News New Park Entrance coming to Epcot

[Robbiem]

10 of Disney's 12 parks worldwide include "Disney" somewhere in the name. Both waterparks have it. All 4 golf courses have it. The shopping district was recently renamed to push the "Disney" to the front. All the hotels have it, which always makes for entertaining signs at the park bus loops:

Epcot and the Magic Kingdom are only outliers worldwide (along with a few other odd ducks, like the Transportation & Ticket Center and Fantasia Gardens, but oddly not Disney's Winter Summerland). They're holdovers from an earlier era, when the company didn't feel the need to constantly slap its name on things to remind people how vast its reaches are, and when being "Disney" meant something very different from what it does today.

The work spoke for itself, was successful on its own merits, and expanded people's views of what the company was capable of. Modern Disney constantly relies on branding, nostalgia, and repetition of the same handful of stories and characters to draw people in, creating an increasingly narrow definition of what it means to be "Disney."

Honestly, I'm surprised "Disney" hasn't been added to the park names already. If/when Epcot gets renamed, I fully expect it will be included somewhere in there.

Im sure if Walt Disney World was being built now magic kingdom would be called something like Disneyland Florida

 

[Herah]

This is great news - I get that Leave a Legacy was a nice idea as a way for guests to remember loved ones they've lost, and it's nice they're relocating the tiles, but the entrance to a park celebrating the future shouldn't really be the place for a memorial, and it doesn't look anywhere near as nice as the original entrance.

They aren't literally memorials. They just look like it. People put their own pictures there, taken at a kiosk.

 

[Notes from Neverland]

They aren't literally memorials. They just look like it. People put their own pictures there, taken at a kiosk.

The joke about them being memorials isn't just due to appearance. It's also based in fact as the morbid reality is that there's a large number of guests who have sadly passed since purchasing the Leave a Legacy when it ran almost 20 years ago.

 

[Rue D'Baga]

If Innoventions West really is getting removed. Then I'm going to really miss seeing the Illuminated Paving Stones.

I think the pavements can be found either at Innoventions East or West behind SSE. But you can correct me If I'm wrong. But I really hope they survive.

I would be devastated if these went away. I am seriously hoping they survive!

 

[Ninja Mom]

With all the construction going on in the front of Epcot those Gondolas are coming online at a fortuitous time. I wonder if the Gondola project was considered as a major way to relieve the burden on the entry area at the front of Epcot in anticipation of the planned construction.

~NM

 

[iowamomof4]

With all the construction going on in the front of Epcot those Gondolas are coming online at a fortuitous time. I wonder if the Gondola project was considered as a major way to relieve the burden on the entry area at the front of Epcot in anticipation of the planned construction.

~NM

Now why didn't I think of that?! Excellent point!

 

[Ninja Mom]

Now why didn't I think of that?! Excellent point!

Thanks. I'm not "Mathy" but I wonder what the % of Disney Hotel rooms that are on the Gondola routes are when compared to the total Disney Hotel rooms open now (DVC included). I'm guessing 20%. That's a decent dent into alleviating some of the over crowding at the front entrance.

~NM

 

[danlb_2000]

Thanks. I'm not "Mathy" but I wonder what the % of Disney Hotel rooms that are on the Gondola routes are when compared to the total Disney Hotel rooms open now (DVC included). I'm guessing 20%. That's a decent dent into alleviating some of the over crowding at the front entrance.

~NM

It's closer to 30%.

 

[Figments Friend]

They are building a cemetery for classic EPCOT Center rides.

( not drawn by me, but by a fellow WDWMagic poster in 2015 )

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[P_Radden]

It is. Any single character topiaries or scenes will blend in. Within the green entry plaza, it won’t stand out as much as I think people are worried about.

That's a good point. Here's a look at the original entrance featuring character topiaries:

Considering the new concept art features even more trees & vegetation than was present back when this picture was taken, I think you're right that they'll not stand out as much as we're concerned.

 

[JohnD]

They aren't dead... just moved. I don't get the hate for Leave a Legacy. Sure maybe they aren't in a good spot but I always thought it was a really cool idea. Especially when you think how many were done by people who are no longer alive, it would be special for their loved ones to be able to visit that on their vacations.

Actually the tombstones are dead. It's the photos on them that are being moved.

 

[JohnD]

That's a good point. Here's a look at the original entrance featuring character topiaries:
View attachment 352338

Considering the new concept art features even more trees & vegetation than was present back when this picture was taken, I think you're right that they'll not stand out as much as we're concerned.

However, if the tombstones were never put in, the trees and vegetation would have grown and filled out the area more.

 

[GhostHost1000]

View attachment 352261

( not drawn by me, but by a fellow WDWMagic poster in 2015 )

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sadly there may be enough of them to fill it up

 

[Coaster Lover]

It's closer to 30%.

A more important number might be what percentage of total Disney guests will switch from entering the front gate to the IG when the gondolas open (so total guests of AoA, Pop, and Caribbean Beach divided by the total guests of the full resort minus the resorts that already use the IG primarily [Beach Club, Swan and Dolphin, Boardwalk, Yacht Club) as this is the only decrease that the front gate will actually see.

 

[tirian]

Im sure if Walt Disney World was being built now magic kingdom would be called something like Disneyland Florida

Disney Disneyland Florida by the Walt Disney Company

 

[brb1006]

View attachment 352261

( not drawn by me, but by a fellow WDWMagic poster in 2015 )

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I wonder if that poster who made that drawing is still active?

 

[Figments Friend]

I wonder if that poster who made that drawing is still active?

I honestely don't recall who originally drew that 'Mourn a Legacy' image.
Perhaps if they happen to read this thread, they shall come forth.


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[Tavernacle12]

If Innoventions West really is getting removed. Then I'm going to really miss seeing the Illuminated Paving Stones.

I think the pavements can be found either at Innoventions East or West behind SSE. But you can correct me If I'm wrong. But I really hope they survive or at least be relocated.

I have no idea of what exactly is going to get replaced in the spine, but it seems a bit silly if these aren't included anywhere in the new design, since they seem to be a hit with pretty much everybody.

 

[ChrisFL]

If Innoventions West really is getting removed. Then I'm going to really miss seeing the Illuminated Paving Stones.

I think the pavements can be found either at Innoventions East or West behind SSE. But you can correct me If I'm wrong. But I really hope they survive or at least be relocated.

BTW, when were these put in? 1994?

 

[MrPromey]

BTW, when were these put in? 1994?

Not exactly sure but if memory serves, they started with just the white ones that seemed "random" and then added the color pattern ones, after.

I always preferred the white ones because there was a sense of "Am I really seeing this? Where is this coming from?" that was lost with the moving geometric patterns that felt much more programmed.

I'm probably in the minority, there, though.