Epcot Forever Fireworks Show review
One of my favorite things to do when I go to a Disney park is to see at least one show. If this is your first time at the parks, let me encourage you to take part in watching one of the nighttime performances Disney World offers.
There are numerous shows to choose from, such as parades, musicals, and night shows, and each of them is special in their way. While in Disney World, my family went to a few shows, and the best ones, hands down, that we went to were the nighttime spectaculars. The one show that we were fond of was the Epcot Forever Show.
This show recently made its debut on October 1, 2019. This new nighttime light festivity very is staged around World Showcase Lagoon in the heart of the Epcot park. This performance begins at 9:00 pm and is available nightly.
However, the times are not always the same every night, and the show may have to due to weather changes. It is best to look upon the My Disney Experience App or the Disney World official website for more information. Epcot Forever is a fantastic show that you have to experience at least once!
Ways to Watch Epcot Forever
There are various ways that you can watch the Epcot Forever show, which is great because everyone loves having options! One way that you can watch this nighttime spectacular is by purchasing a dining package. This package offers a meal with a sitting view of the Epcot Forever Show while you enjoy your meal! One of the advantages is you get to enjoy the show from indoors, and you will not have to be standing for an extended period!
Furthermore, it is an excellent way to get out of the heat. The restaurant from which you will be viewing the fireworks is called the Rose & Crown. This restaurant is known for its British influence of décor and taste of food. As expected, the Rose & Crown is in the United Kingdom section of Epcot.
However, the price is not a cheap one, and your selection of food for the evening will be not extended to the whole menu. Guest from ages three to nine are less expensive than adults, but not by much. The price for children between the ages of three to nine is a total of thirty-nine dollars. On the other hand, this signature dining is on the more expensive side, so the price of a meal and getting premiere seating might be worth it for adults only.
Getting a FastPass+ is also another option that you can utilize to watch the show. The FastPass+ allows guests to view the Epcot Forever performance in a reserved seating area with the best spot in the park that overlooks the lagoon so you do not miss a thing. The downside to getting a FastPass+ is that you are limited to how many FastPasses+ you get, so if you use one for the night show, you will only be able to use two more FastPasses+ for Epcot on that day.
The Frozen Ever After Sparkling Dessert Party is also available for viewing the nighttime spectacular. These dessert parties are one of the best Disney dining experiences because of all the tasty treats they have. Unlike the dining package, the dessert party is outside, and you get a closer view of the fireworks. However, the Dessert Party is only available a couple of nights during the week. They have treats from ice cream to hot chocolate. All these treats are Frozen-themed, so it is excellent for the little ones who adore everything Frozen.
The party starts an hour before the actual show so that you can enjoy a lot of sweet treats. After the show, while other people are leaving the park, each Frozen party guest goes on a boating adventure to Arendelle in the Frozen Forever ride. Keep in mind that this party is an extra cost and does require you to make reservations.
The last option is to find a decent spot on your own somewhere around the World Showcase Lagoon. Most of the places you are going to find to see the show, you will have to stand for the duration of the show. This way, you do not have to spend any of your money. Also, you can save your FastPasses+ for a different ride or show. Also, there will probably be some obstruction of sight if you are watching the showcase from a random place in the park.
What is Epcot Forever
Epcot Forever took the place of the long-time running show IllimiNations, which was a water show that visually dazed us with colors and beautiful displays that represented some elements of Earth on waters of the World Showcase Lagoon in Epcot. The Disney park creators decided to change the water show into something different. Just recently the changes to the park were revealed to the public and what Disney hopes to accomplish in the near future. Furthermore, with all the changes happening, the creators also wanted to change the Epcot night show into a sort of memoir to the park.
With this colorful light display, Disney not only gives you a simple firework show, but they also tell a story, the story of Epcot. They came up with the idea of telling the story of the Epcot park and what they hope for on the road ahead through a nighttime display of colorful visual lights that would light up the night sky. During this new spectacular, stunning fireworks fill the night sky and what appears to be floating knits that have been lit up above the lagoon. Just like the previous show, fireworks play a big part in this nighttime entertainment.
