It’s hard to believe but the 2021 EPCOT Food and Wine Festival starts soon!!! And although we’re still waiting on Disney World to announce the menus for all the food booths, we have already received news about entertainment and activities that guests can expect this year!

But if you’ve never been to an EPCOT Food and Wine Festival before, you might have some misconceptions about what to expect. And that’s why we’re here — to clear up any myths you might have heard about the festival!

But first, our number one tip is to get your hands on our DFB Guide to the 2021 Epcot Food & Wine Festival. It’s 250+ pages full of all our best insider tips and advice you’ll need in navigating the festival. And you can pre-order it right now to get a jump on your festival planning!

Okay, so let’s get to those myths. Here are the top misconceptions Disney World guests seem to have about the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival. And we’re going to bust them all!

Click here to buy the 2021 DFB Food and Wine Guide!

There Are No Options For Vegetarians

If you are on a vegetarian diet and worried that you won’t have any food options, you’re going to be quite surprised when we tell you that there is a plethora of vegetarian food for you to try at the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival. And we’ve been seeing more plant-based options get added every year!

In fact, most booths have at least one vegetarian-based item! And considering there are OVER 30 BOOTHS, that’s a lot of food for you to try! And did we mention that we’ve included a Vegetarian Crawl in our DFB Guide? So you don’t even have to do the work of figuring out what you want to eat — we’ve already done it for you.

Check Out EVERY Vegetarian Item at the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival

There Are No Gluten-Free Options

Likewise, you’ll be surprised at how many gluten-free menu items you’ll find at the festival! And it’s easy for you to find them because the official EPCOT Food and Wine Passport will have them marked. But we’ve also done the research for you.

We will continue to keep our menus updated, too, so that you’ll know what gluten-free items are available.

Here’s Everything That’s Gluten-Free at the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival

There Are Too Many Choices And It’s Overwhelming

As we said, there are over 30 food booths with a variety of food and drinks to choose from, and yes, it can be a little overwhelming. However, you can start planning at home with us because we will post all the food booth menus, along with our reviews of EVERYTHING. And if we don’t like something, we’ll let you know that, too!

And if you want something like a guided tour through festival eats, we’ve put together a series of crawls in the DFB Guide for just about everything, including a Carnivore Crawl, a Dessert Crawl, a Beer Crawl, a Seafood Crawl, and more. We’ll tell you where to go and what to eat if you don’t want to plan it all out!

Learn About the 2021 EPCOT Food and Wine Festival Cheese Crawl!

There’s nothing for kids to do

So many people seem to think that the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival is just for adults, but they are SO wrong. Not only are there menu items that are clearly marked Kid-Approved, but kids can also participate in fun scavenger hunts (that end with real prizes!) and make candy sushi!

Plus there are plenty of other things at EPCOT for kids to do, too, including going country-hopping to collect Kidcot postcards and stickers (and learn about another country in the process). Plus kids will still be able to hop on all their favorite EPCOT attractions.

Learn More About The Remy Scavenger Hunt at the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival

It’s Too Expensive

Yes, each festival menu item costs money and it can add up over time, especially if you want to eat all the things. But some simple tips can actually save you money at the festival. We will help you plan your budget for the festival, and we will let you know what food and drinks give you the most bang for the buck.

But the easiest tip is to bring someone along with you — then you can double the amount of items you can try for half the cash! This will also ensure that you don’t fill up so quickly that you won’t want to try everything on your list. It’s a win-win!

Here Are Our Top Tips On How To Best Budget For The Festival

There’s Nothing Else To Do But Eat And Drink

Okay, so this myth could not be more wrong. There are cooking seminars, classes, demonstrations, scavenger hunts, live entertainment, etc. We could go on and on with the list of other things to do. PLUS you’ll be at EPCOT where you can travel around the world in a day and visit each country’s pavilion. Oh, and of course, there are rides.

And this year, it looks like the Eat to the Beat concerts might be returning — we’ve seen a few BIG name performers listing Eat to the Beat in their tour schedules. But EPCOT’s other festival performers will also be available, including Voices of Liberty and Mariachi Cobre.

Here’s All The Entertainment Currently Confirmed For the 2021 EPCOT Food and Wine Festival

You Need Multiple Days At EPCOT To Enjoy It

Okay, so we often recommend spending several days at EPCOT if you want to partake in everything the festival has to offer. There is a LOT to eat, see, and do. But at the same time, you can hit all the highlights in a day, and we’ll help you plan your priorities.

