Looking for the best rides for toddlers at Epcot? Believe it or not, at Epcot, kids and adults alike can have a great day. There’s an impression that Epcot is just for adults and will bore the kids to death, particularly the younger kids. This cannot be farther from the truth! The entire family an have a great day at Epcot including toddlers! At Epcot, there won’t be as many thrilling rides that exclude very young children. Instead, there are more engaging, interactive games that hold the interest of every age group and engage the senses. Your favorite characters including Epcot’s character meals and a bit of whimsy from Disney added in that delight adults and kids equally.
Despite some opinions, Epcot can be very entertaining for younger children with interactive stations dotting the entire park. This is where younger children can draw, mix colors and meet and greet characters like Donald Duck. The best rides for toddlers at Epcot are also in the area!
- Kidcot Stations
- World Showcase By Epcot
- Character Spot at Epcot
- Imagination Pavilion At Epcot
- The Seas With Nemo and Friends
- Coral Reef
- Sunshine Seasons
- The Garden Grill
- Living With The Land
- The Land Pavilion at Epcot
- The Test Track By Epcot
- Mission Space in Epcot
Kidcot Stations
Throughout Epcot, in both World Showcase and Future World, there are Kidcot stations where young kids can start decorating Duffy the Bear card stocks for free. They can stop at any station and gain access to this activity for free. Each Kidcot station is especially fun since there is a Disney employee Cast Member from the country the pavilion represents. This allows the youngest members of the family to meet someone from other countries. For example, you can go to the China Pavilion and the Japan Pavilion and ask the Cast Member to write your child’s name on the bear’s back in their language. This way, the kids can see how people from other country’s write and it is so different from the alphabet in English. As you can see, aside from the best ride for toddlers at Epcot, there are so many fun activities!
World Showcase By Epcot
Aside from the best rides for toddlers at Epcot, there are also adventure clues they can follow. For example, little ones can enjoy Epcot’s World Showcase by starting with Agent P’s World Showcase Adventure of Disney’s Phineas and Ferb. To start, get online while you are at Epcot and sign up at agentpwsa.com. On your smartphone, follow the clues that take you and your little ones on missions through the World Showcase Pavilion. To complete each adventure takes about half an hour.
Character Spot at Epcot
If you are planning to bring the kids to Epcot, you will like knowing that classic characters by Disney like Donald Duch and Goofy can be found in Future World, Innoventions West and at the Epcot Character Spot. Each character can be found in front of the most awesome backdrops. This makes great family photos the kids will love posing for. Plus, you can use your camera or the photo service by Disney. Lines can get extremely long because this is an extremely popular spot.
At the World Showcase Pavilions, there are a lot of characters and so if your toddler does not want to stand in line, that is okay too! Keep in mind though, that this is exactly where to find classic characters by Disney such as Daisy Duck.
Imagination Pavilion At Epcot
The 3-D movie Short Film Festival by Disney and Pixar is an eighteen-minute, enjoyable movie that features in-theater effects and three short films.
The interactive Image Works Lab is found at the Journey Into Imagination exit. You get to explore sounds and sights in many different stations. You can also email a free, fun e-postcard to someone else from this area, or email one to yourself as well.
A traditional darker ride, Journey Into Imagination lets you ride past various imagined four-senses scenes in a bright-colored car. For this ride, there are no restrictions for height so the entire family can enjoy this. The smaller children love it although some adults may remain unimpressed. Nonetheless, if you are traveling with very little children, don’t miss this one!
The Seas With Nemo and Friends
The first thing on every family’s must-see in Epcot list is the area called The Seas With Nemo and Friends. This is one of the best rides for toddlers at Epcot, even if it is an exhibit!
Coral Reef
This restaurant features table-service and has one entire wall that looks into the enormity of a giant saltwater aquarium Generally the food is great even if it is a bit pricey, particularly if you are trying to stay within a budget. You can have dinner or lunch here at Coral Reef. The entrance of the restaurant is on the Seas Pavilion’s exterior. It is recommended that you make reservations in advance. Check by the podium of the restaurant earlier in the day in case you find openings at the last minutes, which they sometimes have available.
Turtle Talk with Crush is an animated, interactive film that features the turtle in Finding Nemo called Crush. He does nonstop questions and answers and tells jokes with members of the audience. Educational and entertaining, the younger kids can’t get enough of Crush.o
There is an indoor aquarium that is truly impressive in this area of Epcot. A huge aquarium made of saltwater, real marine life, and oceanography exhibits will thrill the youngest kids in the family. On display are real rescued manatees which kids love to be watched during the manatees’ time to eat.
The clam-mobile Finding Nemo rides can be found here. Try to get on these bikes as soon as you can. This takes you to the pavilion’s main part. This ride is easy and every age group including very young children will enjoy it.
Sunshine Seasons
Inside the Land Pavilion, you will find the quick-serve restaurant called Sunshine Seasons. You won’t need any reservations to get in. In all of Disney World, this is probably one of the best quick-serve restaurants you will ever find. There are free beverage refills and a nice variety of food selections. It gets very busy in Sunshine Seasons so go early for lunch to avoid the long lines at every counter and so you can find seats for yourself.
