Our 2026 Disney World Vacation, Day 3 - Epcot

Our second day in the parks was spent at Epcot.  We got up at 6:30 AM, we got showered and ready, and we were at the bus stop by 7:30 AM.  A bus for Epcot arrived within two minutes, so we were able to jump right on and head over!

We arrived at 7:45 AM, got in line, and then, unfortunately, we got stopped by security for Olivia’s glasses case because we’d forgotten to remove it from her bag.  Again, security was strict, so the line moved slower than we’d liked, but thankfully, there weren’t many people in front of us, and we were done before we knew it.

The first thing we did was run to Norway, so we could get in line for Frozen Ever After.  We wanted to get lightning lanes for other rides, so we knew that we needed to get in line for that first thing if we wanted to ride it at all.  It’s one of the more popular rides in Epcot, so it always has a long wait, and we didn’t want to waste time standing in line.  I did stop to take a couple of pictures on the way in, though!

When we arrived at the line, it hadn’t yet started moving because the park and rides didn’t technically open until 8:30 AM, but once it started moving it was fast.  I think we only waited about 15 minutes, and that was just the perfect amount of time for us to eat our protein bars and for me to take my vitamins.  Then when we got closer to the front of the line, we ended up getting to skip a few parties because they were looking for a party of four and nobody in front of us was a party of four. 

As always, we enjoyed it, and I cheesed extra big for the picture since I knew where it was.  Haha.

The kids wanted donuts for breakfast, so we stopped by the Joffrey’s kiosk by the entrance to World Showcase, and they each picked out a massive donut to eat.  Those things are huge.

We walked to Soarin’ Around the World next.  It’s one of my favorite rides in all of Disney, so that one is always a must.  Most of the time, it doesn’t have a terribly long wait, and sure enough, the wait time was only about 15 minutes when we arrived. 

The building that Soarin’ is in is right next to The Seas with Nemo and Friends, so we walked there next.  We had a lightning lane for it, which was good, because the line was pretty long for that ride.  It’s not one of our favorite rides, but it’s one that we always do, and it’s always worth it if we don’t have to wait long.  Since we had the lightning lane, we walked right on, and by that time, we were all happy to have a little break to sit for a few minutes. 

I was cracking up because Olivia and I snapped a selfie, and since we were under a black light, my teeth were glowing like Ross’s in that episode of Friends when he whitens his teeth.  Hahahaha.

On the way out, we looked at all the aquariums, and there were some manatees eating lettuce for breakfast.  We watched them for a while, and it was so neat to see!

Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana is right next door to The Seas with Nemo and Friends so we walked there next.  We spent quite a bit of time in there on our last trip since it was the first time we’d been able to see it, but this time, we breezed through, only stopping to do our very favorite things.  Brian and the kids love to walk through the water walkway… the water senses when someone approaches, and it parts and stops long enough for you to walk through, and then it starts coming back out again after you walk through.  That whole area is so interactive!

 

We also got a picture in front of Te Fiti, and we spent a few minutes playing with some of the other water features before exiting.

I wanted to stop and take photos just outside the Figment ride because we’d never taken photos there before, and although it was really windy, we got some pretty good ones!  There were a couple (that I didn’t post here) where my hair was completely covering my entire face.  Haha.

There’s also a great photo opportunity in front of the Epcot ball, so we got in line there next, and thankfully, it went pretty quickly.  The line is always long at that particular spot, and the kids always complain about waiting there, but I’m so glad we did because the pictures turned out great!

We decided to walk back to World Showcase (the area with all the different countries) and tour around some of the countries after that.  Every time we’ve been, we’ve always walked in and turned left to make our way around the loop, but by the time we get all the way around, we don’t have much time to browse the countries on the right side, so this year, we walked in and turned right at the loop.

Immediately on the right in World Showcase, there is another PhotoPass opportunity, and I immediately halted the whole family to wait in line for it because it was the most perfectly picturesque spot.  And they had the best props!!  Jacob and Olivia didn’t want to stop and take pictures yet again, so we told them to go sit on the bench right across from the photo spot while we waited for our turn, and they both jokingly scowled for the picture.  Hahahaha. 

