Disney World Spaceship Earth is perhaps the second most recognized symbol of Walt Disney World. Spaceship Earth is to EPCOT as Cinderella’s Castle is to Magic Kingdom. At 180 feet high the iconic Spaceship Earth ride can be seen for miles around. It certainly helps to keep you orientated when you are exploring this huge Disney World park.
But what is actually inside the geodesic dome? And what will you find if you journey inside Spaceship Earth? How was it designed? And when is the best time to travel on Spaceship Earth? Take a look at one of Disney World most popular rides and climb aboard Spaceship Earth.
What Is Inside Disney World’s Epcot Spaceship Earth?
Epcot Spaceship Earth is more than just an iconic structure – it houses one of Disney World most popular and beloved rides. This 13 minute ride takes Disney guests on a journey through time from the prehistoric age to the present day. It explores how human communication has helped to make advancements throughout the ages.
Photo by armadillo444
Sound a bit like a history lesson? Well I wish my history lessons had been this interesting! Disney uses animatronics, music and a commentary narrated by Dame Judy Dench to tell the story in a way which will appeal to all ages.
Each guest boards their own time machine for their journey through the ages. It can get dark in parts so beware if you have very small children who are likely to be sensitive to this.
How To Avoid The Lines at Disney Spaceship Earth
Photo by holl7510
Disney’s Spaceship Earth is a very popular ride. It is located at the entrance to the park and it is the first ride that EPCOT guests will see when they arrive. Most likely in the morning they will also see a very long line!
Human nature tends to make people follow a crowd. But you don’t have to be one of those people. Usually the morning is the worst time to ride on Spaceship Earth – I have seen waits at times of over 90 minutes.
This Epcot attraction does now offer a Fast Pass+ option. In my experience this has tended to make the lines a little longer as guests who have not visited the part before will get a Fast Pass whereas before they may have not experienced this attraction. Guests tend to arrive and head straight for the Spaceship Earth attraction. If you arrive in the morning and the line is long you may just want to walk on by for a while and visit some of the other EPCOT attractions.
But there is a simple way to avoid the lines at all but the most busy times in the park. Ride in late afternoon and early evening when the line may be so short that you can simply get onto the ride with no wait at all. The exception to this seems to be weekends after 4pm when the locals arrive and head straight for Spaceship Earth!
What Is The Story of Spaceship Earth?
The story of this dark Disney ride is the how advances in communication has shaped our history and ultimately our destiny. So we start in prehistoric times and journey to the top of the dome to the scenes of the present day. On the way we visit ancient Rome and Greece,The Dark Ages, Renaissance Italy, The Industrial Revolution to name just a few.
Spaceship Earth Gets An Update
Some scenes were changed following the 2007 renovation. One of my favorites is the new scenes which show the history of computer technology. It shows a man working in a garage in the early 70s. Who do you think that figure is supposed to be?
Of course the world moves on very quickly now and 2007 is a long time ago in terms of computer technology. The 2007 renovation of Spaceship Earth dealt with this by looking at the start of the computer age, rather than trying to keep up with the rapidly changing technology of today.
The interactive part of the ride could be a lot better. When you have experienced this once it really doesn’t have that much appeal any more, but younger kids seem to still like it!
Disney World Spaceship Earth is one of those must experience attractions. When you visit Epcot make sure you spend some time in Spaceship Earth – one of the most iconic Disney World rides.
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Alison Meacham is the founder of EverythingMouse Disney Blog. For over 15 years she has shared her love of Disney Parks, Disney Cruises and Universal Orlando. In over 30 years of Disney Travel she has spent countless months in Disney Parks and has sailed on over 45 cruises. A British native and now a United States resident she splits her time between California, Florida and the UK. And spends a serious amount of time sailing the seven seas. She helps over 200,000 people per month follow their Disney travel dreams.