Our DFB Guide will help you budget your time and figure out how to best tackle the festival if you only have a day. And you’ll still feel like you got the most out of the festival that you could!

Here’s What Disney Won’t Tell You About The EPCOT Food and Wine Festival

It’s Always Crowded

If you know when to go to the festival, you won’t have to worry so much about crowds. We’ll be the first to tell you that weekends are the most crowded and when park pass reservations fill up quickly. Weekends and nights are when the locals and Annual Passholders tend to head to EPCOT.

The solution is easy, though — try to avoid the festival on weekends if you’re worried about crowds. Schedule your festival days for earlier in the day during the week. And by going in the morning, you should miss those folks who park hop over to EPCOT after 2PM. And here’s an extra tip — when you get to World Showcase, go right. Most guests go left to start their festival experience in Mexico.

Here Are The BIG Changes We Could See in Disney World As Social Distancing Decreases

It’s The Same Every Year

This is also just simply not true. Not only does each year’s festival bring some new activities and entertainment, but the food booths also get new food (and sometimes even in the middle of festivals, we’ll see new menu additions!). Sure, there are always returning favorites, but there are always plenty of new things to try, too!

We’ll be sure to let you know which items are returning and which are new so that you can make sure you’re not eating the same things as maybe you did in previous years if you’ve been to the festival before. And we’ll also let you know what new items we liked (and didn’t like), so you’ll have our honest reviews to guide you.

Here’s Where You Can Read All Our Food Booth Reviews

So there you have it, everything you might have heard about the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival that is simply not true. We hope these tips will help you plan for the festival and make your trip to EPCOT a little easier. And remember, all of these tips — AND MORE — are included in our DFB Guide to the 2021 Epcot Food & Wine Festival.

This guide is currently available for pre-order, and you can save 20% off the cover price by using the code CHEFS at checkout.

We’ll see you at the festival — enjoy!

Click Here to Pre-Order the DFB Guide to the 2021 EPCOT Food & Wine Festival

Will you be going to the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival this year? Let us know in the comments!

The post 9 MYTHS About the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival first appeared on the disney food blog.

During your trip to Disney World you’ll want to keep an eye out for a few things — changes in park hours, mobile order pick-up times, and ride wait times.

Each week, we take a look at the average wait times for each of Disney World’s attractions from the previous week and share all that info with you. This week, we’re presenting a new challenge — can you guess what rides had the lowest average wait times in each Disney World park? Take a second to make your guesses. Ready? Alright, let’s go!

Magic Kingdom

We start our wait times journey in Magic Kingdom. This week, Splash Mountain was at the top of our list (again) with an average wait time of 49 minutes. Following Splash Mountain was Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at 45 minutes, Jungle Cruise at 39 minutes, Space Mountain at 35 minutes, and Pirates of the Caribbean at 31 minutes.

In terms of rides in the 20s range, we had Peter Pan’s Flight with an average wait time of 25 minutes, Astro Orbiter at 25 minutes, Mickey’s PhilharMagic at 22 minutes, and “it’s a small world” at 20 minutes.

In the teens, we had Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh at 19 minutes, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad at 19 minutes, Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin at 17 minutes, Prince Charming Regal Carrousel at 16 minutes, Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover at 14 minutes, Haunted Mansion at 14 minutes, and Country Bear Jamboree at 13 minutes.

In the 10s and lower we had Tomorrowland Speedway at 11 minutes on average, Under the Sea — Journey of the Little Mermaid at 11 minutes, Mad Tea Party at 11 minutes, and Magic Carpets of Aladdin at 10 minutes.

With even shorter waits we had Dumbo the Flying Elephant at 9 minutes, Tom Sawyer Island at 8 minutes, Carousel of Progress at 8 minutes, Barnstormer featuring the Great Goofini at 8 minutes, and the Liberty Square Riverboat at 1 minute.

And that brings us to the attractions with the LOWEST average wait times in Magic Kingdom! Got your guesses ready? Alright the rides with the shortest wait times were…Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room and Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse at 0 minutes! So if you’re looking for something to experience with little/no wait, it sounds like these 2 are a pretty good bet!

EPCOT

Alright, next we head to EPCOT. Rides with longer wait times here included Test Track at 47 minutes, Soarin’ at 42 minutes, Mission: SPACE at 42 minutes, and Frozen Ever After at 39 minutes.

