Festival season is about to kick off in EPCOT, and we’ve got some new rules for you!
2024 Food and Wine Festival
The International Food & Wine Festival starts in August, and once it wraps, the Festival of the Holidays kicks off shortly after. In 2026, the Festival of the Arts typically takes place in January and February, with the Flower & Garden Festival coming up in March. So basically, we’re looking at a steady stream of festivals until next summer. Here’s what you need to know before you plan your visit.
Don’t Overeat at Breakfast
For the International Food & Wine Festival this fall, Chefs de France in the France Pavilion will be offering a breakfast buffet on Fridays and Saturdays from 9AM to 10:30AM. It’ll feature French pastries, plus freshly baked baguettes, premium cheeses, and artisanal cured meats. You’ll also be able to drink unlimited mimosas, fruit juices, and freshly brewed coffee.
©Disney
The cost is $64.95 per person, and all that food may sound like a great (and delicious!) deal, but don’t forget to save room for the rest of your festival eats! It would be a shame to fill up on bread to the point where you can’t enjoy any of the food booths around the park afterward. Of course, this is all down to your own personal dining preferences, but budget the room in your stomach wisely!
Watch Out for Crowds Near Test Track
If you’re heading to EPCOT in the coming months, you can expect that there will be heavier crowds over by Test Track. Why? Because it just reopened from a complete overhaul! The ride is very different from how you remember it before, with an all-new storyline and queue. So with lots of people interested in checking it out, you may find that this area of the park is BUSY.
Test Track
During some of the festivals, there are booths in World Discovery near Test Track, and most of the time, the festivals make use of the nearby Odyssey Pavilion as well. You might experience longer lines at those food spots since they’re nearest to the ride.
Don’t Forget the NEW Lounge
Another new addition to EPCOT is GEO-82, which is an adults-only lounge inside Spaceship Earth. This space has some delicious eats and drinks to offer, and it’s incredibly popular right now (and subsequently, hard to snag a reservation for). If you manage to snag a reservation, you’re going to have to work it into your festival schedule.
High Brow Batanga
You’ll have to decide if it’s worth it to use up some of your festival budget and stomach space to stop and grab drinks and snacks here during your EPCOT visit. Dining reservations become available 60 days before your trip, so once you have your reservation for this spot secured, you’ll be able to schedule your festival plan of attack around your time chilling at the lounge.
Don’t Skip CommuniCore Hall
And last but not least, we’re going to tell you NOT to skip CommuniCore Hall! This indoor space opened in summer 2024 and at first, it was a bit underwhelming. But in 2025, Disney’s been taking this space up a notch with specialty theming for each of the festivals, including some really cool displays and exhibits!
Disney on Broadway Exhibit during the Festival of the Arts
During the Festival of the Arts, they had a phenomenal Disney on Broadway exhibit, and the Flower & Garden Festival brought a specialty floral display. So if you’re coming to EPCOT soon, make sure to stop in there and see what they’ve got available!
CommuniCore Hall
That’s a wrap on our list of new tips for festival season at EPCOT. Happy eating, drinking, and celebrating, folks!
And if you’re heading to EPCOT soon, check out our guide to the park’s food below.
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Geo82 reservation hack that probably works for other popular spots at WDW.
Don’t just search for a rez for the exact number of people in your dining party. I’ve been looking at the Geo82 reservation page every day for the past few weeks and I’ve found that just because a reservation for 2 is not available, a reservation for 4 may be available. Point is keep changing the number of people. Once you have a rez you can more easily change it afterwards. I was able to snag two reservations for Geo82-one for 4 and one for 5 people- using this hack.