The duration of the show is about fourteen minutes, with the purpose f to wow and amazing its audience. The storyline of Epcot Forever, according to Disney, is to reveal the history of Epcot. It shows us from past, present, and future of the theme park. Disney also utilizes brightly colored lasers for added effect to make this Disney show more vibrate in color.
Last but certainly be not least, what is a Disney extravaganza without some thrilling music to go with it? You will find that quite a number of musical numbers played during the show is original music made especially for the Disney park Epcot. A lot of the music talks about the dreams and looking to the future very Disney themed. However, not many people have heard them before. The songs played are the old fashion ballads that long ago once played as background music decades ago in the park. To make it more one of a kind of performance, some of these songs were revised or reproduced merely for Epcot Forever.
In the beginning, we hear a familiar voice; the voice we hear is none other than Walt Disney himself. He opens the night program by giving the audience a small inspirational speech about imagination, dreams, and the Epcot park. Also, in between the changes of songs, we hear the narration of young children. They include some classic songs such as a Whole New World from Aladdin that will have you singing along as you watch.
My Experience at Epcot Forever
I love fireworks, especially Disney fireworks, shows! They have a way of making it rare and unique from the vibrant, vivid images of the fireworks to the Disney themed music that makes you want to hum along. I grew up with Disney from watching all the Disney movies to going to the parks almost yearly. I have been to countless Disney nighttime shows, and every time I get chills of excitement and anticipation. Epcot Forever was no exception. I still got those chills up and down my body.
Throughout the entire duration of the Epcot Forever showcase, there are a lot of pros and cons, and in the end, for me, the advantages outweighed the disadvantages. When I heard about the Epcot Forever show, I did not know much about it, but I was excited to watch it. I thought it would be like World of Color at Disneyland because it was over the water. Or like IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth but with just a different name to it.
However, I was, of course, wrong. At the beginning of our trip we tried to plan, but never decided when we were going to watch the show. The night that we were thinking of going to Epcot Forever, we went back and forth whether or not to get a FastPasses+ for the event, but in the end, decided not to because we did not know if we were going to be still in the park at that time of night. Especially since my sister had her infant baby, who goes to sleep very early in the evenings, we did not want him to be grumpy the next morning. Also, we did not want to waste our already limited FastPasses+.
Despite all that, the very last minute we choose to watch the show. We were about to go back to the hotel for the night. We then heard on the intercom that the show was going to start soon. A couple of my family members wanted to watch the show, and since we were already in the park, so we decided to stay and watch. About ten minutes before the show, we found a spot to watch the firework production.
From where we were, we did not have the best view. There were some objects, such as trees, blocking some of the lights. However, it was well enough to see almost all the fireworks. Keep in mind that if we had gotten there earlier, there would have been better viewing spots, but because this was very last minute, and all those spots were unavailable. For some of the best viewing spots, this Disney Blog has some great inside information and locations.
As the lights dim and the music starts, I could feel the happiness and excitement inside of me! The first blast of the fireworks shooting up into the sky was nothing short of magical and took me back to when I was a kid watching the fireworks at Disneyland for the first time. The voice of Walt Disney talking about Epcot made me feel all nostalgic and sentimental. It was a great start to the show. Then more of the music started playing, and I was not feeling the same nostalgia that I usually do when watching one of the Disney nighttime entertainment shows.
One thing for me personally that makes the fireworks at Disney is the music that goes with it. The music that began to play seemed to me to be more gears toward looking future and making the world better. Which is Disney, but to me, it just was not the same. Most all the music that was playing were old school songs that, in my opinion, seemed like they threw them together.
Also, many of the ballads were not commonly known songs except maybe three or four, which is disappointing because I was expecting more well-known Disney songs to play. Although, for the story that Epcot wanted to portray the music was appropriate. If I had known beforehand, they were musical numbers written years ago specifically for Epcot I would have appreciated it much more.