All of the other rides in EPCOT had generally shorter wait times. We had Spaceship Earth at 14 minutes, The Seas with Nemo and Friends at 13 minutes, Journey into Imagination at 12 minutes, Living with the Land at 8 minutes, and Gran Fiesta Tour at 6 minutes. If you’re looking for a moving attraction with a low wait time, then Gran Fiesta Tour is where you’ll want to head.

But, in terms of overall attractions with the lowest wait times, the theater shows are where it’s at!! Reflections of China, Impressions de France, American Adventure, Awesome Planet, Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along, and Disney and Pixar Short Film Festival ALL had an average wait of 0 minutes this past week. Air conditioning, a chance to rest your feet (in some of them), an entertaining show, and low wait times? It’s a win, win, win, win!

Disney’s Hollywood Studios

What ride do you think had the lowest wait time in Disney’s Hollywood Studios? Let’s break down this past week’s averages and find out!

On the top of the wait times list is (no surprise here) Slinky Dog Dash at 68 minutes. After that, we had Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run with an average wait of 43 minutes, Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster featuring Aerosmith at 36 minutes, Twilight Zone Tower of Terror at 36 minutes, Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway at 35 minutes, and Toy Story Mania at 30 minutes.

In the 20s and teens range we had Star Tours — The Adventures Continue at 26 minutes, Alien Swirling Saucers at 23 minutes, Muppet*Vision 3D at 18 minutes, and Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy at 16 minutes.

The leaves us with just 1 attraction left (Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance doesn’t count toward our calculations since it uses boarding groups). Can you guess what it is? The attraction with the lowest wait time in Hollywood Studios this past week was…Walt Disney Presents!

This attraction only had a 10 minute average wait time.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom

And finally, it’s time to visit Disney’s Animal Kingdom and take a look at its wait times. On the top of our list (and again this comes at no surprise) is Avatar Flight of Passage with an average wait time of 65 minutes. In the 30s and 20s range we had Kilimanjaro Safaris at 39 minutes, Na’vi River Journey at 36 minutes, and Kali River Rapids at 24 minutes.

All of Animal Kingdom’s remaining rides had average wait times under 20 minutes. Dinosaur had an average wait time of 19 minutes, Expedition Everest was at 17 minutes, It’s Tough to Be a Bug was at 15 minutes, and TriceraTop Spin was at 5 minutes. If you’re looking for the moving attraction with the lowest wait time, TriceraTop Spin would be it.

But there is one final attraction according to our wait times data that actually has the lowest wait time in Animal Kingdom. Wondering what it is? It’s the often overlooked (but absolutely fantastic) Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail with a 0 minute wait. The animal trails here often get overlooked or forgotten, but they are not to be missed!!

And that’s our look at the wait times for this past week. How many of the low wait times did you guess right? How many of those are actually your favorite attractions in Disney World? Tell us in the comments — we’d love to hear from you!

Ever wonder if it’s bad to skip certain rides in Disney World? Check out our video below to see our thoughts!

 And, as always, stay tuned to DFB for all the latest Disney info!

Click here to see all of the rides, hotels, and shops that will be closed in Disney World next week!

Join the DFB Newsletter to get all the breaking news right in your inbox! Click here to Subscribe!

How did you do on this week’s wait times challenge? Tell us in the comments!

The post What Rides Had the SHORTEST Wait Times in Disney World This Past Week? first appeared on the disney food blog.

Disneyland Resort is continuing with its phased reopening, which means more restaurants are coming BACK!

Recently, Blue Bayou reopened (with booze!), and we’re looking forward to the NEW eats at Avengers Campus, too. But today, we stopped by Storytellers Cafe for its grand reopening!

First, we’ll want to note that character dining is not currently available here. But this spot is open for a three-course breakfast and dinner, so we popped in to give it a try!

Atmosphere

Storytellers Cafe is located at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel, and it’s ALL about that classic Disney story.

And the details here reflect that — this cafe is simply beautiful. And as we’ve seen in other Disneyland restaraunts, tables are spread out to allow for social distancing.

Like we mentioned, Storytellers Cafe offers a three-course meal. Menus are available via QR code currently to avoid more contact.

You’ll get a choice of an appetizer, entree, and dessert! For breakfast, your meal will cost ya $29 per adult (and $20 per kiddo!). Dinner is $39 for adults and $25 for little ones.

