Disney World Travel Blog: Epcot’s Flower & Garden Festival

Epcot’s International Flower & Garden Festival: Walt Disney World Travel Blog

A week ago, I was invited down to Walt Disney World to experience one of the happiest places on earth! #happyplace We spent the week eating our way through Epcot’s International Flower & Garden Festival, drinking Blue Milk with Storm Troopers at Galaxy’s Edge, eating Nutella waffles from Sleepy Hollow and getting soaked on Splash Mountain at Magic Kingdom, drinking Boba Rum Blossoms with the monkeys at Animal Kingdom, frosting cupcakes and shopping at Disney Springs, and soaking up the sun at our Walt Disney resort! If I were to write about the entire trip in one post, you would be here all day, so I’m breaking it all up into each park and then writing a final itinerary with travel tips to top it all off! The Walt Disney travel guides are my favorite to write! I love being able to live it all over again.
Today, I’m sharing our experience at Epcot’s International Flower & Garden Festival! I was in pure bliss. What is better than flowers and food?

What to do at Epcot Summer 

Epcot is such an underrated park, in my opinion. I feel like it doesn’t get the hype as much as the other parks! It has some of the best foods, gorgeous landscapes and architecture, and one of my favorite rides at Walt Disney World – Sourin! If you’re a flower and food lover like myself, it’s important to dedicate at least one day to Walt Disney World’s Epcot! Getting to experience the International Flower & Garden Festival was such a blast.

---

We were all up bright and early on Monday morning to catch the bus to Epcot. We were so lucky to be able to go a few hours before the park opened for a private tour of all the breathtaking gardens and the impressive topiary sculptures of famous Disney characters. It was fun to learn what goes into the design and upkeep of these gardens each year maintained by the talented horticulturists. The flowers are absolutely breathtaking, and it’s truly a dream for flower lovers like myself.

When you’re visiting during the International Flower & Garden Festival, make sure to look out for all the topiary sculptures!

Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Huey, Dewey, and Louie – Showcase Plaza

We filled up the most delicious breakfast with some new food highlights from the Taste of Epcot Flower & Garden Festival!

EPCOT Sunshine Griddle (Future World East)

• Fried Cinnamon Roll Bites with Cream Cheese Frosting and Candied Bacon

• Avocado Toast with Marinated Toybox Tomatoes and Fresh Goat Cheese on Toasted Ciabatta

• Froot Loops Shake (non-alcoholic)

• Joffrey’s Coffee Cold Brew Cocktail with Milk, Kahlúa Rum and Coffee Liqueur, and Vanilla Vodka

Can you guess what these floating plants are? Prepare to be shocked!

Sweet potatoes!

Our goal for the day was to visit all of the countries in Epcot! This is why it’s important to plan a full day here (even if you have to take a mid-day nap break back at the hotel for a few hours.) Epcot showcases Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, United States, Japan, Morocco, France, United Kingdom, and Canada! The architecture replicates popular spots from those countries, and you actually feel like you’re traveling to them.

The good thing about the food is that it comes in smaller portions, so you can experience more food in different countries instead of filling it up in one spot. We also split all of the food to help save room for the next cuisine.
I think Miss Piggy was one of my favorite topiary sculptures. When designing the details of these sculptures, they use plants and colors that are on-trend. There was a lot of rose gold throughout the parks.

Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy – Between the United Kingdom and Canada Pavilions

She was surrounded by beautiful dahlias that made my heart melt. Miss Piggy deserves only the best.
The Outdoor Escapes presented by OFF!® Repellents was so cool, and it got pretty creative. I’ve seen people with bathtubs in their yards, but none that looked as gorgeous as this. If you’re more of a succulent lover, you would have swooned over the huge planters of them. I’ve never been a succulent lover (mostly because I hold a grudge against them since every succulent I’ve owned chose death), but even I fell in love with the displays. The Goodness Garden Butterfly House was like walking into a fairytale land. Imagine walking into a Disney movie with all of the butterflies swarming around you; well, this was almost just like that. 

The Goodness Garden Butterfly House is Presented by GoGo squeeZ® at Future World West. There were so many different kinds of butterflies, and my favorite was the blue and brown ones. Seeing the chrysalis hanging was such a breathtaking experience. If you’re lucky, you may even see one emerge! This whole garden was unreal. Please do not skip out on stopping in there! You’ll also be able to learn about the types of plants that attract butterflies so you can plant some in your own garden! Some of this gorgeous topiary was made from dried plants and handpainted. It’s absolutely unbelievable!

