EPCOT for Adults

[Sarah S]

My husband and I are breaking away from our large group to spend a day in EPCOT. We have not been to Disney in a very long time and have never been there together. I am here looking for some advice on how to plan our day. We definitely want to do the World Showcase. Will we need dinner reservations if we want to eat dinner in one of the countries? Any advice on what time to start the showcase?

Any great lunch places in the park?

Any advice on EPCOT for two twenty-something adults will be appreciated! Thanks!

 

[belledream]

You should definitely make reservations if you know where you want to eat. It'll just take the guesswork out of things and provide structure and peace of mind. You and your husband should sit down and look through all the menus and see what appeals to you! Planning is part of the fun.

World Showcase opens at 11AM, while EPCOT itself usually opens at 9AM.

Our favorite quick service lunch places are Tangierine Café (Morocco) and Katsura Grill (Japan), but there are soo many options so again, just do some research and see what sounds good!

We're two 20-somethings and we spend multiple days of our vacations strolling around the WS leisurely. We love looking at the shops, listening to the music, and snacking around the world, while stopping to enjoy Showcase Lagoon everywhere! It's wonderful. Have a great time!

 

[Killnme]

We love eating at Le Celliar in Canada for dinner, our back up plan is Le Chefs in France. You will need to try and make reservations. For lunch we usually just hit the Yorkshire Fish and Chips in the UK. Make sure to spend some time in the back of Morocco and check out the tile work.

I recommend a Golden Beer from the Rose and Crown Pub. My wife loves the Grand something slushy from France along with the margaritas from Mexico.

Have fun and take your time.

 

[JIMINYCR]

Start early, stay late. Not as many rides there so plan your FP and plan out how you want to attack them.
Epcot has many great places to dine. I'd suggest looking on line at menus and reviews to decide which type of food youd prefer and what atmosphere suits you best. Definitely make reservations or you may have a slim chance on finding a spot to dine, depending on the time of year you are going, reservations get slimmer and slimmer. You may get locked out. I love the La Hacienda de San Angel. Counter service options are plentiful too.
Really take your time in the countries to wander, look and converse with the CM's. It will offer a great experience instead of just rushing around the lagoon. Lots of unique shops with snacks, food items, & gifts that you wont find elsewhere. France has the best decadent desserts/ snacks around. Definitely plan on staying for Illuminations, the very best fireworks & show on property. While at Ep its easy to skip off over to wander the Boardwalk too.

 

[sxeensweet]

Yes you will need to make reservations for the table service locations.
We love Sunshine Seasons for our counter service/lunch. Also Summerfest (Germany counter service) is good for lunch as well.
The table service restaurants in world showcase we love is Le Cellier for dinner which is our top pick, and then Via Napoli for their pizza(could be good for lunch as well).
Me and DH (30 something's) love Epcot especially the World Showcase and spend a lot of time there and MK. Make sure to not miss Illuminations at the end of the night. I would make sure your dinner reservation does not interfere with this if possible. It's a wonderful show! On most evenings it is at 9pm.
Hope you have a wonderful time! There is so much to see and do, and eat there, and drink. Lol

 

[Mukta]

This how my adult only days at Epcot usually look.

Arrive at RD and ride Test Track by utilizing the single rider line. Skip designing your own car.
Ride Mission Space
Ride Universe of Energy 9:35 am
Ride Spaceship Earth with a FPP. around 10:15 am
Ride Nemo and Seas
Ride Living with the Land
Ride Soarin' with a FPP around 11:30 am( I usually skip this, but I think you should see it)

Lunch at Sunshine Seasons around noon

Ride Journey into Imagination
Visit Club Cool to sample sodas

Start with Canada. See O Canada 1 pm
UK - look around, take some pics, see the band if you are so inclined.
France - get a drink, take some pics, see Impressions de France, visit the ice cream shop
Morocco - eat a snack, look around 2 pm
Japan - See Matsuriza if they are playing, visit the shops, marvel at the tiny things that cost $100.
Get a nice break by watching the Voices of Liberty and the American Adventure. Block an hour or time for this.
Visit Italy.

Have dinner somewhere in the WS. 6 pm

Visit Germany. Take pictures of the miniature town, buy something from the Caramel Kuche.
Visit China, see the movie Reflections of China, browse the shops
Visit Norway.
Mexico - get a real Margarita in La Cava, ride the boat ride.
Get a spot for Illuminations at 8:30. Use a FPP or just grab a spot along the water in front of Mexico or Norway.

I hope that helps!

 

[Figgy1]

A great way to be the heat in WS is to check out the films in France and China. They have really good A/C We usually do lunch in Chefs de France at least once each trip. If you are going the lunch specials are a good value.

 

[mouse_luv]

EPCOT World Showcase is where it's at for DBF and I. It's our fave part of the Parks, esp at night. If you want TS, you are going to need to make an ADR. Our fave is Teppan Edo. We also love strolling around and getting a snack here and there. The bakery (Les Halles) and the Gelato shop in France are both great.

