Spending a Day at Epcot in Orlando, Florida – World Showcase Tour

I received tickets in exchange for sharing my experience. All opinions are mine.

I’d never been to Epcot before…until this summer. I’d seen it from a distance a few times, but had no idea what was in store inside Epcot. It was awesome! Let me tell you – it definitely required some good walking shoes, sunscreen, light clothing and lots of water, but our visit was totally worth it.

When we arrived to the park, we decided to pay for Preferred Parking – an additional $15 on top of the regular $20 parking fee. Both my husband and I thought it was well worth the extra cost, especially during the hot summer months. Not only did we park closer to Epcot, but we were greeted by friendly Disney employees with ice cold, bottled water. That’s right people! Cold water on a hot and humid day! Totally worth it!

Once we parked (and before we had even made out of the parking lot), I pulled out my iPhone 6 Plus and started snapping pictures like a tourist. The parking attendants were eager to pose for our picture – ha ha! There was just something about the Epcot ball that intrigued me. The closer we got, the more awesome it looked! Let’s just say I had a lot of pictures to filter through when choosing them for this post!

I never knew this before, but there is actually a ride inside the Epcot ball called Spaceship Earth! It’s a nice, cool, long ride that was really relaxing. When we walked into the park, the first thing we did was go to our Disney app and sign up for the flash pass for Spaceship Earth. Our pass wasn’t good until early afternoon, but it was perfect timing after walking around in the humid heat. I would definitely recommend this ride to anyone visiting Epcot!

After taking some pictures in front of the Epcot ball, we started walking through the World Showcase, which includes the following countries: Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, United States, Japan, Morocco, France, United Kingdom and Canada. I loved that it was divided up into different countries and areas around the world. Plus, I loved that we could purchase food and drinks from restaurants and stands in each of the different areas.

We didn’t walk very far before discovering Mexico and the Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros in Mexico. Inside the Mexican Plaza was the ride, shopping and even a sit-down restaurant. I think we will definitely check out the restaurant again sometime in the future. It was so nice inside because it was air conditioned and it was a nice, smooth boat ride. In the ride, Donald disappeared and it’s up to José Carioca and Panchito to find him. Float along to live-action footage of the people and places of Mexico superimposed with animation inspired by the 1944 Disney film The Three Caballeros. Plus, join Panchito, the Mexican charro rooster, and José Carioca, the Brazilian parrot, for hilarity and hijinks as they search for their wayward friend throughout this fun-filled ride for all ages.

Donald could pop up anywhere, climbing Mayan pyramid steps in Chichen Itza, diving off a cliff in Acapulco or even disguised as a piñata! José Carioca and Panchito are in hot pursuit on their magical flying serape, treating you to vistas of ancient and modern Mexico on their merry chase. Enjoy a lush and lively jaunt set to a rerecorded, rescored theme song and hand-drawn animation using the same color palettes and artistic elements as the original film. It’s time for a new generation of Guests to meet these lovably kooky compadres! And there are three-dimensional delights as well: As you cruise down the Rio Grande, Audio-Animatronics dolls dance and frolic at the Festival of the Children while skeleton mariachis serenade you from above.

After Mexico, we walked some more. We passed China, enjoying the buildings as we walked by and then passed Norway too. I debated on stopping for bakery items, but decided I wanted some beer from Germany more, so we headed to Germany. I wasn’t sure if they would sell beer at Epcot, but was glad when I discovered that they did.

After getting drinks in Germany, we thought Chinese food sounded good, so we turned around and headed back to China. I love the way Disney has divided Epcot into different countries and parts of the world. It was really cool and literally felt like we traveled around the world in one day! In China, we ate and enjoyed some really amazing food at the Nine Dragons Restaurant. We ordered Pot Stickers, Egg Rolls, Nine Dragons Lo Mein and Nine Dragons Fried Rice. I would definitely eat here again!!!

After China, we decided we should walk off some of our lunch, so we started walking through the World Showcase again. We walked past Germany again (and of course had to pick up a beer for the rest of the day). On our way out, we saw The Romantic Road, which was a miniature village. I love miniature villages!

After taking a lot of pictures of The Romantic Road in Germany, we were back to walking. One of my other favorite countries in the World Showcase was Italy. I loved the statues and the buildings! They were so beautiful and I couldn’t stop taking pictures!

We also enjoyed walking through the rest of the World Showcase, which included the United States, Japan, Canada, and the United Kingdom. I loved the different buildings! There were so many great photo opportunities throughout Epcot.

Overall, Epcot was an amazing experience and definitely something I would want to experience again! Frank was such a sweetheart and ended our day in Epcot with a trip to the Disney Store, where I picked up 2 different Alex and Ani bangles. One was an Epcot bangle and the other was a Little Mermaid bangle that says, “Follow Your Dreams Wherever They Lead.”

Have you ever been to Epcot?  What was your favorite part of the park?