Epcot
NewsWalt Disney World (FL)

Many Restaurants and Shops Set to Close for Epcot Redesign

Rikki Niblett
Share This!

It’s well known that Epcot is currently going through a massive update. The start of this redesign is currently taking place, with the removal of the Leave a Legacy tiles, as well as the announced addition of more green space and a new fountain.

But it appears as that was just the start, as the section behind Spaceship Earth will also see a massive restructuring. A large number of restaurants, shops, as well as attractions will be closing later this year to make way for the large redesign, as well.

To make way for the transformation, the following locations will be closing:

  • Electric Umbrella – the quick-service restaurant located next to Innoventions East. This location is scheduled to close this winter. (It appears it will close on November 24.)
  • Innoventions East – including the Colortopia exhibit and the Nanooze Break area are scheduled to close on September 8
  • Epcot Character Spot – will close on September 8. Guests visiting the park will continue to be able to meet their favorite Disney Characters at other locations throughout Epcot:
    • Minnie Mouse will move into the World Showcase Gazebo.
    • Daisy Duck will move to The American Adventure.
    • Mickey Mouse and Goofy will temporarily appear in Innoventions West until a new place is developed. At that point, Mickey will move to an all-new location in the Imagination Pavilion and Goofy will venture out into the park.
    • Joy will move soon to a new home.
    • Winnie the Pooh will once again greet Guests at Christopher Robin’s bedroom in the United Kingdom Pavilion
  • Fountain View (Starbucks) – will close later this year and will be moved to a temporary location later this year. (It appears it will close on November 24.)
  • Art of Disney shop – will close later this year and will be moved to a temporary location later this year. Heritage Manor (located in the American Adventure pavilion) will eventually become the new, permanent home for Art of Disney offerings.
  • Club Cool – will have a new location with the redesign.
  • Mouse Gear – will close before the end of the year and will move to a temporary location. The current location will be refurbished.
  • Camera Center – will close before the end of the year.
  • Pin Central – will close before the end of the year. The Camera Center become a new home for Pin Central.
  • Fountain of Nations – will close permanently on September 8

Additional information about Epcot’s future will be unveiled during the upcoming D23 Expo in August.

You May Also Like...

Rikki Niblett

I am a co-host of the Be Our Guest Podcast and do lots of other fun Disney stuff all around the interwebs! You can follow me on Twitter or Instagram at @RikkiNibs or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/rikkinibs

18 thoughts on “Many Restaurants and Shops Set to Close for Epcot Redesign”

  • So is Electric Umbrella closing for good??

  • I was wondering about Baymax, since he’s a character that greets in this area as well. You have Winnie the Pooh listed, but I didn’t know he met in this area. Also, is Sadness moving with Joy or will it just be Joy alone? These were some of our favorite characters to meet, so hopefully they’ll come back.

  • Fountain of Nations at night as we left EPCOT was one of my favorite parts of any visit. I’m odd in that I have some experience in fountain design, and F of N was truly innovative when it first opened. Sad to see it go. But if its in the interests of softening that area and adding greenspace, then its change I’ll embrace. My family always joked “I guess there are no trees in the future”. I’m anxious to see how it all shakes out.

  • I’m bummed they’re closing Electric Umbrella right before my trip! I know it’s nothing special, but that was going to be right in my path at lunchtime, so there goes my convenient lunch option.

  • Oh thank God, they’re removing the Fountain of Nations. All the time, I walk around Future World and think “It’s not nearly hot enough” to myself.

  • Do you know anything about the VISA meet and greet? Will it close or relocate?

  • When you say they will close September 8 do you mean they will be open on the 8 th ….til the end of the day?

    • Knowing Disney, and considering that the 8th is a Sunday, it’s a *pretty* reasonable assumption that those locations will be open through the 8th, and be closed as of the 9th.

      • Wouldn’t you know, I’m taking friends to show off DW and our Epcot day is the 9th. I doubt this will have any real impact on the trip while we’re focused on food and wine though 😉

  • So glad that Club Cool avoided the permanent axe!

  • Will you return our tile from” Leave a Legacy” to us that we paid for?

    • Like most things in life, people rarely read the fine print. Rarely are people paying for what they thought they were buying.

      Technically you paid for a service not the physical tile itself. They are offering to sell you a tile like the one you thought you bought. If you want to purchase a replica, you need to look into it asap, it’s only available for a limited time. Contact guest relations and have your marker number handy.

      • I didn’t realize they were selling a replica, I can’t find any info about it though. Do you have a link please?

      • Seriously… what part of ” Contact guest relations and have your marker number handy.” doesn’t make it any clearer?

      • Wow, I got that part. I was wondering where you got the information from to begin with since I can’t find anything about it. Hope your day gets better.

      • Here is the response I received when requesting a replica of the tile. They didn’t say anything about purchasing a replica (I asked directly).

        Thank you for contacting the Walt Disney World Resort regarding the Leave a Legacy Program.

        We appreciate your inquiry regarding the Epcot Leave a Legacy tiles. As part of the new Epcot entry experience announced earlier this year, the Leave a Legacy photos will be moving into a beautiful setting just outside the park’s gateway. As work occurs on Epcot’s main entrance area, some of the Leave a Legacy photos will be temporarily unavailable to view until the new display is in place starting in 2020. The Leave a Legacy viewing will return when the new display is complete. Although we are still working on the details, please know there will be a process to find specific photo tiles once the Leave a Legacy location is updated.

        The original information and location of your Leave a Legacy tile is as follows:

        Barcode: 125865
        Tilesheet: West 1-C-18
        Tile Row: 3
        Tile Column: 8

        We have also included an electronic copy of the photo for you to share with family and friends.

        Additionally, we understand how special Leave a Legacy is to those who participated; however, we are unfortunately unable to break the tiles up into individual photos. They will return in 2020 in an all-new display.

        We encourage you to follow the Disney Parks Blog for our current announcements.

        Thank you again for contacting us regarding the Leave a Legacy Program.

        Kindest regards,

        Jessica
        WDW Leave a Legacy

  • They’re finally pulling the trigger! Future World will be a huge pain to navigate in 2020, but big-picture-wise, this is great news.

Comments are closed.