Eats

For our breakfast/dinner, we got a plate of fruit…

…and opted for an Assortment of Mini Croissants, Mini Danishes, and Mini Muffins.

We also dug into some Oatmeal with honey, brown sugar, sliced bananas, and strawberries…

…as well as an American Breakfast plate that includes 2 eggs any style, breakfast potatoes, a choice of bacon or sausage, and choice of toast.

And of course, there were Mickey Waffles!

We’ll be bringing you a FULL review of all of these dishes soon, so keep an eye out. And of course, we’ll keep you posted with plenty more Disneyland reopening news, too!

Check Out Blue Bayou’s Reopening!

Do you plan on eating at Storytellers Cafe? Let us know in the comments!

The post PHOTOS: First Look at a Reopened Storytellers Cafe at Disneyland Resort first appeared on the disney food blog.

If you collect Disney merchandise, you’re likely to see that those things begin to cost more over time. Price increases happen constantly.

However, we’re going to let you know when Disney things start to cost more, whether those things be food, souvenirs, or experiences. And we’ve got a new price increase to share with you today!

To start with, we would like to thank Shannon from @brbgoingtodisney for the heads up for bringing this specific increase to our attention. So we decided to investigate it — we visited Mouse Gear at EPCOT, where we saw Wishables priced at $9.99, which is what they’ve typically been.

However, we decided to pick up a few plushes and packs and scan them using the Mobile Merchandise Check-out feature on the My Disney Experience app.

We chose a Guardian of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout Blind Pack and the Kanga and Roo Wishable. And both scanned at $12.99 each. That’s a price increase of $3!

At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, we discovered that the price signs on the Wishables display were changed to the higher price. Winking Mickey here is now $12.99.

But the plot thickens! Because we looked at the Wishables available on shopDisney, too! And the prices on the website were all over the place — some Wishables were $9.99, while others were $12.99. And the Winking Mickey Wishables Plush? There are currently two listings for him at both price points! What’s going on Disney?

Both the Guardians of the Galaxy Blind Pack AND the Kanga and Roo Wishables we scanned in-store at $12.99 are still listed as $9.99 on the website. We’ll likely see those prices change there, too — but if you’re wanting to grab those particular plushes, be sure to check shopDisney first!

And if we spot any other price changes, we’ll be sure to let you know.

Click Here To Read About The Three Biggest Disney World Price Increases This Year

Join the DFB Newsletter to get all the breaking news right in your inbox! Click here to Subscribe!

What do you think of this price increase — are Wishables still worth it? Let us know in the comments!

The post A Popular Disney Collectible Just Got a BIG Price Increase! first appeared on the disney food blog.

It’s time to catch up on all the construction updates going on around Walt Disney World!

There are quite a few walls up around the parks and resorts right now as Disney continues to make progress on all the projects they have leading up to the Walt Disney World 50th Anniversary celebrations. And, while we spent a lot of the week discovering new construction walls and skrim, one project DID wrap up! So, let’s check it all out!

Magic Kingdom

Main Street Confectionery

The Main Street Confectionery closed back in March, and we knew that we were in for a pretty long refurbishment as Disney transforms the space. We’ve been keeping an eye on the sweet shop and noticed that construction walls popped up around the shop this week.

So, at this point, the construction is 100% noticeable as you make your way into Magic Kingdom, though you can still catch a glimpse of some of those classic window displays if you stop by. Disney hasn’t shared when the construction will wrap up just yet, but we will continue to keep an eye out for updates!

Learn More About the NEW Look Coming to This Iconic Sweet Shop HERE!

Cool Ship

Over in Tomorrowland, we’ve been keeping track of the refurbishment on the refreshment kiosk, Cool Ship. We’ve watched this spot transform with a fresh coat of paint and we had thought that maybe we’d be able to grab a snack from this spot soon after construction walls came down a few weeks ago.

But, there was still more to be done — now the ship is back to being the property of the “Thirst Rangers” and has the logo painted on the exterior.

Casey Jr. Splash ‘n’ Soak Station

Another project we’ve been following for a little while now is over at the Casey Jr. Splash ‘n’ Soak Station in Storybook Circus. Disney has been adding a fresh coat of GOLD paint to the cars one by one and now it looks like the refurbishment is complete!

This week, the bushes that were surrounding the Clown Car were removed to reveal the new paint. And, that’s a wrap on this one folks! The whole “splash” part of this area has not reopened just yet, but we will keep an eye out for when the water is back in action.

