When it comes to EPCOT, one of the major appeals is the opportunity to experience the seasonal festivals that allow visitors to try new foods, watch some seasonal shows, and buy themed merchandise.
Food & Wine Festival
EPCOT’s International Food and Wine Festival takes place yearly throughout the late summer and fall harvest seasons, bringing hearty eats to each of the festival booths, as well as concerts, games, and a food-inspired race weekend. While this is a fan-favorite festival for many, it might be worth skipping this year for some.
The 2023 Food and Wine Festival will take place from July 27th through November 18th, and this year, we see good reason to potentially skip the festival entirely. If you’re deciding whether or not to visit this year, make sure to take these important details into consideration!
CommuniCore Hall and Plaza May or May Not Be Complete
Disney announced that CommuniCore Hall and Plaza, a dedicated festival area would arrive to EPCOT in late 2023, where visitors could visit a central location to experience festival offerings. Alongside the Hall will be the Plaza, which will allow guests to experience booths, concerts, and vendors in one central location. This is set to be located in World Celebration.
CommuniCore Hall Construction in May 2023
We don’t yet have an opening timeline or any hints as to when the Hall and Plaza could open. Many Disney fans were looking forward to potentially experiencing this update as part of the Food and Wine Festival this year, but it seems that the chances could be slim. Of course, Disney could always surprise us with news of an opening timeline at any point!
There Might Not Be Seminars and Demos This Year
In the past, Culinary Demos, Beverage Seminars, Food and Beverage Pairings, and Mix It! Make It! Seminars were typically offered from year to year, allowing visitors to experience the festival in a unique way.
Demonstrations available in 2019
However, Disney hasn’t yet confirmed details of any demos or seminars that might pop up this year, which does have us slightly concerned that there might not be any this year. Of course, Disney could surprise us and announce the return of these at any time, but we’ll just have to wait and see!
We’ll continue to keep you updated with any and all festival news, so make sure to follow along for more!
Click here to see everything CONFIRMED for the 2023 EPCOT Food and 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!
Learn More About the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival!
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EPCOT Food and Wine Festival - Fans Facebook Page
Wine and Dine Half Marathon Details
Get More Updates, Tips, and Tricks to Help You Conquer the Food & Wine Festival
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Will you be visiting the Food and Wine Festival this year? Let us know in the comments!
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If they have food and wine, i’m there!
I attended last year and was very disappointed, sounds like same issues this year. Also extremely disappointed about the fest cookbook not being there last year and I assume not this year. As a family meeting together for several years the cookbook was such a treasure for each of us. Too bad. Really would not like to be disappointed again
Not to mention the drunk people who cause problems after drinking “around the world.”
Disney hasn’t had the demos and seminars, etc., in years. I really miss the wine lunches. Not having them won’t keep me from coming. Fingers crossed they’ll come back eventually.
Main reason for people to skip the F&W Festival this year, is so that the lines are shorter when I attend.
*grin*
Makes for a great way to control food cost, throw in the dinning credit we got on our reservation and it’s a great year to be there.
I would not miss it.
We will be there for the food booths! We don’t participate in lectures and though a central location would be nice for some things, we didn’t usually visit the other central locations for the chocolate demonstrations, etc.
Just another example of families paying more for Disney, and getting less. I’m an AP and live 10 mins away from Epcot, so I am sure we will pop in to see the offerings. But if I were planning my trip based around what I’ve seen so far, like less experienced based options and the likelihood that we won’t see a Food Hall, (the Eat to the Beat lineup…yikes) I definitely would skip out this year.