Friends…it’s FINALLY TIME!

We’ve been waiting YEARS for EPCOT’s Transformation to be complete, and now, another huge step forward has been taken — Communicore Hall and Communicore Plaza open on June 10th — and we got to go inside to bring you this preview!

Communicore Hall and Plaza are a new festival center that will bring EPCOT’s iconic festivals throughout the year to the center of the park. Communicore Plaza is an outdoor space where guests can enjoy the festival offerings, while Communicore Hall is flexible enough to host a myriad of different things — food stalls, exhibition, mixology class, and so much more!

But what does that all really LOOK like? We’re finding out right now!

We got the opportunity to step inside the CommuniCore Hall for the first time and boy, was it impressive! There’s so much space inside this massive building and there seems to be room to fill it with even more later. While it didn’t look much like the original concept artwork Disney had previously released for the inside, we think because we were attending a special event at the time, we could see this change in the near future.

So aside from a massive open area to gather, what else is there to do? Let’s look around! We noticed right away there is a fun EPCOT photo op inside where you can step up to take a few commemorative photos in front! Disney World is full of these fun designs and wall murals!

As we looked around we noticed signs signifying each of EPCOT’s four worlds — World Nature, World Discovery, World Celebration, and World Showcase.

You’ll find them hung around the tops of the walls inside the massive open space.

There’s even room for a live band inside! Now we’ve got to show you what else you can expect to find inside the main hall.

Mickey and Friends is where you’ll find an opportunity to meet with Mickey and his pals just like you used to do in EPCOT at the former Character Spot.

When we stepped in line we waited outside and were able to take advantage of looking at all the colorful designs on the mural on the outside of the wall. We were able to pick out Minnie…

…Mickey…

…a few nods to attractions that used to be found around EPCOT (bonus points to you if you know or rode the ride referenced here)…

…and even a few current nods to attractions still found around EPCOT today!

As we stepped inside, we were led down a cool hallway with some funky lighting which really grabbed our attention…

…before being brought into the room where we could meet with our friends! Here, we got to meet with Mickey…

…Minnie…

…and Goofy all in their classic outfits!

With this new space opening, you’ll no longer have to go around to several spots within EPCOT to meet these characters and they’ll be available throughout the day! We’re told that Mickey will be the staple character here to meet and greet, and the other two spots will be rotating characters. So it may be worth visiting multiple times!

After we had a chance to get our hugs and all the pictures in, we stepped outside into the CommuniCore Plaza and its huge outdoor space! Seriously y’all… we didn’t imagine it would be THIS expansive from the ground. This space is made of several concrete walkways around the entire plaza with a few green patches that are a bit softer for those who might want a squishier ground or a place to sit and relax for a bit.

We think this will make for a very lively spot nightly to take in all of the entertainment because a live Latin band will be present to keep your evening rocking!

That’s right! This space will be used all the time and not just during the day for the show! Ah, which brings us to our next point — EPCOT’s new stage show you’ll find here! ¡Celebración Encanto! is about a 20-minute sing-along show where you’ll get to belt out some of the songs from Disney’s animated film, Encanto.

We found this show to be incredibly lively, and full of fun and laughter, and the hosts even brought several of the kids up on stage to help out with a few of the storytelling elements in the songs!

If you’re not familiar with the words, don’t worry! They’ll have them up on a big screen for you to see along with lyrics in Spanish, too! Between performances, your hosts will ask you trivia questions and introduce you to simple words in Espanol so you can learn a little while also being entertained!

From what we could see, the kids attending had a BLAST and that was taken to a whole new level when we were surprised by Mirabel AND Bruno coming out to say hello! After a quick song which somehow ended in a conga line (don’t ask — it all happened so fast and we were swept up in the moment) it was time to say “Adios” to the celebration for now.

If you’re wondering if there’s a nearby bathroom, you won’t have to go far!

The bathrooms are accessible from the outside of the building and we appreciated their sleek design! We found them to be very retro inside with orange and the most prominently featured color!

Along with the entrance to the bathrooms, you’ll find a refillable water bottle station and water fountain!

The last spot we have to show you is Festival Favorites. It looks almost like a quick service window and we’re told to expect it to be open during EPCOT’s festivals.

There’s A LOT to take in and see at EPCOT’s newest addition! Next time you’re in EPCOT, you’ll need to make a special trip to check this incredible new location out, and be sure to stay tuned to DFB for all the latest Disney World news!

Learn ALL about the EPCOT Transformation here!

What do you think of Communicore Hall and Plaza? Tell us in the comments!

Disclosure: In nearly all circumstances, Disney Food Blog writers and photographers pay full price for their own travel, hotel, food, beverage, and event tickets. We do this because it’s important to us as journalists to ensure not only that we give you unbiased opinions, but also that you can trust us to do so since we’re paying our own way. On rare occasions, when we are invited by a company to attend a preview as media, and when we choose to accept that invitation, we will always make you, our readers, aware of that situation. Today, we were invited by Disney World to attend their media preview of CommuniCore Hall and Plaza. Note that when we attend events as media we are 1) Not required to review that event/food on any of our channels, and 2) Not required to review that event/food favorably. You can always count on DFB to give you a 100% unbiased and honest review of any event that we attend, food that we eat, or beverage that we drink. You can see more in our Disclosure Policy. Thank you for reading. — AJ