World Celebration has had a rocky rollout at Epcot, from broken ground lights to Communicore Hall’s lackluster reception. And while Disney has apparently finished repairs on its subterranean lighting fixtures, new illumination issues have arisen along with some wear and tear that shouldn’t be possible for an area that just turned a year old.
The concept Art for World Celebration in Epcot – Disney
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The underground lighting systems in Epcot’s World Celebration neighborhood have been something of a punchline among online Disney communities. The lights stopped working immediately after the new area opened to guests in December 2023. It took Disney a full year to restore their functionality, and now the center of Epcot lights up at night once more.
But an apparent glitch in the area’s lighting recently made above ground lights go haywire, with trees that appeared to be crackling with lightning.
Is there a reason why basic-level Epcot lighting would be so difficult for a company of these resources?
It honestly is just utterly perplexing. pic.twitter.com/p14w2Eg3Uk
— Wallin Ballin (@wallin_ballin) December 14, 2024
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As you can see in the video above, lights in the trees around World Celebration started to flash on and off, creating a strobe effect. It certainly wasn’t part of the show, as some have surmised. The flashes of light weren’t timed with area’s background music.
Of course, it didn’t take long for Disney fans to start cracking jokes at the company’s expense.
Come on out to rave with Walt pic.twitter.com/W5LRVPmwhb
— Joshua Gerard (@Trainplane3) December 14, 2024
“Come on out to rave with Walt,” X user Joshua Gerard said on December 14, showing a video of the flashing lights reflected off the Walt Disney statue at Dreamer’s Point. In the video, the light columns on either side of the company founder were flashing on and off as well, creating a strobe effect around the area that differed from the one sparking out from the trees.
But the woes of World Celebration aren’t limited to the night. Daytime travelers making their way toward World Showcase this week had to alter their approach due to several roped off areas in the walkway. These ropes were ensuring that guests didn’t walk on a series of cracked tiles in the pavement that need to be repaired.
A walkway in #Epcot #WorldCelebration is partially roped off, presumably due to cracks in pavement that’s only been accessible to the public for a year. pic.twitter.com/98fLZsrBgi
— That Park Place (@TPPNewsNetwork) December 16, 2024
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Again, one has to wonder how huge cracks can form in concrete walkways after only a year of foot traffic. What’s more, it’s not like Central Florida experiences ice storms, snow, and freezing temperatures that would lead to such quick damage.
The area also seems to be skippable for many, who pass through without a second glance. For instance, the Dreamer’s Point statue of Walt Disney is typically sitting there utterly abandoned, with even Disney’s PhotoPass photographers nowhere in sight. That Park Place has dubbed this phenomenon #LonelyWalt.
The Walt Disney Statue at Dreamer’s Point, dreaming all alone with no guests around – Photo Credit: M. Montanaro
This refurbishment of Epcot’s Future World cost millions and took in excess of five whole years to complete. With so much time and money spent, one has to wonder why the area is in such poor condition and who’s to blame for the state of it one year in.
What do you think about World Celebration? Are you surprised to see the Epcot ground lights return? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
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Do I really need to list the possible things that could explain this? Disney is a corporation and little things like quality–of parts and labor–come in a distant second to cutting costs. Disney is also a woke corporation so it wouldn’t surprise me if the supervisors in charge of electrics were Didn’t Earn It hires who have no qualifications and the laborers are illegals being used as slave labor.