EPCOT will officially drop the Future World name from October 1 as the park becomes comprised of four neighborhoods

Sep 27, 2021 in "EPCOT"

Posted: Monday September 27, 2021 1:34pm ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

Disney has announced that the new neighborhoods of EPCOT will officially debut beginning October 1 2021.

Future World will be replaced with World Nature, World Discovery, and World Nature, while World Showcase lives on unchanged.

While we have known about the new names since the EPCOT overhaul was announced in 2019, the exact date of the changeover was unknown until now.

Here is how Disney describes each of the EPCOT neighborhoods.

World Celebration

  • World Celebration offers new experiences that connect guests to one another and the world around them.

  • The EPCOT entrance plaza welcomes guests with open pathways and sweeping green spaces that beautify the entryway. Bridging the past, present and future of EPCOT is a new fountain at the base of Spaceship Earth with three majestic pylons. The entrance plaza also features new lighting and music, as well as flags flanking the fountain featuring six original EPCOT icons.

  • Beginning October 1, 2021, Spaceship Earth transforms at night into a Beacon of Magic with new lights shining across the geodesic sphere’s reflective panels.* These lights connect to one another in a symbol of optimism resembling stars in a nighttime sky.

  • Creations Shop invites guests to explore and celebrate Disney creativity, inspired by Mickey Mouse. The merchandise location features a bold, sleek design for an open, bright, welcoming environment with large glass walls allowing sunlight to pour in. Artistic homages to Mickey are throughout the shop, including large, dynamic murals that tap into the park’s original artistic spirit.

  • Adjacent to Creations Shop is a revitalized Club Cool Hosted by Coca-Cola. Celebrating Coca-Cola in a fresh new way, Club Cool invites guests to explore tasty drinks from around the world, bringing the global experience of Coca-Cola to life through new magic and classic flavor.

  • As guests pass Spaceship Earth, in the future they will discover a breathtaking new view of World Showcase from Dreamers Point. World Celebration will also feature a new statue honoring the legacy of the original dreamer, Walt Disney, plus beautiful natural environments and global design elements filled with Disney magic.

  • Surrounding this enchanted garden will be new merchandise and dining locations, along with a newly reimagined festival area that will be home to ever-changing events in a unique new environment.

World Nature

  • World Nature is dedicated to understanding and preserving the beauty, awe and balance of the natural world. It includes The Land and The Seas with Nemo & Friends pavilions, as well as the forthcoming Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana.

  • The Land pavilion film “Awesome Planet” showcases the beauty, diversity and dynamic story of Earth. The 10-minute show features in-theater effects and an original musical score from Academy Award®-winning composer Steven Price.

  • Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana will be the first Disney Parks experience evoking the hit Walt Disney Animation Studios film. This lush exploration trail will invite guests to meet and play with magical, living water. Just like Moana’s friend the ocean, water will have a personality of its own, helping guests learn how to protect the natural water cycle in a fun and engaging way.

World Discovery

  • In World Discovery, stories about science, technology and intergalactic adventure come to life.

  • In an expansion of the Mission: SPACE pavilion, the new Space 220 Restaurant is a culinary experience offering the celestial panorama of a space station, including virtual daytime and nighttime views of Earth from 220 miles above the planet’s surface. Guests board a space elevator for a simulated journey to the Centauri Space Station, where they experience the “height of dining.” Once they arrive, guests enjoy meals and drinks while taking in views that are truly out of this world. Space 220 is operated by the Patina Restaurant Group.

  • Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind will be the first “other-world” showcase pavilion at EPCOT. The family-friendly adventure starts in the Galaxarium, a planetarium-like exhibition that explores the similarities and mysteries of the formation of Earth’s galaxy and Xandar. Guests will learn more about the treasures Xandar has to share – until the moment when the Guardians of the Galaxy arrive, and guests go on an intergalactic chase through space and time. The attraction will feature a new innovation from Walt Disney Imagineering – a storytelling coaster that rotates 360 degrees to focus guests on the action, including the first reverse launch on a Disney coaster.

World Showcase

  • World Showcase continues to be a celebration of culture, cuisine, architecture and traditions – infused with new magic.

  • With a grand opening set for October 1, 2021, an expanded France pavilion features the new Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure attraction, where guests feel as if they shrink to the size of Chef Remy and race through Gusteau’s restaurant. Joining this family-friendly experience October 1 in the France pavilion is a delicious new restaurant, La Crêperie de Paris, offering both table- and quick-service options and a menu from celebrity chef Jérôme Bocuse.

  • Also in the France pavilion, the classic “Impressions de France” film is joined by “Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along,” directed by Don Hahn, producer of both the animated and live-action versions of this tale as old as time.

  • “Harmonious” is one of the largest nighttime spectaculars ever created for a Disney theme park. Debuting October 1, 2021, over World Showcase Lagoon, the show celebrates the way Disney music inspires people the world over, carrying them away on a stream of familiar songs reinterpreted by a culturally diverse group of 240 artists from around the globe. “Harmonious” features massive floating set pieces, custom-built LED panels, choreographed moving fountains, lights, pyrotechnics, lasers and more.

  • Regal Eagle Smokehouse: Craft Drafts & Barbecue is a fast-casual restaurant at The American Adventure pavilion, serving classic American backyard barbecue and home-style craft brews. The restaurant takes its name from Sam Eagle; the beloved Muppet hosts a centennial cook-off – a salute to all cook-offs … but mostly barbecue.
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Cmdr_Crimson42 minutes ago

Bocabear1 hour ago

Dolores!!!!!

HauntedPirate11 hours ago

… Mulva? 😝

Jayspency13 hours ago

Regarding my actual thoughts on this, I'm glad Soarin got some TLC, but I don't like the new Eiffel tower scene where you just kinda look at it from a distance. There was just a unique feeling you had scaling the tower from the bottom. At least the bendy tower is no more lol.

aladdin200714 hours ago

looks like one too

Skibum197018 hours ago

Sadly, that was the first thing I thought when I saw the pictures of the new ending.

Jayspency21 hours ago

Dare I say anything?

flynnibus22 hours ago

Immortalizing the redo and design that didn’t last. How fitting

jrhwdw22 hours ago

Soarin has an Updated Epcot Finale!

Jayspency22 hours ago

That excuse really only applies to innoventions, communicore and a couple scenes in attractions since their purpose was to showcase the future and what it could bring. Even so these scenes and exhibits could be updated to showcase updated tech. Most attractions in future world avoided this problem by either focusing on the history of a subject and not the future (SSE, WOM, and some of UOE and horizons) or primarily focus on the content of the subject itself (LWTL, MS, TT 1.0 and JII)

Squishy22 hours ago

Not sure if anyone said this here but the new white channels they put it a few weeks ago is not a LED diffuser so I guess those ground lights are going away unless its a temporary cover cause the previous one got damaged. It doesn't look temporary the way they glued them in though.

Bocabear1 day ago

It totally feels like a boardroom-designed overhaul...

Epcot82Guy1 day ago

I didn't love that idea originally, but I've come around. I think that would have been simplest, using the colors to add some thematic change from one area to the other. If they wanted the neighborhoods, I still think Epcot Center (SSE, Spine, TT and IMAG - focused on classic Epcot inspiration and innovation), World Discovery (M:S, Guardians and something planetary for WoL - tied around space exploration, real and fantasy) and World Nature (Land, Seas, JoW - natural world) would have made more sense. But, they need more separation between the areas so it's a clearer distinction. As it was done, it feels separated on paper in a conference room, not reality of a physical space.

Cmdr_Crimson1 day ago

Community = Neighborhood?