2023 EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival Preview
The 2023 EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival is happening from March 1 to July 5. The Festival will include the typical components of every EPCOT festival: commemorative merchandise, themed entertainment, educational elements, park decor, and, of course, food booths.
Themed Entertainment – Garden Rocks
Shows take place at the America Gardens pavilion in the World Showcase area of EPCOT. There are three performances each night – at 5:30 p.m., 6:45 p.m., and 8:00 p.m. The performances are free with your EPCOT park admission ticket, with seating first-come, first-served. If you’d like to avoid waiting in line. you can book a Festival dinner package that includes preferred seating with little to no wait.
The 2023 performers are:
- March 3 & 4: Journey Former Lead Vocalist Steve Augeri
- March 5 & 6: Daughtry
- March 10 & 11: Tommy DeCarlo
- March 12 & 13: Smash Mouth
- March 17 & 18: Mike DelGuidice
- March 19 & 20: Blue Oyster Cult (new this year)
- March 24 & 25: Berlin
- March 26 & 27: The Pointer Sisters
- March 31: Luis Figueroa (new this year)
- April 1 & 2: Piso 21 (new this year)
- April 3: TBD
- April 7 & 8: STARSHIP featuring Mickey Thomas
- April 9 & 10: Don Felder, formerly of the Eagles
- April 14 & 15: Blue October
- April 16 & 17: Switchfoot (new this year)
- April 21 & 22: A Flock of Seagulls
- April 23 & 24: Jo Dee Messina
- April 28 & 29: Ambrosia with Peter Beckett, The Voice Of Player
- April 30 & May 1: Kool & The Gang
- May 5 to 8: Herman’s Hermits starring Peter Noone
- May 12 to 15: The Orchestra starring former members of ELO
- May 19 & 20: A.J. Croce: Croce Plays Croce (new this year)
- May 21 & 22: Casting Crowns (NEW)
- May 26 & 27: Jason Scheff, longtime lead singer of Chicago (new this year)
- May 28 & 29: Rick Springfield
- June 2 to 5: Plain White T’s
- June 9 & 10: The Spinners
- June 11 & 12: The Commodores
- June 16 & 17: Vertical Horizon
- June 18 & 19: Tony Orlando
- June 23 to 26: Simple Plan
- June 30 & July 1: Living Colour
- July 2 & 3: Wang Chung
Educational Elements
No Epcot Festival would be complete without some educational elements and, not surprisingly, the F&G education comes in the form of information about plants and nature such as:
- Blossoms of Fragrance Garden Presented by Scentsy – World Showcase Bridge. Learn about how fragrance influences humans.
- Bambi’s Butterfly House – near the Imagination pavilion. Walk through a tent filled with live butterflies in every stage of their development. Signage inside describes butterfly habitats and lifecycles.
- Honey Bee-stro, hosted by the National Honey Board – near the Imagination pavilion. Learn about honeybees’ critical role in the environment.
- Tropical Rainforest Garden – Mexico Pavilion. Learn about the biodiversity of the Mexican rainforest and learn about its highly adaptive species.
- Bamboo Garden – China Pavilion. See bamboo in a variety of colors, patterns and sizes.
- Garden Italiano – Italy Pavilion. A Tuscan kitchen garden features produce and herbs used in Italian cooking.
- Bonsai Collection – Japan Pavilion. Learn about the living sculpture art of bonsai. Bonsai masters carefully shape and tend these miniature works of art, creating peace and balance with the earth.
- Spice Garden – Morocco Pavilion. Discover how Eastern cultures flourished, trading signature spices and herb blends, once considered more valuable than gold.
- France Bouquet Garden – France pavilion. See bountiful blooms perfect for a bouquet of cut flowers.
- English Tea Garden Presented by Twinings – UK pavilion. Explore the history and art of tea-blending.
- Shakespeare Garden – UK Pavilion. Rediscover Shakespeare in this idyllic garden featuring excerpts from some of the Bard’s most famous sonnets—and the dazzling flowers that influenced them.
- Prehistoric Garden – World Discovery near Mission: SPACE. Imagine life on Earth 65 million years ago with astounding plant life that’s thrived since the age of the dinosaurs.
- Spike’s Pollen-Nation Exploration – an interactive springtime scavenger hunt for gardeners of all ages. To get started, purchase your map and stickers ($9.99 + tax) at select merchandise locations (available while supplies last). Once you have completed your scavenger hunt, return your completed map to Disney Traders or World Traveler for a special surprise.
Park Decor
Most of the park decor related to the Flower & Garden Festival takes the form of plant life. EPCOT never looks more stunning than when it is abloom with this festival’s colorful plantings.
This year’s Festival will feature brand new topiaries of Mirabel, Antonio, Isabela and Luisa from Disney’s “Encanto”. They’ll be located right near the main entrance, making them easy to find. (Why no Bruno? We don’t talk about Bruno.) And a new Princess Tiana topiary will be found at the American Adventure.
