Who needs the hassle of a passport and jet lag when you can travel the world right here at Walt Disney World®? World Showcase, one of two themed sections of Epcot, comprises 11 countries arranged around a lagoon. Watch belly dancing in Morocco, eat pizza in Italy and buy personally engraved bottles of perfume in France, before settling down to watch fireworks about world peace and harmony. Disney was right: it truly is a small world after all.
Seasoned travelers may scoff at the ersatz quality of it all, but so what? The idea here is to prompt you to hop on a plane and explore the real thing; in the meantime, this is a fun way to show kids a little something about the world.
The best way to experience the World Showcase is to simply wander as the mood moves you, poking through stores and restaurants, and catching what amounts to Bureau of Tourism promotional films and gentle rides through some of the countries. Highlights include the American Adventure in the USA pavilion, a 30-minute dash through US history complete with stirring music, a huge screen and 35 audio-animatronic figures; traveling through Mexico with Donald Duck and his pals in Gran Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros; and the immensely popular Frozen Ever After boat ride in Norway.
The featured countries from left to right around the water are Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, USA ("The American Adventure"), Japan, Morocco, France, the UK and Canada.
