Welcome to one of the best days of the year! The first day of the 2021 EPCOT Food & Wine Festival! If you have tuned in for previous years you know we dive right in and review EVERYTHING for you!
It’s Time for the Food & Wine Festival!
We completely understand that the food is a VERY important aspect of this festival and trust us we will get to ALL of the food. However, there are some other important things you will need to know about when you visit the festival.
Between the live entertainment this year and all the new food booths you will need to know how all of this is impacted by the crowds! And we are here to report back to you how crowds are on the first day of the Food & Wine Festival so you will know how to navigate.
We’re ready bright and early!
We arrived at EPCOT’s two entrances well before the parks officially opened, and the crowds were already there. As we waited to go inside, the lines got significantly backed up. (But that’s to be expected at rope drop!)
It’s pretty busy here!
The same was true at EPCOT’s main entrance, where guests were lined up, ready to march in and enjoy all the delicious eats.
Look at all those people.
Once we made it inside, we also found lines to get into popular locations like Mouse Gear. Looks like a lot of people want those festival items!
There were lines for merchandise!
And some of the walkways were definitely crammed full. We know it’s the rush at the park open, but geez!
WOW.
We’ve also encountered lines at many of the booths today. It turns out that we’re not the only ones who want to be the first to try the eats.
Expect to wait in line if you’re here today.
And as we got deeper into the fray and later into the afternoon, things got WORSE. We waited in this bonkers line for the China booth! Where is the booth, you may ask? Well, the line is so long that the booth isn’t even in the picture!
YIKES. This is ridiculous.
Things were pretty calm at Refreshment Outpost (when are they ever crazy over here?), BUT…
Refreshment Outpost
…the line for Italy was jam-packed! We waited here for quite a while. Keep in mind that things are going to be naturally busy on the opening day of the festival. We expect that these crowds will continue into the weekend as locals make their way to experience the first few days of the fest.
Prepare to wait if you’re coming this weekend!
We’ll keep checking out the crowd levels throughout the day and keep you updated with what we find. Stay tuned to DFB for the latest news and updates directly from the festival!
Click HERE to Get Our FREE Printable Showcasing All the Booths at The 2021 EPCOT Food & Wine Festival
IT'S WINE & DINE TIME!
Food & Wine Festival can be a bummer. You stand in line waiting for what looks like the perfect treat, and it's a bust. But fear not, dear friends, we compiled EVERYTHING you need (and the things to avoid!) to plan the ULTIMATE EPCOT Food & Wine Festival experience.
If you're planning a day or a week at the festival, we've got every performance, activity, and tasty nosh detailed out so you can make the most of your time and money. Listen, it's a tough job eating and documenting the nearly 200 bites and sips, but we do it all for YOU!
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Re: the two entrances. Does the international gateway/ back entrance open at the same time as the main entrance? Any tips if coming in from the back entrance? Thanks for all your advice!!
Melanie, hi! The International Gateway does open the same time as the front entrance. It’s a great way to arrive for the Festival, since you’ll be perfectly placed between UK and France to start eating your way around the World Showcase. If you want to experience attractions in Future World before hitting the Festival, the front entrance is likely the better option.
What is the capacity now at wdw, are they back up to 100%, or is it still being limited?
Wendy, Disney hasn’t released a percentage of capacity recently, so we can’t know for sure what it is.