Greetings from Epcot! Between enjoying the Flower and Garden Festival, seeing construction progress (on SO many projects), finding new paper straws, menu updates, and so much new merchandise… well, we were pretty busy!

Let’s start our update in the parking lot this week.

What’s New with Epcot’s Parking Lot Trams

You will be walking a little more than you’re used to when you take a parking lot tram to the park entrance for a bit while work is being done on the entrance of the park. Get all the details on the Epcot parking lot tram stop locations here.

What’s New in Epcot’s Future World

Work continues on transforming the former Universe of Energy building into the queue area for the new Guardians of the Galaxy ride opening in 2021.

The actual ride will be in a new purpose-built ride building. Learn more about the new Guardians of the Galaxy Ride here.

A new space-themed restaurant will be opening next year between Mission: Space and Test Track. Learn more about the new space-themed restaurant here.

What’s New around Epcot

We found paper straws in Magic Kingdom earlier this week, and now we’ve found them in Epcot as well.

The move to paper straws is one part of Disney’s commitment to reduce the use of plastic bags and single-use straws in their parks.

• Learn more about the paper straws in Epcot here.
• Learn more about Disney’s commitment to reduce the use of plastics in the park here.

What’s New in Epcot’s World Showcase

Epcot is preparing to say “goodbye” to IllumiNations on September 30, and “welcome” to Epcot Forever on October 1.

As the park prepares for the new nighttime show, you will see construction in the World Showcase Lagoon and on its islands.

Norway’s Akershus Royal Banquet Hall has updated their Princes and Princesses (Kids’) Menu and made it more of a create-your-own format. Before the change, the main dishes came with set sides. But now your kiddos get to choose two of their own their sides. Also, the Junior Beef and Traditional Pasta on the menu have been replaced with Grilled Beef Medallions and Traditional Pizza, respectively.

The specialty dessert at Kringla Bakeri og Kafe is still the Easter Cheesecake — be sure to get this quickly as it is likely to change soon! Read our review of the Easter Cheesecake here.

If you want the crazy-fun, Instagram ready, popular Cotton Candy from Lotus House be sure to check the hours at the Outdoor Kitchen! The cast member we spoke with said the hours do change depending on the day of the week. Learn more about the Cotton Candy here!

We found Bruce Cost Ginger Ale in Pomegranate or Blood Orange flavors in the House of Good Fortune, perfect to cool off on a warm Florida day!

The pop-up wine bar in Italy has disappeared again! But, fans of the Limoncello Spritzer from the pop-up bar can find it in the wine shop in the Italy pavilion.

The construction walls are still up in areas around the entrance to the American Adventure building. 

They are working on updating the sidewalks in the area and adding brickwork to some sections.

Japan’s Katsura Grill has removed the Spicy Miso Seafood Ramen from the menu.

A new signature restaurant is coming to the Japan pavilion. An opening time frame has not been announced for the new location.

This new location will be in addition to Teppan Edo and Tokyo Dining.

France is busy with construction for the new Ratatouille ride, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure opening in 2021, a new creperie, and a new Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along opening soon.

• Learn more about the Ratatouille ride, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure here.
• Learn more about the new creperie here.
• Learn more about the Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along here

Construction is also going on in the International Gateway area, and the entrance to the park at this location has been moved further into the park.

There are some new construction walls up on the sidewalk and path between Refreshment Port and the Flower and Garden Festival play area.

What’s New in Epcot’s Shops and Stores — New Merchandise!

We found these new Baloo and Rafiki shirts. The Baloo shirt is a t-shirt, and the Rafiki shirt is a short-sleeve hoodie.

If Baloo and Rafiki aren’t your favorites, how about Flower from Bambi?

This Minnie Mouse purse seems to have been put under the Purple Potion spell, since this was available in Rose Gold before! We didn’t see any Rose Gold versions in the shops on our visit.

We found the perfect sleep shirt for fans of Minnie Mouse. Plus, the perfect accessories, those fuzzy yellow slippers, are right next to it.

Of course, we had to share these Disney Snacks socks with you!

Sticking with snacks, we spotted this fun magnet.

We’ll close this post with an inspirational message from Walt on this magnet!

Which updates are you most excited about in this week’s What’s New? Be sure to catch up on What’s New in the Magic Kingdom here!

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