SNEAK PEEK at a NEW Part of World Celebration in EPCOT!

Trust us, you’re not the only one tired of all the construction walls in WallCOT — we mean EPCOT.

Construction Walls

Yes, the massive EPCOT Transformation has been ongoing for years at the popular park, but we’re finally reaching an ending point. Disney announced the timeline for the finalization of the transformation a few months ago, and we have a sneak peek at one of the areas that has been closed off for so long!

Thanks to @bioreconstruct on Twitter, we’re able to see the center of World Celebration as it starts to come to life! This aerial photo was taken recently, showing the EPCOT logo design in the ground, surrounded by landscaping. There are also white posts all around the central area, so it’s possible this will eventually be covered by some sort of “roof.”

©bioreconstruct

World Celebration is the first land you encounter when you arrive in EPCOT from the front entrance, where Spaceship Earth is located. You can see those white posts from the picture above being constructed in the photo below.

World Celebration construction from June 2023

The central part of World Celebration is going to feature a fan-favorite element that’s been missing in EPCOT for a while: glowing sidewalks!

Imagineer Zach Riddley shared on Instagram a while ago that “guests loved the fiber optics embedded in the pavement at EPCOT, and we’re excited to share that we’re bringing back new illuminated paving designs in World Celebration.” The new lighting fixtures will incorporate updated technology and “controllability to deliver some fun new lighting capabilities.” While we don’t know all the details about what kinds of new lighting we’ll see, you can tell from the concept art that the central EPCOT logo under the planter will be lit.

©Disney

This area is also going to be where new “hero features” will be located, like topiaries and sculptures. These will change depending on which festival is being hosted in EPCOT at the time. Riddley said that this concept art represents sculptures that could be present during the EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays. The artwork will match the lights on Spaceship Earth.

©Disney

According to Disney’s timeline, World Celebration should be complete by the end of 2023, but as we’re less than 6 weeks away from that deadline, some guests are getting a little concerned. We love seeing this sneak peek of what it’s looking like, but we’re still wondering if it’s coming along fast enough.

World Celebration walls

Disney is also still trying to finish other aspects of the World Celebration transformation, such as Communicore Hall and Communicore Plaza, which are in a similar boat — they’re working hard on them, but will it be fast enough?