Have you ever desired to try cuisine from around the world? Well, you can do that and more at Epcot: Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow. Some know the history behind the park and the acronym of its name, others may remember the world showcase; some like to drink and eat around the world, while others remember the giant “Epcot ball” that adorns the center of the park. Epcot is certainly a park of all trades, which is shown even more clearly through its various annual festivals.
In Epcot, there are four different festivals that occur each year, each occurring around the same general time each year. These festivals are: Festival of the Arts (usually January-February), Flower and Garden Festival (usually April-June), Food and Wine Festival (usually August/July-October), and Festival of the Holidays (usually November-December). Each festival hosts a variety of food, entertainment offerings, activities and merchandise that relate to their general theme.
Festival of the Arts
This festival celebrates and focuses on exactly what it sounds like: the arts! Offerings at this festival center around the culinary, visual, and performing arts in a variety of ways.
Food
This festival commonly features food studios around the World Showcase in Epcot, each themed to a different cuisine from countries around the world. For the festival of the arts, each dish is delicately arranged and presented, and of course comes with a variety of bursting flavors.
Keep an eye out for the fan favorites of the fest! Fans loved the Deconstructed Key Lime Pie at the Deconstructed Dish booth, the Sushi Donut at the Goshiki booth, the Sipping Chocolate Flight (literally drinkable chocolate) at The Artist’s Table booth, and the Opera Cake at the Pastoral Palate booth. The best booth overall was found to be El Artista Hambriento (The Hungry Artist) in the Mexico pavilion, with a mix of savory flavors and complex, but delicious, drinks!
The Festival Passport (which features all of the booths around Epcot as well as their menus) features the “Wonderful Walk of Colorful Cuisine”: a group of 6 food and drink items from the festival; if all of the dishes and drinks from the group are bought (and your “passport” is stamped for each dish), guests are eligible to receive a sweet surprise at the Deco Delights food both!
Entertainment
As in the name, the Festival of the Arts offers many visual arts opportunities as well as live performances. One of the most notorious of the festival is the “Disney on Broadway” concert series, featuring performances by some of Broadway’s most talented actors and actresses! Be sure to also check out “Visual Art in Performance”, where guests can watch a high-energy artist painting Disney characters live and on stage in minutes!
For those who prefer to view visual art, check out all of the art booths throughout the World Showcase during the festival. I actually bought a painting from here during a trip to the festival, and it is still hanging in my room today! As you wander around the World Showcase, be sure to find the chalk art of Disney characters on the pavement, as well as on the architecture in each country’s pavilion! Chalk artists are so talented that if you stand in a certain spot in relation to the artwork (this spot is usually marked on the ground), then you can see the image come to life in 3D form!
If you would prefer to learn how to draw, be sure to head over to Disney’s Animation Academy! These are drawing classes that are taught frequently throughout the festival, in which Disney artists guide guests on how to draw beloved Disney characters. There is also a mural that is constantly being painted towards the front of the park, and is set up like a giant “paint-by-number”. Each day of the festival, guests can participate by picking a color, and painting in a couple squares with their assigned number to “paint” the mural.
Merchandise
For those who prefer visual art, check out all of the art booths throughout the World Showcase during the festival. I actually bought a painting from here during a trip to the festival, and it is still hanging and loved in my room today!
Apart from actual artwork, merchandise from the festival is usually themed to a different character (s) and different patterns each year. This past year (2022), Festival of the Arts merchandise came in all shapes and sizes (from tumblers, to plates, spirit jerseys, pins, and more!), and featured the beloved Epcot dragon: Figment!
Flower and Garden Festival
This festival began in Epcot in spring of 1994, and celebrates the beautiful Central Florida foliage, as well as highlighting plants, foods, flowers and flavors present in other cultures across the world!
Food
The food in this festival is themed to “flower and garden” as well, sporting all sorts of interesting and delicious combinations. Some of the fan favorites of the fest were: the Grapefruit Tart at the Citrus Blossom booth, Coconut Tres Leches Cake at the La Isla Fresca booth, and the Avocado Toast from the Sunshine Griddle booth. The best booth of the fest was voted to be Sunshine Griddle, sporting Avocado Toast, Fried Cinnamon Bites, and a Froot Loop Milkshake!
Entertainment
Flower and Garden festival features the infamous “Garden Rocks” concerts. In this series, popular bands (and local ones too!) take the stage in Epcot and share some of their greatest hits. These concerts are free with Epcot admission, and take place regularly all week long!
Another fun detail to look out for are the fun Disney character topiaries that are spread throughout the park. You are sure to spot your favorite Disney characters in their home countries as you stroll through the World Showcase.
