Though all eyes are on Disney’s Hollywood Studios right now, after June’s opening of Toy Story Land and next year’s dual debuts of Star Wars Land and Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, this park will be done with construction after a lengthy period of construction that kicked off in 2014. However, though 2019 will be the end (for now) of the 5-year reinvention of Disney’s Hollywood Studios, it will also mark what will likely be the beginning of Epcot’s park overhaul, which won’t be finished until 2021 at the earliest. So what does the timeline look like for Epcot’s reinvention? Here’s what we know right now:
1. Ratatouille
Image: Disney
Projected opening date: 2020 (unconfirmed)
Progress: Vertical construction.
Last year it was confirmed that the Ratatouille-themed 3-D dark ride which debuted in 2014 at Disneyland Paris Resort would be coming to Epcot. This cutting edge ride uses trackless technology to “shrink” guests down to the size of a rat, and though the attraction is being copied almost exactly from Walt Disney Studios Park, because it is being built from the ground up (instead of inside an existing structure), insiders are projecting that this new ride won’t open until 2020 at the earliest, which is a date Disney has not even committed to yet.
However, though a potential two year wait seems super-long for a copy-and-paste attraction from another park, the good news here is that after an extensive land clearing period vertical construction has already started on the show building for this attraction, which will be tucked inside an expanded corner of the World Showcase’s France pavilion. Eagle eyed guests who visit the park may even be able to see this building take shape from across the World Showcase lagoon!
As of right now, Disney has not confirmed an opening target for Ratatouille, but we expect that to change by 2019’s D23 event, which is just over a year away.
2. Guardians of the Galaxy
Image: Disney
Projected opening date: 2021 (confirmed)
Progress: Land clearing and interior prep
Though it still doesn’t have an official name, it was confirmed earlier this year that the Guardians of the Galaxy attraction announced for Epcot will be a “one-of-a-kind family attraction” that will be one of the world’s longest enclosed roller coasters when it’s added to Future World in 2021. In addition, this attraction will include a brand new ride system that’s guaranteed to “wow” guests. Of course, we don’t yet know what this new ride system will be, so it looks like we’ll have to stay tuned for more on the attraction experience as development continues.
Construction on the area for this attraction has been underway since last year, with land clearing and interior prep of the former Universe of Energy building happening behind construction walls. Vertical construction on an additional building for this attraction hasn’t officially started yet, but should be getting underway soon.
3. Future World Space restaurant
Image: Disney
Projected opening date: TBA
Progress: none
Though we weren’t totally surprised last year by the confirmations of the Guardians of the Galaxy and Ratatouille attractions, one announcement that we did not see coming was that of a new space-themed restaurant in Future World. No name or location details were provided, but Disney did specify that this establishment would have special “windows” that simulate views of the galaxy as diners “travel high above the earth” during their meal.
Interestingly, no developments regarding this project have been revealed, leading some to speculate that this project has been quietly cancelled, like the Main Street Theater at the Magic Kingdom. However, we haven’t heard anything definitively yet, so hopefully we’ll have some kind of update on this project soon.
4. Epcot central hub redesign
Image: Disney
Projected opening date: TBA
Progress: none
And speaking of stalled out projects, last year Disney released a new piece of concept art that showcased a new central hub area in Epcot. This new image shows a radically different central area of the park, that does not include several buildings including Innoventions, Club Cool, MouseGears and more. Though Disney presented this image without much context last year, no progress on this possible transformation has been made, which makes this another project that is seemingly in a holding pattern for now.
Are you excited for the future of Epcot? What project are you looking forward to the most?
