EPCOT's core reopens to guests as the park debuts the new World Celebration Gardens

Dec 05, 2023 in "EPCOT"

World Celebration Gardens - December 5 2023
Posted: Tuesday December 5, 2023 9:00am ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

Guests can once again walk through the center of EPCOT for the first time since late 2019 as the walls come down around the new World Celebration Gardens.



While EPCOT is not yet wall-free, with walls remaining around Communicore Hall and Plaza, guests are now able to enjoy the gardens, see the new Walt the Dreamer statue at Dreamers Point, and walk directly between World Nature and World Discovery.



The new EPCOT World Celebration Gardens include seating areas close to Connections Cafe, and Communicore Hall, and are equipped with 110v and USB charging points.



Guests can also meet Pluto and Daisy.



Alongside the opening of EPCOT's World Celebration Gardens, Disney has also unveiled the original score composed by Pinar Toprak.

Watch the video below for a look at the new EPCOT World Celebration Gardens. (4K YouTube)


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    MisterPenguin5 days ago

    When I was there two weeks ago, the solid green was working, and so was the solid blue. The solid pink, however, had a few light green spots.

    Disgruntled Walt5 days ago

    Maybe Merlin infected them?

    Cmdr_Crimson6 days ago

    tparris6 days ago

    Ground lights look awful at the moment. They’re all working, but at least half of them have incorrect colors and random blue spots on them. For reference, all the lights are supposed to be green in these photos. The lights by Communicore hall are off again as well. The lights themselves seem to be holding up very well, as 100% are still lighting up (aside from the ones by Communicore) so this seems to be completely software/instruction related. All because they were too cheap to install things reliably I’m assuming.

    DreamfinderGuy8 days ago

    Yeah, you could. It was designed around that. The current building goes all the way to the center of the old breezeway, killing that view.

    mysto8 days ago

    I think the DJ show would be more tolerable if the volume were lower. Not just easier to ignore but also less jarring and overbearing if you like the show. It would intrude less on the other goings on. Never let a teenager control the volume at a party, up up UP! Oh the police are here, how did that happen? The person on the dial of the Encanto show is likely more mature, contributing more to the enjoyability of the show than many realize.

    Chef idea Mickey`=8 days ago

    Those things are hideous and unlike if they were situated where Journey of Water is then it would been even more significant why it was like recycled for the Island Tower at Polynesian in the same color!

    Chef idea Mickey`=8 days ago

    One unique thing I did liked about the demolition and construction was able to seeing the Imagination Pyramids, The Land building (maybe) and Spaceship Earth from Creation's. Also from the monorail station you can now see The Japan Pavilion which I don't think or know if you couldn't prior before with the Innovention's West building.

    Epcot82Guy8 days ago

    I actually really enjoy Luminous, especially because of the music selections and original creations. But, ANYTHING GAVIN... Now, if Pinar and Gavin paired up to write new pavilion music and helped restore some classics (*cough*cough* One Little Spark, Fun to be Free, Tomorrow's Child...)

    Cmdr_Crimson9 days ago

    *paging Mr Greenaway..Mr Gavin Greenaway your needed at World Showcase lagoon to fix an abysmal show*

    Epcot82Guy9 days ago

    To take the cue from Luminous, it feels like an orchestra without a conductor. And each section was told to play a modern version of a Disney song. And somehow that was going to gel. Epcot (as with all parks and hotels) needs an empowered conductor. And that's where WDI seems to have failed most recently (or has been set up to fail, perhaps).

    trainplane39 days ago

    I'll agree with this. The Encanto show is fine and it's not obnoxious. The DJ that takes the stage is the problem for the area. It's fine for NYE but not for daily operations. I just have to laugh at the umbrellas all throughout the CC area though. You'd think they would have a larger overhang. I also like the acrobat group that performs in the gardens. They're fun, weird, but very good and entertaining. A good fit in the area and I'm glad they're still there. Edit: I just realized you can hear the DJ in my video of the ground lights:

    Bocabear9 days ago

    seems like the answer is "Yes" But we are not in the loop of what actually happened... I imagine it was a death by a million cuts with lots and lots of daily changes that bit by bit veered this project completely off course... but there should have been some with enough authority to have steered that ship back on course at some point....which they didn't do. Hopefully sometime in the mid to late 2030s they will decide it is time to clear things out a bit and create a better plan and vision...

    marni19719 days ago

    I honestly don’t know anymore. Though I will say more times than not, WDI do what they’re told.