Simba and Friends (Rafiki, Simba, Mufasa and Sarabi) – Future World West

I wonder what my neighbors would think if I replicated this in my garden.You do not want to miss the awesome photo-op with Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and Goofy!

Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and Goofy – Between Future World & World Showcase

After our walking tour, we headed to Soarin!

Ride Soarin at Epcot 

Here is what we ate at the Honey Bee-Stro!

Local Wildflower Honey-Mascarpone Cheesecake with Orange Blossom Honey Whipped Cream, Whipped Honey, Crystalized Honey, Honeycomb, Dehydrated Honey, and Fennel Pollen Meringue Kisses.

This is one of our top picks for the day! Every bite was pure heaven. My only regret was not getting two!

The Citrus Blossom was our next stop! 

We had the

Meyer Lemon-poached Lobster Salad with Grapefruit-Rosé Vinaigrette, Yuzu-marinated Hearts of Palm, and Avocado-Yuzu Panna Cotta (gluten/wheat friendly)

and the

Orange Sunshine Wine Slushy (amazing!)

Sneakers // Dress // Hat // Bag Listen up…YOU HAVE TO GET THE LARGE CHOCOLATE MACARON LOLLIPOP IN FRANCE! I put that in caps + bold just in case you didn’t know how serious I am about this treat. This was hands down the best bite I had all day. It tasted as if there was a half-cooked brownie inside of it. OMG, I need to go back and get this asap!

Fleur de Lys (France) & Everything we ate from here! 

Macaron au Chocolate en Sucette: Large Chocolate Macaron Lollipop.

Beignet Caramélisé, Fourré Crème Vanille, Glacé au Caramel Fleur de Sel: Caramelized Beignet filled with Vanilla Cream and Glazed with Caramel Fleur de Sel

La Vie en Rose Frozen Slushy: Vodka, Grey Goose L’Orange Vodka, St. Germain Liqueur, White and Red Cranberry Juice.

I highly recommend getting everything above! It was absolutely out of this world, and your tastebuds will thank you! And look how gorgeous the Rose Frozen Slushy.Just in case you needed to see the insides of this delicious Macaron! Something to look forward to this October at Epcot!

Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure

I am so so so so excited for Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure to open up this October! Ratatouille is one of my top five favorite Disney movies. I’m obsessed! You’ll get to feel as if you’re shrunk down to Chef Remy’s size for a 4D culinary adventure! I cannot wait.One of the prettiest spots in Epcot is the English Tea Garden!

English Tea Garden Presented by Twinings of London® – Unearth the history and art of tea blending at this elegant English Tea Garden at the United Kingdom Pavilion, featuring plants used in some of Twinings’ finest tea blends.

I had so many people asking me! Are their plant-based food items at Epcot?
The answer is YES!!

Trowel & Trellis Hosted by Impossible Foods 

Plant-Based Food Items:

Grilled Street Corn on the Cob with Savory Garlic Spread (gluten/wheat friendly; plant-based).

Impossible Sausage and Kale Soup

Boneless Impossible Korean Short Rib with Cilantro-Lime Rice, Danmuji Slaw, and Kimchee Mayonnaise

Lavender Pot de Crème with Blueberry Cake, Pink Peppercorn, and Lime Whipped Cream This is one of the most beautiful topiaries!

Beauty and the Beast – France Pavilion

Again with the gorgeous pink dahlias!  Just me hanging out in Italy! I was obsessed with the geraniums on this beautiful staircase. 
It got so hot later in the day, so we found a shaded spot under an umbrella in Italy to hang out in. We didn’t dine alone though, we had traditional Sicilian cannoli and refreshing drinks to keep us company (for a short while if you know what I mean.) The frozen Italian Margarita with Limoncello and tequila is one of my favorite drinks from the day! 😋

Primavera Kitchen (Italy)

Italian Margarita with Limoncello and Tequila.

Traditional Sicilian Cannoli: Crisp Pastry filled with Sweet Ricotta, Chocolate, and Candied Orange.

Pinot Grigio.
We fit one last outdoor kitchen before heading back for some pool time at the resort (i will be writing all about the resort/travel tips in a separate blog post.)