The idea of knits that are all lit is a fresh and different way to insert more lights and originality, but the actual knits in the show were not all that amazing. Granted, we did not have the best spot, as mentioned before, so I might not have gotten the full effect that they were supposed to give. The only part that I found to be a unique and proper use of the knits is when they were up in the sky floating, and all of a sudden, they turned into fireworks! This part of the performance was pretty awesome.
Take away the few songs that are well known Disney songs and the voice of Walt in the beginning, and this show did not seem like a Disney extravaganza. If you are not an avid Epcot lover or if you do not know the history of Epcot, this show may not be one of your favorites. I liked the performance because after I did find out about all the history of the songs that they put in, I found it heartwarming to know that they were paying a little tribute to the park’s past.
If I had to choose between Epcot Forever and Happily Ever After, I would pick Happily Ever After. However, if you are someone who does love Epcot, this might be a firework performance that you will like!
And if you’re interested in the Epcot Forever soundtrack, check out the video below:
Epcot Forever Suggested for Young Children?
As a child, I loved going to see the fireworks at Disneyland. It was the highlight, and a must-do whenever we went to the Disney parks. When I saw Epcot Forever, my sister had her baby, who was less than a year old. We were a little apprehensive about watching the show because we were not sure if the loud music or the boom of the fireworks would scare him.
However, to our surprise, he was fascinated by it. Throughout the whole show, his eyes were locked on all the lights as they flashed in the sky. He loved the different bright kinds of lights, to him, it was captivating. With this being said, however, most children, especially a baby of his age, do not like loud noises of any kind.
The good news is that if you have the dining package, you will be watching from inside the restaurant, and the sound will not be as loud. If you are outside, there is always the option of just walking away into a store or boutique. While we did watch the whole fourteen to fifteen-minute show, I will say that my sister hands her hands on both sides of her son’s ears to try to dull down the loud sounds, which is another idea for parents that might help. In terms of whether or not the show is for toddler aged children and up, I would say no.
I am an adult, and I did enjoy it, but I do not think that kids would prefer a show with more Disney in it. I am relatively sure that watching the Happily Ever After is a firework show that kids would enjoy rather than Epcot Forever. Epcot Forever, for me personally, seems like it is more for adults, and people who are fans of the Epcot park and know a lot about its history.
Furthermore, because of the loud blasts of the fireworks, a lot of younger children may be frightened, and I would not recommend it. Instead, during certain times of the year, Disney World puts on nighttime parades, and these are something that all children can enjoy because there are no sudden loud booms, and they will get to see their favorite Disney characters.
Something to keep in mind is, as mentioned before, the show does start at 9:00 pm, which is passed bedtime for a lot of younger children. One Disney tip for toddlers that I found to be the most helpful is to bring them back to the hotel for a nap if you are planning on staying out at night.
Conclusion
When I think about fireworks, my mind always goes to Disneyland or Disney World. I do not think of New Year’s or 4th of July fireworks like most people would. My mind always goes straight to Disney fireworks because to me their fireworks are the very best! I have watched all kinds of different fireworks shows, but nothing compares to the display of fireworks that Disney puts on. If you are going to be watching any nighttime spectaculars here is a list of items that you might want to bring:
- Snacks
- Drinks
- Blanket (to sit on)
- Light jacket (depending on what time of year you go)
- Something to keep you or your kids occupied until showtime
The magical touch that only Disney can give always seems to be missing from the other firework performances. On top of the beautiful blasts of lights in the dark skies, the Disney music playing during all the shows makes it ten times better than any of the others. One thing that I love is how they do not just throw fireworks up in the sky, but they also give you a story or a piece of history that they share as well. Although Epcot Forever is not a classically Disney themed nighttime spectacular, it is magnificent.
Overall, I would rate the performance a seven out of ten. It is not the best firework display that Disney World has put on, but it is a good one. Unless you are a diehard Epcot fan. I loved it after I found out how the creators of the park paid tribute to Epcot by bringing some of the past into the present. Epcot Forever is that it is a limited playing show. Sometime in 2020, Disney is changing this nighttime display into a different nighttime spectacular called HarmoniUS. So, if you are planning a trip out to Orlando, Florida, soon, see Epcot Forever while it is still there! Who knows—you might actually fall in love with it!
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