Honoring the Legacy of the EPCOT Fountain of Nations
This past September 2019 marked the end of an Epcot icon—actually, the end of more than one Epcot icon—but I’m referring specifically to the “Waterways of the World,” an opening day EPCOT Center attraction. It’s been in the background of every Epcot celebration. Over the years, fans and Cast Members alike have called it the “Fountain of World Friendship,” the “CommuniCore Fountain,” the “Innoventions Fountain,” and, most recently, the “Fountain of Nations.”
The fountain was the site of a special “International Ceremony of the Waters” on EPCOT Center’s opening day, October 1, 1982. Representatives from 29 nations traveled with a container of water from their home countries and poured it into the fountain during the ceremony.
A Part of Epcot History
The fountain has been part of nearly every Walt Disney World special occasion—from EPCOT Center’s grand opening, when Danny Kaye conducted a military choir with the fountain as his backdrop, to countless celebrations over the years. A stage was built in front of the fountain for the Walt Disney World Millennium Celebration, where it served as the setting for the first lighting of the Epcot 2000 wand over Spaceship Earth to ring in the new millennium.
Take a look at your old home movies—the fountain appears in the background of countless photos and videos. It’s been featured in every Epcot and EPCOT Center souvenir program, VHS release, DVD, and television special. It even served as the stage for the 1993 show Splashtacular! (More on that in a future SamsDisneyDiary.)
Center Stage for Celebration
For Epcot’s 25th anniversary in 2007, the fountain was rededicated by Imagineering legend Marty Sklar. During the ceremony, Marty reminisced about opening day and the original “International Ceremony of the Waters,” which helped inaugurate the then-CommuniCore Fountain. Marty suggested the event be recreated—and that’s exactly what Disney did, using countries from World Showcase as participants.
The 2007 ceremony wasn’t exactly the same, though. Did you catch the difference? The original featured 29 countries, each bringing water from their homeland to pour into the fountain. For the 25th, Disney used water that symbolized each World Showcase country—it wasn’t actually brought from each location. But hey, it’s the thought that counts.
Elephants and Upgrades: The 1993 Refurbishment
At one point, a stage was even built on top of the fountain for the Walt Disney World Celebrity Circus—complete with four elephants at a time! This unforgettable moment also led to the fountain’s only true refurbishment in 1992. Turns out, the fountain wasn’t originally designed to support elephants.
If you watch closely in video footage from the circus, you’ll notice the fountain was once round. After the refurbishment, it was upgraded and enlarged to the oval shape many of us remember today.
Overlooked, but Always Present
The Fountain of Nations was always one of the most overlooked attractions in all of Walt Disney World. Despite its central location—right in the heart of Future World—most guests overlooked it. Disney didn’t list it as an attraction on the park map, and the Times Guide never included its show schedule. Yet every 15 minutes, the fountain delivered a beautifully synchronized performance of water, light, and music for anyone who happened to walk by.
In its final years, many simply referred to it as “the fountain in front of Starbucks,” a far cry from its prestigious beginnings as the Fountain of World Friendship.
It may not have had a lightning lane or a queue, but for those who took a moment to stop, it delivered pure Disney magic—no wait required.
The Soundtrack of Epcot’s Heart
The Fountain of Nations wasn’t just a background element. Designed to bring music and motion together, the fountain delivered beautifully choreographed shows every 15 minutes, starting at the top of the hour. You wouldn’t find them listed in a Times Guide or park app—you just had to know. And once you did, you were in for something special.
Each performance was randomly selected from a set of seven musical sequences, with water jets dancing in perfect sync with the music. The holiday season brought temporary changes to the lineup (more on that here), but throughout the year, the soundtrack became a signature of the Epcot experience.
The music featured in the fountain shows included iconic, sweeping scores that perfectly matched the grandeur of Epcot’s vision for the future:
- “Day One” by John Tesh
- “Standing in Motion” by Yanni
- The main title from Disney’s Iron Will
- “Mickey’s Finale” from a proposed (but never completed) show titled Around the World with Mickey Mouse
- Music from The Rescuers Down Under
- Music from The Rocketeer
- The “Air Battle” instrumental sequence from Surprise in the Skies, a former daytime lagoon show
- And later, after the Millennium Celebration, Celebrate the Future, Hand in Hand—the only track with lyrics—was added
Each of these musical moments was brought to life with soaring water effects and subtle lighting. Creating a show that was powerful, emotional, and unmistakably Epcot. I’ve included audio clips from all of the featured songs. Thar are in my Ultimate Tribute Video, and I’m sure you’ll recognize them all.