Flavor Full Kitchen Hosted by AdventHealth (Future World West)

The Flavor Full Kitchen had healthier options with a farm-to-table feel. There’s a gorgeous grass area with flowers and lawn chairs to enjoy your food at.

Here is what we ate at the Flavor Full Kitchen! 

Grilled Baby Vegetables with Hummus Cream and Red Pepper Coulis (gluten/wheat friendly; plant-based; Garden Graze).

Seared Verlasso Salmon with Farro Risotto and Micro Herbs.

Cookie Butter Worms and Dirt (non-alcoholic)

Everything tasted so fresh and FLAVOR FULL (see what I did there.) Around 1:30 pm, we took the Skyliner from Epcot back to our Walt Disney World Resort!

You can still catch the bus or the monorail depending on where you’re headed, but experiencing the Skyliner for the first time was so FUN! It was convenient and super quick; even at the end of the night, when the line looked long, it only lasted about twenty minutes before we got a seat on the Skyliner. It has gorgeous views going over the parks and resorts.

We got our swimsuits on and took a good two-hour nap by the pool before heading back to Epcot for more food and fun around the world.  When we got back, the first thing we did was cheers with two pinot grigios from La Bottega Italiana in Italy! I’m not sure if you noticed, but I put my stretchy pants on to fit more food in. I also love the food in Canada! I knew it wouldn’t disappoint.

Northern Bloom (Canada)

Here’s what we got!

Seared Scallops with French Green Beans, Butter Potatoes, Brown Butter Vinaigrette, and Apple-wood-smoked Bacon (gluten/wheat friendly).

Beef Tenderloin Tips, Mushroom Bordelaise Sauce, and Whipped Potatoes with Garden Vegetables.

Griddled Maple Pound Cake with Warm Peach Compote and Sweet Corn Gelato.

The maple pound cake was top-notch, and I loved how unique the sweet corn gelato was. Everything was totally worth it in Canada!While taking a walk with the horticulturist, we learned that they try to plant produce that matches the outdoor kitchen’s cuisine. I love the amount of detail that goes into everything at Epcot. We grabbed some festival favorites from the World Showplace! Festival Favorites (World Showplace)

Fried Green Tomatoes with Blue Crab-Fennel Salad, Remoulade, and Smoked Paprika Oil.

Key Lime Tart with Toasted Meringue.

House-made Potato and Cheddar Biscuit with Salmon Tartare.

Strawberry Pound Cake with Whipped Topping

The two desserts were my favorite of the four! You absolutely have to get the delicious food from Lotus House! It will not disappoint, and because it’s such a popular choice, everything is hot out of the kitchen!

Lotus House (China)

Bon Bon Chicken Skewer with Sesame and Peanut Sauce.

House-made Crab and Cheese Wontons.

Pork & Veggie Egg Roll

All three dishes were equally mouthwatering. 😋 Soooo many of you recommended the Frushi from Japan! It was definitely something to experience, and although it wasn’t my favorite, so many people rave about it, so definitely try it out for yourself!

Hanami (Japan)

What we ate in Japan

Frushi: Strawberry, Pineapple, and Cantaloupe wrapped in Sweet Rice and Pink Soy Wrap served with Whipped Cream, Drizzled Berry Sauce, and Toasted Coconut.

Blood Orange Sour with Fresh Mint

La Isla Fresca (Between Morocco and France)

Sugar Cane Shrimp Skewer with Steamed Rice and Coconut-Lime Sauce (gluten/wheat friendly).

We took a break from stuffing our faces to ride Frozen Ever After! The line was longer during the day but cut in half for a wait time during the evening.

Frozen Ever After

This was such a cute ride, especially for Frozen fans. The wintery snow effect towards the ending was so neat! More beautiful topiaries:

Troll – Norway Pavilion

Snow White and Dopey – Germany Pavilion

Topiary Butterflies – Future World WestWe took the Skyliner back to the resort and headed straight to bed with the happiest bellies. I can’t wait to share our time at the Magic Kingdom in the next Walt Disney World blog! 😊

I hope you all love these Disney blogs as much as I do! ♥️

---

Questions for you!

1. Any questions about Walt Disney World travels in?
2. Have you ever been to Epcot?
3. Which food item from my blog post do you want to try?

A HUGE thank you to Walt Disney World for hosting me!!