The EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays returns from 27th November to 30th December 2026, running alongside the broader Walt Disney World Christmas celebrations. It's one of the most popular times to visit EPCOT, combining food, live entertainment, cultural storytelling and the Candlelight Processional into a month-long event that's worth planning your trip around if Christmas at Disney is on your radar.
Article At A Glance
- Festival dates: 27th November - 30th December 2026
- Candlelight Processional: Returning nightly at America Gardens Theatre
- Food: Holiday Kitchens returning with global menus, plus the fan-favourite Cookie Stroll
- New for 2026: Scentsy's Festive Fragrances returns for its third year with all-new scents
- UK timing: The festival runs through most of the UK Christmas school holiday window
Check Walt Disney World Christmas packages and availability
Read on for the full breakdown including what's actually worth your time, what the Holiday Kitchens involve, and how this fits into a UK Christmas trip to Walt Disney World.
Festival Dates and UK Holiday Context
The 2026 EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays runs from 27th November to 30th December 2026. It starts the day after Thanksgiving on 27th November 2026 - and runs right through to the 30th, which is where it's always stopped short of New Year's Eve.
For families travelling from the UK, that date range is worth paying attention to. UK schools in England and Wales typically break up for Christmas around 19th-20th December 2026 (check your specific school's dates), which means you'd catch roughly ten days of the festival during school holidays if you travel immediately after term ends. If you can travel before the school holidays begin - say, the first two weeks of December - you'll likely find cheaper flights and park tickets, and significantly smaller crowds, while still getting the full festival experience.
Check Walt Disney World Christmas availability and packages here - and see our Walt Disney World deals guide for UK guests for tips on keeping costs down during the holiday period.
Don't miss out on the latest Walt Disney World package offers for Brits ↓
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World Showcase Storytellers
One of the things that sets EPCOT's holiday festival apart from a generic Christmas overlay is the World Showcase Storytellers - performers stationed around the park's international pavilions who bring local holiday traditions to life.
For 2026, the confirmed storyteller locations are:
- Mexico Pavilion - Las Posadas Celebration
- Norway Pavilion - A Mischievous Magical Barn Santa
- China Pavilion - Chinese Lion Dancer and Si-Zhu Trio
- Germany Pavilion - Adventskalender
- Italy Pavilion - La Befana
- Japan Pavilion - Daruma Storyteller
- Between Morocco and France Pavilions - Hanukkah Storyteller
- France Pavilion - Père Noël
- United Kingdom Pavilion - Father Christmas
- Canada Pavilion - Canadian Holiday Voyageurs
The UK Pavilion's Father Christmas is always a crowd-pleaser for British visitors - there's something slightly surreal about queuing to meet a version of Father Christmas in a recreation of a British street in Florida. The Norway Pavilion's Barn Santa (Nisse) is often a highlight too, if you haven't come across that particular Scandinavian tradition before.
Santa Appearances at EPCOT
Father Christmas - or Santa, depending on which pavilion you're in - appears in several locations around the park during the festival. In CommuniCore Hall, Santa will be greeting guests for photos and the usual wish-list business. Père Noël makes an appearance in the France Pavilion, and Goofy dressed as Santa will be at The Odyssey for photos.
Santa is also described as making surprise appearances around World Showcase during the festival - so keep an eye out as you're walking between pavilions. These aren't usually scheduled, but they do happen.
Candlelight Processional 2026
The Candlelight Processional is one of the longest-running Christmas traditions at Walt Disney World and is one of the most impressive things to experience during the festival - even if you're not particularly religious. It's a retelling of the Christmas story narrated by a celebrity guest, performed alongside a mass choir and full orchestra at the America Gardens Theatre.
Shows run nightly throughout the festival, with multiple performances each evening. The celebrity narrator changes throughout the run - Disney typically rotates different names across the festival period rather than having one narrator for the whole month.
If you want a guaranteed seat rather than joining the standby queue, Disney offers Candlelight Processional Dining Packages - these pair a meal at a participating EPCOT restaurant with reserved seating for the show.
See what Walt Disney World packages are available for the holiday period
Shows and Entertainment
Beyond the Candlelight Processional, the festival has two other main entertainment offerings worth knowing about.
JOYFUL! A Celebration of the Season is a high-energy gospel, jazz and R&B show celebrating Christmas and Kwanzaa traditions. It's a lively performance and one that tends to draw a crowd - worth catching at least once if you're spending a full day at EPCOT during the festival.
The Voices of Liberty - EPCOT's a cappella group, who perform in the American Adventure rotunda throughout the year - return in a festive guise as the Dickens Carolers, performing classic Victorian-era Christmas carols.
