It feels impossible, but there will not be an EPCOT Festival for another 93 days. To put that in perspective, we’re going to experience “diet EPCOT” for a little more than 25% of the year during the summer alone. In the post-COVID era, it’s unprecedented, but we don’t have to reach too far back in time to find a festival-less summer that stretches as long as this summer will.
The days of summer Food & Wine Festivals really are a post-COVID thing. Back when the theme parks were reopening following the spring 2020 COVID-related closures, Disney introduced the concept of a “Taste Of” Festival. “Taste Of” events would still have many of the food-related offerings that guests loved, but they would be missing entertainment and other elements that were suspended due to physical distancing policies.
Also different with the start of the “Taste Of” events was a much longer runtime. Whereas Food & Wine typically began in late August before COVID, Disney World was likely anxious to make up for lost time (and lost revenue), starting the 2020 Taste of EPCOT Food & Wine Festival on July 15th. The 2020 Taste of EPCOT Food & Wine Festival would run through November 22nd, ushering in a new era of year-round Festivals…or so it would seem.
EPCOT Food & Wine Festivals in 2021, 2022, and 2023 would follow the same trend of July start dates, but as pent-up demand started to wane, so did the appetite for a long, hot summer Festival.
This year, Disney has gone back to pre-COVID operations for the 2024 EPCOT Food & Wine Festival, giving guests a reprieve from food & merchandise kiosks around World Showcase, and returning EPCOT to its “diet” state (read: no festival).
That said, Disney will still offer something new this year that they haven’t in years past. The CommuniCore Hall & Plaza venue will be opening in just a couple of weeks. Ironically, this was meant to be a festival center in earlier, more ambitious plans for the World Celebration section of EPCOT, and now it’s opening during the longest Festival drought in years.
This summer, guests will be able to enjoy the ¡Celebración Encanto! show at the CommuniCore Plaza stage. Nearby, the new Mickey & Friends meet and greet will also be open. CommuniCore Hall also has a festival exhibit space. It will be interesting to see what Disney World puts in that space this summer while there is no Festival ongoing. If the EPCOT overhaul had actually proceeded as planned, it would’ve been cool to see an exhibit detailing the progress that was made, but with something like a half-dozen projects either shelved or budget cut, perhaps the exhibition space will simply be used for an air-conditioned lounge area.
All that to say: diet EPCOT is back. What are we supposed to do now?
As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!