Disney Parks Walt Disney World

EPCOT’s Spaceship Earth To Close Indefinitely, Leaving Guests Wondering What’s Disney Doing in There?

EPCOT during the holidays — Credit: Disney

After finally getting Test Track back up and running earlier this summer, EPCOT was running its full complement of rides and attractions; the only Disney World park that isn’t facing massive closures due to significant construction projects.

Concept art for Test Track at Disney World — Credit: Disney

However, all that is going to change tomorrow when Spaceship Earth shuts down for an undisclosed time period for “routine maintenance.” But what exactly does that mean, and when can guests expect to travel through the history of communication again?

Spaceship Earth was scheduled for a significant closure in 2020 to completely overhaul the ride, but the pandemic canceled that project. The current iteration of the ride has been in place since it shut down in 2007-08 to add Judi Dench as the narrator. That refurbishment project took just over seven months.

A scene depicting prehistoric humans in a cave, with one standing wearing animal skins and antlers while others sit by a fire, surrounded by cave paintings. — Credit: Disney

In the 17 years since that closure, Spaceship Earth has been down for a few days here and there for routine maintenance, but nothing like we’re seeing this year. Unlike in years past, Disney World has not announced a reopening date for the EPCOT icon.

Disney is describing the project as “routine,” which could mean fixing some of the broken animatronics, adding new cameras, and/or making the downward drop slightly smoother. Disney could also make the ride vehicles a little more comfortable, but that seems highly unlikely.

A large geodesic sphere, known as Spaceship Earth, is illuminated in vibrant rainbow colors against the night sky. Flags can be seen in the bottom right near trees silhouetted by the glow of the lights. — Credit: Disney

Spaceship Earth’s exterior is already being spruced up, with Disney replacing some of the exterior panels at the base of the attraction. This gives us some idea of the scope of the project Disney is working on inside the ride.

While fans were desperately hoping for a complete overhaul, it appears that they’ll just have to settle for some sprucing up for now. Hopefully, Disney will have the project completed for EPCOT’s celebration of the holidays, but no promises yet.