Although playgrounds and topiaries have already sprung up at the park, the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival doesn't officially start until March 6.
Epcot festivals are always busy, and it can be a bit of a madhouse when you add the spring break crowds to the mix. Here are four tips for seeing the festival efficiently:
Get to the park when it opens. While World Showcase doesn't open until 11 a.m., there are gardens and topiaries to see in Future World, and you can stop off at the Festival Center to do some shopping. It's also a good time to enjoy the regular Future World attractions before you switch over to "festival mode."
Check the schedule of events for the day. While much of the fun in the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival lies in just walking around the park and enjoying the gardens at your leisure, you need to do some planning to maximize your experience. You might want to see a talk by gardening experts, or even an HGTV/DIY celebrity. If you're there on the weekend, you might want to slip in a Flower Power concert. Look up the schedule for the day you plan to visit online before go or grab a daily schedule as soon as you get to the park. I recommend downloading the festival guide at this link to help you plan your visit.
Visit the food booths early. One of the most eagerly anticipated parts of this year's festival is the new food and beverage booths. Just as the lines at the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival get longer and longer as the day wears on, so too can you expect that at this festival. Plan to browse at the booths for an early lunch to minimize your waits.
Bring extra storage and batteries for your camera. The Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival is a cornucopia of photo opportunities, from set-up shots like the wizard's balloon in the new Land of Oz playground to candid shots of the kids in the play areas or butterfly garden to colorful photos of the flowers and topiaries. It's easy to fill a small storage chip and to tap out your batteries, so bring spares to avoid disappointment.
You may only get one shot at visiting Walt Disney World for the festival if you're not a Central Floridian. However, if you're a local, there's one last piece of advice. Make sure you see the festival more than once. It starts in March, with nippy weather, and runs into May, when temperatures heat up. That means a continual changing out of the flowers, so you'll get to see different blooms at the beginning and end of the event.
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