Epcot's World Showcase welcomes a new Disney World dark ride that takes Disney guests into the world of the tremendously popular animated movie Frozen called Frozen Ever After.  Residing in the Epcot Norway Pavilion in the former home of Maelstrom is one of the most anticipated Disney attractions.


Located in the back of the Norway pavilion, Frozen Ever After is your chance to transport to the world of Arendelle and see your favorite Frozen Characters.



The pre-ride queue area is vastly different than Maelstrom and Frozen fans will appreciate the attention to detail.

Your invitation to the Summer Snow Day Celebration states:

Hear ye! Hear ye!
The Kingdom is invited to a Summer Snow Day Celebration In honor of the day that
Princess Anna
saved her sister
Queen Elsa
with an unselfish act of true love.
All Shall Be Welcome to a Royal Reception inside the Ice Palace.

The queue shows you a view inside Arendelle to see this charming country, The attention to detail is well done and there is quite a lot to see while you wait to board your ship to Queen Elsa's Ice Palace.



The royal Proclamation denotes that it is time to partake in the Official Summer Snow Day!







The journey to the Ice Palace starts by entering the Frozen world, meeting Olaf and Sven, the rock trolls, and then Olaf prepares us to meet the Royal hosts.



Now we see Princess Anna and Kristoff  joined by a mischievous Sven with his tongue stuck to a frozen post.  This sets the scene for us to enter Queen Elsa's Ice Palace




Queen Elsa greets us singing her most famous song "Let It Go!" as we tour the amazing Frozen Ice Palace.



Now we quickly move through past Marshmallow and  plunge briefly only to be rejoined by Olaf and Princess Anna and Queen Elsa standing hand-in-hand.

Frozen Ever After: Review Summary

This Disney World dark ride is very well done, especially considering it needed to stay within the footprint of the previous Maelstrom attraction. Frozen fans will really enjoy the attraction, as this ride pays great attention to detail and works in key story elements and characters.  This is definitely one of the better Disney World dark rides that have been created to pay homage to Disney animated movies

Although we at Only WDWorld feel that this ride does not belong in Epcot's World Showcase, the ride itself is enjoyable.

We would love to hear your impressions of Frozen Ever After!  Please leave your Ride Review in the Comments!

October 5th, 2014 marked the final day for the Maelstrom attraction in the Norway Pavilion in Epcot.  As preparations are underway to re-purpose this space into a Frozen movie based attraction, we wanted to take this opportunity to say goodbye what was the best attraction in the Epcot World Showcase.

Maelstrom - A High Seas Norwegian Adventure

The last of the 11 current countries of the Epcot World Showcase to be added, the Norway Pavilion debuted in the Summer of 1988 with its showcase attraction called Maelstrom that would differentiate it from the other international pavilions.


The striking waterfall was sure to get your attention where passersby would see the ships make brief appearances before the soon to follow screams as people descended the "big" drop,



As you made your way to the back of the Norway Pavilion you were greeted with signs that let you know that this attraction was definitely different than any other that could be found in Epcot's World Showcase.


The waiting area provided a view to a magnificent mural depicting images of Norway, past and present.  This mural is so large that we will have to break it down into four sections to look at.


The first section depicts a scene from the early settlements of Norway and their ties to the mythology of the trolls and the spirits of the land.


The second section shows the transition from the great warriors to the hard life on the frozen sea with the fishing boats and the sailing ships.


The third section depicts a coastal fishing village and a nod to the booming cruise ship industry.


The last section shows the vast oil fields that live off-shore from Norway.  This worker is who we affectionately refer to as "Chuck Norse" since he bears a striking resemblance to actor Chuck Norris!


Now it is time to board your rustic Norwegian vessel to begin your journey.

The boat transports you through time to view the early origins of Norway and to understand the lives and folklore of its people.  You see ancient warriors and the not so cute three-headed trolls.


At this point you reach a dead end and you retreat from the troll sighting in reverse and make your way make full size (and angry) polar bears and back up to the edge of the waterfall.


Here you start moving forward again only to realize that it means that you are going to descend down a drop that is somewhere between Pirates Of The Caribbean and Splash Mountain to end up in the shadow of a deep sea oil drilling platform as you are transported back to present day Norway.


