so maybe we can do that again! LOL! After thinking for a minute she finally said can we just skip Epcot and have another day at Universal! Just sayin

 

[baldy6060]

I LOVE EPCOT!

 

[TwinPrincessMermaids]

I have to agree with most posts, we go regularly. How can you be depressed with 3 Amigos????
We had a stunning night on Friday of Memorial weekend.

Epcot is still great.

 

[mjallemand]

About Legacy.... My mother passed away almost 13 years ago. I still love being able to see the family portrait, which includes her, every trip my family makes to Disney World. It's as if she's there with us.

I understand this, and it's why the Leave a Legacy monuments are a bit of a touchy subject. I don't particularly care for them, but I also don't have any particular attachment to them, but others do, so this one is much more subjective than the remainder of my list.

I might be super boring... But I can ride Spaceship Earth 2 hours straight. Along with Living With The Land.

Coincidentally, Spaceship Earth and Living With the Land are two of the attractions that have changed the least from the early days of Epcot, and ones I still enjoy, so yes...I agree with your sentiment there.

I LOVE EPCOT!

Me too. I just loved Epcot 20 years ago a bit more.

I have to agree with most posts, we go regularly. How can you be depressed with 3 Amigos????
We had a stunning night on Friday of Memorial weekend.

Epcot is still great.

The 3 Amigos addition is probably the least offensive of all the attraction updates, since it still thematically fits the attraction, but I feel like the average parkgoer looks past any of Mexico's culture and history and just sees "Boat Ride with Donald Duck and Friends" instead.

 

[Bay Max]

My big issue with Epcot is about the unused space. There are only 8 pavilions in Future World (not counting Innoventions); 1 of them (WoL) has been completely closed for a long time and another (Imagination) has half of the pavilion wasted or unused. I can't believe EO's return lasted for sooo long. And now it's being used for movie previews?!?! Innoventions is half gone. With the Maelstrom in transition it's like a quarter of the park is shut down. Imagine if 25% of the Magic Kingdom was closed!

 

[ArwenMarie]

It's almost like it is two parks really, FW and WS are that different.

WS is amazing. It's FW that is the problem.

It's like you know all of the buildings are there, but so much of it is empty space. It just has that deserted mall feeling, you know, when the stores start shutting down but they still keep it open for a while.

I think if they aren't going to put stuff in the buildings, it would be preferable to take the buildings down and replace them with gardens and water features.

 

[kbelle8995]

I still love Epcot. Depressing seems a little harsh. I think that FW needs a loving refresh. Perhaps try to instill new ideas about what the future is like. I don't think that character driven rides are what Epcot needs.

I don't care for the Idea of Frozen land in WS. I just plain don't think that it belongs there. Then again I think that Hollywood studios needs major work too.

 

[hammie59]

1. Journey Into Imagination: Do I really need to go into detail here? What the WDW staff did to the Imagination pavilion is arguably the worst thing that has happened to Walt Disney World since 1971. The upstairs Image Works has been gone for a half a decade now and it's sorely missed by those of us that remember how...imaginative it was. I also miss Honey I Shrunk the Audience, though I understand that the film probably hasn't aged particularly well, so I'm okay with it being replaced overall. However, bringing back Captain Eo wasn't the solution to this problem, and now making the theater a place to show promos of upcoming Disney films is just a slap in the face.
2. World Showcase: There isn't a whole lot to say here, because World Showcase is more or less the same as its ever been, outside of Norway's recent bullshittery. I wasn't crazy about the Three Caballeros characters being shoved into Gran Fiesta Tour, but I guess that was thematically okay overall. Norway though...holy ****. Maelstrom was the defining attraction of World Showcase, and now its gone, soon to be replaced with the most annoying Disney animated film characters in recent history. I didn't hate Frozen, I actually rather enjoyed the film, but it doesn't deserve a full attraction, especially not in Epcot, especially not in World Showcase, ESPECIALLY NOT REPLACING MALESTROM. I might actually get thrown off of the ride because I will throw things at the first Olaf animatronic I see. Ugh.

1. .

Yet I still really love EPCOT...

 

[TwinPrincessMermaids]

The 3 Amigos addition is probably the least offensive of all the attraction updates, since it still thematically fits the attraction, but I feel like the average parkgoer looks past any of Mexico's culture and history and just sees "Boat Ride with Donald Duck and Friends" instead.

Not necessarily, there are still the Mexican locals selling their wares, the flower lady, the beautiful scenery like the Beaches and the Mayan paintings. Its a good mix of Disney meets Mexican culture.

 

[larryz]

Not necessarily, there are still the Mexican locals selling their wares, the flower lady, the beautiful scenery like the Beaches and the Mayan paintings. Its a good mix of Disney meets Mexican culture.

Does anybody else still miss El Rio Del Tiempo?