Springtime has officially arrived at Walt Disney World, and with it comes one of EPCOT’s most colorful traditions. Every year, the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival transforms the park into a vibrant showcase of horticulture, seasonal food, and live entertainment. Guests arrive expecting to see towering character topiaries, wander through themed gardens, and snack their way around the park at dozens of festival booths.
For many Disney fans, Flower & Garden has become a must-visit event. It feels lighter and more relaxed than the Food & Wine Festival, while still offering plenty of food and drinks to sample. Families enjoy the scavenger hunts, photographers chase the perfect topiary shot, and longtime visitors often consider it one of the most beautiful times of the year to experience EPCOT.
The 2026 festival officially kicked off on March 4 and will run through June 1. But as guests began exploring the park this week, they noticed something different about how the event is operating this year.
Disney has quietly confirmed a new operational change that reduces festival booth hours during part of the week.
A Change to Festival Booth Hours
One of the central features of the Flower & Garden Festival is its Outdoor Kitchens. These booths are scattered throughout the park and serve small plates, desserts, and specialty drinks created specifically for the event. They encourage guests to wander through EPCOT while sampling dishes from booth to booth.
Historically, most Outdoor Kitchens have opened at 11:00 a.m. daily and remained open through the evening.
That schedule has now changed.
For the 2026 Flower & Garden Festival, the booths will still open at 11:00 a.m. on Fridays through Mondays and remain available until 9:00 p.m. However, on Tuesdays through Thursdays, the kitchens will now open later and close earlier.
During those midweek days, booths will operate from 11:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
While the adjustment only amounts to about an hour difference, it effectively shortens the window guests have to enjoy festival food during part of the week.
For visitors who plan their EPCOT day around sampling multiple dishes, that reduced time could change how they approach the festival.
Not Every Booth Is Affected
There are a few exceptions to the new schedule.
One notable example is the Florida Fresh booth located near CommuniCore Plaza. That location continues to open earlier in the morning, beginning service at 9:30 a.m. each day.
Additionally, some quick-service restaurants around EPCOT that offer festival-themed menu items may still operate before the Outdoor Kitchens officially open.
Still, the majority of festival booths follow the new schedule, meaning the change affects much of the food lineup across the park.
A Festival Built Around Food and Exploration
The Flower & Garden Festival isn’t just about flowers.
Food has become a massive part of the event over the past decade. This year’s festival features roughly 20 Outdoor Kitchens offering more than 75 menu items, including both returning favorites and brand-new creations.
Guests can find everything from seafood dishes and brunch-style plates to specialty desserts and refreshing drinks.
Returning booths include favorites like BRUNCHCOT, Honey Bee-Stro, and The Citrus Blossom. A brand-new booth called Nectar has also joined the lineup for 2026.
Many visitors treat the festival like a culinary tour of EPCOT, making the booth hours a key part of their day.
The Visual Magic of Flower & Garden
Even with the new operational change, the Flower & Garden Festival still offers one of the most visually stunning experiences at Walt Disney World.
The park is filled with elaborate topiaries featuring Disney and Pixar characters. Guests entering EPCOT are greeted by displays that transform plants and flowers into familiar characters like Buzz Lightyear, Woody, Bo Peep, and Lotso.
Across the park, guests can find even more detailed creations including Simba and friends near the Imagination Pavilion, Beauty and the Beast in the France Pavilion, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in Germany, and Moana with Maui near World Showcase.
These displays take Disney’s horticulture team months to prepare and are widely considered the signature feature of the festival.
In addition to the topiaries, EPCOT features themed gardens and educational displays that allow guests to learn about different plant species and gardening styles.
One of the most popular areas each year is the Butterfly Landing exhibit, where guests can walk through an enclosure filled with butterflies.
Entertainment and Family Activities
Flower & Garden also offers plenty of entertainment throughout the park.
The Garden Rocks Concert Series returns to the America Gardens Theatre with nightly performances throughout the festival. Artists perform several times each evening, giving guests multiple opportunities to catch a show while exploring World Showcase.
Families can also participate in Spike’s Pollen-Nation Exploration scavenger hunt. Guests purchase a map and search for hidden Spike the Bee statues throughout the park before redeeming their completed map for a prize.
At night, Spaceship Earth adds to the atmosphere with special festival-themed lighting sequences as part of EPCOT’s Beacon of Magic displays.
All of these experiences combine to give the park a completely different feel during the spring months.
Why Disney May Be Making the Change
While Disney hasn’t publicly explained the reasoning behind the new booth schedule, the change likely reflects operational adjustments designed to match attendance patterns.
Weekends typically bring larger crowds to EPCOT festivals, while Tuesdays through Thursdays often see slightly lower attendance.
Reducing booth hours during slower periods could help Disney manage staffing and operational costs without eliminating any locations entirely.
Still, for guests visiting midweek, the change means slightly less time to enjoy one of the festival’s most popular offerings.
The Festival Experience Continues
The combination of beautiful landscaping, seasonal menus, live music, and family activities creates a uniquely relaxed atmosphere that many guests consider the perfect way to experience EPCOT.
Visitors still have nearly three months to enjoy the 2026 festival before it wraps up on June 1.
But for those planning a visit, it may now be worth checking the booth hours before arriving—because one of EPCOT’s most popular festivals is now operating on a slightly different schedule.
