April 26, 2018

Thursday Night in Epcot's Germany Showcase

Time for us to travel in Epcot's World Showcase from a Saturday night in Italy to a Thursday in Germany. Here's a fairly rare piece of concept art. If you look beyond the arch, you'll find the Rhine River Cruise, a planned but abandoned attraction that never made it past the drawing boards due to budget cuts. Such a shame!

From a distance, the pavilion shines at night, and you can just tell an Oktoberfest celebration is in full swing. Going inside, the beer hall is lively with music making it all the better.


Ah, yes that Rhine River Cruise would have been a hit! This piece of art, first shown in an Epcot book and scanned here by the great Yesterland site, teases with what should have been. It's a shame that since the opening of EPCOT Center, Disney Imagineers have not created a new river ride attraction until Animal Kingdom's Pandora boat ride. 

Maybe once the suits get the character invasion out of their system, the park will return to featuring culturally based attractions. Here's hoping!

(Art copyright The Walt Disney Company.)

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