Here at Dole Whipped, we like to keep you informed of all the new things you can find at Disney parks and beyond. Join us this week as we explore what’s new at Disney parks on both coasts, as well as what you can find with Disney Cruise Line and Adventures by Disney!
Happy listening!
Have you ever heard that Disney is for kids or that people are going to Disney for their kids? We at Dole Whipped could not agree less with this. Disney vacations are for everyone! For this article I am going to tell you why Epcot is for adults, what you can enjoy while visiting this amazing park.
Let’s start with the best of the best: Drinking Around the World! Those over the age of 21 can enjoy beer, wine, liquor and mixed drinks from eleven countries. Check out our information on this subject: Blog and the Podcast.
If you drinks aren’t your thing maybe Snacking Around the World is an option! This is a fantastic option with a group of friends so you all get a little taste of everything! Check out our articles here for ideas.
Another great option for adults are the movies that play in the pavilions of the World Showcase. France, Canada, and China all have Circle Vision 360 films featuring landmarks and places of interest in these countries. The films are fairly short and very well done and perfect for adults to enjoy.
Future World also has many great attractions and I won’t list them all, but those that adults may find most fun are Spaceship Earth, Soarin’, Living with the Land, Test Track, and Mission Space.
Dining in Epcot is a dream! There are so many choices for the adventurous eaters, French, Italian, German, Chinese, Mexican, Norwegian, seafood, and steakhouse. There are of course some character dining options but if you are looking to avoid this there are plenty of choices in Epcot. Just be sure to make your advanced dining reservations.
Illuminations Sparkling Dessert Party is a great activity for adults! You get drinks and desserts and a lovely view of Illuminations: Reflections of Earth. You can read all about it!
Seasonally there is the Flower and Garden Festival. There are the concerts, gardening seminars, playgrounds for kids, amazing gardens and topiaries, butterfly house, and food booths called Outdoor Kitchens.
Like Flower & Garden there is the Food & Wine Festival. Included with this are the Eat to the Beat Concerts, cooking and mixology classes and seminars, as well as food and drink booths from around the world.
Epcot really is a park for everyone! Check out my articles on Epcot for Kids, Epcot for Preschoolers.
Here is your September 2015 Disney news round up!
The biggest news this week is that this will be the final year for The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights. While it will be very sad to see them go the best part is that Disney is giving notice. So if you had wanted to see them one last time or for the first time this will be your last chance. The Osborne Lights start in early November and will conclude on January 3, 2016. This change is due to the upcoming Toy Story Land and Star Wars themed land coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Photo via Disney Parks Blog.
If you are coming to see the lights there are two new seasonal offerings. The first is the Merry & Bright Dessert Party from November 6 to December 30. This will include holiday themed desserts. Next is the Merry & Bright Dinner Reception which is January 1-3, 2016. It will feature a selection of small bites like beef, shrimp, and turkey as well as beer, wine, and specialty beverages. Reservations can be made starting September 16.
Let’s hop over to the west coast with news of a new Frozen inspired stage musical for Disney’s California Adventure Park. This show it due out in summer 2016 at the Hyperion Theater. Which means this show will be replacing the current Disney’s Aladdin- A Musical Spectacular” much to the sadness of many Disney fans. Aladdin will be finished on January 10, 2016.
Photo via Disney Parks Blog.
If you have ever been to Walt Disney World for Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival and enjoy cooking, I have the thing for you! A cookbook for the last 20 years of Food and Wine Festival. Disney has even posted some of the recipes on their blog if you would like to try out a few of them before buying! http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2015/09/new-cookbook-celebrates-20-years-of-epcot-international-food-wine-festival/
Lastly, there is a new special event at Walt Disney World, Ferrytale Wishes: A Fireworks Dessert Cruise. This cruise will take in the Wishes fireworks from a ferry on the Seven Seas Lagoon and feature plenty of sweat treats taken from resorts and the parks with the music piped into the ferry. It finishes with a toast of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages in a souvenir glow glass. Prices are $99 for adults and $69 for children 3-9 and reservations are available.
Photo via Disney Parks Blog.
We completed our Drinking Around the World adventure with stops in each of the 11 permanent countries around the world showcase. Now, lets talk about a few different special events that can change the way we drink around the world.
Food & Wine Festival
Every year Disney hosts the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival in the fall. An additional 35+ booths are set up around the world showcase for some different countries to display the food and drink of their homeland. With that many booths, a Drinking Around the World: F&W edition isn’t really possibly (or smart!) unless you have an extended stay or are lucky enough to live close to Walt Disney World. There are far too many amazing drinks to name at the festival, but one “booth” of note is the Craft Beer Marketplace. Located inside the Odyssey Center there is plenty of space for relaxing in the air conditioning while trying craft beers from around the country. The most popular items at the Craft Beer Marketplace are the flights, each with 4 separate tasting sizes of beer allowing you to try more without buying full cups! Pretty smart. One thing that may make drinking around the world easier during Food & Wine is the new for 2015 Food and Wine Tasting Sampler. If you purchase this package you’ll receive 8 credits for a snack or beverage of your choice during food and wine. This package also comes with priority seating for an Eat to the Beat concert during the day you purchase. For $59 per person plus tax that’s not a bad deal!
