Magic Kingdom
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
EPCOT
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Hollywood Studios
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Animal Kingdom
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Tickets & Park Reservations
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Water Parks
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Touring Plans
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Pre-Made Touring Plans
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Campground Resorts
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Universal Studios FL
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Islands of Adventure
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Epic Universe
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Special Events
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Special Needs
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Water Parks
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Touring Plans
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Pre-Made Touring Plans
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Premier Resorts
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Prime Value Resorts
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Preferred Resorts
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Value Resorts
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Disneyland (California)
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Disneyland
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
California Adventure
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Special Events
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Touring Plans
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Pre-Made Touring Plans
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Disney Cruise Line
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
Ships
Maximize Your Magic

Subscribe now to create a customized Touring Plan for everything you want to do.

Subscribe Now
The American Adventure

The American Adventure

An Attraction in EPCOT

Last updated: March 19, 2024

At a Glance
The American Adventure demonstrates how good Disney theater presentations can be. It’s not without its shortcomings, though.

Housed in an imposing brick structure reminiscent of Colonial Philadelphia, the 29-minute show is a stirring, albeit sanitized, rendition of American history, narrated by an animatronic Mark Twain (who carries a burning cigar) and Ben Franklin. Behind a stage almost half the size of a football field is a 28-by-155–foot rear-projection screen— the largest ever used—on which motion picture images are interwoven with onstage action.

The production rouses patriotic emotion in some viewers but drowsiness in others. A man from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, writes:

I saw The American Adventure about 10 years ago and snoozed through it. I tried it again and it was still ponderous. I’ll try it again in 10 years.

The American Adventure’s scale is both its strength and its weakness: It takes time and money, after all, to mount a presentation this big, which explains why no new stage scenes have been added or updated since the show opened almost 40 years ago. In the meantime, our understanding of America’s history and its role in the world has evolved, but the show hasn’t kept pace: Topics such as racism, equality, and the environment, for example, are treated as solved problems instead of the ongoing challenges they are. This Erie, Pennsylvania, couple resented what they saw as Disney’s squeakyclean take on American history:

The American Adventure glosses over America’s dark points. For example, it neatly cuts out the audio about who bombed Pearl Harbor (at Epcot, after all, Japan is right next door). Why not focus on the natural beauty of America, its ethnic diversity, its contributions to world society?

But an Iowa City, Iowa, father of three thinks a lot of people are missing the point:

Cramming all of American history into a 20-minute flick is no easy task, and face it, a theme park is hardly the place for a wholly objective, serious critique of the United States. I think that it's perfectly appropriate for the film, as an attraction in Epcot, to emphasize what's good about the United States.
Today's Showtimes
Park Closed
Times are updated regularly but may change at any time.
Guest Overall Rating
Our Overall Rating
Preschool
Grade School
Teens
Young Adults
Over 30
Seniors
Location
Duration
29 min
Rider Switch?
No
Minimum Height
None
Queues
  • Standby
Accessibility
  • Reflective Captioning
  • Assistive Listening
  • May Remain in Wheelchair/ECV

Touring Tips

When To Go
Anytime
Early Theme Park Entry?
No
Extended Evening Theme Park Hours?
No
The American Adventure is Disney’s best patriotic attraction. The largest crowds usually appear from around 2:30 to 4:30 p.m., but it isn’t hard to get into: Because of the theater’s large capacity, it’s highly unusual not to be admitted to the next performance.

Other attractions you might like

Users who like The American Adventure, generally also like:

Our Recommendation

Not to be missed!

Top Premium Touring Plans That Include The American Adventure

Disney Dish with Jim Hill Podcast

Learn more about the latest doings at Disney with TouringPlan's Len Testa & Jim Hill of JimHillMedia.com

Listen Now

Copyright ©2024 TouringPlans.com. All rights reserved.

Privacy Policy & Terms of Use | Cookie Preference