EPCOT International Festival of the Arts: Can’t-Miss Highlights for 2026

I’ve experienced all of EPCOT’s festivals, and the EPCOT International Festival of the Arts is easily my favorite. There’s so much to love about this festival: art that comes alive with beautifully plated dishes, live art displays, galleries with artist visits, the Disney on Broadway concert series, and endless interactive fun.

Here are the can’t-miss highlights for the 2026 EPCOT International Festival of the Arts, including what’s new, the best bites, and interactive experiences to build your day around.

What’s New at the 2026 EPCOT International Festival of the Arts?

The 2026 EPCOT International Festival of the Arts introduced the Once Upon a Stage: The Magic of Disney on Broadway exhibit and Lorcana trading card features, and both of these were fantastic additions to the festival.

The Broadway exhibit inside CommuniCore Hall features costumes and props from numerous Disney stage shows, including “Beauty and the Beast,” “The Lion King,” and “Aladdin.”

We loved getting to see the details of the costumes, puppets, and backstage features up close.

Just outside is the 14-foot-tall magic lamp from “Aladdin,” which spun on the marquee of the New Amsterdam Theater on Broadway.

The Disney Lorcana Trading Card Game is an excellent addition to this year’s festival. It added another layer of fun to find Lorcana cards throughout the park. You can trade cards with other guests and complete challenges for prize cards.

You can pick up a Festival Questbook on the bridge to the World Showcase, which is available daily starting at 9 a.m. while supplies last. The book contains a card pack and 2 challenges: the Collection Quest and Ink & Find Scavenger Hunt.

To complete the Ink & Find Scavenger Hunt, look for giant Lorcana cards throughout EPCOT, then match icons to the correct location to get a limited-edition Magical Places promo card.

The Collection Quest requires collecting 4 cards to match what’s in your book. The cards can come from your card pack, other guests, or by trading at the Illumineer’s Lounge in the Morocco pavilion. Complete this challenge to get another limited-edition Magical Places promo card.

Visit the Illumineer’s Lounge in the Morocco pavilion to turn in your completed challenges and receive promo cards or play and trade with other Lorcana players and collectors.

Not finding what you need to complete your Collection Quest? You can visit the trading board to trade cards with a cast member.

Practically every food studio has at least 1 new dish or beverage, but Figment’s Inspiration Station at The Odyssey features an all-new menu with a popcorn, popcorn chicken, and waffles dish, Figment fantasy cake, color scheme cake, and more.

Another all-new food studio is Fictional Victuals, which is “Alice in Wonderland”-themed and features a 3-chapter food menu. This is one of our favorite booths at this year’s festival.

Food Studios Around EPCOT

Festival food studios feature creative bites and sips throughout EPCOT, though most are concentrated in the World Showcase. A few year-round locations offer festival-only items, too.

Food locations for the 2026 EPCOT International Festival of the Arts include:

• Opening Bites: Near CommuniCore Plaza
• The Deconstructed Dish: Near Test Track
• Figment’s Inspiration Station at The Odyssey: The Odyssey pavilion
• Fictional Victuals: Near Disney Traders
• Pop Eats!: Walkway between World Showcase and the Imagination! pavilion
• Swirled Showcase: Walkway between World Showcase and the Imagination! pavilion
• The Craftsman’s Courtyard: Walkway between World Showcase and the Imagination! pavilion
• Deco Delights: Near Port of Entry
• El Artista Hambriento: Mexico pavilion
• The Painted Panda: China pavilion
• Refreshment Outpost: Between the China and Germany pavilions
• Pastoral Palate: Germany pavilion
• L’Arte di Mangiare: Italy pavilion
• The Artist’s Table: American Adventure pavilion
• Goshiki: Japan pavilion
• Tangierine Café: Flavors of the Medina: Morocco pavilion
• Vibrante & Vívido: Between the Morocco and France pavilions
• L’Art de la Cuisine Française: France pavilion
• Gourmet Landscapes: Canada pavilion

Year-round locations with festival offerings include Connections Cafe, Sunshine Seasons, the Norway beer cart, and the funnel cake stand in the American Adventure pavilion.

Joffrey’s kiosks in the park feature the Pop Art Latte: espresso with milk and vanilla syrup, lavender whipped cream, and freeze-dried Skittles.

Hot Tip:

Cardholders of the Disney^® Premier Visa^® Card and Disney^® Visa^® Card can get 10% off at most Disney World table-service restaurants but not at food studios or quick-service restaurants. There’s a 20% discount for cardholders at Disney World Joffrey’s locations.

