Worried about long waits for Epcot attractions?
Having well-organized touring plans that make good use of FastPasses is key to avoiding long line waits during your Disney World trip, including at Epcot.
Below, find Epcot touring plans, along with FastPass+ suggestions to make sure you’re maximizing your time.
Let’s take a look…
Important Update:
Disney Genie to replace FastPass & FastPass+
FastPass+ (at Walt Disney World) and FastPass (at Disneyland) have been discontinued. A new system, called Disney Genie (free) and Disney Genie+ (pay-to-use) will debut later this year at both parks.
- Disney Genie –> Complimentary in-app service that helps you plan your day.
- Disney Genie+ –> Basically, it is a paid FastPass that costs $15 per ticket, per day (Walt Disney World) & $20 per ticket, per day (Disneyland). This service replaces the old FastPass service and allows you to choose the next available time to arrive at a variety of attractions. It works very similar to MaxPass at Disneyland.
- Lightning Lane –> New name for FastPass line. You use this with Genie+.
- Lightning Lane Select Experiences –> The most high-demand attractions are not available in Genie+; however, you can select up to 2 of these high-demand attractions per day to ride via an individual Lightning Lane selection. These selections will cost you extra (they aren’t included with the price of Genie+), and the prices are dynamic, meaning they will vary based upon the time of the year and attraction.
- Read more about the new Disney Genie system.
FastPass+ basics
New to making FastPass+ reservations? Check out how to use FastPass+ at Disney World to get you started.
Epcot FastPass+ options and priorities
FastPass+ attractions are split into tiers at Epcot.
You can pick one from Tier 1 and two from Tier 2. You can pick 3 things from Tier 2 as an alternative.
Here are the FastPass+ options at Epcot.
| Tier | Top priority | Second priority (possible bonus FP+ options) |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 (you can choose 1 item from this level) |
Frozen Ever After Test Track Soarin’ |
Epcot Forever |
| Tier 2 (you can choose 2 from this level) |
Spaceship Earth Turtle Talk with Crush |
Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival Journey into Imagination with Figment The Seas with Nemo & Friends Mission: Space Living with the Land |
For more information on FastPass+ options and strategies at Epcot, check out our Guide for FastPass+ at Epcot.
FastPass+ suggestions to save to your phone
Want to take these FastPass+ suggestions with you? Press the image below from your phone to save to your camera roll.
What times should you make reservations?
You should plan to ride several things in the first couple of hours without FastPass+, make use of FastPass+ for late morning/early afternoon, and then get additional FastPass+ reservations for later in the day, if needed.
We’ve included suggested times for FP+ reservations in the Epcot touring plans below.
Arrive before park opening
To make the best use of your time, arrive about 45 minutes before park opening.
Epcot usually allows people in a little before the official opening time. Guests are stopped in front of Spaceship Earth until the park opens.
Between the time you enter and the time the park opens, you can usually get PhotoPass pics taken and watch the Jammitors perform.
Single rider option
Test Track also has a single rider option. Here’s how single rider lines work.
Epcot touring plans
We like to organize touring plans by hour because minute-by-minute touring plans can make you feel like you’re running from place to place without any flexibility, but grouping them by hour can give you some sense of timing as you plan.
Here are some example Epcot touring plans.
Epcot general touring plan using Test Track Single Rider Line
Get FP+ reservations ahead of time for Soarin’ or Frozen Ever After, Spaceship Earth, and Turtle Talk with Crush
Arrive at least 45 minutes before park opening.
First hour:
- 1. Soarin’ (40″ height req.) or Frozen Ever After (whichever one you don’t have a FP+ for)
- 2. Test Track in the single rider line (40″ height req.)
Second hour:
- 3. Use FP+ to ride Spaceship Earth (suggested FP+ time: 9:30-10:30)
- 4. The Seas with Nemo and Friends
- 5. Use FP+ at Turtle Talk with Crush (suggested FP+ time 10:30-11:30)
Third hour:
- 6. Living with the Land
- Lunch (we recommend you dine at Sunshine Seasons for convenience)
Rest of the day:
- Note: skip whichever FP+ attraction below you do not have a FP+ for.
- 7. Use FP+ for Soarin’ (40″ height req., suggested FP+ return time 12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.). If you do not have a FP+ for Soarin, skip it and continue on to the next attraction below.
- 8. Journey Into Imagination with Figment
- 9. Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival
- 10. Mission: Space (40″ height req.)
