2020 Epcot Food & Wine Festival Guide

The ultimate guide to the Epcot food and wine 2019 festival! Full menu, concert lineup, tips and tricks, and more! Everything you need to check out the Disney food and wine festival this year!

Planning a trip to the 2020 Epcot Food and Wine Festival at Disney World? This guide has everything you need to go about heading to the festival this year!

This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase via one of my links, I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Disney provided me with a park ticket + dining gift card for this post – but the majority of the food was purchased with money out of my own pocket, so I could give you all the details!

2020 Festival Update

Last year I went to the Permission to Hustle Disney retreat and as part of the retreat (and for a few hours before it started), we checked out Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party (so fun!) and the 2019 International Food and Wine Festival at Epcot!

This post was originally written based on the 2019 festival and will be updated as we learn more about this year’s festival.

This year Disney World will be hosting a modified version of the festival so make sure to check on the Disney World website ahead of time to check for up to date regulations and guidelines for participating.

They will be calling it a Taste of Epcot International Food and Wine Festival and most of the details haven’t been announced quite yet.

We know the festival will begin on July 15th when Epcot reopens and that you must have a Disney park reservation as well as a valid ticket admission to go. We also know they’ll be adding in some of the details from the missed Flower and Garden festival.

They’ve also announced that there will be 20 marketplace booths spaced around the theme park to help with social distancing. Full menus and details are not yet available. If you’d like to see the menus from last year’s even, here’s a list of the best Food and Wine Festival menus !

I’ll update this post and that one as soon as we get more info on the festival.

To make it easier to navigate this crazy long post, I’ve put together a menu here to help you click around. Just click on the topic you’re looking for to be taken directly to that topic. And when you’re done with the topic, click the “Return to Menu” button at the bottom of the section to hop back up here. Hope it makes it a bit easier than having to scroll up and down!

2020 Festival Dates

The International Food and Wine Festival is being held at Epcot from July 15, 2020 to a TBD date this fall.

Epcot hours change regularly so if you want to go into the park before the actual food kiosks open, check the Disney World website for Epcot hours.

Food kiosks typically open at 11AM throughout the park, but they were open closer to 10:30 on opening day. If you’re in the park early, it’s worth seeing if anything is open before 11AM. If not, head to the rides!

Festival Costs

First off, you will need a valid Epcot park reservation (new for 2020!) as well as a valid theme park ticket to participate in the festival.

easter games for kids indoor

And then listen to this because it’s important – while you can wander around Epcot and look at things the food and drinks are NOT free .

I had a woman in line in front of me at one of the kiosks who walked up to the cast member and was bewildered that she had to pay for things. She thought they were just giving out free samples to everyone at all of the kiosks.

That cast member put it best and said, “When was anything at Disney free?”

So if you’re planning to go to the festival – bring your wallet, Magicband, or little fancy Festival gift card because the food and drinks are not free. They range anywhere from -10 a piece, which adds up quickly.

Tip: If you want to try a lot of things, I recommend getting a group like I did and ordering one of each and each taking a taste. It’s a great way to save money while still getting to sample everything.

Epcot food and wine festival 2019 signage

I still recommend doing rope drop to make the most of one day at Disney World , but I’m guessing if you’re doing just one day, you’re probably not spending it at the festival unless you’re an annual passholder.

Food and Wine Festival Annual Passholder Perks

Annual passholder perks have not yet been announced for 2020 and with the limit of three days reservation per month, I’m not sure they will continue the perks this year.

In 2019, they offered two different magnets – a Chef Minnie one for visiting between August 29 to October 14 and a Chef Remy magnet for visiting between October 15 to November 23rd.

They also offered a set of complimentary Food & Wine Festival coasters for passholders who visited the festival four times. I asked to confirm – this means four different days. You can’t viist the festival once in the morning and once in the evening like I did and have it count twice.

Epcot Food and Wine Festival 2019 annual passholder magnet

Photo Credit: Sarah Bergman

Some other previous passholder perks included:

Access to passholder exclusive festival merchandise (tip – shop at Mouse Gear or Port of Entry and use your 20% off)
10% discount on Eat to the Beat Dining Package
Disney Gift Card Deal – when you buy the Festival 0 gift card (available at Mouse Gear, Disney Traders, Port of Entry, and Bridge Kiosk), you’ll get a digital bonus to spend at select table-service restaurants in Epcot

I wish they would offer a Sip and Savor pass that provides discounted food and drinks from the festival like they do at the Disneyland Food and Wine Festival . That was one of my favorite parts!

Epcot Food and Wine Festival 2020 Entertainment

Details regarding 2020 festival entertainment is still forthcoming. We do know, however, that they have cancelled the Eat to the Beat concert series for 2020.

The entertainment that has been announced so far includes:

Mariachi Cobre at America Gardens Theater
Jammitors at America Gardens Theater

Epcot Concerts: Eat to the Beat

This year’s Eat to the Beat concert series has been cancelled. Below are details from our experience at the 2019 festival.