Can’t-Miss Festival Food Favorites

With more than 20 food studios and festival offerings, it’s impossible to taste everything in a single day — especially if you’re also enjoying art, scavenger hunts, and shows. Here’s our short list of the best bites at the festival.

Gourmet Landscapes in the Canada pavilion features our favorite dishes, including one of the festival’s most creative plant-based options: a citrus-braised beet tartare topped with a golden beet “yolk,” mushrooms, spiced nuts, and a “feta” snow.

The roasted bone marrow was another memorable bite, featuring onion marmalade, pickled mushrooms, and petite lettuce.

Vibrante & Vívido features bold flavors with a chorizo-potato empanada topped with turmeric and annatto aiolis.

The passionfruit cheesecake is tropical and bright, topped with dragon fruit gelée and featuring a surprise mango pocket inside. Our kids loved the novelty of edible flowers.

The Japan pavilion’s Goshiki features sake served in a personalized wooden cup that’s part drink, part souvenir.

At The Artist’s Table in the American Adventure pavilion, we enjoyed the peppercorn-crusted striploin with grilled asparagus, potatoes au gratin, and au poivre butter. The meat was tender and thinly sliced, well accented by the pepper and herbed butter.

We didn’t expect much from the Hong Kong-style egg tart at the Painted Panda booth in the China pavilion, but this was a great bite, served warm with buttery crust and a creamy custard.

At Pop Eats!, the croque monsieur-inspired grilled cheese and tomato soup hit the spot with comfort food, especially on a cold evening.

Hot Tip:

Pick up a festival passport to see all the food and entertainment options. You can use the passport to complete the Wonderful Walk of Colorful Cuisine challenge, purchasing any 5 of the color stroll items. Once you collect 5 stamps, you can pick up a completer treat.

Interactive Art

The interactive experiences at the EPCOT International Festival of the Arts allow you to watch artists at work, meet famed Disney artists, create your own art, step inside installations, and more.

Along the walkway to the World Showcase, you can see chalk artists create detailed works on the ground. It’s worth slowing down to see the process as the artists create pieces that almost feel impossible for sidewalk chalk. There’s also a section for kids to create chalk art.

Keep your eyes open for Chalk Full of Characters chalk drawings throughout the World Showcase, such as kittens from “The Aristocats” in the France pavilion and “Luca” characters in the Italy pavilion.

You can join the artistry by participating in the paint-by-numbers mural, painting a small section of a giant mural.

Galleries throughout the festival feature Disney art, offering the opportunity to take home a piece of the festival and meet featured artists.

Figment’s Brush With the Masters Scavenger Hunt is a fun way to keep kids engaged as you search for famous works of art hidden throughout the World Showcase, each with a twist from EPCOT’s creative dragon, Figment.

Once complete, you can take home a sticker-by-number art prize.

The Animation Academy is one of the festival’s best interactive experiences, offering scheduled daily sessions that teach you how to draw a Disney character step-by-step with guidance from a Disney animator.

Artful photo ops throughout the park allow you to step into art frames and pose for PhotoPass shots.

Live performances are a major draw of the festival, particularly the Disney on Broadway concert series at the America Gardens Theatre. The shows run 3 times per day, featuring Broadway artists performing songs from Disney musicals, including “The Lion King,” “The Little Mermaid,” “Beauty and the Beast,” and “Aladdin.”

Tips for Planning Your EPCOT International Festival of the Arts Visit

We recommend planning your must-dos before you arrive at the festival. Start by checking Disney’s festival information for the complete food and entertainment lineup to flag the dishes, performances, and interactive experiences you don’t want to miss.

When you arrive at the park, pick up a festival passport at park entrances, merchandise locations, or food studios.

Crowds at the festival can get hectic, especially on weekends and in the late afternoon and evenings. Visiting earlier in the day is easier, though food studios don’t open until 11 a.m.

Interactive art offerings are a unique feature of the festival and worth making time for, especially the Animation Academy, which offers a midday break with a free souvenir.

Food portions are typically snack-sized but can still add up fast. We recommend sharing dishes so you can try more without blowing your budget or feeling too full to enjoy it all.

Final Thoughts

The EPCOT International Festival of the Arts offers a park day with a mix of food, entertainment, and interactive art experiences. The food studios are a highlight, but the art experiences — including artist meets, chalk art, the Broadway exhibit and performances, Animation Academy, and Lorcana — make this festival stand out among EPCOT’s other events.