- 11. Walt Disney Imagineering Presents the Epcot Experience
- 11. Gran Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros
- 12. Use FP+ for Frozen Ever After (suggested FP+ return time: afternoon). If you do not have a FP+ for Frozen Ever After, skip it and continue on to the next attraction below.
- 12. Explore the World Showcase
- 13. Illuminations (at night) (new nighttime show “Epcot Forever” starts October 1, 2019)
Click image to open full-sized PDF.
General Epcot touring plan without using Test Track Single Rider Line
Just have 1 day at Epcot and don’t want to use the single rider line at Test Track? To avoid long waits, you’ll want to pick 2 of the three headliners (Test Track, Soarin’, Frozen Ever After), get a FP+ for one of them, and ride the other at park opening.
Get FP+ reservations ahead of time for a headliner (Soarin’ 40″ height req., Test Track 40″ height req., or Frozen Ever After), Spaceship Earth, and Turtle Talk with Crush
Arrive at least 45 minutes before park opening.
First hour:
- 1. Do a headliner you did not get a FP+ for
- 2. Use FP+ to ride Spaceship Earth (suggested FP+ time: 9:15-10:15)
Second hour:
- 3. The Seas with Nemo and Friends
- 4. Explore The Seas pavilion
- 5. Use FP+ at Turtle Talk with Crush (suggested FP+ time: 10:30-11:30)
Third hour:
- 6. Living with the Land
- Lunch (we recommend you dine at Sunshine Seasons for convenience)
- 7. Use FP+ for other headliner (suggested FP+ time: 11:30-12:30)
Rest of the day:
- 8. Journey Into Imagination with Figment
- 9. Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival
- 10. Mission: Space (40″ height req.)
- 11. Walt Disney Imagineering Presents the Epcot Experience
- 12. Gran Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros
- 13. Explore the World Showcase
- 14. Illuminations (at night) (new nighttime show “Epcot Forever” starts October 1, 2019)
Click image to open full-sized PDF.
Epcot touring plan with little ones under 40″ tall
Get FP+ reservations ahead of time for Frozen Ever After, Spaceship Earth, and Turtle Talk with Crush
2 of the main attractions here – Soarin’ and Test Track – both have 40″ height requirements but they’re fairly mild and non-scary (as long as your child can handle a car traveling at a high speed for a lap around the track on Test Track). If your child is at least 40″, use the non-single rider touring plan above, but maybe skip Mission: Space which has a height requirement of 40″ and could scare some kids.
If your child is under 40″, follow a touring plan like the one below.
Arrive at least 45 minutes before park opening.
First hour:
- 1. Pick some favorite characters to meet (such as Anna/Elsa, Joy/Sadness, Ralph/Vanellope, etc. Use the My Disney Experience App for the most up-to-date locations)
- 2. The Seas with Nemo and Friends
Second hour:
- 3. Explore The Seas pavilion
- 4. Use FP+ at Turtle Talk with Crush (suggested FP+ time 10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.)
- 5. Living with the Land
Third hour:
- Lunch at Sunshine Seasons
- 6. Journey Into Imagination with Figment
Rest of the day:
- 7. Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival
- 8. Use FP+ to ride Spaceship Earth (suggested FP+ time: early afternoon)
- 9. Gran Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros
- 10. Use FP+ to ride Frozen Ever After (suggested FP+ time: early afternoon)
- 11. Explore the World Showcase
- 22. Illuminations (at night) (new nighttime show “Epcot Forever” starts October 1, 2019)
Click image to open full-sized PDF.
Video: how to do all 3 Epcot headliners with little waits
What about Rider Switch (sometimes called Child Swap)?
The Rider Switch system allows parents to take turns riding things that little ones can’t/won’t ride.
Please read our Rider Switch article so you can see how to use it and maximize your FastPass+ reservations.
Want to show up late or park hop?
If you want to arrive to Epcot a bit later in the day but still want to do nearly every attraction, just make sure you have a FastPass+ reservation for either Frozen Ever After or Soarin’, and then ride Test Track in the single rider line.
Looking for touring plans & FastPass+ suggestions for the other Disney World theme parks?
- Animal Kingdom touring plans & FastPass+ suggestions
- Magic Kingdom touring plans & FastPass+ suggestions
- Hollywood Studios touring plans & FastPass+ suggestions
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Hopefully this info will help you come up with a plan for your Epcot day.
What questions do you have? Please share them in the comments.