Disney Just Quietly Solved Its Biggest Park Problem
As much as people talk about Disney theme parks, we sometimes miss the obvious.
A recent example of this blind spot occurred during EPCOT’s reimagining.
Disney just quietly solved its biggest park problem…and nobody noticed.
Changing Demographics
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![Vacation](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/VacationcreenVacationhot-2024-03-17-at-2.20.26 PM.png)
Photo: Disney
Let’s start with an optimistic reminder that you will likely live a long life.
In 1980, the average American’s lifespan was 73.7 years. By 2000, that number had increased by four years.
![Disney balloons](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Disney-balloons-vacation.jpg)
![Disney balloons](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Disney-balloons-vacation.jpg)
Photo: Disney
Today, the average American lives to be 79.25, and Macrotrends suggests we’ll be at 85 by 2064.
Based on my understanding of science-fiction and horror movies, either a giant asteroid or vampires could wipe us all out, though.
![Vacation](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/VacationcreenVacationhot-2024-03-17-at-2.20.16 PM.png)
![Vacation](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/VacationcreenVacationhot-2024-03-17-at-2.20.16 PM.png)
Photo: Disney
Presuming some plucky protagonist saves humanity, most of us will live to be octogenarians.
By then, AI medical robots will probably treat our diseases the instant they occur, leaving us to play Pokemon well into our 80s.
![stocks](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Best-performing-stocks.jpeg.webp)
![stocks](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Best-performing-stocks.jpeg.webp)
Photo: Bank rate
There’s a lot of science to what I just said, but let’s stick with the basics.
Have you ever visited a theme park with someone in their 80s?
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Grandparents-in-Disney.jpg)
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Grandparents-in-Disney.jpg)
Disney
Let’s just say that you will need to sit down a lot, and the situation is magnified if the elderly person is too proud to use an electric scooter.
Why does this matter? Well, it’s part of the evolution of Disney theme parks.
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Grandparents-at-Disney-720x340-1.jpg)
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Grandparents-at-Disney-720x340-1.jpg)
Disney
When Disneyland opened in 1955, less than ten percent of the population was 65+ years old.
In some countries today, that’s over 20 percent, with the data indicating Americans will reach 22 percent by 2050.
![Grandparents](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/DisneyWorld_Grandparents_Multigenerational-56a257633df78cf772748eac.png)
![Grandparents](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/DisneyWorld_Grandparents_Multigenerational-56a257633df78cf772748eac.png)
Photo: Trip Savvy
Currently, one in six Americans is at least 65 years old. While they’re healthier than ever, they’ve still slowed down some.
More remarkably, forecasts predict that more than 30 percent of members of the European Union will be 65+ by 2050.
![Grandparents](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Grandparents-4.jpg)
![Grandparents](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Grandparents-4.jpg)
Disney
Do you know who travels to Walt Disney World a lot? Europeans.
So, you can already recognize the problem Disney faces.
Wait, What’s the Problem?
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Grandparents-2.jpg)
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Grandparents-2.jpg)
Disney
In the not-too-distant future, one-quarter of all theme park guests will be at least 65 years old.
That’s sloppy math based simply on age statistics. Obviously, people travel differently based on their demographics and lifestyles.
![Animal Kingdom](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/2022-02-15-16_44_06-Disney-Vacation-Club-Moonlight-Magic-is-back-whitneymickeytravels@gmail.com-.png)
![Animal Kingdom](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/2022-02-15-16_44_06-Disney-Vacation-Club-Moonlight-Magic-is-back-whitneymickeytravels@gmail.com-.png)
Photo: DVC
However, the data paints a clear picture when we presume uniformity across all age groups.
Society is living longer due to medical innovations and readily shared knowledge and information.
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Adobe
Previously disastrous diseases are now treatable, with some jaw-dropping innovations on the horizon.
I don’t want to create false hope for anyone, but there are groundbreaking treatments on the horizon for brutal diseases like muscular dystrophy.
![medicine](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/pexels-pixabay-208512-scaled.jpg)
![medicine](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/pexels-pixabay-208512-scaled.jpg)
Pixabay
The hope is that the rise of AI in medicine will lead to more rapid revelations that lead to cures none of us had dreamt possible.
In that scenario, people live that much longer, while our love of Disney never diminishes.