Merchandise
Each year, there is usually a mix of merchandise split between the beloved Orange Bird character, and Minnie and Mickey Mouse. This year, many of the clothing sported flowers and promoted guests to “Go Green” to improve our environment and the world around it.
Food and Wine Festival
So far we’ve discussed the first two Epcot festivals, focused on art and beautiful foliage! The third festival is the Epcot Food and Wine Festival focuses the most on the food, and caters the most expansive and delicious menu out of all the festivals. This is the best festival for those who to eat and drink around the world!
Food
The food offered in this festival is beyond expansive! The fan favorites from the fest last year (2022) were: the Adobo Yuca Fries at The Fry Basket booth, the Paneer at the India booth, the Guava Mousse at Shimmering Sips booth, and the Corned Beef from the Flavors from Fire booth. To get a more in depth review of the many wonderful food options available at the festival, follow this link!
Entertainment
Every year, Disney hosts a “Wine and Dine” half marathon that is open for anyone who is visiting Central Florida during that time and wants to challenge themselves to a marathon!
One of the most popular entertainment offerings is the “Eat to the Beat” concert series, featuring a mix of iconic and local bands all week long as guests enjoy their food from around the world.
Merchandise
The merchandise featured at Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival usually centers around Remy, the rat and cook from the Pixar movie, Ratatouille. Remy is the star of the festival every year, and always returns with more new and fun merchandise!
Festival of the Holidays
Like the other Epcot festivals, the theme of the Festival of the Holidays is in the name itself! This festival focuses on how people celebrate the winter holidays around the world, featuring different cuisines, traditions, and more from Hanukkah, Kwanza, and mostly Christmas.
Food
The food in this festival comes from various holidays celebrated by the countries represented in the World Showcase. Some of the favorites include, but are not limited, to: the Mini Pumpkin Pie Funnel Cake at the American Adventure Pavilion, the Grilled Kebabs and Almond-spiced Cake at Tangerine Cafe: Flavors of the Medina, Slow-roasted Turkey at American Holiday Table, Pastrami on Rye at L’Chaim! Holiday Kitchen, and Haupia at Mile Kalikimaka. The best booth of the fest was rated to be the Bavaria Holiday Kitchen, sporting Cheese Fondue, Pork Schnitzel, and the Linzer Cookie!
Photo Source (check it out for more food!)
Entertainment
The Festival of the Holidays features the “Holiday Cookie Stroll”, giving guests the opportunity to earn a delicious Cookie Ornament by trying five cookies from around the world! In 2021, these cookies were: Gingerbread Cookie, Snickers-Doodle Cookie, Black and White Cookie, Chocolate Crinkle Cookie, and the Linzer Cookie!
A popular Epcot tradition is the Candlelight Processional, which is when a celebrity narrator shares the story of Christmas, accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra and choir made up of Disney Cast Members and Guests. It is a truly spectacular feat that everyone should go and witness at least once!
Apart from that, there are also smaller-scale, more spontaneous shows that take place throughout the World Showcase all day. A couple examples of these entertainment offerings include: the Hanukkah Storyteller, Le Befana in Italy, Father Christmas in the United Kingdom, Los Posadas Celebration in Mexico, and the Chinese Lion Dance in China.
Merchandise
Like the other Epcot Festivals, the Festival of the Holidays merchandise features a variety of different beloved Disney characters each year: from Chip and Dale, to various Frozen characters, back to the classic duo of Mickey and Minnie Mouse. Like any other Epcot Festival, the merchandise varies from year to year; we’ll have to keep a lookout on what’s to come in the 2022 Festival of the Holidays!
In Conclusion …
After learning about all the festivals at once, you must be completely overwhelmed! The Epcot festivals are each their own beasts, and have so many facets to look out for! If any of these festivals piqued your interest, please check out the Disney websites (or any of the websites where the pictures are from) to learn more.
My best advice for preparing for these festivals are to go on sites such as Disney Food Blog before your trip and look at the complete menu of the festival before even stepping foot in the park. I have found that trying to decide what to eat, flipping through the festival passport, and navigating the crowds of people is hard to do all at once! I have been able to try the best food options by doing the research beforehand, and making a list of everything that I might want to try once in Epcot.
Good luck festival-goers, and let me know if you’ve tried any of these foods or attended any of these festivals before!
I really enjoyed reading this post, I went to Epcot a few months ago and loved it a lot! There was a lot of information packed into this, which was helpful because I had no idea Epcot offered so many special events and services. I thought the Flower and Garden Festival sounded especially fun, I would love to go to that someday.