Hey, everyone!
Chrissa here and I am so excited because the Epcot International
Flower and Garden Festival just started for 2022.
And if you are thinking about going
I'm going to go over all of the details to help you plan your day.
So let's get into it.
The Epcot Flower and Garden Festival is my favorite Epcot
Festival of the year and it's going on now until July 4th.
This beautiful springtime festival is packed with amazing topiary,
beautiful gardens and of course, some amazing food.
We were lucky to have this absolutely beautiful day to enjoy the festival.
And when you first walk in, you'll get a glimpse of your
very first topiary of the park, which is this wonderful Goofy
and the Walt Disney 50th Anniversary celebration cake.
There is also a few giant butterfly topiary that you will also find
sprinkled throughout the rest of the park while you're in the main entrance area.
Don't forget to pick up one of these.
This is the Flower and Garden Festival Passport and it lists
everything that is available to see during this year's festival.
One of my favorite things to do and the first place
that we headed to this year was the Butterfly House.
The Bambi Butterfly House is located near
the Imagination Building and is always one of my go to exhibits.
In here you can observe many different
species of butterflies up close and around you.
You can even watch some emerge from their cocoons.
It is always such a beautiful sight and I love walking around
and watching the butterflies.
They are a little bit difficult to capture
landing on any flowers and when you do, it's totally worth it.
Or you can be like me and just chase random
butterflies down until you finally tire them out until landing.
As long as you don't mind running around looking like a crazy camera person
like me.
As you're waiting in line for the Butterfly House,
you can't miss this adorable topiary of Bambi and his friends.
If you're lucky right behind the Butterfly Garden is where you can
sometimes catch Winnie the Pooh trying to catch butterflies himself.
He's always so cute, and I always just want to run over and give him a big hug.
This year, there are 25 different topiary and 22 different gardens to enjoy
starting at the main entrance with the Goofy and 50th Anniversary cake.
If you're in World Nature, the first topiaries that you would see
would be Woody, Bo Peep and her sheep as well as Simba and his friends.
And you can't miss Pumbaa and Timon.
If you make your way down to the Refreshment Port from here
you'll encounter a couple of gardens that include the Honey Bee-Stro Garden,
where you can learn about the honeybees critical role in the environment.
And enjoy sweet and savory treats made possible by their hard work.
Then there is Figment who sits right over here in front of Imagination.
Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Huey, Dewey and Louie are over here
near the Bridge to the World Showcase and there's also Blossoms of Fragrance,
which is a new attraction for 2022, where you can follow your nose and form
lasting memories with the help of fresh, unforgettable fragrances.
And while you're here enjoying the fragrances
you won't miss the sight of the festival blooms
where you can admire thousands of flowers that form colorful
living panoramas with the 50th Anniversary Celebration theme.
Once you make it into the World Showcase, you'll come across one of my favorites
the Sorceror Mickey
with his brooms, ostriches, hippos, and of course, the giant gator.
I tend to go around the world showcase counterclockwise
so if you're a counterclockwise person like I am,
the first pavilion that you'll come across is Canada.
Canada doesn't technically have any topiaries
or a gardens, but you want to stop by Canada anyway
because they have this beautiful replica of Victoria Gardens.
This has always been one of my favorite gardens to stop by
in the World Showcase, and it's always worth a stop.
After Canada is the United Kingdom.
And here is where you can see Peter Pan, Captain Hook and Tick Tock Croc.
There is also my favorite character, Winnie the Pooh, with his friends
right across the way.
But while you're here, right next to Winnie the Pooh is the Shakespeare
Garden, in addition to the Tea Garden.
And while you're in the Tea Garden, make sure to keep an eye out
because you might just see Alice in Wonderland.
After the
UK You'll make your way over to France, where you can see Remy, who's
also combined with his Bouquet Garden, which is also new this year.
In this Bouquet Garden you'll see bountiful blooms
that are perfect for a bouquet of cut flowers.
Also in France is a favorite topiary Beauty
and the Beast, as well as Lumiere and Cogsworth.
Right in between France and Morocco There's a small little garden in the back
over here called the Vibrante & Verde, which is an Encanto Garden
where you can explore a tropical garden teeming with flora
and look for hints from the Disney animated film Encanto.
Next in Morocco, don't miss this beautiful little Spice
Garden where you can discover how Eastern cultures flourish,
trading signature spices and herbal blends.
These spaces were once considered more valuable than gold.
After
leaving Morocco, you'll be heading straight over to Japan,
where they have this beautiful dragon topiary.
There's also a bonsai collection and this cute little Kokedama Garden,
which is a Japanese art of growing plants in a moss covered ball of soil
wrapped with string or fishing line.
After leaving Japan, you'll make your way over
to the American Adventure, where you'll find Pluto and Chip & Dale.
After that, we're going to go over to the Italian pavilion,
where you can see the Lady and the Tramp topiary, as well as the Garden Italiano
that features all the produce and herbs needed to create a classic Italian feast.
Next up in the Germany pavilion, you'll be able to find the topiaries
of Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy who is looking as stylish as ever.
Just across the way is Snow White
and the Seven Dwarves, who are all just so cute.
Also in Germany, don't miss
this tiny little alpine miniature garden where you can appreciate
diminutive dwellings, nestled in a forest of fine shrubs.
Heading over to China now you'll find the cutest little panda
topiary as well as the Bamboo Garden.
There's also this really fun Chinese Zodiac Garden,
where you can discover your Zodiac while visiting these clever creations.
After leaving China, we're going to be heading over to Norway.
And this is, of course, where you can see the Anna and Elsa
topiary in addition to this giant troll.
And the next garden is one of my favorite gardens
in the entire festival and one that I look forward to every single year.
And this is the extraordinary orchids in the Tropical Rainforest Garden.
These orchids are truly extraordinary.
And I only wish that I could grow orchids this beautiful at home.
And while you're in Mexico, don't miss the Three Caballeros
that is a little bit closer over to the Bridge to the World Showcase.
If that wasn't enough, topiaries and gardens for you,
then have no fear because there's a couple more in World Discovery
where you can find Buzz Lightyear as well as this Prehistoric Plant Garden
that features plant life that has thrived since the age of dinosaurs.
In addition to this, there's also this brilliant nice
rest area called the Great Escape that's presented by Off
and a really fun family play zone for the kids.
And while you're in the area, make sure to stop by the lake
and check out the Purple Martins Nest that are next to the lake in World Discovery.
They are not technically a part of the Flower and Garden Festival,
but it is a really cool sight to see these little birds that have migrated
all the way from South America, and they do it every year.
But the biggest draw to
any Epcot Festival hands-down has got to be the food and drinks.
And during this festival I was on a mission again
to finish the Garden Graze challenge in order
to find out what the special prize was at the end.
So I made my way over to the first booth to grab the first dish,
which was this corn on the cob that you can pick up at the Flavor
Full Kitchen in between Imagination and the Refreshment Port.
While I was at the Flavor Full Kitchen, I could not help
but pick up the strawberry mousse that is served with these delicious
chocolate crisp pearls
that added a little bit of crunch into the mousse that I loved.
And I have never been so happy to find a worm on top of my dessert.
And if you want a really great appetizer
to the food for the day, this is an awesome choice.
Next, I headed over
to La Isla Fresca to pick up the coconut tres leches
it might not be the prettiest dessert that you'll pick up during the day.
But if you love coconut, it is so packed with flavor.
After I delighted myself with the coconut tres leches
I made my way over to the Bauernmarkt in Germany to pick up a potato pancake.
But before I even made it over there, I could not help at stopping at the funnel
cake stand to pick up this amazing strawberry cheesecake
funnel cake at American Adventure, which was amazing!
It's not a part of the Garden Graze Challenge, but
it was just too good to pass up.
Once I finally made it over to the Bauernmarkt,
I picked up the potato pancake, which I wasn't quite sure what to expect
but this delicious pancake is probably one of the biggest surprises
on how much I really enjoyed this, and I highly recommend it.
Next, I headed over to Trowel & Trellis
to get the grilled baby vegetables.
These grilled baby
vegetables were really delicious and a great addition to our day.
After the grilled baby vegetables, I made my way over to Epcot Sunshine
Griddle to probably get the prettiest avocado toast I have ever seen.
Just look at how pretty this is!
It's almost a little too pretty to eat.
And while we were here, I also grabbed the fried cinnamon bites,
which are these bite
sized donuts covered in cinnamon sugar and filled with cream cheese,
which I have to admit is probably one of my favorite combinations.
And I also wanted to try the corned beef brisket hash
which has these housemade potato barrels, onions, peppers,
cheese curds and a soft poached egg with Tabasco hollandaise.
After finishing all the dishes that were a part of the Garden Graze,
I made my way over to the Pineapple Promenade to go and get my prize,
which ended up being what I think is a key lime flavored dole whip.
But to be honest, I completely forgot to grab what this was when I grabbed it.
So if, you know, let me know in the comments below.
Either way, it does come in this really cute collector cup
in addition to this fun pack of wildflower seeds.
But in addition to the amazing topiaries, gardens, and food,
there's also a couple of different scavenger hunts that you can do
while you're at the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival,
one of which is Spike's Pollen-Nation Exploration, where you can follow Spike
on this pollination trail throughout the park
and find all the little Spikes in the gardens.
Along with the scavenger hunts There's also a couple of musical entertainers
like the Jammin' Gardeners, who we completely missed while we were there.
And there's also a Garden Rock Concert series
that happens nightly that features local Orlando artists.
And no Epcot Festival would be complete without its exclusive merchandise.
Like this Orange Bird Headband, Orange Bird Spirit Jersey,
The Mickey Garden Crocs and the Spike the Bee Mug that you can pick up
at any of the festival markets throughout the park.
If you're wondering what other things there are do
while you're at Epcot for the day, then you'll have to check out my Epcot
overview that just popped up on the screen.
Until next time, everybody,
I hope you have an amazing day and go out and enjoy some Florida sunshine!