Disney ParksSyndication
Iconic Ride Closes Permanently: Update Given Regarding EPCOT Park
Walt Disney World Resort continues to evolve, and new information has emerged regarding the major alteration currently taking place at EPCOT.
The second Disney park to open at the Walt Disney World Resort, EPCOT has been entertaining guests for over 42 years. Its icon is the huge Spaceship Earth, and the park melds education, innovation, and imagination. It is a beloved component of the Central Florida resort.
Over the past few years, though, EPCOT has undergone a major transformation. What once was Future World is now three neighborhoods: World Celebration, World Discovery, and World Nature. The trio joins the already existing World Showcase.
World Celebration was the most recent area to open after many, many years of refurbishment. The new CommuniCore Plaza and CommuniCore Hall act as hubs for the theme park’s festivals, which run throughout the year. Next up for EPCOT is the wildly popular International Food & Wine Festival.
Large crowds are expected at Disney World this summer, even if recent footage indicates the opposite. Those heading out to EPCOT to enjoy the delights of the Food and Wine Festival this year will have to experience the park without one major attraction.
The current version of Test Track closed permanently at Disney World on June 16, 2024. The popular ride’s retheme was announced last September at the Destination D23 event at Disney’s Contemporary Resort.
“Test Track—one of the most thrilling attractions at EPCOT—will be reimagined,” D23 posted at the time. Imagineers and the team at Chevrolet are reaching back into history for inspiration—including the original World of Motion attraction from EPCOT’s early days—and bringing that spirit of optimism to the next evolution of Test Track.
New information has now come to light regarding this EPCOT closure, as Disney has filed a new permit for the Test Track refurbishment.
“The permit is assigned to long-time Disney vendor Jon Richards Company FL, Inc., who worked with Disney on Cars Land at Disneyland, Tokyo Disney Sea, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom,” writes WDW Magic. The permit is for the installation of set elements, which, of course, could mean anything.
The reimagined Test Track has no current planned reopening date, so guests visiting the parks in the near future will have to do without the ride.
They will also have to do without Peter Pan’s Flight over at Magic Kingdom Park, as the attraction is currently undergoing refurbishment until late August. Again, the permit filed for the Fantasyland ride was for installing set elements, with some suggesting that Disney could now remove the controversial camp scene depicting Native people.
If Disney does reimagine Peter Pan’s Flight this way, it will no doubt ignite new discourse over the so-called “woke agenda” pursued by the House of Mouse. It was a defiance of conservative actions in the Sunshine State, namely Governor Ron DeSantis’ signing of the “Don’t Say Gay” bill in 2022, that caused Disney naysayers to laser focus on the company and its ongoing evolution.
The discourse reached a fever pitch with the transformation of Splash Mountain into Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. Following the 2020 announcement of its permanent closure, allegations of Disney being too politically correct and catering solely to the “woke” Left have been batted around.
It seems that Test Track’s retheming will be a lot less divisive than Splash Mountain’s, but as with any evolution or Disney park update, questions and concerns will undoubtedly be raised.
Regarding current alterations to the Walt Disney World Resort, the retheme of Test Track is arguably a smaller component of the bigger picture.
Related: Guest Jumps Into Magic Kingdom River at Disney World, Swims Near Boats
At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Walt Disney Imagineering is currently conceptualizing the transformation of DinoLand, U.S.A., into the Tropical Americas. While over at Magic Kingdom, permits have been filed for the colloquially called “Beyond Big Thunder” project.
More details, including possible start dates for the rethemed locations–and maybe even the opening timeframe from Test Track–will likely be shared at this year’s D23 event, which takes place on August 9, 10, and 11 in Anaheim, Southern California.
What do you think Test Track will be like when it reopens? Are you looking forward to new expansions at Walt Disney World? Let us know in the comments down below!
