Because we have already visited the Disney parks Magical Kingdom and Hollywood Studios in Paris, we opt for the other two theme parks for our Florida road trip. In pound sterling, Disney World tickets for any of their Orlando parks (and additional water parks) are only sold by the week, but my travel companion from Germany has more luck reserving day tickets for Disney‘s fauna-and-flora celebrating Animal Kingdom and for Epcot with its world’s fair vibes. Seven years ago, I had already been lucky enough to be in Orlando with colleagues who only had limited visas for the US, so we squeezed in the classical Magic Kingdom and further Epcot in a single day – it was a wonderful, unforgettable but frantic day I am in no need to repeat. For this trip, we agree against booking any fast lane premiums in advance, and will not do so spontaneously on either day – it is not necessary.
This blog post will give you a hopefully helpful but without doubt uncomplete overview of the shows we have seen during our two days at the house of the mouse (as done for Euro Disney years ago) – they were both absolutely fantastic days but admittedly, at the end of Day 2 we needed a break from theme parks: As tempting as it is especially in Orlando, with its countless rollercoaster resorts far beyond the Walt Disney corporation (Harry Potter fans might rather opt-in for the Universal Studios), be honest with yourself, think also of your younger and sarcastic fellow travellers, on how much you can and are willing to commit to the self-declared most magical place on Earth.
On Day 1 we arrive in Epcot by cable car at the side entrance – a valuable expert tip from our five star Uber driver Eduardo: By the time the park opens to the general public (Early Entrance tickets are available as well to those staying at a Disney-owned resort which we don’t) we have passed the security, equipped ourselves with park maps (which are available in various languages) and have drafted a rough route of must-see priorities. As today will prove that it is almost impossible to do the whole of Epcot in 12 hours, it is highly advisable to do some research before and pick and agree on some not-to-be-missed highlights in advance – the local blogosphere might grant more hands-on advice than promotional web content. In our case, we have done the enchanting Ratatouille ride already in Paris, and therefore run first to the very popular Frozen ride (queued for 35 minutes which thankfully will be the longest today but this gentle water ride does not live up to its hype, sorry).
I really want to go on the speedy Test Drive ride again, also the Mission: Space trainings (both versions are great) and no visit to Epcot is complete without learning about the story of communication technology in the iconic golf ball building, the Spaceship Earth (which I mention especially because the British language version is narrated by the one and only Judi Dench!).
Then the Florida midday sun gets us. It is hot: Too hot to have another coffee and too hot to eat anything but the much beloved Mickey pretzels. We flee inside an Epcot complex called The Land, dedicated to our planet, its wonders and provisions and collapse in a cinema, watching Awesome Earth (just because it is just about to start), a 15 minute film in which the need to care for our celestial home is shared in an almost estate agent style with stunning wildlife and landscape photography.
The near-by ride within the same building, Living With The Land, takes us through the history of agriculture and more excitingly, an actual Eden Project-style greenhouse with vertical herb, fruit and vegetable gardens in action. Later in the late afternoon we will be back in The Land (escaping a horrendous thunderstorm which will shut down the cable car we arrived by and almost cancels the park-closing firework) but unfortunately we miss the guided backstage Seeds Tour through exactly those glass globes – due to unusual queues on the ladies’ toilet.
Another welcome shield from the heat is the Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival in 4D, and for half an hour we experience Minnie and Mickey Mouse in Get A Horse, Piper and Feast on the much-deserved big screen in the Magic Eye Theatre.
Tired feet and easily burnt skin will appreciate a visit to a local cinema – and 5D cinemas are even better
At least as funny but much more interactive will be the half an hour Turtle Talk With Crush in Epcot’s nautical The Sea complex, tucked amongst aquariums and features of Nemo and friends: Here the very chilled sea turtle from Finding Nemo answers questions about its habitat and lifestyle in an educational but very humorous way.
We further visit the Canadian pavilion for the 360 degree Circle Vision cinema (there is also one in the Chinese district) and stand surrounded by screens in admiration of the dizzying camera work for the ten, fifteen minutes the screening lasts.
Even with the timely start, the few breaks we allowed ourselves today and the very reasonable queuing times it has been impossible to see all shows and do all the rides in Epcot today – we have not even made it around the lake, and that is not only due to the thunderstorm and its almost violent rain (the sound of it against The Land’s ceilings was exciting through!): Epcot is huge, epic and absolutely worth returning to!
On Day 2 we arrive a tiny bit later than the general opening at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. We have come by car as this theme park with its free roaming safari facilities is further away, but the car park and the advanced payment at arrival appear well organised. A tiny trolley train brings us to the main entrance. Animal Kingdom has been described as a bit more uncoordinated but to us appears that this is because the animals are given (rightly so!) more space than the walkable connections between rides and attractions for the guests’ entertainment. This indeed makes the park appear far more crowded but yesterday taught us that we will not see everything in a single day anyway, and that is okay – and anyway, other than the other Disney parks in Orlando, Animal Kingdom closes already at 7pm.
With the planned Avatar sequels, will also Cirque Du Soleil’s Pandora interpretations continue?
We admire the Avatar landscapes (and both rides through the sci-fi worlds of Pandora) and the exceptional wildlife during the safari tours and jungle walks. We admire other visitors’ clothes (a t-shirt stating “I wish this queue would Mufasa” is my favourite, apparently from Etsy) – and then the American midday sun gets us again.
We are now in the African district, and through a little miracle we are admitted as the very last people to the 12 o’clock performance of The Festival Of The Lion King, an immensely popular 30 minute production of the 1990s classic which proudly and independently stands up against its cartoon original and its already world-wide established, mind-blowing stage adaptions. The Lion King show here is performed seven times a day in its own Harambe Theatre here, and indeed the one performance not to be missed: Accompanied by Elton John‘s score, very talented singers, acrobatics, fantastic animatronics, pyro acts and costumes (the crocodile is my favourite), I even learn a bit of Swahili from my seat in the team Simba block. This show actually makes up for having missed Cirque Du Soleil‘s local residence show Drawn To Life, based in the free to access Disney Springs shopping district – our time in Orlando has unfortunately matched their two-week summer break. The score will live in our heads for the next couple of days for free, and how is that a bad thing?
The central point of Animal Kingdom is a big artificial tree which contains a 3D cinema which could actually be classified as 4 if not even 5D (smells, animatronic, no more spoilers). The queue is rarely long and leads through artificial root works, revealing many secrets. It’s Tough To Be A Bug is shown here, based on A Bug’s Life which, admittedly, I have never seen. We are given 3D glasses with antenna before entering the benches (“If you cannot smell the person in front of you, you are not standing close enough” a park coordinator declares) and are reminded that spiders are not always the baddies and that toxic fumes are indeed a cruel treatment for insects. After ten minutes with a hilarious creepy crawler finale, the auditorium is roaring with laughter.
Leaving the tree cinema we only catch the last glimpse of what appears to be a fantastic flight show performed by birds of paradise quite close above of our heads – should I ever return, I will not miss the Feathered Friends In Flight. We go on water rides and through dinosaur terrain but the final stagy highlight is The Big Blue… And Beyond, a 25 minute stage adaption of Finding Nemo on a vast, quite traditional musical theatre stage with adorable puppetry and effects – just the right thing for our by now very tired feet, even though we miss the first three minutes.
Hopefully this experienced overview on what can be seen and achieved in Orlando’s Disney World when only having limited time (and budget) is of help for some. Any questions, drop me a note below!
***** out of 5 stars
Sadie takes the Stage 