Several sections of the light-up pavement of World Celebration in EPCOT are now surrounded by stanchions due to a tripping hazard.
This section of World Celebration is no stranger to malfunctions. Just a day after the garden area opened, the lighting elements stopped working. We continued to notice broken lighting effects into the summer of 2024. In mid-November, the pavement lights were completely turned off.
Although completely repaired and operational as of December, several pieces of the in-ground lighting are now roped off due to them lifting up from the ground.
In this smaller section of the pavement, two pieces are lifting from the ground. One of them is tucked in close to the planter, but the other is located directly in a high-traffic area, where guests could potentially trip and fall over the piece.
Along the other side, a full semi-circle has been roped off, protecting guests from several areas of broken lighting.
Gaps in the caulking surrounding the pieces of lighting and chipping of the pavement are likely contributing to the lifting. As shown in the two photos above, there are several areas where this issue is present.
The lighting creates the EPCOT logo around the central planter of World Celebration Gardens and is meant to sync with Spaceship Earth shows. We do not know if the broken pieces will impact the lighting at night or if they will be turned off completely for repair.
World Celebration Gardens and Dreamers Point featuring the Walt the Dreamer statue opened in EPCOT on December 5, 2023, although we got an early look. The gardens are meant to “connect back to the areas surrounding them, drawing on the architectural legacy of EPCOT, modern lighting elements and a variety of natural textures.”
Nearby, Goofy has taken over CommuniCore Hall, turning it into “GoofyCore” for Cool Kid Summer. The overlay includes decorations, a DJ, and games.
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