We only had to wait, probably, 2-3 minutes before it was our turn, and I’m soooo glad that I made the kids wait because look at those photos!!  They are some of my favorites from the entire trip!!  And apparently, it’s the only photo spot that has the dandelion in all of Disney World.  The more you know!!

The first country on the right side of the loop in World Showcase is Canada, so we toured around there for a few minutes.  It’s not very big, but there is a very lovely garden with a waterfall, and we also wanted to take pictures in the telephone booth.  They had one gift shop, so we walked around that next, and we took a water break while we were in the shop.  (We carry our own water bottles everywhere.)

Next up, was England, the land of my ancestors.  We have walked around in England in previous trips, but we hadn’t been in many of the shops, so we meandered through those next, taking in all the sights.  England has tons of Mary Poppins and Winnie the Pooh merch, so if you’re ever looking for that specifically, England is the place for you! 

They also had a massive book of last names that are found in England, and I found my maiden name in the book.  There is a village in Somerset, England that shares my maiden name, so I knew my name would be in there.  ;o)

Brian and Jacob sat down on a bench in one of the gardens in England to rest while Olivia and I went inside the Twinings Tea shop, and they had some good stuff in there.  They also had a bunch of English treats and candies.

As we were leaving England, Alice from Alice in Wonderland was walking in, so she stopped and chatted with us and took pictures with the kids.  Alice is one of the autographs that they do not have in their books, but we forgot to pull out the books and ask.  A missed opportunity!

We walked through the English tea garden on the way out, and I always think it’s so cool to see how tea grows.  I love a cup of hot tea!

We were walking along World Showcase after that, and I spotted Belle in her street clothes!!!!  We’ve seen and met her numerous times on our trips to Disney World, but she is always in her yellow ball gown.  I had never seen her in her street clothes, but I was so excited that I stopped to take a picture of her while she was talking to some other little kids.  I would have loved to meet her since she’s my favorite princess, but the line was soooo long. 

We had a lunch reservation in Japan, so we headed that way next.  It was still too early to go to the restaurant, so we decided to explore the country for a bit while we waited.  We had never explored in there before, and it ended up being one of Olivia’s favorite things that we did on the whole trip. 

The gift shop in Japan is MASSIVE.  They have everything from Pokemon stuff to jewelry to paper fans to kimonos to chopsticks to beauty items to Japanese candies and snacks to other random other trinkets and so much more… Olivia was in heaven. 

There were so many items that she wanted to purchase with her own money so we told her to wait until after lunch so that way she could have some time to think about which items she truly wanted. 

We had a 12 PM reservation at Tepon Edo and we were all very excited about it.  The kids had never had Japanese food, nor had they ever been anywhere where they cook in front of you, so I was eager to see how it was all going to go. 

As with any community dining experience, they seated us at a table with one other family and two other people.  Our server brought out thick sanitizing cloths for all of us to wash our hands, and that made me so happy because that’s always the first thing I do when we sit down at a restaurant.  I am a self-proclaimed germaphobe, so I appreciate that in the Japanese culture they value cleanliness and good hygiene.  I worked for a worldwide Japanese business for 13 years prior to leaving the corporate world to stay home with the kids, and I think that working there is partially what shaped my habits.

For the meal, we all selected chicken for the entrée, and they provided rice, veggies, and noodles and it was all soooo delicious.  We also started out with a salad with an incredible ginger dressing and I was in heaven.  They gave everyone chopsticks and then offered forks to anyone who wanted one, but I was so proud of the kids because they ended up eating with their chopsticks the whole time!  They’d never used them before, so they had some training chopsticks, and they did great!  I have known how to use chopsticks for years, but it had been a while since I’d used them, so I was a little rusty, but it all came back to me!

Our chef was awesome and, of course, he did lots of tricks and fun things while cooking the food, and the kids loved it.  We all had a great time, and I have a feeling we’ll be seeking out a local hibachi restaurant to try here at home very soon.