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/vacationcreenvacationhot-2023-11-09-at-4.44.08 PM.png)
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/vacationcreenvacationhot-2023-11-09-at-4.44.08 PM.png)
Disney
So, we want to visit the parks. Alas, the odd maxim applies here. “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
We simply cannot do the same things as we age, and I’m saying that as someone who feels like I might die after 30 minutes on a treadmill.
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/vacationcreenvacationhot-2023-11-09-at-4.44.20 PM.png)
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/vacationcreenvacationhot-2023-11-09-at-4.44.20 PM.png)
Photo: Disney
As we gradually slow down due to the ravages of time, our theme park desires change.
We want calmer experiences to mix in with the thrill rides like Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind.
Otherwise, we’ll regret everything and be ready to leave the park by the afternoon.
This actually happened to me a couple of times during the pandemic, and I’m not going to be 65 for a long time.
Based on watching my mother and father at theme parks, I presume that the behavior accelerates each year.
From Disney’s perspective, that means guests visit less often and spend less money. Not good.
How Disney Solved This Problem
In June 2024, Disney officially finished its seven-year makeover of EPCOT.
The park has an entirely different look, as Imagineers tore down some buildings while adding new ones.
![Test Track](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/2024-wdw-epcot-test-track-stock1-scaled.jpg)
![Test Track](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/2024-wdw-epcot-test-track-stock1-scaled.jpg)
Test Track in 2024
Technically, Disney is still working on one major project, as it closed Test Track and will re-theme the ride as Test Track 3.0.
That updated attraction probably arrives next year, but Disney itself is describing the EPCOT facelift as finished. So, we should, too.
![Test Track concept art](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/2024-wdw-epcot-test-track-chevrolet-concept-art2.png)
![Test Track concept art](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/2024-wdw-epcot-test-track-chevrolet-concept-art2.png)
Photo: Disney
As part of the park changes, Disney officials quietly solved an impending problem while nobody was looking.
How many conversations have you seen, heard, and read about World Celebration Gardens?
Most discussions center on Dreamers Point and the nighttime illuminated effects, right?
Those features are undoubtedly great, but they somewhat miss the point of the space.
![Disney World EPCOT CommuniCore Hall Open EPCOT Transformation 2024](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Disney-World-EPCOT-CommuniCore-Hall-Open-EPCOT-Transformation-2024-01.jpg)
![Disney World EPCOT CommuniCore Hall Open EPCOT Transformation 2024](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Disney-World-EPCOT-CommuniCore-Hall-Open-EPCOT-Transformation-2024-01.jpg)
CommuniCore Hall
Similarly, people have spoken often of the new CommuniCore Hall & Plaza, which has proven somewhat divisive in the Disney community.
Some feel it’s underdeveloped and sparse, and some critics add that it’ll probably look better during an EPCOT festival.
We’re in a rare dry spell for such exhibitions, which generally occur more than half the time at EPCOT.
There’s not one right now because park officials wanted to give guests a chance to experience CommuniCore on its own.
We’ll better understand the full experience when the EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival starts on August 29th.
But the look of the place isn’t the point. It’s the service Disney provides.
Specifically, Disney has added two new seating areas in the heart of EPCOT.
As fans age, World Celebration Gardens and CommuniCore Hall & Plaza will become increasingly essential to a park visit.
Credit Where Credit’s Due
![Outdoor queue](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2024-wdw-epcot-communicore-hall-mickey-and-friends-meet-and-greet-outdoor-queue-5-scaled.jpg)
![Outdoor queue](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2024-wdw-epcot-communicore-hall-mickey-and-friends-meet-and-greet-outdoor-queue-5-scaled.jpg)
Outdoor queue
I sometimes reference the maxim that the church thinks in centuries because it applies to Disney.
Storied organizations that aren’t going anywhere can think on a grander scale.
![Walt the Dreamer statue](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2022-wdw-epcot-world-celebration-dreamers-point-walt-the-dreamer-stock-2.jpg)
![Walt the Dreamer statue](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2022-wdw-epcot-world-celebration-dreamers-point-walt-the-dreamer-stock-2.jpg)
Walt the Dreamer statue
Disney officials can think about a decade from now while building something today.
That’s precisely what has happened with EPCOT, and it’s something we should expect with future expansion.
![family](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/familycreenfamilyhot-2024-01-16-at-4.41.12 PM.png)
![family](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/familycreenfamilyhot-2024-01-16-at-4.41.12 PM.png)
Photo: Disney
When Disney builds new experiences, it must consider all age groups and the fact that people are living longer than ever.
EPCOT has provided the blueprint for how Disney is solving its biggest problem.
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