The Garden Grill
A rotating restaurant within the Land Pavilion, The Garden Grill offers a character dinner featuring Chip and Dale’s Harvest Feast. It is recommended that you make reservations. Find last minute reservations early in the day at the Guest Center of Epcot.
Living With The Land
Living With The Land is a fifteen-minute boat ride indoors that features examples of past agriculture and farming up to the present. This ride is exceedingly enjoyable by garden lovers. Others find it a bit of an educational experience that goes against their purpose for a vacation. No matter how you feel about it, this is one ride you can’t miss because not only can it teach your very young child something, boating through a greenhouse and seeing pumpkins shaped like Mickey Mouse is going to thrill your little one. It is here in the Land Pavilion of Epcot that the filming of Awesome Planet debuts. This film features the dynamic story, diversity, and beauty of Earth.
The Land Pavilion at Epcot
There are two restaurants and three attractions appropriate for kids of all ages. The most popular attraction at Epcot is called Soarin’. This is a flight simulation hang-gliding rides. It is appropriate for everyone who is tall enough and is gentle enough for every member of the family. Rather than a thrill ride, this is more of a headliner. Parents and children can sit beside each other upright with a seat belt. You are then raised to experiences smells, sights and sounds projected on an IMAX large screen. The seats start rising and the flying sensation is felt. Every age group loves this ride, although some folks are sensitive to feeling like they are up high. Senior citizens and preschoolers alike enjoy this ride immensely. It became so popular that another theater was added by Disney so that more riders can join the fun. As soon as the gates open at the park, try and get a ride on this one. Use your Fast Pass reservation if you have one. If not, try again later in the afternoon to avoid the crowds.
The Test Track By Epcot
The Test Track is a great starting ride for kids who want to get on the rides made for bigger kids. Somewhere between a thrill ride and a headliner, The Test Track is part of the ride including lap cars going sixty miles per hour doing banked laps. Each of the cars holds up to 6 riders with three seats in two rows. Many kids get on this attraction as soon as they reach the height requirement. They are seated next to their parents and do just fine after they are told what to expect. It is very popular for little kids and is a great ride. If you don’t have a Fast Pass and just want to ride, you should get on this one as soon as the park opens.
Mission Space in Epcot
With a height requirement of forty-four inches, this ride is well-executed to showcase some of Disney Imagineers’ best work. There are two rides one of which is less intense for kids under six or even older. If some of the kids want to ride one and others prefer the less intense version, get a Rider Switch Pass at the entrance of the ride and let a parent check to see if it is okay for your child to ride on. At the end of the attraction, enjoy many different interactive activities. If your younger children want to skip all the rides, they can go straight to the interactive zone which includes Space Base, a play area with climbing activities they will be sure to enjoy. If you are lining up, cast members can direct you to Space Base from the inside part of the ride. If you can’t find cast members to do it, enter through the gift shop of Mission Space and find the exit of the ride.
Is Innoventions At Epcot Appropriate?
At Epcot, you can witness Glidden presenting Colortopia, a short feature film talking about color’s psychology. At the Color Lab, there are fun kids activities with computer stations where you can blend blue, green or red to create newer colors. An activity area with Spin Spectrums lets you spin disk after disk where you can guess the color results. Color Our World is probably the most fun activity where you can create gorgeous digital scenes when using the magic paintbrush. Also, there is a fun half-hour show at the SpectacuLAB celebrating basic principles of science such as barometric pressure, acceleration, and force. Although this is more of a show than a ride, it is still considered one of the best rides for toddlers at Epcot.
Is The Future World At Epcot Appropriate For Younger Children?
Spaceship Earth is the iconic, focal point at Epcot. This is a huge geodesic silver sphere and very hard to miss. This is the first thing you see when you walk through the Epcot gates. This is part of Epcot’s Future World and is one of the best rides for toddlers at Epcot.
Within the eighteen-store sphere is a slow-moving, gentle ride which travels past each scene that depicts the development of communication between humans. From satellite communications back to telephones, then writing letters and to the origins of cave paintings. Many youngsters love the visual element of the ride, even if they can’t quite understand the history lesson just yet. You can customize animated, short videos at the end of the ride and have it sent to yourself through email.
Since it is the first ride everyone sees the moment they walk through the Epcot gates, it is often busy and crazy in the first few hours of each day. You might want to wait until the afternoon when the lines are not as long.
Aside From The Best Rides For Toddlers At Epcot Are There Kids Meals At Epcot?
Take a break while you are here at Epcot and enjoy the two different character meal selections they offer. Check out the Land Pavilion’s The Garden Grill where they feature Chip and Dale’s Harvest Feast for dinner, lunch, and breakfast.
You and your child will also love eating at the Norway Pavilion’s Akershus Royal Banquet Hall for each meal such as dinner, lunch or breakfast and order the Princess Storybook Dining