Florida 2011- Epcot

No matter how much I re-write and analyse my thoughts when writing this review, I cannot really express what I want to say. I am truly out of my depth and at a complete crossroads in my own thoughts about the whole idea of a theme park. The truth is, Epcot is not a theme park, at least in the traditional sense. Sometimes this works in its favour, sometimes it leaves me in a complete contradiction to even my own thoughts.

With that said, Epcot is a great park, literally in two halves. My favourite is the World Showcase.

It would be so easy for me to sit here and review rides and attractions, but that is not what I feel is right for this park. As with every park, Epcot is home to some great experiences… and some not so great.

One of the most special moments of the entire trip, in fact, was our Lunch in Mexico.

After spending the morning trying out what Future World had to offer, we began our trip around the world in Mexico, with a very tasty lunch indeed.

The pure magic inside the temple that represents this country is not something that can be captured on camera to do it justice. A beautiful, night-time backdrop; an erupting volcano, shooting stars and gorgeous atmosphere litter this romantic surrounding.

This is where we received some of the best customer service at any of the parks. It’s all theatre. Everything about how we were spoken to, how we received our food and how we were treated was all theatrical, which is no wonder how they managed to get so much money from us. They know their menu, they know their guests and they take advantage of this.

This is one of the most orgasmic drinks I’ve ever had in my entire life. Margaritas- Mexico stylee! Served up in what can only be described as a fish bowl. We were pretty drunk by the time we emerged back into daylight.

As the holiday continued, there were several points where I’d ask myself, “would this work in England?”. It is very common amongst theme park enthusiasts and many Florida veterans alike, to criticise the UK for their efforts in the theme park business. Many criticisms I agree with, yet there are many which I’d like to challenge, especially after my own personal experience with British people in the States.

On this occasion, with the Mexico pavilion, yet, it’d work. In fact we have many themed restaurants here in the UK, and to see this coupled with live entertainment, retail, and the whole theatricality, I could honestly see being a huge hit here in the UK. Sadly though, there are many things, due to cultural differences that would not work, as much as we’d like them to.

Half-cut, we emerge back into the wet afternoon that we were treated to at Epcot. World Showcase is indeed awesome, but sadly, we were not given the weather to appreciate it as much as we would have liked.

I touched on it earlier, but World Showcase truly is a romantic paradise in itself. It’s so hard to describe in words, I wish I could take you with me virtually, in my mind to make you see what I’m seeing.

The detail that goes into each country is phenomenal, even down to the staff; each country has staff that are of the same nationality. It’s all a show. You could really spend a lot of time experiencing each country. Some have small rides, some have shows and all of them have dining and retail opportunities. Whilst that may sound boring, it is the detailed … argh… I dunno… I’ll let the pictures do some of the talking…

This is a couple’s park. Bring them here on your honeymoon, take them for a romantic meal. Sit and chat and do the “in love” stuff in any of the countries around the gorgeous World Showcase. There are plenty of areas to explore away from the “mainstream” guest parts. Some absolute real hidden gems here. *Gushes*

*Romantic music comes to a halt*

Except if you have weather like this… 😛

A few final points then!

I enjoyed Future World, even if some of the attractions were sub- standard, though it was just out-done by a certain other half of the park that I’ve been gushing about.

Mission Space, I found a let-down. I found the story a bit weak which is where Disney are supposed to excel, I was disappointed.

My guilty pleasure (and also favourite attraction) was Living With the Land- boat ride. I just found it so interesting and a great mix of dark ride and then out into the greenhouses. Brilliant.

Universe of Energy and Captain EO? Burn them both. Shocking. Though I liked the Dinosaur dark ride bit in UOE and appreciated the technology behind it. Was nice to sit down for 45 minutes I suppose.

Finally, don’t go to China with a shirt, looking like this, or you’ll discover you’ve been beaten to your desired look:

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed!