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Walt Disney World Resort 2023: EPCOT

 



Oh, Epcot. As part of a decade-long plan, each of the four parks at Walt Disney World Resort were supposed to undergo major additions and changes. Just when it was Epcot's turn for a makeover, a worldwide pandemic happened. While Epcot never received all of the changes it was supposed to, we will still see some exciting things happening in 2023. 

Festival Dates
Walt Disney World guests love to visit Epcot during one of its many festivals. In the past, Epcot only had a couple of festivals running for a couple of months each. In recent years, the Festival of the Arts has been added and the dates for the other festivals have been lengthened. Now, Epcot has more festival days than non-festival days! At the time of writing, only the dates for Festival of the Arts and Flower and Garden Festival have been confirmed. 

Festival of the Arts has speciality vendors selling crafts, unique photo ops, and activities guests can participate in. There is a giant panic-by-number mural that guests can paint themselves! Each guest is given a square to paint. By the end of the Festival, thousands of guests will have contributed to a masterpiece. The Festival of the Arts is running now through February 20th. 

Epcot fully blooms during the Flower and Garden Festival. This spring-time event features flowery exhibits, topiaries of your favorite Disney characters, a butterfly house, and good music. This year, the festival will run from March 1 - July 5, which means spring breakers and early summer vacationers will get the chance to enjoy this beautiful event. 

Food and Wine Festival is by far the most popular time at Epcot. Guests celebrate the best thing to do at Epcot - drink and eat around the World. On a normal day at Epcot, there are many treats and drinks to find at each country's pavilion around the World Showcase. During the Food and Wine Festival, food stands representing other countries also offer delicious options. Booths representing cuisine from Greece, Ireland, Brazil, Spain, India, Belgium, and Australia have been known to make appearances. At the time of writing, there has been no official announcement for the start of Food and Wine Festival. Historically, Food and Wine has kicked off in September, after the summer crowds died down. But in recent years, the dfestival has been extended months. Last year, it started in July. Odds are the Food and Wine Festival will open on a similar date this year. 

Similar to the Food and Wine Festival, the Festival of the Holidays shows guests how different countries and cultures celebrate. There will be plenty of decorations, delicious treats, and maybe a cup of cheer or 2 (or 5). The main event for this Festival is the Candlelight Processional. Each night, a celebrity will narrate the Biblical Christmas story, backed by a choir and orchestra. Last year Josh Gad, Whoopi Goldberg, Neil Patrick Harris, and Angela Bassett were among the narrators. The Festival of the Holidays usually picks up pretty quickly after Food and Wine ends, and it runs until the end of the year. 

Festival of the Arts: January 13 - February 20
Flower and Garden Festival: March 1 - July 5
Food and Wine Festival: July 15 - November 19 (estimated)
Festival of the Holidays: November 25 - December 30 (estimated)

Journey of Water
Epcot’s re-fresh was something all Disney Parks fans were looking forward to. Unfortunately, much of the project has been cut. One thing that did survive the cuts was Moana’s Journey of Water.  While this is not a ride, but simply a walk-through area, it will certainly bring a fresh ambiance to the World Nature neighborhood. This attraction will be located in between The Land Pavilion and the Seas Pavilion, working to seamlessly weave together both themes. Journey of Water is set to open late 2023. 

New Nighttime Show
When it was announced that the iconic Illuminations nighttime firework show would be replaced with a new show, Epcot fans had high hopes. Unfortunately, Harmonious disappointed. The Epcot team is trying yet again with an all-new nighttime show. Harmonious' last harmony will fill the sky April 2, 2023. Epcot Forever will run temporarily until the new firework show is ready. The new nighttime show is reported to open later this year. As of the date of writing, there is not much information released about the show. We can only hope that the ugly barges will go away with Harmonious. 

CommuniCore Reborn
Hardcore fans of opening day EPCOT will recognize the name CommuniCore. This used to be some buildings in Future World that would display the latest technological advancements. Later, they would be renamed to Innoventions. During Epcot's facelift, the old CommuniCore/Innoventions buildings were torn down to make way for a new gift shop and Starbucks (because of course), and some exciting new additions. In honor of Epcot's past, these new projects will be named CommuniCore Plaza and CommuniCore Hall. CommuniCore Plaza will be an outdoor even space meant to host shows, similar to the America Gardens Theater in the American Adventure Pavilion. This stage will most likely be used during festival times (so, year round) for extra atmospheric entertainment. 

CommuniCore Hall will be similar to its predecessor in that it will be a gallery and exhibition space. Again, it willl be used primarily for festivals. And because this is Epcot we're talking about, there will also be a bar and mixology station inside. 

In between the Plaza and Hall will be the New World Celebration Gardens to beautify the space behind Spaceship Earth.  

CommuniCore Plaza and Hall are expected to open late 2023. Hopefully, both spaces will be open and ready for use during the Festival of the Holidays. 


Figment Meet And Greet
Hardcore Epcot fans are going to love this one! Figment is going to have a permanent meet and greet spot in 2023. Fans have speculated that this meet and greet could hint towards a re-fresh of Journey Into Imagination sometime soon. Perhaps we should keep a look out for future Figment news in 2024. 

Are you visiting Epcot in 2023? What are you most excited about? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below!
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