Do You Need More Than One Day at EPCOT?

When planning a vacation to Walt Disney World, it’s important to think about how many days you want to spend at each park. All four of the theme parks on Walt Disney World property are filled with rides, attractions, and entertainment that are unique to each park.

EPCOT is home to yearly festivals that add another level of dining and entertainment, some of the newest and most popular rides in all of Walt Disney World plus multiple areas of the park to explore that vary drastically by theme. 

Is one day enough time to fully experience EPCOT? Follow along as we take a closer look at everything that EPCOT has to offer to determine how many days are necessary to get everything done.

How Popular is EPCOT?

EPCOT is the second largest theme park on Walt Disney World property. However, even though this park is quite large, it only has 11 rides, which is a far cry from Magic Kingdom’s 20+ rides.

While there aren’t a large number of rides, popular attractions such as Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, Frozen Ever After, and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure are some of the most popular rides on Walt Disney World property.

EPCOT has something for guests of all ages to enjoy. However, it’s easily one of the most popular parks among the adult crowd. With international EPCOT festivals, specialty food and drinks, and live entertainment, adults can have more than a standard theme park experience when visiting EPCOT making it more than a one day park for many adult groups. 

Some Guests Only Do One Day at EPCOT

EPCOT is often seen as a one day park for some guests. Some simply visit EPCOT for the popular rides and attractions and only focus on those. These guests, however, generally don’t put a lot of time into World Showcase. It’s easy to simply walk around the lagoon without appreciating the different pavilions for what they’re worth.

If you are only interested in the rides at EPCOT then you could absolutely treat this park like a one day park as many of the rides are often low waits outside of the most popular ones. But keep in mind that EPCOT is also a park that tends to fill up with locals around the evening time. Once work days come to an end, EPCOT is a popular place to visit for a nice meal or relaxing drink. These crowd levels will also affect what you accomplish in a day.

But there is far more to EPCOT than jut the rides! We suggest that you give yourself time to fully experience and enjoy everything that’s available at EPCOT. This special park has a lot to offer, so don’t cut yourself short by only visiting for one day and take some time to explore the park outside of just the rides which means taking the time to enjoy the World Showcase as well. 

Don't Skip The World Showcase

World Showcase is the focal point of EPCOT so we think it's a must see experience. Surrounding a beautiful lagoon are 11 pavilions that display, celebrate, and educate guests about different countries across the globe. The 11 countries that are part of World Showcase are Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, America, Japan, Morocco, France, The United Kingdom, and Canada.

The architecture, cuisine, entertainment, and select merchandise items in each pavilion are extremely accurate to the country they’re representing. You can also enjoy conversations with the Cast Members who are often native from the country they’re working in.

Many guests enjoy heading to World Showcase to eat or drink around the world. This is achieved by stopping at each of the 11 pavilions and picking up a drink or snack from each country as they make their way around the “world”. This feat can become even more exciting if an EPCOT festival is taking place, since additional booths become available during festivals.

For the guests who take time to go through World Showcase, I would recommend taking at least two days to enjoy EPCOT. One day in itself could be dedicated to visiting each of the countries, trying the different foods, sipping on drinks, studying the art, taking part in the educational attractions, riding the rides, and browsing the authentic merchandise options.

If you’re visiting during an EPCOT festival, there will be even more to see and do! 

EPCOT Festivals Make Two Days Worth It

EPCOT has four international festivals that are celebrated annually – Festival of the Arts, Flower & Garden Festival, Food & Wine Festival, and Festival of the Holidays. During these themed festivals, you’ll find special entertainment, food, drinks, merchandise, and experiences.

This year, Festival of the Arts is taking place now through February 24th. Flower & Garden Festival will take place March 5th through June 2nd. The 2025 dates have yet to be announced for the Food & Wine Festival or Festival of the Holidays. However, we expect the Food and Wine Festival to take place August-November and Festival of the Holidays to take place November-December.

My favorite of the EPCOT festivals is Festival of the Arts. I love all of the bright colors and fantastic works of art that can be seen around the park. I also enjoy how you can watch artists at work and even contribute your own skills to the Paint by Numbers Mural. If you are visiting EPCOT during a festival, this is even more reason that you want to extend your stay at EPCOT to two days.

EPCOT's Best Rides You Have to Experience

As I previously mentioned, EPCOT doesn’t have a lot of rides. However, it has some really fantastic rides.