Additional topiaries include:
- Woody, Bo Peep and Her Sheep – The Land Pavilion
- Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Huey, Dewey and Louie – near the bridge to World Showcase
- Pluto and Chip ‘n’ Dale – American Adventure Pavilion
- Buzz Lightyear – near Mission: SPACE
- Figment – Imagination pavilion
- The Three Caballeros (Jose, Donald and Panchito) – Mexico Pavilion
- Anna and Elsa – Norway Pavilion
- Troll – Norway Pavilion
- Dragon – Japan Pavilion near Torii Gate
- Pandas – China Pavilion
- Simba and Friends (Rafiki, Simba, Mufasa and Sarabi) – Between the Imagination and Land Pavilions
- Pumbaa and Timon – Between the Imagination and Land Pavilions
- Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs – Germany Pavilion
- Lady and the Tramp – Italy Pavilion
- Beauty and the Beast – France Pavilion
- Lumiere and Cogsworth – France Pavilion
- Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy – Germany Pavilion
- Peter Pan, Captain Hook and Tick Tock – Between the UK and Canada Pavilions
- Winnie the Pooh and Friends (Rabbit, Eeyore, Piglet and Tigger) – United Kingdom Pavilion
- Tinker Bell’s Fairy House Garden – United Kingdom Pavilion
- Bambi and Friends – near the Imagination Pavillion
Even the miniature train setup at the Germany Pavilion will be festooned with F&G signage and decor.
Outdoor Kitchens (aka Food Booths)
This year’s festival will feature outdoor kitchens (see full menus here), including:
- BRUNCHCOT (located near Test Track): Breakfast-style dishes like avocado toast and grits, served all day.
- EPCOT Farmers Feast (located near Test Track): We’ve been lukewarm on the spring onion soup, but the beet trio and duck confit are delightful.
- The Citrus Blossom (located near Port of Entry) Last year we were mixed on this booth; this year it has an all-new lineup.
- Florida Fresh (located near Disney Traders): Grilled street corn, watermelon salad, blackened fish sliders, strawberry shortcake.
- Jardin de Fiestas (located near Mexico): Quesadillas, tacos, and margaritas.
- Lotus House (located near China): Crab wontons and dumplings are a staple here.
- Bauernmarkt Farmer’s Market (located near Germany): You can’t go wrong at this booth. Both versions of the potato pancakes are tasty and filling. The toasted pretzel bread was a hearty meal. But the warm cheese strudel was the real star.
- Primavera Kitchen (located near Italy): An all-new lineup, but Italy’s lineup is usually best for unadventurous eaters.
- Magnolia Terrace (located near American Adventure): A new lineup this year, except for the returning gumbo.
- Hanami (located near Japan): we have been fans of the soups from Japan in the last few Festivals.
- Tangierine Café Flavors of the Medina (located near Morocco): Grilled kebabs, hummus, orange blossom cake.
- La Isla Fresca (located between Morocco and France): Last year we gave this booth a “Skip!” rating but the menu is all new this year.
- Fleur de Lys (located near France): The lovely goat cheese croissant is back, paired with two new entrees.
- Northern Bloom (located near Canada): This booth is home to some of our favorites. The seared scallops, beef tenderloin, and maple pound cake are all fantastic.
- Trowel & Trellis (located near Disney Traders): Plant-friendly dishes, but not usually our favorites.
- The Honey Bee-stro (located near Port of Entry): Chicken & waffles, flatbread with honey whipped mascarpone, honey-mascarpone cheesecake.
- Pineapple Promenade (located near Port of Entry): We’ve found the spicy hot dog here to be underwhelming.
- Joffrey’s Coffee & Tea Company (located near Mission Space): Lemon tea or lemonade – with or without Grey Goose vodka, key lime cold brew, orange cream cold brew.
- Funnel Cake Stand (located near the American Adventure pavilion): Banana split funnel cake.
- Refreshment Outpost (located between the China and Germany pavilions): Pineapple skewer, ice cream float, lavender martini.
- Refreshment Port (located near the Canada pavilion): Shrimp scampi poutine, spiked seltzer.
- The Land Cart (located near the Land pavilion): Fruit & cheese plate, veggie plate, pretzels with hummus.
- Connections Cafe: Orange waffle, plus the regular menu
- Sunshine Seasons: Strawberry-mango slushie, plus the regular menu
-
Eats from the Honey Bee-stro.
Merchandise
Every EPCOT festival includes a range of special images and designs featured on clothing, collectibles, housewares and other items. Some Flower & Garden merch from recent years included:
You’ll also find specialty vendor with wares which include or are related to botanical elements.
Thinking About a Visit?
An EPCOT-area resort is the best choice if you plan to visit the 2023 Flower and Garden Festival. And we can get you the best deal on those rooms. Get a quote, and be sure to check our EPCOT Crowd Calendar for the best dates to visit.
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