Holiday Kitchens and the Cookie Stroll
Food is one of the main draws of any EPCOT festival, and the Festival of the Holidays is no exception. The Holiday Kitchens - food and drink kiosks dotted around the park - each offer menus inspired by different global holiday traditions, and the format is essentially the same as the other EPCOT festivals (Food and Wine, Flower and Garden etc.) if you've done those before.
The Holiday Cookie Stroll is back for 2026. The way it works: you buy five qualifying cookies from different Holiday Kitchen locations, collect stamps in a Festival Passport as you go, and once you've got all five you can redeem the completed passport for a bonus treat. It's a decent way to structure a wander around the park and gives the kids (and adults, let's be honest) a bit of a mission to work towards. The Festival Passport is free to pick up.
See our Walt Disney World tickets guide for UK guests to make sure you've got the right ticket type for your visit.
Holiday Overlays and Festive Features
A few of EPCOT's existing attractions get a seasonal twist during the festival, which is worth knowing about if you're planning your day.
Living with the Land - Glimmering Greenhouses transforms the boat ride through EPCOT's real working greenhouses with twinkling lights and seasonal decor. Living with the Land is normally one of the more relaxed, informative rides in the park - this version adds a bit of atmosphere without changing the core experience. It's a nice one to do in the evening.
Lights on Spaceship Earth - the big golf ball at the entrance to EPCOT gets a lighting treatment after dark with festive colours. Combined with the Gingerbread Spaceship Earth Display in the park (which also has a light show countdown every 15 minutes), it makes the area around the entrance particularly photogenic in the evening.
Olaf's Holiday Tradition Expedition Scavenger Hunt is a paid-for activity that sends you around World Showcase hunting for Olaf as he discovers holiday traditions from different cultures. There's a keepsake included with the purchase. These scavenger hunts are often popular with younger children and are a reasonable way to spend an hour or two.
Scentsy's Festive Fragrances: A Sensory Wonderland returns for its third year, this time with new scents covering holidays from Noche Buena to Diwali. It's a sensory installation along the walkway between the Imagination! pavilion and World Showcase, set up as a garden of illuminated snow globes.
Tickets and resort hotel rooms for the 2026 holiday season at Walt Disney World are available to book now. If you're travelling from the UK over Christmas, the December school holiday window books up quickly - especially the dates between the 20th and 30th December. Check availability and book direct with Disney here, or see our Walt Disney World offers and deals guide for more on saving money on your trip.
Don't miss out on the latest Walt Disney World package offers for Brits ↓
🏰 View Walt Disney World Package Offers
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EPCOT Festival of the Holidays 2026: Your Questions Answered
When does the EPCOT Festival of the Holidays 2026 start and end?
The 2026 festival runs from 27th November to 30th December 2026. It does not run on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day.
Is the EPCOT Festival of the Holidays included in park admission?
Yes - the festival is included with standard EPCOT park admission. Some specific add-ons like the Olaf scavenger hunt are paid extras, but the entertainment, storytellers, decor and general festival atmosphere are all free once you're in the park. The Holiday Kitchens charge per item, the same as any other food kiosk in the park.
What is the Candlelight Processional at EPCOT?
It's a nightly show at the America Gardens Theatre that tells the Christmas story using a celebrity narrator, mass choir and full orchestra. It runs throughout the festival period, with multiple performances each evening. You can join the standby queue on the night or book a Candlelight Processional Dining Package in advance for reserved seating - the packages pair a restaurant meal with guaranteed entry to the show.
Who are the 2026 Candlelight Processional narrators?
Disney hasn't announced the 2026 narrator lineup yet. They typically reveal names in stages, with some announced a few weeks before the festival opens. We'll update this article when the list is confirmed.
Is the EPCOT Festival of the Holidays good for families with children?
Yes, on the whole. The multiple Santa appearances, the Olaf scavenger hunt, the cookie stroll and the general festive decor all go down well with younger visitors. The Candlelight Processional is aimed more at adults, but older children are generally fine with it. EPCOT is often considered the most grown-up of the four Disney parks, but the holiday festival adds enough child-friendly content to make it work for families.
When should UK visitors travel to get the best of the festival without peak crowds?
If you can travel before UK schools break up for Christmas - typically in the first two weeks of December - you'll likely find it significantly quieter and cheaper than travelling in the week before Christmas or between Christmas and New Year. The full festival is running from 27th November onwards, so there's no advantage to waiting until the school holidays begin if your schedule allows flexibility. Check package prices for your preferred dates here.