We saw Plain White T’s while we were there, and they were fantastic. The set was short, about 30 minutes, but they sang Hey There Delilah and that’s really all that matters. There are a lot of people on the lineup of concerts that I don’t personally know, so I was excited to see a band I really like!

Tip : There were people lining up for the next set when we left the first one, but there were empty seats in our set so not sure how necessary that is unless you really want a great seat.

Here’s the schedule for the 2019 concerts. I’ve added an * if it’s a new artist to the Eat to the Beat Concert series!

August 29-31: Plain White T’s
September 1-2: Sawyer Brown*
September 3-4: MercyMe
Septemer 5-6: Grace Kelly*
September 7-8: Zach Williams*
September 9-10: Lauren Daigle*
September 11-12: Jimmie Allen*
September 13-15: Tiffany
September 16-17: Smashmouth
September 18-19: Everclear
September 20-22: STARSHIP featuring Mickey Thomas
September 23-24: Postmodern Jukebox
September 25-26: Blue October (kind of feels like I should be there for this one since it’s my birthday and my wedding song is by Blue October!)
September 27-29: Mark Wills
September 30-October 2: Sugar Ray
October 3-4: Taylor Dayne
October 5-6: India*
October 7-9: 98 degrees
October 10-11: Boyce Avenue*
October 12-13: Southern Avenue*
October 14-15: Kenny G
October 16-17: 38 Special
October 18-20: Baha Men
October 21-22: Billy Ocean
October 23-25: Sheila E
October 26-27: High Valley
October 28-30: Hanson
October 31-November1: Sheena Easton
November 2-3: Kris Allen*
November 4-6: Boyz II Men
November 7-8: The Hooters
November 9-11: Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
November 12-14: Joey Fatone and Friends*
November 15-16: BBMak*
November 17-18: Spanish Harlem Orchestra*
November 19: DCappela*

Epcot Food and Wine Kid Friendly-Activities

The International Food and Wine Festival isn’t just for adults! Disney has made sure to include a couple of kid specific activities to keep the fun family-friendly!

Returning in 2020 will be a Chef Remy themed scavenger hunt for kids called “Remy’s Ratatouille Hide & Squeak Scavenger Hunt.”

Search the park to find the locations on the map then turn the maps in for a surprise. We did the flower and garden one in the spring with my son, and he absolutely loved it!

Tip : You don’t have to actually find all the locations, you can turn the map in blank and they’ll still give you the prize. Just in case you all get hot and tired and want to leave early without finding everything.

In 2019, the maps cost .99 and come with a map and stickers to put on the map as you find the scavenger hunt. It’s a fun way to keep kids entertained as you’re eating the not as kid-friendly food.

Kid friendly activities at the Disney food and wine festival

They have yet to announce whether or not any of the other kid-friendly activities such as candy sushi making, family play zone, and more will be open. My guess is no, but I’ll update this post as soon as we hear more.

Cheese Tour

In the past the festival has included a tour of some sort where if you tried foods from certain kiosks, you could turn in your passport for a free treat. No word on whether this will continue in 2020 or not.

Here’s what they did in 2019 for reference! If you purchase five of these speciality cheese items at festival marketplace booths, you get a free complimentary cheesecake from Shimmering Sips as part of what Disney is calling Emile’s Fromage Montage.

And if you don’t want to try all five, no problem. You just have to try five total, so you could get two of your favorites instead of one you may not be interested in.

Make sure you give the cast member your Food and Wine Festival passport so they can stamp the back. You’ll need five stamps to turn the passport in for your complimentary cheesecake.

Cheese page at the Epcot Food and Wine Festival

Here are the five cheese options you can get stamps for.

Impossible Cottage Pie from Earth Eats
Black Pepper Boursin Souffle from The cheese Studio
Schinkennudeln from Germany
Warm Raclette Swiss Cheese from The Alps
Pao de Queijo from Brazil

Tip: It’s a fun idea and if you’re going to try all of these cheese items anyway, I say go for it because it’s free cheesecake. But if you’re not planning to try all of these items, I say skip the challenge – the cheesecake is okay but not great. I’d go with one of the other cheesecakes I recommend instead and save your money, especially since out of the five items on the cheese formage – I really only enjoyed two of them.

Free cheesecake from the Epcot Food and Wine Festival

Tips for Your Visit

I’m guessing the festival will be totally different this year than years in the past. Once it opens on July 15, I’ll make sure to update this post with tips and tricks for navigating the festival.

For now, I recommend reading these tips for visiting theme parks in 2020 post as most of these tips will apply!

If it’s anything like 2019, you’ll still want to read through the tips below!

If you’re going early when things first open, get there before 11AM and walk toward the back of the park (or come in the International Gateway entrance). All of the booths at the very front had really long lines early because people just stopped at the closest booth they could find. Lines were much shorter further from the entrance to the park.

Look through the menu, or even better this post with my Food and Wine festival food reviews , the day before so you can make a plan. You’ll save time having to read the small signs by each of the booths if you know what you really want to try.

