EPCOTNews

Disney Closes Part of EPCOT’s Canada Pavilion as Construction Expands

Construction continues to pop up around EPCOT, and another section of World Showcase is now dealing with restricted guest access.

Disney has spent considerable time maintaining and refurbishing different areas around the park, including work across several World Showcase pavilions. Germany has recently seen construction activity, while Morocco just came through extensive refurbishment work.

Canada has also received some attention before, but there are now new updates for guests heading into the pavilion.

canada garden in epcot pavilion
Credit: Erica Lauren, Disney Fanatic

Several construction walls have appeared throughout the area, and at least one pathway is currently closed.

Construction Walls Spread Across Canada Pavilion

Guests visiting EPCOT on July 28 found several sets of construction walls throughout the Canada Pavilion.

The walls surround portions of the pavilion's scenic areas, changing how guests can move through and view the space.

Disney has not publicly detailed exactly what crews are doing behind the barriers. However, the project may involve refurbishment of the elaborate rockwork found throughout the pavilion.

That would be a fairly involved undertaking.

Canada relies heavily on landscaping to create its atmosphere. Rock formations, waterfalls, gardens, trees, and winding pathways help separate the pavilion from the main World Showcase promenade.

Some of the plants in these scenic areas are real, and their root systems can make maintenance around the rockwork more complicated.

Whatever the exact scope of the project turns out to be, Disney has blocked enough of the area to affect guests.

Disney Closes Accessible Walkway

One of the most important changes involves the pavilion's wheelchair-accessible walkway, which is currently closed.

Construction walls have interrupted access to the pathway as well as some viewing areas around the pavilion.

However, the closure doesn't mean guests who require an accessible entrance can no longer experience Canada Far and Wide.

Disney is allowing those guests to enter the 360-degree film experience through its exit instead. The temporary change keeps the attraction accessible while the normal route remains unavailable.

Canada Far and Wide itself remains open, so this isn't a complete closure of the pavilion or its primary attraction.

Disney has not announced when the affected walkway will reopen.

EPCOT Continues Work Around World Showcase

The latest Canada construction comes during a period when Disney has been working on several areas around World Showcase.

Germany has recently had construction underway, while Morocco has undergone extensive refurbishment work.

Maintaining World Showcase presents some unique challenges because much of the experience depends on details beyond rides and restaurants.

Disney uses architecture, landscaping, fountains, gardens, pathways, rockwork, and other environmental features to give each pavilion its identity.

Monorail Lime in front of Spaceship Earth
Credit: Justin Smith, Flickr

Those features eventually require repairs and refurbishment, particularly in a park that has operated for more than four decades.

Canada is a good example.

The pavilion has been part of EPCOT since opening day in 1982, and its outdoor environment remains one of its defining characteristics. Hotel du Canada towers above gardens, waterfalls, rock formations, and pathways that lead guests away from the World Showcase promenade.

Maintaining all of those elements can require construction that becomes difficult to hide from guests.

What Guests Can Expect at Canada

For now, guests can still visit the Canada Pavilion and experience Canada Far and Wide.

However, they should expect to encounter construction walls, blocked viewing areas, and the closure of the wheelchair-accessible walkway.

Guests who need an accessible entrance for Canada Far and Wide can use the attraction's exit while the regular route remains closed.

Disney hasn't announced a completion date or fully explained the work taking place behind the barriers.

That leaves some questions about how long the walls will remain.

For now, Canada remains open, but guests won't have access to every part of the pavilion while Disney continues its latest round of EPCOT construction.

Andrew Boardwine

A frequent visitor of Walt Disney World Resort and Universal Orlando Resort, Andrew will likely be found freefalling on Twilight Zone Tower of Terror or enjoying Pirates of the Caribbean. Over at Universal, he'll be taking in the thrills of the Jurassic World Velocicoaster and Revenge of the Mummy

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