The most popular ride, and one of my personal favorites, is Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind. This unique roller coaster takes Guests on an amazing journey where they set out to help the Guardians save the galaxy. This ride is far from a standard roller coaster. It’s the first coaster at Disney to have a reverse launch, has omnimoving capabilities, and is one of the world’s largest indoor roller coasters. Paired with amazing visuals, fan-favorite characters, and q1azan amazing soundtrack, this ride is one you won’t want to pass up.

Another popular ride at EPCOT is Frozen Ever After. This delightful boat ride takes Guests on a journey through Arendelle as the story of Frozen is retold. Since this ride has no height requirement, and the movie is loved by many, the line is frequently filled with families and is quite long. The ride is, however, in my opinion, worth the wait if you’ve never experienced it. It’s a very cute ride with amazing special effects, beloved characters, great songs, and exciting surprises.

Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure also holds long wait times throughout the day. This trackless dark ride shrinks you down to the size of a rat. Enjoy a wild adventure with Remy and the rest of the rat pack as they make their way through Gusteau’s restaurant.

One ride you won’t want to miss out on is Soarin’ Around the World. This immersive hang gliding experience takes Guests through monumental landmarks all over the globe. The ride is extremely realistic and absolutely stunning.

If you want to experience all these popular rides then purchasing Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Lightning Lane Single Pass is the best way to do it otherwise you will be sitting in some long lines. These aren't all the rides in EPCOT but these are the ones you absolutely can't skip!

Characters Exclusive to EPCOT

EPCOT has a unique variety of characters. While there are no parades or shows that feature characters, there are plenty of meet and greet opportunities, as well as character dining experiences. And of course, the chance to meet the “mascot” of the park, Figment!

One of the special things about EPCOT is that many characters can be found in World Showcase in the country that they’re from. I once had a fantastic afternoon with my daughter when we traveled World Showcase, jumping from country to country, meeting all of the different characters.

If you want to squeeze in character interactions into your day, you could opt for a character dining experience. There are two different restaurants at EPCOT that offer character dining – Garden Grill Restaurant and Akershus Royal Banquet Hall.

Garden Grill is a unique rotating restaurant that’s located in The Land pavilion. As the dining platform slowly rotates, you’ll be met with amazing views from the Living with the Land attraction. Chip, Dale, Mickey, and Pluto will all come say hi in their adorable farm attire. I loved my experience dining at Garden Grill. The food was absolutely delicious, the atmosphere was wonderful, and you couldn’t ask for better company!

For those looking for a more regal dining experience, head to Akershus Royal Banquet Hall for a Norwegian-inspired meal. As you dine inside the medieval castle, Disney Princesses will come by to make your acquaintance and this is a great way to experience a Disney Princess character dining that is more affordable than the options at Magic Kingdom. 

Is EPCOT Entertainment Worth the Time?

At EPCOT, you can experience live music from the different countries of World Showcase, learn about the countries you’re experiencing with educational films, and enjoy a unique nighttime spectacular. Entertainment may vary if you are visiting during a specific festival with unique offerings that you should consider mixing in your schedule. For example, the Candlelight Processional is one of the best entertainment options all year at EPCOT! If you are visiting during the holiday season this is a must see!

Out of daytime entertainment options at EPCOT, the most popular tends to be the Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along and Turtle Talk with Crush.

Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along retells the story of Beauty and the Beast with a unique and comical spin. Guests in the crowd are sure to have a great time listening to the story and then joining in to sing favorite songs from the movie.

Turtle Talk with Crush is an interactive cinematic experience as guests enjoy a conversation with Crush. I always make it a point to sit in on Turtle Talk with Crush, even when my children aren’t with me. Crush has a delightful way of directing the conversation towards the younger crowd, but still making it entertaining for the adults in attendance.

EPCOT Fireworks Are Best Way to End the Day

As for the end of your day at EPCOT, whether you spend one or two days here, you should take the time to see the EPCOT fireworks!

Luminous The Symphony of Us gathers guests around the World Showcase Lagoon to take in a beautiful nighttime spectacular. Fireworks, fountains, lights, and song are used as the message of togetherness reigns through.

This is easy to fit in your day as the show typically takes place at park closing so it's not taking time out of your daytime plans especially if you are trying to squeeze everything into one day!

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