I’ve said it many times, Epcot is my favorite Walt Disney World Park. In my opinion, Future World and World Showcase provide the perfect blend of edutainment, culture, and family fun although I may not have realized it during my first visit as a teenager. Epcot’s World Showcase also provides the perfect backdrop for special events. The two most notable, The Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival, and the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival (every Fall) fit perfectly. And better yet, the festivals provide “another reason” to visit Walt Disney World. Add to that the emerging “Holidays around the World”, and you have 3 new reasons to visit. As if I need another reason.
Each Fall Since 1995, Epcot has been host to the International Food & Wine Festival. Epcot is transformed into a culinary festival with experiences featuring everything from samplings and demonstrations to celebrity book signings and festival-themed merchandise.
I could spend all day in the festival center… but the main draw of the food and wine festival is the 30 kiosks surrounding Epcot’s World Showcase Lagoon. Each features a unique cuisine from around the world, and all are designed to extend and complement the existing World Showcase countries. Kiosks include countries like The Caribbean, Argentina, Scandinavia, Poland, Singapore, New Zealand, Belgium, Ireland, and Greece just to name a few. A culinary cornucopia, the Discovery Passport is your guide to all of the flavors of the festival. Make sure you get the pocket guide in the Festival Center or at most of the kiosks themselves. The small plates are perfect for a sample of the countries’ cuisine as you stroll around the lagoon. The only question is, where do you start?
The Discovery Passport is a pocket guide listing all of the Kiosks along with their menu; a great way to create your must-do list. Each kiosk also has a “stamp”. The idea is to collect the stamps in the Discovery Passport. You don’t have to purchase anything to get the stamp, just have your passport ready and ask one of the cast members. When you get them all, head back to the Festival Center for your “Completer Stamp”. The Passport also includes the full Eat-to-the-Beat concert lineup and highlights of events in the Festival Center. Looking for items the kids might like? Look for the try it logo.
In addition to the Discovery Passport make sure you grab the Event Guide, the map with full event details. The maps are updated every week and feature the full list of Festival Center events. Some of the events include Wine/Beverage Seminars, Culinary Demonstrations, Mixology Seminars, Book Signings, The Chocolate Experience, “Seasons of the Vine”, the Intermission Cage, the Stock Pot Shop, and the Art of Food and Wine. Everything you could possibly think of is listed and available in the Food & Wine Festival Center.
In addition to the Festival Center, you will find event merchandise all-around World Showcase, and be sure to look for the Chase Lounge. In 2013 the Chase Lounge was located in the VIP section of the American Adventure Pavilion. The Lounge featured lots of places to relax, great views of World Showcase from the top floor of the pavilion, places to charge your devices, free snacks (cookies), and a freestyle Coke machine.
Everyone has their favorite Kiosk. I have mine, and you will no doubt have yours. For more details on some of the food offerings, check out The Disney Nerds Podcast Show #40 when Jimmy, Ed, Jennifer, and I do a walk-around World Showcase for the 2013 Food and Wine Festival.
Lots, and Lots, and Lots of Pictures from Epcot International Food and Wine Festival 2013!
Epcot’s 30th Anniversary featuring a once-in-a-lifetime Illuminations, check it out.
For More and the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival check out: Flower and Garden 2012, Flower and Garden 2014, 2015, Backstage at the 2017 Festival, The 2018 Festival, Garden Rocks with Survivor, and the 2020 Flower and Garden Festival
