Annual Events
Epcot hosts a number of special events during the year:
- The Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival, inaugurated in 1993, uses specially-themed floral displays throughout the park, including topiary sculptures of Disney characters. Guests can meet gardening experts and learn new ideas they can use in their own home gardens. The 18th annual event is scheduled for March 2 – May 15. Each event takes more than a full year to plan and more than 20,000 cast member hours.
- The Epcot International Food and Wine Festival, inaugurated in 1995, draws amateur and professional gourmets to sample delicacies from all around the world, including nations that do not have a permanent presence in World Showcase. Celebrity chefs are often on-hand to host the events. In 2008, the festival featured the Bocuse d'Or USA, the American semifinal of the biennial Bocuse d'Or cooking competition.
- Holidays Around the World is Epcot's annual holiday celebration. The World Showcase pavilions feature storytellers describing their nation's holiday traditions, and three nightly performances of the "Candlelight Processional" featuring an auditioned mass choir and a celebrity guest narrating the story of Christmas. During "Holidays Around the World," Illuminations: Reflections of Earth features a special extended ending.
- On New Years Eve, the park offers a variety of additional entertainment including live DJ dance areas throughout the park and a special New Years Eve countdown edition of IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth.
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