Walt Disney World has announced details for the 2023 EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival, which will run from March 1 to July 5, 2023. This post shares info about new gardens, a full list of topiaries, merchandise collections, how it’ll tie into the 50th Anniversary, and more.
The 2023 EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival will be tied for the longest ever with last year, when it also ran for 125 days. Disney has extended both Flower & Garden and Food & Wine by around a month each, effectively bridging the gap between the two. (Expect the latter to once again start in mid-July, about 10 days after Flower & Garden concludes.)
The reason for this is pretty obvious, as “Diet EPCOT” season has become the least busy time of the year in the park. In other words, the goal is to buoy attendance when EPCOT is slower than the other parks at Walt Disney World. Despite some complaints from fans about perpetual festivals, that’s exactly what makes EPCOT popular with locals. I’d hazard a guess that tourists also enjoy the energy they bring to EPCOT.
As for specifics about the 2023 EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival, we now have a partial list of topiaries. For the first time, topiaries of Mirabel, Antonio, Isabela and Luisa from Disney’s “Encanto” will make a grand appearance at the festival. Located near the EPCOT main entrance, these new topiaries are sure to be a must-do photo moment to mark your visit.
I’m probably getting overzealous here, but my first thought when hearing Encanto topiaries is an enormous and elaborate display with the Magical Casa Madrigal in flower form (at least partially) plus the characters around it. This would likely cost more than whatever is planned, but I also think it’d be more impactful and have more “drawing power” in getting guests to EPCOT. Not many people will make a trip to see a few character topiaries, but maybe they would for a huge house!
Additionally, a new Princess Tiana topiary will grace the American Adventure. EPCOT will also feature favorites such as Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs; Peter Pan, Tinker Bell, Captain Hook and Tick Tock Croc; Figment; Anna and Elsa; and more.
My personal hope is that Figment is once again more prominent–continue the momentum from Festival of the Arts and make that topiary the centerpiece of the festival. (Oh, and do another Figment-centric Beacons of Magic!)
The popular Garden Rocks Concert Series is back for the 2023 EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival, featuring favorite tunes at the America Gardens Theatre. More details about the musical lineup will be released soon.
Of course, you can commemorate your visit with official ‘70’s inspired Orange Bird merchandise (photo above from last year), including apparel, headwear, drinkware and much more. Although the “70s inspired Orange Bird merchandise” sounds promising…when I think about it, that probably is a fair description of most Orange Bird merchandise. The character has a 1970s vibe, especially on Flower & Garden items.
More than 15 Outdoor Kitchens will offer specialty menus of scrumptious cuisine and beverages. Most notably, the Citrus Blossom (aka “Orange Bird Eats”) will move to a new location in the Odyssey, which has become the de facto EPCOT Festival Center while the Giant Dirt Pit is being replaced by a building similar to what the Giant Dirt Pit replaced (follow that?).
Spike’s Pollen-Nation Exploration will have people abuzz again. This springtime scavenger hunt is fun for all ages. Follow Spike the Bee on his pollination trail, where he will “bee” busy collecting nectar and pollinating gardens at EPCOT. Once you find him in each garden on your map, add the corresponding sticker of the plant he is visiting.
Walt Disney World has not yet announced the gardens that’ll be featured at the 2023 EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival, with one exception. That’s the fragrant garden on the bridge to World Showcase, which debuted last year. Surrounded by vibrant butterfly topiaries, guests will be invited to follow their noses to six scent stations–floral, fruity, citrus, spice, woods and fresh–to form lasting memories with the help of unforgettable aromas.
This fragrant garden is once again presented by Scentsy, which is a MLM company. For those unfamiliar with multi-level marketing, these companies are essentially legal pyramid schemes. As for why the company is partnering with MLMs, your guess is as good as mine. Maybe FTX was unavailable for some reason…
Ultimately, the tentative lineup for the 2023 EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival sounds solid but very similar to last year. My hope is that Walt Disney World builds on the strong “Figment Foundation” of this year’s Festival of the Arts, and does more with that Imaginative character. I’m definitely biased, but I’d love to see EPCOT’s festivals incorporate the park’s unofficial mascot in more substantive ways, which I think in turn would help sell even more Figment merchandise (…and in turn increase the odds of a new attraction!).
As silly as it might sound, I’m also very excited for the return of EPCOT Sunshine Griddle, which is one of my all-time favorite festival booths. That, plus a more fully-fledged Festival Center, nicer weather (at least at the start of the event), and the park in full bloom should make the 2023 EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival a winner once again!
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YOUR THOUGHTS
Are you excited to experience the 2023 EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival, or will you be sitting this one out? Looking forward to the new topiaries of Mirabel, Antonio, Isabela and Luisa from Encanto at EPCOT’s entrance? Excited for the return of the Garden Rocks concert series? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