We went back into the massive souvenir shop after we were done eating, and Olivia decided to spend her money on a pair of cherry blossom earrings, a paper fan, and a pair of reusable chopsticks to use at home.  I loved that she enjoyed the culture so much, and that she wanted to bring a little piece of it home.  She has been eating with those chopsticks nonstop, too!

When we checked out, the Disney cast member who was from Japan, asked Olivia if she wanted her to write Olivia’s name on her fan in Japanese, and Olivia was excited about that!  We had a get a picture of her with it by the koi pond on our way out.

We made our way to Test Track for our lightning lane next, but first, more pictures with Sulley because I found him again!!

I was excited to ride Test Track since I’d skipped it in 2024 due to my dizziness, and it was so fun, as always.  The ride goes super-fast, and my hair is always all over the place for that one, so I usually pull it up for that ride.  I had forgotten to bring a hair tie, so I held it up with my hands for some of the ride, and the picture happened to snap as I had my hands holding my hair.  Whoops.  Haha. 

And then another set of photos with the Epcot Ball.  ;o) 

Brian had grabbed a lightning lane for Soarin’ Around the World right after that, which was convenient since it’s not too far from Test Track.  Ironically, we ended up having our longest wait of the entire trip for our Test Track lightning lane.  We don’t know what was going on, but Brian had suspected that they had a couple of the hangers closed for maintenance, and we ended up waiting more than 30 minutes.  In the scheme of things, that’s not long at all, but considering we had a lightning lane and usually wait 0-15 minutes with one of those, 30 minutes was a long time.  And I’m pretty sure we waited even longer than that, but I don’t remember exactly because we didn’t track it.

Brian had a lightning lane for Guardians of the Galaxy after that, so he ran over there while the kids and I did some shopping at the massive souvenir store in Epcot.  Olivia wanted to put on her cherry blossom earrings that she’d purchased, so I held her things while she did that.  Then, I found the cutest frame for our souvenir frame wall and we left the store.

The kids and I went back outside to rest, and to try to watch Celebracion Encanto.  There were no seats under the pavilion, so we sat in some seats behind the stage and listened to part of it while resting and charging our phones. 

The weather that day started out chilly and then got warmer, but it alternated between being sunny and cloudy all day, and we even got a couple of very brief rain showers that were very light and quick.  Oh, and it was also pretty breezy again as you can see from my hair in some of the pictures.  Haha.  During the time we waited for Brian, it looked like rain was threatening, but thankfully, it stayed dry.

When Brian was done, we walked to Journey Into Imagination with Figment because we had a lightning lane, and I was rolling my eyes the whole way because I hate that ride.  Lol.  I would totally skip it altogether, but the kids love it for some reason.

After we were done there, the kids wanted a snack, and our favorite place to go for snacks is always France!  Olivia has been studying French on Duolingo, and she had been talking for weeks about ordering in French when we got our snacks at the boulangerie patisserie, and she was a little nervous, but she ended up doing it!  I was so proud of her! 

She and Jacob both got macarons (one of their favorite things) and Brian and I shared a Napoleon, which is puff pastry layered with cream.  It was delicious.

We had a lightning lane for Ratatouille, so we walked around the corner and rode that after we were done with our snacks, and we all loved it as we always do.  It’s such a cute ride.

We spent the rest of the afternoon walking through World Showcase, and somewhere along the way, I saw an Instagram comedian who I’ve been following for years.  His name is TJ Therrien and he does hilarious Reels about birth order that are SPOT ON.  He always shows various situations from the perspectives of each kid – oldest, middle, and little – and it could not be more accurate for my family.  I am one of three kids, so I send his Reels to my brothers sometimes.  That guy is so hilarious. 

I thought about going up to say hi to him, but he was with his family, so I didn’t want to bother him.  I was totally fangirling, though.  It’s always cool to see somebody you follow on social media “in the wild.”  Haha.

By the time we made it all the way back around to Mexico, we were tired, so we went inside to ride Gran Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros while we waited for our dinner reservation at San Angel Inn.  By the time we got off the ride, it was time to check in, and we ended up getting a table right by the water, which was lovely. 