 

[bethymouse]

Walk around World Showcase and just "drink" everything in! Seriously- get a Gran Magnier Slushie in France! Yummy and good on a hot day!
Do make reservations at any of the restaurants, depending upon your taste. It's expensive, but a little romance at Monsieur Paul. Le Cellier is also a bit on the expensive side, but the steaks and food in general plus atmosphere is nice. You just can't go wrong really with any restaurant ( table service). Whether you like Chinese, Japanese, Italian, German ( all you can eat plus the beer!), even Moroccan food with a belly dancer ( dinner), Mexican, Norwegian( character), British ( neat bar atmosphere) Any of the restaurants for lunch are good too ( quick service). Take your time, take lots of pictures, and pretend you're actually taking a trip around the world! Don't miss Illuminations at 9pm! Enjoy!

 

[KIsAPrincess]

My hubby and I are in our 30s.... my personal fave is the Grey Goose Vodka Slushie from France, it's a must have on every trip. We usually don't eat sit-down meals while we are there - more snacky, appetizer-types of foods that we can pick from various places and share. We haven't had a sit down dinner there yet, we are usually too full from snacking all day. Our friends rave about Le Cellier. (my friend also highly recommends the ice-wine martini from Le Cellier.)

We love just strolling along and visiting the different countries. We aren't very shy and will generally talk to just about anyone, so I think that also adds to the experience.

 

[ABQ]

Lunch plans:
Tutto Gusto in Italy. They do NOT take reservations, a table for 2 is rather easy to get. Wine flights, if you want them. Awesome Italian meat and cheese samplers to nibble on for small bites, but larger items are available.
Don't confuse Tutto gusto with Tutto Italia, they are side by side, Gusto is the one designed to look like a wine cellar. Trust me, it's a great little hideaway.

 

[bee]

DW and I are huuuuuge Epcot fans. I highly recommend breakfast at Les Halles in France. Though most of WS is closed you can enter the area via Canada (if you're facing the lagoon from FW turn right and walk around until you get there). As others have said you should definitely make reservations if you want a TS dinner. A few times we have been able to snag one the day of but depending on the time of year you go that may be impossible. DW and I probably only do TS meals 25% of the time and the rest of the time just "snack around the world" and "drink around the world." The QS in Morocco has fresh food and platters big enough for us to share. I recommend (as others have said) looking up menus for both TS and QS places in the park and seeing which ones you want to try.

If you are drinkers there is SO MUCH to try. Many countries have flights of wine or beer available so you can try several things before buying a full size portion of anything. There is a program (I forget the name and am on mobile so it's hard to look it up sorry) where you can get two small glasses of wine each from Germany, Italy, and France and I think it was $20. If you are more into cocktails I second (third or fourth or fifth??) the recommendation of the slushes in France. La Cava in Mexico has amazing margarita and tequila choices.

Have fun!!! DW and I are also twenty-somethings and Epcot is our absolute favorite park!

 

[HouCuseChickie]

DH and I had our first kid free trip to WDW since 1998 this past year. It was during F&W, but we take a similar approach when it's other times of year. I will give you a blend of what we did/what I wish we did.

We planned all of our Epcot FPs in the morning...that way we were ready to hit the WS around lunch. We snacked, drank, shopped, and just checked out attractions around the world. We rode Gran Fiesta in Mexico and got margaritas, went shopping in Norway and DH got a beer, we saw the movie- went shopping- and had some cocktails in China, we shopped and watched the trains in Germany, we tried to stop for lunch at Via Napoli but they weren't accepting walk ups (regret - not keeping my lunch ADR), beer in Japan and shopping, lunch - drinks - shopping and relaxing in Morocco, drinks and movie in France, shopping in UK, drinks-shopping-movie in Canada. We hopped over to DHS for some late afternoon rides and I think most of our Epcot times/nights we ate in the BW/BC/YC area. However, if you want to eat in the WS, trying to get an ADR at Rose & Crown timed with Illuminations is popular since you may be able to get a table out on the deck.

 

[Sarah S]

Thank you, everyone! The planning is definitely part of the fun.

 

[wannabeBelle]

I'd advise leaving EPCOT for a bit and heading over the Yachtsman Steakhouse. I so much more prefer the atmosphere and I like the dessert selection much better than Le Cellier. Plus a nice evening stroll by the EPCOT resorts is always amazing. Be sure to make your dinner for no later than 6-6:30 to be back in EPCOT for Illuminations. Marie

 

[TXDisney]

Epcot is our favorite park. We normally grab breakfast back in France at Les Halles. Then go and ride in any order Soarin, TT, Mission Space, Finding Nemo and Spaceship Earth. If you're going offseason and have FP, you can do all of that in 3hrs. We then go straight to WS and enjoy walking around the shops and having a few drinks. If you do it right you can have from noon-illuminations to enjoy WS. We love doing dinner at Le Celier. Personal favorite of ours. Great Filet Mignon.

 

[draybook]

If you don't eat at San Angel Inn then you'll have to leave this site and turn in your Mickey ears!

 

[lyssehm]

I think it depends on the time of year you are going. If it is during the Flower and Garden or Food and Wine festivals, there are outdoor kitchens all over that could easily keep you full throughout the day. I almost wouldn't want to stop for lunch since there are so many performances in all of the various countries to see. Have fun!