The 2023 EPCOT Food & Wine Festival is just around the corner, and we’ve got some important insider tips to help you have an AWESOME festival experience!

We LOVE exploring all of the limited-time offerings at the EPCOT Food & Wine Festival when it rolls around each year. This year’s festival is set to run from July 27th through November 18th and it will feature exclusive entertainment, new merchandise, and, of course, over 25 delicious Global Marketplace Food Booths. We’ve been trying (literally) EVERYTHING at the festival for years, and during that time we’ve racked up quite a few tips about how to do the festival like a pro.

Here are our key insider tips for the 2023 EPCOT Food & Wine Festival!

Plan Your Must-Try Menu Items in Advance

With over 25 Global Marketplace Food Booths that feature hundreds of food and drink options to try, it can be easy to get carried away with what you decide to order! Especially if you arrive at the park hungry and are tempted to stop at the first booth you see.

While it can be fun to try new items on the fly, if you get too carried away with ordering the first items you see, you might find yourself too full — or too far over your budget — to try the festival eats that you REALLY want. That’s why we recommend taking a look at the EPCOT Food & Wine menus before you get to the park and picking out a few dishes that you definitely want to try so you don’t get overwhelmed by the options in the moment!

If you want even more help prepping for the festival, we’re here to help! Order the 2023 DFB Food & Wine Festival Guide for ALL of the festival tips and info that you need to really tackle the festival like a pro!

Click Here to Get the 2023 DFB Food & Wine Festival Guide!

Carry Some Cash

Okay, so you’ve got your must-taste menu items picked out. But beware, Mother Nature could still stand between you and your buy list! At previous festivals, we have seen the credit card and gift card readers at the booths go down during storms.

And since the summertime in Florida tends to bring LOTS of pop-up thunderstorms, we like to carry a little bit of cash in our park bag, just in case there is a disruption of digital payments at the festival booths!

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Stay Hydrated

Eating and drinking around the festival is one of our favorite Disney World activities. That’s how we know just how easy it can be to get caught up in the fun and forget to stay hydrated!

Between the intense Florida heat, snacking around the booths, and sipping on alcoholic beverages, dehydration can sneak up on you pretty fast if you’re not careful. That’s why one of our must-haves for the EPCOT Food & Wine Festival is a refillable water bottle. And, since it only works if we actually USE it, we make sure to drink water with the festival eats/drinks we order, in addition to taking regular sips throughout the non-food-centric parts of our park day.

Don’t panic if you forget your water bottle at home! There’s also bottled water available to buy at tons of locations throughout the park, plus free cups of water at select quick service food locations.

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Eat to the Beat Dining Packages

One of the most popular entertainment offerings at the Food & Wine Festival is the Eat to the Beat Concert Series, which features live performances from artists like Sugar Ray, Billy Ocean, Hanson, and more in the America Gardens Theatre.

Seating for the Eat to the Beat concerts can fill up FAST, especially for the more popular artists. If the artist that’s performing during your visit is an absolute must-see for you, you may want to purchase the Eat to the Beat Dining Package to make sure you get a seat for the show, AND save tons of time standing in line for standby!

The Eat to the Beat Dining Package comes with reserved seating for the show, plus a meal at one of several EPCOT restaurants! Pricing for the package depends on the restaurant selected, and you can check out the full list of options here.

Learn More About the 2023 Eat to the Beat Concert Series!

Bring Your Own Tray

The Food & Wine Festival is a popular event, and that means it’s often tough to find an open table to stand at and enjoy all of your food booth eats! If you plan on snagging a ton of menu items, especially multiple dishes from the same booth, you may want to pack your own tray in case you do find yourself tableless!

Of course, you could also get creative and use another surface as a makeshift table. You may have even spotted people using the flat surfaces of the trash cans as a table (it’s us, we’re people). But if that’s not your jam, packing a tray can be helpful in case you do find yourself without a table!

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There’s SO MUCH to enjoy at the EPCOT Food & Wine Festival! That’s why we want to make sure you’re prepared with some expert tips on how to make sure you get to experience the must-try things on your list. And don’t forget, if you REALLY want to do your homework, the 2023 DFB Food & Wine Festival Guide has tons of info to help you ace the festival. We’ll see you in EPCOT!

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What’s your top tip for the EPCOT Food & Wine Festival? Share with us in the comments!