5 Things I Wish I'd Known Before Going to the EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival

It’s almost time for the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival, which is, personally, my FAVORITE festival of the year.

EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival

This year, the festival is happening from March 4th through June 1st, so you’ll have three months of stunning foliage and garden-inspired eats to explore. But if you’re going for the first time (or even the 50th!), I’m here to share a few things I wish I’d known before going to this festival.

Bring Your Allergy Meds

I don’t care if it isn’t allergy season where you live, you NEED to bring your allergy meds to EPCOT for this festival. Maybe even start taking them a few days before your visit! It’s happened to our team many times where we’ve underestimated just how much pollen we get exposed to during this festival.

Donald and Daisy topiaries

It’s not an opening day of Flower & Garden if we don’t end up with at least one reporter sneezing. You certainly don’t want to feel bad during your vacation, so make sure you plan ahead on this one!

The Butterfly Garden Is Better Later On

There’s something exciting about visiting a festival in its first few days, but if you do that for Flower & Garden, you might miss out on one of its best offerings. Each year, EPCOT presents a butterfly garden in World Nature, and while it’s always lovely to walk through, it’s at its peak toward the end of the festival.

Butterfly Landing

When the festival starts, the butterflies are mostly still in their cocoons, and that means there’s a little less excitement to see. After a couple of months, the butterflies are flying all throughout the garden, stopping to land on flowers and sometimes on people. It’s magical!

Don’t Expect Good Weather

You may think that visiting Disney World in March couldn’t possibly be too bad weather-wise, but you might get proven wrong. This is typically the festival opening day when we start to notice much higher temperatures, and we often need to have a contingency plan for rain.

Rainy weather on festival opening day 2025

This continues to be a problem throughout the festival. Temperatures will rise from March to June, and you’ll likely be facing a minimum temperature in the 80s midday during the festival. So if you’re visiting, make sure to wear your sunscreen, bring your sunglasses, and pack a poncho just in case!

Bees Are All Over the Place

One recurring problem we have at the Flower & Garden Festival is BEES. They seem to be an issue nearly every year, particularly at Joffrey’s stands, where there are sugary treats and syrups. If you’re scared of bees or allergic, you might want to be on your guard.

Really, Mr. Bee?

Of course, all the flowers and topiaries are just begging for pollinators, so we can’t blame the bees for showing up!

DFB Has an Amazing Tool for You!

But maybe my biggest tip? Here at DFB, we make a complete guide to the Flower & Garden Festival that is a must-have if you want to do the festival to the fullest. We include tips and tricks for tackling the fest, menus with prices, and so much more.

As soon as the festival kicks off, we update this guide with the latest info to help you with the ultimate EPCOT visit. If you’re new to the Flower & Garden Festival, this is an excellent resource.

2025 Trowel & Trellis Spread

So there you have it — all the things I wish I’d known before going to the Flower & Garden Festival in EPCOT! For more tips live from the festival, make sure to tune into the blog here on March 4th.

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The EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival is gorgeous — and overwhelming. Our DFB Guide shows you exactly what’s worth your time, money, and stomach space (and what to skip).