2023 EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays
EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays
runs from November 24th to December 30th, 2023
Below is some information from the 2023 EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays.
In 2023, the Festival featured the always-popular Holiday Kitchens and more. The Candlelight Processional is a guest favorite (info below!), and the International Storytellers from around World Showcase are a truly unique experience.
Everything Confirmed for the 2023 EPCOT Festival of the Holidays
Festival of the Holidays Logistics
The Festival begins on November 24th, 2023.
The Festival is included with the price of admission to EPCOT, though Holiday Kitchens, Festival merchandise, and some Festival offerings are an additional cost.
Candlelight Processional
This retelling of the Christmas story, as told by a celebrity narrator accompanied by a large and incredibly impressive orchestra (typically a 50-piece orchestra) and a mass choir, will wow audiences starting November 24th!
The 2023 Narrators included:
- Chrissy Metz (NEW): Nov. 24-25
- Luis Fonsi (NEW): Nov. 26-27
- Ann-Margret (NEW): Nov. 28-29
- Simu Liu: Nov. 30-Dec. 2
- John Stamos: Dec. 3-5
- Neil Patrick Harris: Dec. 6-8
- Marlee Matlin: Dec. 9-11
- Brendan Fraser (NEW): Dec. 12-14
- Eva Longoria (NEW): Dec. 15-16
- Joey McIntyre (NEW): Dec. 17-18
- Sterling K. Brown (NEW): Dec. 19-20
- Jordan Fisher (NEW): Dec. 21-23
- Steven Curtis Chapman: Dec. 24-26
- Audra McDonald (NEW): Dec. 27-28
- Lisa Ling: Dec. 29-30
Showtimes this year have adjusted to 5:00 p.m., 6:45 p.m. and 8:15 p.m.
Dining packages are usually available to pair with your Candlelight Processional experience. These enable you to enjoy a meal at select restaurants in EPCOT and then get reserved seating for one of the Candlelight Processional shows for the day. There are usually dining packages you can reserve in advance, as well as some day-of options. Check back for 2024 details.
Choose from a variety of EPCOT dining locations that offer Candlelight Processional Dining Packages. Here’s what’s included with your meal:
- At Spice Road Table: 2 small plates, a shared tagine, a shared dessert platter and a nonalcoholic beverage (or alcoholic beverage for Guests 21 and older)
- At Other Participating Restaurants: An entrée and dessert, or a full buffet (where applicable)—as well as a nonalcoholic beverage (or alcoholic beverage for Guests 21 and older)
Plus, you’ll get one (1) guaranteed seat per person to one Candlelight Processional performance on the same day.
Participating restaurants include:
- Biergarten Restaurant
- Chefs de France
- Coral Reef Restaurant
- Garden Grill Restaurant
- La Crêperie de Paris
- La Hacienda de San Angel
- Le Cellier Steakhouse
- Nine Dragons Restaurant
- Regal Eagle Smokehouse: Craft Drafts & Barbecue (same-day dining packages only)
- Rose & Crown Dining Room
- Shiki-Sai: Sushi Izakaya
- Spice Road Table
- Teppan Edo
- Tutto Italia Ristorante
- Via Napoli Ristorante e Pizzeria
Book online beginning October 29, 2024. Advance reservations are highly recommended.
JOYFUL! A Celebration of the Season
This uplifting performance will be performing at CommuniCore Hall. JOYFUL! brings song traditions from both Christmas and Kwanzaa!
Daily Performance Times:
2:40PM, 3:45PM, 4:50PM, and 6:10PM
Holiday Kitchens
Starting November 24th, the Festival of the Holidays will bring back Holiday Kitchens. Favorite dishes like Slow-Roasted Turkey from American Holiday Table and Cheese Fondue in a Bread Bowl from Bavaria Kitchen returned in 2023!
Click here to see what you can expect at the Holiday Kitchens this year.
Stay tuned to All Ears as we anticipate 2024 festival announcements.
And check out our Guide to the Best Eats from the 2023 Festival of the Holidays!
Cookie Stroll
Back in 2018, the Festival of the Holidays started offering a Cookie Stroll. This tasty survey of Holiday Kitchens’ cookies culminates in a celebratory final cookie — and we anticipate its return for 2023!
The 2023 Cookie Stroll included:
Connection Café
Holiday Sugar Cookie
Nochebuena Cocina
Spiced Chocolate Cookie
Yukon Holiday Kitchen
Snickerdoodle Cookie made with SNICKERS bar pieces
L’Chaim! Holiday Kitchen
Black and White Cookie (plant-based)
American Holiday Table
Gingerbread Cookie
Bavaria Holiday Kitchen
Linzer Cookie
Holiday Hearth Desserts
Peppermint Pinwheel Cookie
Olaf’s Holiday Tradition Expedition
This family-friendly holiday fun allows guests to purchase a map and stickers from select merchandise locations and travel around World Showcase looking for traditions the famous snowman has lost along the way.
Guests can return their completed maps to Creations Shop or World Traveler for a festive surprise. Maps cost $9.99 plus tax and can be purchased at select Festival merchandise locations including Creations Shop, Port of Entry, and World Traveler.
World Showcase Entertainment
Enjoy the sights and sounds of the nations of the World Showcase as each country’s holiday heritage comes to life amid joyful music and time-honored traditions. Live musical performances typically happen throughout World Showcase. For entertainment, showtimes, and information, visit our full list of Festival of the Holidays Entertainment.
Holiday Storytellers in nearly every World Showcase country share tales from their own traditions, including (usually) a presentation in Norway to celebrate the Scandinavian Julenissen!
You can find Storytellers in the following locations:
- Las Posadas Celebration (Mexico)
- Mischievous Barn Santa and Sigrid (Norway)
- Chinese Lion Dancer (China)
- La Befana (Italy)
- Santa Claus (The Odyssey Pavilion)
- Daruma Storyteller (Japan)
- Hanukkah Storyteller (Between France and Morocco)
- Père Noël (France)
- Father Christmas (United Kingdom)
- Canadian Holiday Voyageurs (Canada)
Learn more about Festival of the Holidays Storytellers here!
Holiday Lights at Spaceship Earth
EPCOT always glows-up at night. You can expect a dazzling fireworks display over World Showcase Lagoon and some glimmer and shimmer on the illuminated Spaceship Earth.
During the 2023 holiday season, Spaceship Earth added a special holiday section to its Beacon of Magic performance. Check back for details about what will be offered in 2024.
Click here to see more photos and a video of this holiday overlay!
Stay tuned for more updates about EPCOT’s International Festival of the Holidays.