Brian and I had a round of margs and we had chips and salsa and queso plus entrees.  The kids got dessert there, but Brian and I were too full, so we shared a third margarita for our dessert instead.  ;o)

We had a lightning lane for Spaceship Earth after dinner, and I thought I was going to fall asleep in there.  I was soooo full from dinner and so tired by that point and that ride is dark, so I could have probably passed out if it was just a little longer.  Haha. 

One other thing to note – the ride takes your picture on the way in and then inserts it in the little storyline on the computer in your car, but my picture was all cracked and messed up and we thought it was hilarious.  I’m pretty sure that very same thing happened to me on our trip in 2024.

We walked back to World Showcase to find a spot for the fireworks after that.  The show starts at 9:00 PM, so we were in our spot by 8:15 PM, (I think??).  We always sit just at the entrance of World Showcase on the sidewalk, and it’s never too crowded, and you have the perfect view.  While we waited for the show to start, I left Brian and the kids to take a bathroom break, and the show started shortly after I got back.  By the time the show started, there was still room in that area, so note to my future self – there’s no need to get to that spot super early!!

The show is called Luminous: The Symphony of Us, and it’s a combination of water and fireworks set to Disney music.  It was fantastic and it made me tear up a couple of times.

After the fireworks were over, we made a beeline for the exit, and we were on the bus by 9:30 PM. 

When we got back to our hotel, housekeeping had come, and they had left the most fun surprise for the kids.  Our room was a tornado when we left, but housekeeping had come and made the beds and arranged all of Olivia’s stuffies on the bed, and they’d put the Disney stuffies in the middle with all the other stuffies surrounding them.  They also turned the Disney music video channel on the TV so it was like the stuffies were having a dance party.  Lol.  We all wish we could have that channel at our house because it’s soooo good.  Hahahaha.

The kids thought the whole thing was hilarious, though.  We don’t usually have housekeeping come to our room when we travel, but we’d forgotten to put the sign on the door telling them to skip our room, and I have a feeling the kids are never going to let us skip housekeeping again.  That was one of the highlights of their whole trip.  Haha!!

After that, both kids got showered, Brian and I restocked everything for the park the next day, and we all went to bed around 10:30 PM.

And just in case you want to see our entire day summarized, here it is…

 

Summary:

Hours spent in park – 13.75 (7:45 AM – 9:30 PM)

Rides/Attractions – 11

Shows watched – 1

Characters met – 1

Autographs obtained – 0

Disney Photo Pass pictures and videos taken – 35

Steps taken – 19,622

Miles walked – 8.76

Weather – Party cloudy, a few sprinkles, windy, high of 81 degrees, low of 65 degrees

 

Schedule:

 Wake at 6:30 AM

Walk to bus stop at 7:30 AM

Bus at 7:32 AM

Arrive 7:45 AM

Frozen Ever After (everyone)

Joffrey’s Kiosk for donuts (everyone)

Soarin’ Around the World (everyone)

LL – The Seas with Nemo and Friends (everyone)

Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana (everyone)

PhotoPass Pictures Outside Figment Ride (everyone)

PhotoPass Pictures with the Epcot Ball (everyone)

PhotoPass Pictures at Entrance of World Showcase (everyone)

Shopping/browsing in Canada (everyone)

Shopping/browsing in England (everyone)

Met Alice from Alice in Wonderland (everyone)

Shopping/browsing in Japan (everyone)

Reservation – Tepon Edo for lunch (everyone)

Shopping/browsing in Japan (everyone)

LL – Test Track (everyone)

PhotoPass Pictures with the Epcot Ball (everyone)

LL – Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (Brian)

Souvenir shopping and Celebracion Encanto (Lindsay, Jacob, Olivia)

LL – Journey Into Imagination with Figment (everyone)

Snacks at Les Halles Boulangerie & Patisserie (everyone)

LL – Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure (everyone)

Walk around the rest of World Showcase (everyone)

Gran Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros (everyone)

Reservation – San Angel Inn for dinner (everyone)

LL – Spaceship Earth (everyone)

Luminous: The Symphony of Us (everyone)

Left park at 9:30 PM (everyone)