If you see a short line at a booth you want to try, take advantage of it. You never know when that line will be long again! There were times that I’d see a line with 1 person and then two minutes later it’d be up to 10 people.

Save the other items from this best Disney World food list for another day. You can get those next time you visit Epcot when the festival isn’t going on.

Pick up a Food and Wine Festival plate that holds both your snacks and your drink – so much easier than trying to hold it all in your hands as you walk around the world!

Epcot food and wine festival plate

If you’re visiting with multiple people and want to try food at multiple booths, split lines. Have one person stand in on line and the other person stand in the other line and order for each other. That way you don’t both have to stand in line twice, I mean unless you want to of course!

If you’re planning to drink anything, think twice before renting a car at Disney World or at least before bringing your rental car to Epcot. If you’re going to drink, plan on taking Disney’s free transportation home.

Don’t forget to check out the festival exclusive merchandise. It’s only around during the festival and each year it’s something different. If you collect Disney items like so many of my friends, this is a great time to grab some cute stuff.

Photo Credit: Dawn from Cutefetti

Epcot Food and Wine Festival Mickey ears

Photo Credit: Cristen Casados from The Naptime Reviewer

Share items so you can try more without having to buy everything yourself. You can buy another one later if it’s that good you want your own!

Know what you want before you get to the cast member to order and have your credit card, gift card, or magic band ready to go. It’ll make things easier on everyone and who knows you might just get to go ahead of people in line because you’ll get through the line much faster.

Dietary Restrictions or Allergies at the Festival

If someone in your group has allergies, check the Food and Wine Festival tasting passport. There are little icons that indicate ones that are good for vegetarian, gluten/wheat-friendly, and even kid-approved.

If you have an allergy to a food, ask the cast member if you’re unsure whether you can have something or not. They can ask the chefs inside the kiosk if it’s a preference and look inside a book with all the ingredients if it’s an allergy. If you’re unsure, ask. Better safe than sorry.

While some of the food items can be customized for allergies like not putting whipped cream on top of a juice, it seems like most things are at least somewhat pre-assembled, which would make it harder to customize.

I can’t eat onions and found that a lot of the items had onions but in some cases, they were able to leave them off for me or my husband just tried that food instead. It’s definitely worth asking! You don’t want to miss out on all of this goodness!

Lamb chop at Epcot food and wine festival

2020 Festival Menu Guide

Okay, now here’s what you’ve all probably been waiting for – what to eat and drink at the 2020 festival! Unfortunately the menu hasn’t been announced yet but if you want to check out menu items from 2019, keep reading!

I actually explored the Food and Wine Festival two different times. Once with my husband (he ate all the onion things), and once with a group of my blogging girlfriends.

We ate our way through 90% of the offerings around the park. That’s a lot of eating in one day, but we did it just for you!

Click here to get to my review of all of the food items we tried along with a printable checklist of the best things to get and a “this, not that” list for types of food that show up across the park (e.g., this cheesecake, not that one).

Festival FAQs

Is the Food and Wine Festival free?

No. You need a park ticket PLUS a valid Epcot park reservation to get into the park. Plus all of the booths cost money, and most of the special activities have an additional fee (and some require reservations).

When you enter the park make sure to pick up your festival passport so you can keep track of all the countries you’ve visited. The passport + passport stickers inside are included with admission and a fun addition to the festival! Epcot Food and Wine Festival 2019 Festival Passport

Do I need a special ticket for the Epcot Food and Wine Festival?

No, unlike Disney After Hours , you don’t need a special ticket. A regular park ticket or annual pass plus a park reservation will all work just fine to get you into the park!

How much does the food cost?

We do not currently have menus with costs but in 2019 the food at the global marketplace booths cost anywhere from for the Fruit & Nut Energy Snack at Active Eats to for the caramel apple popcorn at the Appleseed Orchard (it comes in a collectible apple).

The drinks range anywhere from .00 for the non-alcoholic frozen apple pie at the Appleseed Orchard to for the Dom Pérignon Brut Champagne at Shimmering Sips.
Fruit and nut energy snack at the Epcot Food and Wine Festival

Can you use the Disney dining plan for the Epcot Food and Wine Festival?

In past years you could use a snack credit for food items. However, Disney has currently suspended all Disney dining plans for 2020 so this year the answer is no.

How crowded is Epcot during the Food and Wine Festival?

No one knows how crowded the festival will be in 2020. Disney has created a new park reservation and gotten rid of park hopper tickets to limit capacity. But as far as I’ve seen, no one knows what that capacity limit currently is.

If this year is like past years at all, weekdays will be less crowded than weekends. You can also check out reservation availability here to get an idea of whether Epcot will be at max capacity that day or not.

What are the best things to eat at the Food and Wine Festival?

Menus haven’t been announced yet for 2020 so I can’t answer for this year.

But here’s an entire post dedicated to the food at the Epcot Food and Wine Festival for 2019 .

You can also watch the video in this post to get a quick glimpse at all the food! Cheese souffle at the food and wine festival 2019