How to enjoy the 2023 Epcot Food and Wine Festival on a $75 budget

What can $75 get you at the 2023 Epcot International Food and Wine Festival? Well, that depends. But, we tested this ourselves and know exactly how much you can get with $75!

After trying every menu item (that’s been released so far) when the festival kicked off on July 27, we created lists of our favorite offerings that we most definitely wanted to try again — and that we each felt were worth $75.

Of course, what you can get for $75 depends on what you purchase. Some items are more expensive than others, but if you spend your money wisely, you can get quite the assortment.

Planning a Walt Disney World trip on a budget is quite common. You know what else many people do? Go into Epcot festivals with a set amount of money to spend.

Budgeting food isn’t that uncommon at Disney World. Heck, that’s why many guests prefer to purchase a Disney Dining Plan so they don’t have to think about spending money on food and beverages during their actual trip. They’ve already prepaid and can just enjoy everything they eat and drink without worrying if they are on budget or not.

This is why we wanted to explain how to visit Food and Wine on a budget and show you how much (or how little) you’ll get with $75 in a day going around to each festival marketplace.

Setting a budget for yourself is a great way to make sure you don’t overspend, because, trust us, that’s easy to do at Disney World, especially when it comes to food and drink.

Here’s how a budget of spending $75 each during one day at this year’s Epcot Food and Wine Festival could go…

Why a $75 budget?

You might be asking yourself why we chose a budget of $75 and not $50 or $100.

It really all depends what you’re willing to spend, how much time you’re spending at the festival, and how much you want to eat and drink.

We felt like $50 would be too small of an amount and $100 seemed like too much to spend all in one day. We settled on $75, which seemed liked a good middle of the road number.

Our Food and Wine budget lists

We recommend planning your list ahead of time, so you know what you’re spending and where you want to go. Otherwise, you might blow your budget early on in your day and that’s no fun. We’re all about having a plan!

Of course, you don’t have to follow in our planning footsteps and just go with the flow while you’re at the festival! Whatever is easiest and less stressful for you.

As for us, we’re planners. Here’s what we would get with a $75 budget.

• Felicia: 6 food and 4 drink items, with the latter consisting of 2 flights
• Allyson: 6 food and 5 drink items, with the latter consisting of 1 flight
• Heather: 6 food and 5 drink items

You can see our choices below. Many of the following were our overall favorite booths and items that we tried this year. We obviously recommend all of these — or we wouldn’t be purchasing them for a second time.

Let’s take a look…

Food & Wine budget tips

After figuring out what you want to eat and drink with your $75 (or whatever budget you set for yourself) prior to stepping inside Epcot, your first task should involve purchasing a gift card and loading your set amount onto it.

This is extremely helpful when setting a festival budget.

At each Epcot festival, you can usually find adorable wristlet gift cards themed to that particular festival at different gift shops, like Gateway Gifts by Spaceship Earth, Creations Shop in World Celebration, and World Traveler at International Gateway.

For example, here’s what the 2023 Food and Wine gift cards look like:

These are super convenient thanks to being able to wear them on your wrist. You don’t have to worry about digging around in your bag or wallet to find cash or your card.

You can simply show your gift card to the Cast Member working the register, they’ll scan it, and the amount will automatically be deducted.

Tip: The receipt you’re handed after you buy an item will list your remaining gift card balance at the bottom. You can also see your gift card balance on the payment screen after each purchase.

While MagicBands work similarly (you wear them like a bracelet), gift cards are better to stay on budget. You can spend as much as you want using a MagicBand, since it’s tied to a credit card.

However, once the amount runs out on your gift card, you’re out of money (unless you load more). Gift cards are a great way to set a spending amount.

Keep in mind that most festival booths accept Disney gift cards as a form of payment. The only booth we ever have issues using a gift card at is Funnel Cake, so keep in mind you will more than likely have to pay with cash or a credit card here.

Don’t forget about Emile’s Fromage Montage

As you make your way around Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival, be sure to grab a stamp in your festival passport for Emile’s Fromage Montage.

This activity is voluntary and a fun, little bonus for those eating a lot at the festival — even more so for cheese-lovers.

If you decide to partake, all you need to do is purchase 5 cheese dishes from the Global Marketplace options listed in the Festival Passport.

You can purchase any of the 5 listed here:

• India – Curry-Spiced Crispy Cheese with Mango-Curry Ketchup
• Germany – Schinkennudeln: Pasta Gratin with Ham, Onions and Cheese
• Greece – Griddled Cheese with Pistachios and Honey
• Brazil – Pão de Queijo: Brazilian Cheese Bread
• Canada – Canadian Cheddar and Bacon Soup served with a Pretzel Roll
• Flavors from Fire – Smoked Corned Beef with House-Made Potato Chips, Cheese Curds, Pickled Onions and Beer-Cheese Fondue
• Hawaii -Passion Fruit Cheesecake with Toasted Macadamia Nuts
• The Alps – Warm Raclette Swiss Cheese with Alpine Ham, Baby Potatoes, Cornichons and Baguette; Warm Raclette Swiss Cheese with Baby Potatoes, Cornichons and Baguette
• Spain – Charcuterie with a selection of imported Spanish Meats, Cheeses, Olives and an Herb Vinaigrette
• Wine & Wedge – Assorted Artisanal Cheeses and Accoutrements; Fig and Balsamic Boursin® Soufflé with Fig Tapenade; Southern Pimento Cheese with Bread-and-Butter Pickled Vegetables and Grilled Bread

You’ll have to get a stamp in your passport when you purchase each item. Once you’ve collected all 5 stamps, you can bring your passport to Shimmering Sips for a complimentary prize unique to the Food and Wine Festival.

Just look for this sign (above) next to the pick-up window on the far left of the booth.

FYI: you do not have to stand in the regular food and drink line at Shimmering Sips to get your completer prize. Just go up to the completer treat pick-up window and show them your passport. The Cast Member will give you a completer stamp, along with your special treat!

This year’s prize? Like last year’s festival, you get Strawberry Cheesecake Soft Serve topped with a Mini Cheesecake and Graham Cracker Crumbs in a Souvenir Cup!

This is pretty tasty and the cup makes for a cute Food and Wine souvenir.

You can complete Emile’s Fromage Montage at your own leisure, but it must be finished before the festival concludes on November 18.

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Do you think you’d be able to restrict yourself to a budget at an Epcot festival? How much would you spend and what items would you choose? Tell us in the comments below!

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Read more about the Food & Wine Festival

Be sure to check out the following links to our Epcot Food and Wine Festival posts, where we provide all kinds of information, tips, and much more.

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Curious about all the other booths? Make sure to read over our collection of 2023 Epcot Food And Wine Global Marketplace Menus, Photos, and Reviews. We’ve reviewed every booth at this year’s festival, and we definitely have some opinions and advice to share. And, if you’re heading to the festival this year, you’ll also want to check out our Complete Guide to the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival. It will provide you with valuable insights on what to expect, tips on planning your visit, and plenty of other useful information.