There’s a video making the rounds on TikTok right now that perfectly captures everything wrong with what EPCOT has become. Nine full-grown adults, in EPCOT with drinks in hand, shouting the Star-Spangled Banner in front of the American Adventure pavilion as though they were frat boys on a bender—culminating in one of them leaping into the decorative fountain and sloshing around like it’s a Vegas pool party.
@brookekellly this definitely did NOT go as we planned 😭😭 #fyp #foryoupage #florida #disney #disneyworld #epcot #epcotdrinkingaroundtheworld #drinkaroundtheworld ♬ sad SpongeBob music – michael
They were ejected from the park, sure. Likely trespassed. But the damage is already done.
This isn’t a one-off. It’s not even rare anymore. It’s the natural byproduct of Disney’s deliberate decision to transform EPCOT from a place of cultural curiosity into an open-air cocktail crawl. Walt Disney envisioned EPCOT as a community of tomorrow. Disney imagineers later turned that into an educational family space—a place where parents and kids could explore the world together, talk to cast members from faraway nations, and learn something meaningful.
Today? EPCOT is a playground for boisterous adults who think “Drinking Around the World” means acting like toddlers in a tailgate lot.
The concept Art for World Celebration in Epcot – Disney
And let’s be honest—this isn’t just about one viral video. It’s about a pattern of increasingly unhinged behavior. There was the man who scaled the Mexico pavilion pyramid several years ago after a rousing round of drink around the world. Not to mention reports of adult guests weeping, staggering, shouting profanities, and losing control in public.
I once personally witnessed a grown man in the Japan pavilion expose himself and urinate into a bush before wandering off unspotted by security. Another time I heard an adult guest screaming “BIG B**TY B****ES!” across the lagoon like it was Mardi Gras, not a family theme park.
If this all sounds more like Bourbon Street than a Disney park… that’s because it is.
Concept art of the new Pirates of the Caribbean bar in Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom
And now, Disney is going even further—bringing a full bar to the Magic Kingdom. Yes, the once-dry heart of Walt Disney World is becoming just another spot to guzzle overpriced cocktails. It started quietly in 2012 when Be Our Guest began serving wine and beer. Then came more and more restaurants dishing out alcohol for the so-called “Disney Adults.” The floodgates are wide open.
There was once a place on Disney property for such exploits. It was called Pleasure Island, and it was a popular section of the Downtown Disney area that has today been transformed into Disney Springs. It featured clubs, bars, lounges, and restaurants all geared toward and exclusively offered to adults. But Disney shuttered Pleasure Island years ago, seemingly because it conflicted with the company’s family-focused approach.
But now they’ve turned EPCOT into Pleasure Island.
The sign for Pleasure Island at Downtown Disney in Walt Disney World – YouTube, Defunctland
Disney has forgotten who its parks were meant for.
These places were never supposed to be clubs. They weren’t supposed to be for grown adults wandering around in matching T-shirts, loudly chanting pop culture quotes and sipping cocktails before noon. They were for families. For parents and children discovering magic together. EPCOT was a place where you could learn about Morocco, talk to someone from Japan, try real Norwegian food, and walk away a little wiser. That spirit is all but gone.
And for what? A few extra bar tabs? Rowdier nights? Cheaper laughs? EPCOT, and Disney itself, has sold its soul to entitled and infantile adults.
The entrance to Pleasure Island in Walt Disney World – YouTube, Defunctland
And let’s be fair here. This isn’t me saying that adults without kids can’t enjoy Walt Disney World. Far from it. Dual Income No Kids adults can and should go to Disney Parks if it makes them happy. But they should assimilate into the experience and not dominate it. They should remember that while they’re welcome and encouraged to have fun, their fun should remain family friendly and never harm the experience of another. They should ride roller coasters, try some exotic food, gorge themselves on churros, and, yes, have a drink or two in moderation.
But the balance of power in Walt Disney World has shifted, and we’re left with entitled infantile adults who believe that the parks are for them first and foremost. Walt Disney World is for everyone, so we should treat it that way. We should treat it with respect, not just for Walt Disney’s vision and respect for the cast members trying to make a living there. But respect for the family of four who saved for five years to afford their dream vacation only to experience loud rowdy inebriated infantile adult children selfishly turning a once-magical destination into their personal frat party. That family didn’t spend years pinching pennies to watch grown men shout obscenities, splash through fountains, or stumble through pavilions treating the park like their backyard kegger. They came for memories. For magic. For the kind of wonder only Disney used to guarantee.
Spaceship Earth in Epcot at night – Photo Credit: M. Montanaro
It’s time Disney remembered who built its legacy—not influencers chasing viral clips or tipsy thirtysomethings looking to “drink around the world,” but families. Kids with wide eyes. Parents with camcorders. And, yes, respectful adults without kids looking to capture a bit of that childlike wonder in their lives once again. Generations bound by the shared joy of something truly special.
Walt Disney World is supposed to be for everyone—not just those loud enough to hijack it.
Official concept art for the World Celebration Festival Center, eventually changed to Communicore Hall – Disney
Videos like the one this week should be a wake-up call. But they won’t be. Because this is exactly what Disney has encouraged—a slow, deliberate erosion of dignity in exchange for buzz, clicks, and alcohol sales. What was once the most family-friendly vacation destination on Earth is becoming something else entirely.
It’s not magical. It’s mortifying.
How do you feel about Epcot becoming a playground for adults? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
Not worth going to WDW anymore even if you can afford it. Better ways to spend that kind of money.