Hello and Happy Fall!
Fall is a favorite time to visit Walt Disney World in
our family, and for good reason. In September and October, you can catch
Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party (a separate ticketed event on certain
nights at the Magic Kingdom), and in November and December, you can check out
Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party (also a separate ticketed event). This
November, my family will be enjoying our very first Christmas Party, which I am
really looking forward to. For the last several years, our fall visit has been
in early fall. However, after being stuck at the resort for a couple of days
during Hurricane Matthew in October 2016, we decided we’d go later in the
season in 2017. As excited as I am to visit during the Christmas season, I will sure miss the cute Mickey Mouse pumpkins, as seen below:
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| (Cute Mickey Mouse pumpkin decorations at the Magic Kingdom) |
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| (The entrance to the Magic Kingdom in October 2016) |
Perhaps our favorite fall event is the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival. There are booths set up all throughout World Showcase (and some in Future World) representing various countries around the world, which offer a few options of cuisine from that region. There are also alcoholic and non-alcoholic drink options to choose from.
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| (The Epcot International Food & Wine Festival in 2016) |
The 2017 Epcot
International Food and Wine Festival kicked off on August 31, and will run
through November 13 this year, making it the longest running Epcot
International Food and Wine Festival in the history of the event! Most
everyone in my family is a huge fan of this event, which offers food and drinks
from around the world, including Australia, Brazil, Greece, India, Poland,
South Korea, and more! This year, a record 35 booths are promised to be at this
event, and personally, I am looking forward to sampling my favorite foods from
previous years, AND experiencing some new flavors!
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| (One of our favorite booths at the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival) |
Here are a few examples of some of the dishes you can find
at the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival-
Australia- Grilled lamb T-bone with mint pesto and potato
crunchies
Canada- Wild Mushroom Beef Filet Mignon with Truffle-Butter
Sauce
Germany- Apple Strudel with Vanilla Sauce
Hawai’i- Kalua Pork Slider with Sweet and Sour Pineapple
Chutney and Spicy Mayonnaise
Ireland- Warm Irish Cheddar Cheese and Stout Dip with Irish
Brown Bread
Morocco- Kefta Pocket (Seasoned Ground Beef in a Pita
Pocket)
Thailand- Marinated Chicken with Peanut Sauce and
Stir-fried Vegetables
Each booth has several different food options to choose
from, along with a few beverage options. Prices range from about $3 to $8 for
each selection, and so it can get pricey if you are planning to eat and drink
your way around the world. One tip that I have is to purchase a gift card in
the amount you’ve budgeted for Food and Wine- this will ensure that you will
not go over your budgeted amount (a good thing if you are enjoying multiple
adult beverages throughout World Showcase!).
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| (Enjoying margaritas in Mexico) |
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| (My husband and brother ready to order some saki in Japan) |
Another tip that I’d like to offer is to use this Festival
exclusively as your lunch or dinner location if you plan to sample multiple
foods at this event. My family’s plan this year is to skip a sit-down lunch on
our Epcot day, and instead enjoy walking around World Showcase, trying
different foods as we make our way around the Festival. We then have a late
Table Service dinner at Biergarten in Germany that evening.
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| (My hubby enjoying 'lunch around the world') |
The Epcot International Food and Wine Festival also hosts a
different band each night of the Festival- my friend Samantha was recently at
WDW, and she let me know that the Baha Men were there the evening she was at
Epcot- her whole family really enjoyed the live performance of ‘Who Let the
Dogs Out’! Other bands slated to be at the Festival this year include The Plain
White T’s, Sister Hazel, Boyz II Men, Kenny G and Hanson.
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| (My husband and sister-in-law enjoying the Festival) |
One more thing- if you are a lover of the culinary arts, I would
suggest you look into the many seminars, demonstrations, and talks given by
different celebrated chefs from around the world! For more information, check out www.disneyworld.com.
Feel free to email me at dana_aimee@hotmail.com with any Disney
questions! Happy Travels, and Happy Eating!