Norway (Epcot)
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The Norway Pavilion is part of the World Showcase within the Epcot theme park in Orlando Florida.
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[edit] Layout
The 58,000 square foot Norway Pavilion is designed to look like a Norwegian village. The village includes a detailed stave church. Much of the pavilion is taken up by interconnected shops. These shops are decorated with large wooden trolls and sell assorted Norwegian goods, including clothing, candy, and small troll statues. The courtyard of the pavilion contains the entrance to Maelstrom, a boat ride into Norway's past and present. Kringla Bakeri Og Kafe is a bakery, featuring assorted Norwegian pastries, such as cream horns and open-faced salmon sandwiches. There is a children's play area that looks like a Viking ship. The courtyard contains the entrance to Restaurant Akershus, a hot and cold buffet which also hosts 'Princess Breakfasts'. The exhibit showcases 4 styles of Norwegian architecture: Setesdal style, Bergen style, Oslo style and Alesund style.
[edit] History
The Norway pavilion is the most recent nation to be added to World Showcase. The orginal idea was to create a Nordic Pavilion that would combine elements from various countries into one exhibit. Three countries were consulted, but it finally ended up with investors from Norway raising the required US$30 million from Norwegian investors as to create an exclusive national pavilion. Disney contributed the other one-third of the construction cost. In 1992, the investors sold their stake to Disney. Since nearly as many people visit Epcot as live in Norway, the government felt it still was a good promotional tool for their tourism industry. The federal government continued to contribute US$200 000 annually for five years to help fund the exhibit. Renewed in 1997 for a further 5 years, the government stopped payments in 2002, against the recommendations from their American embassy.
The 5-minute film shown in the pavilion has been playing since Norway's opening in 1988. A new film is currently being produced. [1]
It was officially opened in June 1988 by Crown Prince Harald in a ceremony that was broadcasted live to Norway.
[edit] Current attractions and services
[edit] Ride
[edit] Dinning
- Restaurant Akershus (is named after the Akershus Fortress in Oslo)
- Kringla Bakeri og Kafe
[edit] Shopping
- The Puffin's Roost
[edit] Entertainment
- Stave Church (an exhibit on Vikings)
- Spelmanns Gledje
[edit] Former attractions and services
[edit] Facts and figures
- The pavilion is staffed by 130 Norwegian men and women, who wear the traditional national costume the bunad. The cast members work for 12 months.
