Sometimes Disney World can be a lot. It’s not a bad thing to be so much at once. So much magic brings so many people. Crowds and heat at their max during the busy hours of the summer mean you might not have the energy to get through your whole day of Disney plans. If you have Lightning Lane, you don’t even have to wait in line. So, from sunup to sundown, Disney can be a go-go-go experience for some.
With all this back-to-back excitement, sometimes it can be nice when a ride forces you to slow down. To stop and smell the roses. Literally.
I am here to tell you that this ride is real. The wait for this attraction is typically nonexistent but, when present, is entirely indoors, in an air-conditioned space. Every time you ride, it is guaranteed to be different, educational, and relaxing.
Living with the Land is my favorite attraction at EPCOT. While it is in close competition with Spaceship Earth, which offers a similarly educational and relaxing experience, Living with the Land’s water ride element pushes it into first place. I also find that Living with the Land offers a slightly more consistent operation schedule, so if you’re in need of a mood reset while at EPCOT, you might have better luck seeking out Living with the Land.
With a maximum speed of approximately 1 mph, this gentle boat ride will be relaxing for even small children. The Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros in the Mexico pavilion is also a similarly gentle boat ride; Living with the Land is a tad quieter throughout the ride and longer by about five minutes.
Living with the Land features a dark ride portion with animatronic scenes as well at the start. The narrator of the ride, Mike Brassell (who you might recognize from the Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover), gives information about the different agricultural landscapes. While some might miss the cast member who guided the ride live, I find that the narration is more relaxing. It is in this part of the ride that you can hear my favorite, and maybe the most iconic, ride soundtrack.
After these dark ride scenes, you’re brought into a room with a brief video about some of the improvements we have made in agriculture over the years to ensure that the process of feeding the world is still sustainable for the Earth on which we live. After which you are given a boatside greenhouse tour of Disney’s own functioning greenhouse. It is not just for show. While beautiful, the ride talks about how this greenhouse is used by scientists to study the effects of agriculture on our world and how we can better take care of it through more efficient methods of growing plants.
As you pass through tranquil and carefully curated gardens, the ride narrator will give you different facts about the various crops as you pass them. With different plants in season at different times, the ride promises to be unique with each trip. Flowers that may have only been budding on your last visit will now be in full bloom. Over the holiday season, the attraction transforms into Glimmering Greenhouses; the plants are decorated with festive lights that glow even more beautifully at night.
There are several rooms in the gardens, some of which are only available to those who choose to take the Behind the Seeds tour and learn even more about the hard-at-work scientists behind the scenes.
One of the rooms your boat will pass through shows the various pools of fish that they raise in the greenhouse for their aquaculture. Which may not be exciting to some, but as a frequent flier at all nearby aquariums, I am thrilled by.
Finishing off the tour with another set of beautiful gardens, you are greeted with the sound of even more of the now iconic and beloved Living with the Land ride soundtrack before being ushered back into the hustle and bustle of Disney’s EPCOT. At a gentle speed of 1mph of course.
Hopefully as you step off this ride you will feel rejuvenated and ready to go back about your day! Surely the wait for Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind has gone down by now! If not, you’ve just given your feet a 14-15 minute break so you can be ready to get back out there!
I always find this ride so relaxing and will take any excuse to rave about it. A must-do for busy days where I just need a moment but don’t want to miss out on any Disney magic. Speaking of, were you able to find all the hidden Mickeys?
The post Disney Hot Take: The BEST Ride at EPCOT first appeared on The DIS.