Finally you exit the area to dock in a quaint Norwegian Fishing Village.  Here you depart and can stop to see a brief film about Norway before you continue on to the gift shops.


As you make your way to the shops you may have noticed this plaque that states:

The Norway Showcase was officially inaugurated on the third of June 1988 at EPCOT Center in the presence of Their Royal Highnesses, Crown Prince Harald and Crown Princess Sonja.

The other landmark in the shops is the giant troll that may not remain after the redesign to integrate the world of Frozen with their friendlier "boulder trolls."

Goodbye Maelstrom

Although change is not always bad, we will miss Maelstrom and its depiction of the history, culture, and people of Norway.  It also represented the first and until now only "thrill" ride in the World Showcase.  Since 1988, this has been our version of a vacation to Norway and immersion into its culture.

The replacement attraction will promise to bring the amazing characters from the movie Frozen to a ride that is sure to be popular, but it also moves Epcot further away from its origins, and that makes us sad.

We are not sad that it was time to replace Maelstrom, but by the fact that the replacement does not have ties to Norway and takes Epcot's World Showcase further away from being a World Showcase that focuses on the majesty that is the diversity of cultures from around the world and more of a vehicle to place characters from various Disney/Pixar movies.

Disney World has officially announced that the Maelstrom attraction in the Epcot Norway Pavilion will be replaced with a 'Frozen' Themed Attraction.  They also announced additional opportunities to meet & greet Anna and Elsa from Frozen in Epcot, as well as, a 'Frozen' themed lighting of Cinderella Castle starting in November to turn it into an ice palace.

Check out all of the 'Frozen' themed news reported from the Disney Parks Blog:

We’ve made “Frozen” a part of the guest experience in a number of ways already and our guests have both loved them and asked for more. So I’m pleased to say that we’re starting construction at Walt Disney World Resort on a brand new “Frozen” attraction at the Norway Pavilion in Epcot. The new attraction, which replaces Maelstrom, will take our guests to Arendelle and immerse them in many of their favorite moments and music from the film. The pavilion will also include a royal greeting location where Anna and Elsa can meet our guests. We think these “Frozen” elements are great complements to the Norway Pavilion, which showcases the country and region that inspired the film.

“Frozen’s” popular characters will also have a bigger presence at Magic Kingdom Park this holiday season. In addition to the ongoing character appearances, Queen Elsa will use her powers to transform Cinderella Castle into an ice palace every night starting in early November. And Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party-goers can see Anna, Elsa, Kristoff, and Olaf in “Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime Parade.”

We’re extending some favorite elements of Frozen Summer Fun LIVE!, too, so that guests at Disney’s Hollywood Studios can continue singing along to “Frozen” songs with Queen Elsa and Princess Anna. Wandering Oaken’s will set up shop closer to the show through the holiday season and will feature a larger play area with real snow (in Florida!). 

From the moment we screened the film several months before its release, we were inspired by the possibility of bringing this great story to life for our guests. Frozen Summer Fun LIVE! has been extremely popular, and now we’re looking forward to doing even more to allow our guests to experience the “Frozen” phenomenon.

There is nothing hotter right now at the Walt Disney World Resort than Princess Anna, Queen Elsa, and merchandise from the hit movie Frozen.

During a recent visit to the Norway Pavilion in Epcot, we found a whole section of The Puffin's Roost dedicated to only Frozen merchandise!

Olaf from Frozen - "So Hot I'm Cool"

Olaf from Frozen - "Chillin' in the sunshine"

Who doesn't love Olaf the adorable Frozen snowman?  He is featured on two great new T-Shirts that any Frozen fan would love to have.  They even come in Adult sizes!



Anna and Elsa have made their way onto Disney Snacks! Crisped Rice Treats with White Icing and a picture of Anna and Elsa.


Can you think of a better cover for your phone? A variety of Frozen themed cases for your phones.



Olaf isn't the only one to be found on a T-Shirt, but he may be the most popular.  You can also find Sven and Anna gracing shirts as well.

Throughout the Disney World Theme Parks you can find a wide variety of souvenirs of the movie Frozen.  The hardest thing to find right now is a meeting with Anna and Elsa.