It’s almost time for the Festival of the Arts in EPCOT!

EPCOT’s most artistic festival is back on January 17th, 2025 and we are counting down the minutes until it’s time to chow down! There are 17 food booths this year and we are going to be stopping at them all! Today we’re sharing our hacks to maximize how many booths you can snack at during your next visit to the festival. 

EPCOT’s Festival of the Arts will be running from January 17th until February 24th, 2025 and unless you live close, odds are you’ll only have one or two days to enjoy everything the festival to its fullest on your vacation. We’re sharing our 5 best hacks for how to maximize how many food booths you’re making it to in between rides and shows.

Get There EARLY

Our first tip is to get there early! EPCOT’s opening hours vary but typically the park opens at 9 AM. The park and its attractions might be open but it’s important to remember that the World Showcase doesn’t open until 11 AM! The festival food booths tend to follow this schedule but we have seen them open a bit before 11 AM.

Skip Canada and Mexico

By getting to the booths early, just a bit before they open, you can miss a lot of lines and you might even get to start snacking before the World Showcase officially opens. Our second tip is to skip Mexico and Canada! 

Now we aren’t saying skip them all together! Just don’t head to these booths first thing. El Artista Hambriento in the Mexico pavilion and Gourmet Landscapes in the Canada pavilion will be some of the first booths people run into when heading into the World Showcase so their lines can get pretty long early in the day.

We have seen these lines become a bit overwhelming but if you head into the World Showcase and then come back later in the day, you can expect to find the lines a bit shorter than they were when the crowds first came in. That being said if there’s a short line, hop in! 

Go With a Group

If you’re not going with a group, you aren’t maximizing how many food booths you’ll be trying! With 17 booths, there are dozens of different plates to try and that isn’t even considering the drinks or regular EPCOT snacks that are on your list.

Going with a group lets you try multiple snacks without getting too full on any one thing. If you’re comfortable sharing so you can max out how much food you’re trying, we highly recommend it. It takes several members of our team to get through all of these booths on opening day so it will take a few members on your team too.

Skip Large Meals

Another way to max out? Skip those large meals! 

There are some amazing quick service and table service options around EPCOT but when it’s time for a festival, we skip them! Contrary to popular belief, there isn’t always a festival happening in EPCOT and those times are the perfect days to take advantage of these amazing options. There are too many snacks and dishes to dig into during the festival to waste it on a big meal in our opinion.

Know What’s Worth Your $$$

We would even go as far as to say that some of the festival booths are better than the quick service options. (Sorry to Lotus Blossom Cafe specifically.) Finally, the best way to make sure you’re enjoying every booth you want to is to know what is actually worth your time and money! 

While we adore festival foods, we won’t act like every snack is created equal. Some are worth every penny and some are worth the skip but how do you know what’s what? Well, that’s what we’re here for! We have an entire guide to help you decide.

Our entire team has worked together to build our Guide to Festival of the Arts so you know every food item, entertainment offering, and more before heading to the festival for yourself. You can see photos of all of the food, menus, and prices inside. You can even find our best-of-the-fest recommendations!

You can also follow us on Instagram and X for live updates on the first day of every single festival as we put every booth to the test! The festival begins so soon and we can’t wait to be there as soon as they let us in the gates. Don’t forget to keep following DFB for all of your Disney food news and updates.

See the FULL MENUS for the 2025 EPCOT Festival of the Arts

What will you be trying at the festival? Tell us in the comments!