Why the "Walt the Dreamer" statue arrival at EPCOT represents a big update to the park
By Brian Miller
December 5th is a big day for Disney World and EPCOT. It will not only continue to mark the Disney 100th Celebration, but also the birthday of the company's founding father. Walt Disney.
December 5th makes a lot of sense for the big reveal of the statue because of it being Disney's birthday but there is a bigger reason Disney guests should e applauding. The unveiling is the next big step toward construction completion.
The statue will look toward World Showcase as part of the new World Celebration Gardens. Disney released a short video of the final placement of the statue.
It isn't clear if the fountains that will be present in the gardens will also be operating on the 5th but it appears from guest videos on the monorail that much of the garden is ready to be opened.
In October, EPCOT opened Moana: Journey of Water which has been under construction for quite a while. That opened to well-received reviews and this garden should achieve the same level of enjoyment.
Disney has been coy regarding the future openings around World Celebration.
What will be interesting is how busy this area will be once it is open and then how long before crowds start to dwindle and return to normal in the area. The statue and the fountains are the big draw in the gardens but like everything new, it will be a big attraction early on. It will also be interesting how they handle the picture taking as the line should be quite long for the first several months.
Regardless, the fact that the statue will be unveiled in less than a week is pretty great news as it relates to the massive construction project that has dotted the EPCOT landscape for years.