2022 will make for my second Epcot Food and Wine Festival – the first as a Disney Annual Passholder. There are definitely fewer costs to worry about when you’ve already got a pass to get you into the park every day (which I highly recommend IF you’ll be going at least twice in a year OR more than 7 days and will be driving, eating at the restaurants, or purchasing souvenirs as the pass provides free parking and discounts), but you’ve still got to pay for those festival eats. So, how do you budget and save money on Epcot Food and Wine?

Assess your finances and plan accordingly

I always do this step first because you need to know how much money you have going into every situation.

Ideally, finances will have already been assessed during the 4th quarter of the year and you’ll know what you’re working with well before the festival comes around. Looking at the previous year’s menus will help you figure out what is appealing to you. Looking at the prices for each will let you know what’s appealing to your wallet. From this, you’ll have a ballpark of how much you’ll need.

Tip | When it comes to Disney-related items, the number one way I like to put money to the side is through apps like Shopkick and ibotta. I use them throughout the year when grocery shopping and buying clothes to get cashback and points that I convert into Disney gift cards. With Shopkick, I can even get points from simply stepping into the store and purchasing nothing at all.

Review food/beverage prices

I like to look at the current year’s foods and prices AFTER I’ve created my budget because I want my budget to influence the items I purchase, not the other way around.

I put everything I’m interested in, in a spreadsheet. Even if it’s more than I’d like to spend on one item, I include it in case I decide that one item is more appealing to me than two or three cheaper items after I see them in person. Once I total everything, if it comes to more than what I’ve budgeted, I strike things out that I could really do without. I don’t completely take them off the spreadsheet because there’s always a chance I’ll still get it if I end up with money left in the budget due to someone else buying an item I was interested in as well and eating some of theirs.

Pack your food supplies

Oftentimes, you want more than one thing from a booth but carrying everything can prove difficult. That is unless you have a handy dandy food tray. Really, any food tray will do. I’m sure Disney sells them but if you’re trying to save a bit of cash, you can certainly buy a less fancy one online and give it a little upgrade.

Even if you don’t opt to take a tray, make sure to take some type of reusable bag to carry a water bottle to wash your food down and clear your palate. Because you’re bound to have leftovers of certain items or just things you wanted to get extras of, like the Stone-Baked Moroccan Bread with Hummus, Chermoula, and Zhoug dips from Tangierine Cafe: Flavor of Medina, make sure you pack some food containers to take any items with you as well as reusable flatware and Clorox wipes.

Skip the repeats

I actually mean this in two different ways.

Some things appear at the festival as a one-and-done. I’m not sure if that’s because it’s not that popular or if that particular booth likes bringing something new to the table each year. Either way, I always think if you’ve got something on your list that has never appeared at the festival before, definitely get that item. If it’s something that seems to come back year after year (and you’re cutting things to stay within budget or you’ve tried it before if it’s not your first time), skip it. You’ll likely get a chance to have it next year when you really know what to expect.

The other thing I mean by skipping the repeats is skipping things you can get in a restaurant all year round. I LOVE everything at the Canadian booth, but I also know I can get the items in the restaurant. I’m also usually more pleased with them in the restaurant because they’re served hot, fresh, and made to order. The exception to this would be if you don’t really plan to dine in the restaurants ever (which some of them are skips but many are definite must-tries) or you want to try it on a smaller, cheaper, scale before committing to a restaurant reservation.

If you’re park hopping, make Epcot your first park

This is actually strongly linked to the last one. If you’re wanting to experience the Epcot Food and Wine Festival, and have park hopper passes, I would make Epcot my first park of the day. Lines are typically at their lowest, the temperatures aren’t that bad, and the booths are just setting up for the day.

I referenced food being hot, fresh, and made to order at the restaurants in my last point because I’ve definitely gotten a hard pretzel roll and my steak was overcooked at the Canadian booth when I’ve gone at night on 2 separate occasions. I was trying to beat the heat and the crowds but in both situations, I felt bummed I was getting food that I knew had been sitting out under the heat lamp for a while and that I’d wasted money on food that had become inedible.

Hopefully, these tips will help you save money on Epcot Food and Wine. Some of them I used before going my first time, like the spreadsheet of things I wanted with their prices, while others I didn’t figure out until after, like taking food containers and a tray. Last year, I spilled my Barbecued Pork Rinds with Pimento Cheese from the Swanky Saucy Swine all over the other half of my pizza from Brew-Wing because I didn’t have an enclosed container to preserve them in. So, in other words, I wasted money and made a mess.

Do you have any other ways you plan to save money on Epcot Food and Wine? Share them in the comments.