Should a Visit to EPCOT’s Festival of the Holidays be on your Disney List?
I make no apologies for the fact that I love the EPCOT Festival of the Holidays. It’s the shortest of all EPCOT festivals, yet for me, it ranks as top of the heap. If you’ve got a stop during the most wonderful time of the year on the books (or perhaps you’re planning ahead for 2025), let’s review what I believe to be the festival’s must-dos. Grab a cup of cocoa, toss in a few extra marshmallows, and cozy up, friends. Here’s my list:
Don’t Miss the Holiday Storytellers
The Holiday Storytellers are a group of the most charming friends to ever spin a yarn. Storytellers appear in the World Showcase pavilions throughout each park day to share a story about holiday happenings and traditions in that particular country. It’s edutainment at its very finest. Incredibly talented cast members sharing a country’s authentic culture as you enjoy your day in EPCOT? Priceless.
Complete the Holiday Cookie Stroll
I love an eating challenge. Give me the chance to try cookies as I peruse the park and then reward me for eating the cookies with an edible prize at the end, and I’m a very happy camper.
The Holiday Cookie Stroll has grown over the years and now features a whopping nine cookies from which to choose your required five. The main cookies in the Stroll ring in at $3.25 a piece, which is quite reasonable in my book.
I can’t recommend the Stroll highly enough. It’s so much fun running around the park collecting stamps and chowing down cookies. My biggest advice is to bring something (or buy something; more details below) in which you can stash your leftover cookies. I found out very early on that I don’t have the ability to eat every cookie on the spot. I love leaving the park at the end of the day with leftovers. It’s the perfect way to keep the magic going.
And, for the love of all things sweet, don’t skip the Black and White Cookie at the L’Chaim! Holiday Kitchen. It’s incredible.
Festival Merch isn’t to be Missed
With each new year, the festival merchandise takes a step forward. This year’s merch, however, took a giant leap for festival-kind. Not only did we fans get adult-sized quarter-zip replica of the sweater that Figment wears during the holidays on Journey into Imagination, we were blessed with a cookie carrier a la the Caboodles you kept your lip gloss and diary in in the 90’s. The merch team heard us, y’all.
Guests will find event-specific items in all shapes and sizes located throughout the park, with the mother lode being located at Creations Shop in World Celebration. Pins, t-shirts, Spirit Jerseys, ornaments and long sleeve Annual Passholder tees all feature the year’s festival logo.
Please Stop to Notice the Decorating Details
I know that it’s been said time and again that the park never looks prettier than during the Flower and Garden Festival, and while it does looks beautiful, I have to disagree. In my mind, EPCOT absolutely sparkles during the Festival of the Holidays.
Each World Showcase pavilion is decked out for the season, with ribbons and velveteen and glistening lights festooning balconies and overhangs everywhere.
Please stop and take time to notice the decorating details that are specific to each country’s traditions and aesthetic. And, by all means, don’t miss the Christmas tree in the American Adventure pavilion and its touches that harken back to the early days of the United States.
Also, lingering in the France pavilion is a hands-down Festival of the Holidays must-do. Sit and squint and tilt your head just a bit and you might swear you were in the heart of Paris at Christmas time. Please visit L’Artisan de Glaces while you’re back there and savor a scoop of the best ice cream you’ve ever had as you gaze at the beauty of it all.
Savor the Cooler Temps
I think we can all agree that the Walt Disney World parks during the summer aren’t the most comfortable places to be. We all make it work, though, ‘cause anytime you get to travel to your happy place is a good time.
What if I where to tell you that most days in the winter months in Central Florida are virtually humidity-free? What if I told you the evening temps in the parks are cool enough to actually feel reminiscent of the holidays? The winter months in the WDW parks are a joy, friends. A JOY. Please schedule a visit and find out for yourself. You’ll never want to try to choke down Le Cellier’s Cheddar Cheese soup on a hot day in early September again.
If you’ve debated visiting EPCOT during the holidays, please let me lean across this virtual kitchen table and implore you to add it to your Disney park fan bucket list. It’s 100% worth it. And it might just be the perfect way to get you into the holiday spirit.
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