Flower & Garden
The Epcot International Flower & Garden festival is gaining on the Food & Wine Festival in terms of popularity! Hosted in the spring, there are 12+ booths featuring fresh food straight from the garden during this festival. From wine to sparking ciders, beer and more, there is plenty to drink at this festival as well. One drink that we here at Dole Whipped agrees will stand above the rest is The Dole Whip with rum (of course)! Available at the Pineapple Promenade booth there is an option to add macadamia nut flavored or coconut flavored rum floaters to your pineapple soft serve. Yum! One thing available at this festival (and also the Food & Wine) that makes drinking around the world a little easier on your budget is the wearable wristband gift card. If you load the card with the amount you’re able to spend on drinks you’ll keep yourself in check, and since you can wear it on your wrist you won’t have to dig around in your pockets for cash or credit cards either! It’s a win win.
Which event would you rather Drink Around the World at, Food & Wine or Flower & Garden?
With Epcot’s Food & Wine Festival recently wrapping up I thought it might be fun to recap some of the things I enjoyed there this year, what I’d like to see next year and what could maybe be left off the list!
My husband and I visited Epcot as soon as the World Showcase opened on a rainy Tuesday. I cannot recommend this specific combination enough! I know we can’t control the rainy part 😉 but a Tuesday around 11am is a great time to start enjoying the Food & Wine Festival. We were so lucky and didn’t wait in a single line for food or drink the entire afternoon. This was definitely not the case on our last visit to Food & Wine on a Friday evening in 2013!
Our first stop was the Craft Beer building. My husband chose the Beer Flight 2: Goose Island, 312 Urban Wheat Ale; Florida Beer Company, Sunshine State Pilsner; Magic Hat Brewery, Dream Machine IPL; and Terrapin Beer Company, Rye Pale Ale for a cost of $10.25. This flight also came with a complementary snack mix. He was very pleased! As more of a beer fan than a wine drinker the opportunity to taste so many different beers was a real draw to this festival for him. So if you have a beer drinker don’t let the name Food & Wine deter them. Plenty of beer to be had as well!
Next stop was Mexico for the Rib Eye Taco with marinated rib eye, roasted chipotle sauce and grilled scallions on a corn tortilla. This was so good! And it would have paired perfectly with the tequila flight or the Mango Strawberry Margarita also offered at the Mexico booth. Unfortunately I did not get to try either, but the Rib Eye Taco was great all on its own!
Next up for me was Germany. I knew I wanted to try the Roast Bratwurst on a pretzel roll from the minute I started looking at menus. It did not disappoint! The pretzel roll was a perfect home for the bratwurst.
My husband opted to skip Germany in favor of Poland for the Kielbasa and Potato Pierogi with caramelized onions and sour cream. I don’t think I ever got a direct quote on the quality of the snack but judging from the sounds he made while eating it… it was a hit!
Japan was our next stop! My husband remembered the Teriyaki Gyoza Bun (a Steamed bun filled with chicken, vegetables and sweet teriyaki sauce) from our visit to the Food & Wine Festival two years prior and knew he had to get it. I’m not as big of a fan as he is, preferring the chicken pot stickers from China instead.
Another stand I skipped was Morocco. My husband did get the Kefta pocket, which is Ground seasoned beef in a pita pocket but I think this wasn’t his favorite treat either.
I personally was saving my appetite for Belgium! Another Food & Wine classic that I could enjoy year after year was the Belgian waffle with warm chocolate ganache and whipped cream. YUM! If they ever decide to do away with this treat at the festival I will be very sad!
Our final stop for this visit was Hawaii for the Kālua Pork Slider with sweet-and-sour Dole® pineapple chutney and spicy mayonnaise. This is a fan favorite and rightly so. It is a do not skip booth for both my husband and I. In fact, we each got our own pork sliders here, something we rarely do at the festival! Well worth it though.
All in all our time at the festival was a smash hit. The only complaint I have is the same one I’ve had every year in the past and will have every year in the future: not enough room in my stomach for all the delicious treats! I’m very happy with the semi-recent additions of food booths to the Flower & Garden Festival and seasonal food booths during the holidays at Epcot. More opportunities to try different cuisines of the world sounds good to me!
Did you visit the Food & Wine Festival this year? What was your favorite item?
Dole Whipped 