The Epcot International Festival of the Arts is an annual festival event at Walt Disney World Resort typically held in January and February featuring specialty food, activities, entertainment, and merchandise. In this post, we’ll cover essentials you need to know about the Epcot Festival of the Arts.
Other Epcot Festivals
Epcot International Festival of the Arts (Jan. 12, 2024 through Feb. 19, 2024) (2025 TBD) (you are here)
Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival (Feb. 28, 2024 through May 27, 2024)
Epcot International Food & Wine Festival (August 29 through November 23, 2024)
Epcot International Festival of the Holidays (November 24 through December 30, 2023) (2024 TBD)
If you’re completely new to the idea of Epcot festivals, we have an Epcot Festival Calendar and Tips post that is a good place to start.
Epcot Festival of the Arts 2025 Basics
The 2024 “Epcot International Festival of the Arts” was held January 12 to February 19, 2024. Dates for 2025 have not yet been announced, but we expect similar dates for 2025 to be announced sometime around October 2024.
Festival offerings are expected to include:
20ish (depending on how you count) Food Studios serving culinary art all around the park
Animation Academy — learn how to draw a Disney Character from an animation artist
Disney on Broadway Concert Series
Works by Disney and other invited artists on display in marketplaces encircling World Showcase Lagoon
Special photo locations scattered around the park
A paint-by-number mural that serves as a collaborative art project for all
Visiting artists create magic right before your eyes
Scavenger hunt — search for famous paintings around World Showcase
Festival-exclusive merchandise
What is the Epcot International Festival of the Arts?
The Epcot International Festival of the Arts is one of Epcot’s newer festivals, which transform the park with limited time offerings of food, merchandise, entertainment, demonstrations, seminars, and decorations.
Festival of the Arts sort of flies under the radar. It’s short—only about a month long—and overshadowed by the bigger name festivals—particularly Food and Wine Festival and Flower and Garden Festival. But it’s definitely not a festival to ignore, so keep reading!
When is the Epcot Festival of the Arts?
The 2024 Epcot Festival of the Arts is being held from January 12 to February 19, 2024.
How much does the Epcot Festival of the Arts cost?
The festival itself is included in the price of admission to Epcot. This isn’t a special ticketed event. If you want to enjoy the special food, merchandise, demonstrations, etc., those come at an extra cost.
What Do I Need To Do Ahead of Time?
It unfortunately appears that the specialty, advance booking events at festivals are a thing of the past. While these didn’t attract huge numbers, I always felt they went above and beyond the standard festival experience. In any case, nowadays the only thing you’ll want to consider in advance is securing a seat at “Disney on Broadway.”
If you’re interested in guaranteeing your seat at the Disney on Broadway show, you might want to consider a dining package. This can be a good use of your Disney Dining Plan credits.
Where should I stay to visit the Festival?
Any Disney hotel will do a fine job of getting you to and from Epcot. That said, some are better-situated than others if you’re spending a lot of time at the Festival. It’s a short walk to Epcot from Boardwalk Inn, Yacht Club, and Beach Club.
Riviera Resort and Caribbean Beach are just a single, pretty short ride on the Disney Skyliner away from the park. Pop Century and Art of Animation are also on the Skyliner, but you’ll have to transfer at Caribbean Beach.
We cover this topic in more detail in our post on the Best Hotels for Visiting Epcot and Hollywood Studios.
Navigating Festival of the Arts
Festival of the Arts is adding more and more each year. To help you navigate, Disney provides a Festival Passport, along with information in the My Disney Experience app.
Available at all Epcot festivals, you’ll want to grab the Festival Passport. This small booklet includes checklists for every booth at Festival of the Arts as well as information on some of the other festival offerings.
Don’t confuse this with the World Showcase’s toy passport available throughout the year. The Festival Passport is a free booklet available widely throughout the park.
On the home screen of the My Disney Experience app you can scroll down to the Festival of the Arts box and click “View Guide” to be taken to a digital times guide showing you whats available as part of the festival:
Alternatively, you can go through the Attractions, Entertainment, and Events & Tours sections of the app to find what activities are available (and when).
Festival of the Arts Activities
Festival of the Arts has several fun activities scattered throughout the park, giving guests a chance to get involved in the artistic transformation of the park.
Paint-by-Number Mural. One of the highlights of the festival is the daily paint-by-number mural. Every guest has the opportunity to paint a few squares of the mural, which comes together throughout the day. The mural is typically scheduled to be completed by 5:00PM. In 2024 the mural is located near the Imagination and Land Pavilions, on the path toward the World Showcase.
Chalk Full of Character. Chalk drawings of Disney characters can be found throughout the park.
Artful Photo Ops. Fun photo ops where you insert yourself into an artistic work.
Figment’s Brush with the Masters Scavenger Hunt – Like all festivals, Festival of the Arts has a pay-to-play scavenger hunt. Purchase a map for $9.99+tax, find art around the park, and collect a prize once you’ve completed the hunt.
Kids’ Chalk Art. Opportunity for kids to engage in some chalk artistry of their very own.
Animation Academy. Learn to draw a Disney character from a Disney artist. In 2024, Animation Academy is held in the America Gardens Theater, opposite the American Adventure pavilion.
Galleries, Art, and Meet the Artists
Around the park (primarily the World Showcase) you’ll find new galleries, art for sale, and the opportunity to meet the artists themselves.
Festival of the Arts Entertainment
You may have figured out by now that “Art” is more than just painting! The Festival of the Arts features a variety of unique entertainment, including…
Art Defying Gravity, an acrobatics show performed several times daily. Showtimes vary, so you’ll have to check the app to see when/if this is being shown during your visit (it is pretty cool, though).
Art (or “Visual Art”) in Performance, a high-energy performance where an artist paints a Disney character while the audience cheers them on.
Musicians in Showcase, live musical performances held throughout the day in World Showcase Plaza.
Disney on Broadway Concert Series
Every day of the festival features a performance at the America Gardens Theatre as part of the “Disney on Broadway” Concert series. This series features live performances from stars of Disney on Broadway shows. The 2024 lineup includes Caissie Levy (Frozen), Gavin Lee (Beauty and the Beast), Ashley Brown (Mary Poppins) and more!
You can lineup and wait for these shows, but they’re also available as part of the Disney on Broadway Dining Package.
Festival of the Arts Food & Beverage Booths
There are about 19 festival booths at Epcot’s Festival of the Arts. This is significant fewer than the 30+ you’ll find at Food & Wine Festival, but still more than enough to satisfy your festive cravings for an afternoon or two.
These are basically pop up booths (though many of them are permanent now) around the park that offer small portions of food and beverage for around $5-$10 an item. Most of these menu items count as snacks on the Disney dining plans, and these are one of the best ways to use your snack credits.
Festival of the Arts Merchandise
Here’s a look at some of the 2024 merchandise (a few of these are passholder exclusives):
Do you have any questions about Epcot’s Festival of the Arts?
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