Despite rumors of a dark ride being in development, it appears that a Mary Poppins flat ride will instead be the attraction getting added to Epcot’s United Kingdom Pavilion.
A flat ride, believed to be a spinner ala Dumbo the Flying Elephant (although we’re holding out for the Jolly Holiday scene’s carousel personally), is in the early stages of development for the World Showcase Pavilion. It is unknown exactly what the theme of the ride will be, but it seems unlikely that the UK Pavilion will be expanded in any way as was rumored with the addition of a full-blown ride through attraction for Mary Poppins. The ride would likely replace the garden and bandstand area towards the back of the existing pavilion. World Showplace would survive in these plans as it is a profitable venue used for many events, including Party for the Senses every year.
With the sequel to Mary Poppins being released in theaters later this year, Disney has a renewed interest in bringing a Mary Poppins ride to Walt Disney World. Mary Poppins formerly had its own scene in the now-closed Great Movie Ride at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
This attraction would be part of the ongoing overhaul of Epcot, already set to include the Guardians of the Galaxy Roller Coaster, a Ratatouille attraction, a seamless Circlevision film in the China Pavilion, a new nighttime lagoon show, and a reimagining of the park entrance and walkways around Future World.
Disney has yet to approve or announce these Mary Poppins plans, but will likely do so by or at the 2019 D23 Expo.