Engineering Magic That Powered the Show
Long before programmable fountains became the norm, the Fountain of Nations was already breaking ground. The technology behind it was nothing short of revolutionary—especially for its time. Beneath its graceful surface was a complex, computer-controlled system powered by over 35 miles of electrical wire. But like many new technologies at the time, it wasn’t quite ready on opening day.
In those early months, the fountain required a bit of manual magic. As Marty Sklar once recalled, a team of Cast Members manually turned valves on and off inside the control room while engineers finalized the computer programming.
That control room sat within a larger maintenance workshop located beneath the fountain. Interestingly, Imagineers completed the workshop early in the EPCOT Center construction process. Crews used it throughout the build thanks to its central location—perfect for staging materials and coordinating efforts. Later, the construction team built the fountain directly on top of the workshop. Unfortunately, the design left little clearance underneath, which made upgrades nearly impossible for decades. Technicians couldn’t easily replace pumps or update hardware—at least not until the infamous “Elephant Summer” forced the issue.
As the story goes, during the Walt Disney World Celebrity Circus, four elephants were placed on a stage constructed atop the fountain. While it made for a spectacle, it also cracked the fountain’s base. Turns out, fountains weren’t designed to support elephants. This damage prompted the fountain’s only major refurbishment in 1993.
That refurb transformed the fountain from its original round shape into the oval design many fans remember today. It also introduced a high-tech upgrade that allowed for even more elaborate water choreography.
The Specs Behind the Spectacle
Here’s a breakdown of what made the post-1993 Fountain of Nations so impressive:
- 212 Micro Shooters (upper pool) – Propelled 2 gallons of water up to 80 feet
- 40 MiniShooters (lower pool) – Propelled 5 gallons of water up to 100 feet
- 12 SuperShooters (upper pool) – Each shot 50 gallons of water up to 150 feet, with pressure ranging from 30 to 120 PSI
- 60 Spray Nozzles for soft streams and layered textures
- 190,000 feet (35 miles) of electrical wire
- 22,000 feet (4 miles) of conduit
- 1,068 Color LEDs illuminated the fountain in dazzling hues
- 30,000 gallons of water per minute cascaded over the edges
- At full power, 2,000 gallons of water could be in the air at once
And all of it worked together to create one of the most beautiful, often-underappreciated shows at Walt Disney World.
Remembering the Heartbeat of Epcot
The Fountain of Nations saw its final performance on September 7, 2019—37 years, or 13,490 days, after EPCOT Center first opened its gates.
For decades, the fountain served as a meeting place, a photo backdrop, a quiet moment of calm, or a surprise show for guests passing through Future World. Now, it lives on as a memory—one piece of EPCOT’s original vision, retired as the park transforms for a new generation.
From its legacy will rise World Celebration, World Nature, and World Discovery—the pillars of the new Epcot. But the past won’t fade away. According to Disney, the company saved the water from the Fountain of Nations and plans to recycle and reintroduce it into a new water feature in the park. Whether it ends up in the new Entrance Fountain or within Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana, the idea is poetic. Water from around the world, returning to bring joy once more.
Documenting the Legacy
As a proud Disney Fan, I knew the transformation meant the end of the fountain—and everything surrounding it. So, during my last few visits in 2019, I made it my mission to document it all. I captured daytime views, nighttime transitions, Spaceship Earth glowing after IllumiNations, and even time-lapse footage as crowds quietly filed past, unaware it would be their last walk by this icon.
The result? Over three hours of continuous footage in my Sam’s Disney Diary Ultimate Tribute—the perfect background video to relive the fountain’s magic. Let it take you back to all the moments you, like me, may have just walked past it without even realizing what a masterpiece it truly was.
Thanks for the memories. And here’s to the future. Be sure to subscribe for more looks back—and ahead—as Epcot continues to evolve.
