Frozen Ever After and Royal Sommerhus now open at Norway Pavilion in Epcot
The new Frozen Ever After attraction recently opened at Walt Disney World’s Epcot Center and this morning we got the chance to take a look at the two new “Frozen” experiences – Frozen Ever After attraction and the adjacent Royal Sommerhus.
Located in the Norway pavilion at the park, Frozen Ever After now offers guests an adventurous boat tour through the kingdom of Arendelle. Guests are first transported to the “Summer Snow Day” Celebration where Queen Elsa embraces her magical powers to create a beautiful “winter-in-summer” day for the entire kingdom. Next, guests pass the Troll Valley on their way up the icy North Mountain to Queen Elsa’s Ice Palace before their return trip to the Bay of Arendelle.
The ride itself is essentially the same clunky Maelstrom ride that occupied the space before but has now been re-imagined and re-purposed with a complete set change to fit the Frozen theme. You do miss the magical “You Are Not The First To Pass This Way” message as you depart on your adventure but you soon forget it as you pass through Arendelle. The ride lasts about 5 mins 30 seconds and even though it essentially uses the same track as Maelstrom it is about a minute longer.
The ride continues and you pass through a snow curtain to see Olaf and Sven in a winter wonderland setting. It’s cute! Something else that’s cute are the new trolls that look like the ones in the movie… you’d really expect nothing less would you… but if you want to see a throw back to the old trolls, make sure you study the meet and greet area in Anna and Elsa’s Royal Sommerhaus.
As you continue your journey you come across the impressive ice palace at the top of the ramp… here you’ll see Olaf skating around before you see Anna and Kristoff singing. One of teh more memorable parts of this area is Sven licking an ice particle… it’s very amusing. From there it’s time for a fleeting visit with Elsa before heading off backwards to the popular tune “Let It Go.” On the way you then encounter Marshmallow and the Snowgies before taking the classic plunge that existed on the previous ride where you ended up at the bottom by an oil platform. Now, though, it has Arendelle castle and a couple more animatronics featuring Anna and Elsa holding hands and singing along with Olaf.
Overall it’s a fun ride and one the whole family can enjoy with Fastpass+ available for the attraction.
Nearby is Royal Sommerhus, Anna and Elsa’s summer home, and is the place to meet the royal sisters themselves.The Royal Sommerhus is located in a dedicated building located between the Norway and Mexico pavilions. Inside it reflects the cultural arts and crafts of Norway and the architecture is inspired by an actual cabin from Trondheim in Norway. The house is chock full of memories (and memorabilia) from the sisters travels with their parents when they were younger and now that Elsa is queen, the house has reopened so the sisters can relive their fond memories and make new ones with guests.
The Norway Pavilion opens at 9 a.m. everyday, along with the Future World area of Epcot.
Guests can also spot Anna and Elsa over at Magic Kingdom Park in the “Festival of Fantasy Parade” and in the new “Mickey’s Royal Friendship Faire” show coming to Cinderella Castle Forecourt Stage.
