We have long said that Epcot never looks as lovely as it does during the International Flower and Garden Festival and even though this year the festival is scaled back, there is still a lot to see and love.
After checking out the 2021 Taste of Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival, here’s 5 of our favorite things.
Epcot Entrance
It wouldn’t be the Flower and Garden Festival without adding tons of color, but this year seeing all those bright tints and hues spread throughout the park hits a bit differently.
Maybe it is because these past 12 months have been so darn tough, or maybe it is just us turning sentimental, but seeing Epcot covered in all the gorgeous blooms lightened our souls considerably.
And, one of our favorite things is that the cheery colors aren’t found in just the flowers.
Opening day of the Flower and Garden Festival also saw the unveiling of some new features to the park entrance, including the new perimeter lights near Spaceship Earth:
As well as new flags representing 6 original Epcot icons:
And although the fountain has been uncovered for quite a while now, it looks even more dashing with all the other additions.
And, of course, the Leave a Legacy plaques have been moved and dressed up in a gorgeous new prism of color. We absolutely love how this looks and we’re happy to see them re-imagined in such a beautiful way.
In fact, we see over and over Disney utilizing a bright rainbow palette of color that is only further accentuated by the flowers and topiaries strategically positioned nearby.
We love all the beautiful additions so much that we highly recommend you make time to explore this area for a bit in both the daytime and at night.
Topiaries
Unsurprisingly, the topiaries you can find at Flower and Garden definitely make it into our top 5 favorite things to see.
They truly are living pieces of art. And, with so many of them spread throughout the park, you can spend an entire day exploring them.
Here’s where they are located this year:
Future World & Showcase Plaza
Main Entrance
- Sorcerer Mickey Mouse, Broom, Ostriches, Hippo, Gator, and Mushrooms
Future World East
- Bambi and Friends’ Wildlife Habitat (near Mouse Gear)
- Buzz Lightyear (near Mission: SPACE)
Future World West
- Figment (near Imagination!)
- Woody, Bo Peep and her sheep (in between the Land Pavilion and the Living Seas)
- Topiary Butterflies (near Imagination!)
- Simba and Friends
Showcase Plaza Between Mexico and Canada
- Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and Goofy
- Pluto and Chip ‘n’ Dale
- Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Huey, Dewey, and Louie
World Showcase
Mexico
- The Three Caballeros
Norway
- Anna and Elsa
- Troll
China
- Pandas
Germany
- Snow White and Dopey
Italy
- Lady and the Tramp
Japan
- Dragon Topiary
France
- Beauty and the Beast
- Remy
United Kingdom
- Peter Pan and Captain Hook
- Tinker Bell and Fairy Houses
- Winnie the Pooh and Friends
- Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy
Miniature Garden
We aren’t quite sure what the science is, but seeing full-sized things shrunk down to tiny size is, without fail, an absolute delight.
To be fair, the train garden near Germany is available year-round, but for Flower and Garden you can also see an additional miniature display nearby.
If you check it out, make sure you take a few moments to look for the Flower and Garden Festival banners!
Increased opportunities to visit
Typically, Flower and Garden Festival lasts from early March through about Memorial Day.
But this year, it stretches allll the way to July 5, 2021.
That is over a month longer than typical, which means you’ll have lots and lots of opportunities to visit.
Sunshine Griddle
(did somebody say brunch?!)
Brunch has all of our favorite things: cocktails, cinnamon rolls, and toast smeared with creamy green fruit.
Ok, maybe that last part isn’t so true, but we do love brunch and the mixture of savory and sweet that it brings – literally – to the table.
That is why we were so excited to see that our favorite meal is now represented at the Flower and Garden Festival.
Tucked back by Test Track is the newest food kiosk called Sunshine Griddle where a decadent mixture of brunch favorites are served up all day long.
I mean, take a look at the menu below and tell us what isn’t to love?
Food:
- Avocado Toast with Marinated Toybox Tomatoes and Fresh Goat Cheese on Toasted Ciabatta (new).
- Shrimp and Grits: Blackened Shrimp and Cheddar Cheese Grits with Brown Gravy and Sweet Corn Salsa.
- Corned Beef Brisket Hash with House-made Potato Barrels, Onions, Peppers, Cheese Curds, and a Soft-poached Egg with Tabasco Hollandaise (new).
- Fried Cinnamon Roll Bites with Cream Cheese Frosting and Candied Bacon (new).
Beverages:
- Froot Loops Shake (non-alcoholic; new).
- Joffrey’s Coffee Cold Brew Cocktail with Milk, Kahlúa Rum and Coffee Liqueur, and Vanilla Vodka (new).
But don’t worry, if brunch isn’t your thing, you aren’t a monster. You’ll have lots of other options guaranteed to match nearly every culinary preference.
Be sure to browse the complete list of Flower and Garden menus.
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