TRON: Lightcycle Run

We also took a ride on PeopleMover to check out the progress on the newest roller coaster coming to Magic Kingdom — TRON: Lightcycle Run. And, it’s still looking about the same since our last update.

There are still a lot of construction vehicles in the area, cranes, and dirt, so there’s still some more work to be done. Disney also hasn’t shared an update on when they plan to open the attraction, so we’ll just have to keep on waiting!

EPCOT

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind

The other new roller coaster that we’re looking forward to riding in the parks is Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind in EPCOT! This attraction was announced as part of the EPCOT Transformation and we’ve been watching as the former home of Universe of Energy transforms into the new Marvel attraction.

The last time we checked in on construction progress here, we spotted crews covering the walls with blue wrappings, and it still looks about the same.

Now the blue wrappings cover the solar panels on the roof and the entire entrance area of the ride. We’re still on the lookout for other updates that will be added to the exterior including the Star Blaster that you can see in the concept art for the attraction.

Morocco Pavilion

EPCOT has also been home to a lot of construction projects over the past year, and we checked in on one of the more “minimal” refurbishments going on in the Morocco Pavilion.

There are currently construction walls surrounding the bathrooms in the pavilion and while we couldn’t see any work going on behind the walls, we could hear the construction!

And, we also noticed that some of the signage on the shops in the pavilion near World Showcase Lagoon had gotten a fresh coat of paint!

Disney Resorts

Disney’s Contemporary Resort

There are even more walls popping up around Disney World in the resorts! Refurbishment on the Main Tower Rooms in Disney’s Contemporary Resort began last month, and construction skrim covered half of the hallways and rooms on one side of the building making it look like this… .

And, now the other side has been covered in skrim, blocking off all the rooms and hallways in the central area of the resort.

So, it’s maybe not the prettiest view anymore and it sure is a heck of a lot louder in here too!

Learn More About ALL the Changes Coming to the Monorail Resorts HERE!

Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort

Over at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, Disney is continuing to make progress on the new monorail station. This week we got a close-up look at the structure and, though there might not be any walls just yet, it is exciting to see it coming along!

Inside, it is a bit harder to get a look at the work being done, as construction walls block off what used to be the exit to the monorail station.

The resort is set to reopen with renovated guest rooms in late July, though the monorail station may not reopen at that time. For now, guests can get to the Magic Kingdom and back using bus transportation.

Check Out What the Monorail Station Used to Look Like!

Well, that’s it for another week of construction updates in Disney World! We’re always on the lookout for little bits of progress and big reveals, so stay tuned for more updates on all the construction that may impact your next Disney vacation!

Check Out ALL the Rides and Hotels That Are CLOSED in May in Disney World

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What Disney World hotel would you re-theme if you could? Let us know in the comments!

The post Check Out the Progress on TWO New Rides Coming to Disney World! first appeared on the disney food blog.

It’s National Military Appreciation Month! Disney has a long history of supporting the military through the daily flag ceremony and Memorial Day celebrations. This month, Disney is highlighting its support of Cast Members who serve in the military part-time.

Disney often gives special offers for those who were in the military. On top of that, Disney is also recognizing its Cast Members’ accomplishments and providing plenty of moral and career support for them while they are on duty.

Roy and Walt Disney both served in the military during WWIand The Walt Disney Company continues their legacy by supporting their Cast Members who take military leave to serve.

Disney is recognizing the accomplishments of Traci Arnold and others like her. She actually finds similarity in Disney and the military in terms of their leadership values. In addition to recognition, Disney is also finding ways to support Cast Members who are on leave, even if they are overseas.

Sending supplies and care packages are great ways to lift the spirits of cast members who are deployed and remind them that they are still a big part of Disney! This isn’t the only way Disney supports cast members who are on leave. Disney keeps in touch with them and ensures they have access to differential pay and networking opportunities, allowing them to advance their civilian career even while deployed.

Disney is grateful to its Cast Members who are in the military, and it shows! The company will also be holding a veterans summit later this year to help other companies improve their support of military employees. All of these efforts are making a big difference in the lives of military Cast Members, who are receiving EXTRA appreciation and visibility this month!

Click Here to See Disney’s 2021 Military Ticket Offer!

Join the DFB Newsletter to get all the breaking news right in your inbox! Click here to Subscribe!

How are you honoring military folks this month? Let us know in the comments!

The post See How Disney Is Honoring Military Cast Members This Month! first appeared on the disney food blog.