Epcot Food & Wine Festival = Booze Fest

Tony the Tigger

Tony the Tigger

Well-Known Member
Sundown said:
I was excited to go to Epcot during the Food & Wine Festival. I like my local festivals where I can grab a beer & some food, like town-day celebration or Oktoberfest. I read about the different opinions of the F&W experience here, but wanted to make my own opinion.

And sadly it was not a good experience. The realization came upon me slowly as I did a normal journey through the World Showcase. It dawned on me how many people were there just to drink. I laughed a bit and told myself they should just call it the "People Walking Around With Drinks In Their Hands Festival".
And it was apparent they were not there to enjoy the park, it's design, it's showcases, and rides vs. drinking. That is what hit me the most...seeing this at a Disney park where you are usually among other guest who have the same agenda to experience the park.

And there were the drunks...

1.) Couldn't quite believe this one. There was a large/macho guy in the Japanese pavilion...I kid you not, wearing a bluetooth speaker on his belt and blasting Spanish rap music, while his group of friends (girls & guys) were having a great time drinking on the steps. Oh, and they were all Americans, not foreigners where "perhaps" it could be a not-knowing-it's-bad-form-thing. They showed no respect for the showcase, it's atmosphere, and the Japanese music and most importantly....other guest's experiences. Was really sad to see. And it was also sad to see that no cast-member asked them to stop.

2.) At the end of the night an intoxicated woman kept speaking to a Vietnamese woman, who spoke limited English. The intoxicated woman was telling her how much she loved Vietnamese food and culture and continued to mention all the food, etc...none of which was Vietnamese. And it continued the entire bus ride.

So I'm glad I experienced it once, so I know not to ever go to Epcot during the Food & Wine Festival again. Just wanted to type out my thoughts about my experience. I think if you are on vacation as a break from normal life, you may be annoyed to see so many people there that aren't there for same reasons you are.
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1. Which of these experiences are exclusive to being drunk?

2. If those are your two examples of crazy drunkenness at F&W, I can’t take this assessment seriously. Nobody even got sick in the finely manicured topiary garden.

Of course people are walking around with drinks in their hands - tiny mini baby drinks, btw - it’s an outdoor food and wine festival.
 
Tony the Tigger

Tony the Tigger

Well-Known Member
baskinthemagic said:
View attachment 324332

Come on everyone...You know the tune!! Sing along with me!!

E.P.C.O.T.
(To the tune of Village People's YMCA)

Young man, there's no need to feel down
I said, young man, pick yourself off the ground
I said, young man, 'cause you're in Drunky- town
There's no need to be unhappy

Young man, there's a place you can go
I said, young man, where you’ll spend lots of dough
You can stay there, at least until 9
By then you’ll sure feel so fine!

It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.
It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.

They have every drink so all imbibers enjoy
Parents hide all your good girls and boys

It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.
It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.

You can drink yourself sick, you can have a good meal
You can do whatever you feel

Young man, are you listening to me?
I said, young man, come go drinkin’ with me
I said, young man, you can drink ‘round the world
But you got to know this one thing

No man should do it all by himself
I said, young man, no fun in pride of yourself
And just go there, to E.P.C.O.T.
Start now and drink all day with me

It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.
It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.

They have every drink so all imbibers enjoy
So parents hide your good girls and boys

It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.
It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.

You can drink yourself sick, you can have a good meal
You can do whatever you feel

I said Young man, is that puke on your shoes?
I said, I see, that you’re all black-n-blue
And I sure see, scooter tracks across you
and a black eye. What. Did. You. Do?

That's when someone came up to me
And said, young man, can I buy you a drink?
Such a great place, called E.P.C.O.T
The next drink’s just 10 feet from me

It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.
It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.

They have every drink so all imbibers enjoy
So parents hide your good girls and boys

E.P.C.O.T you’ll find me at E.P.C.O.T

Young man, young man, there's no need to feel down
Young man, young man, pick yourself off the ground

E.P.C.O.T. It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.

Young man, young man, are you listening to me
Young man, young man, what do you wanna drink?

E.P.C.O.T., you'll find it E.P.C.O.T.

No man should do it all by himself
I said, young man, no fun in pride of yourself
E.P.C.O.T. and just go drink at E.P.C.O.T.

Young man, young man go mop off your shoes
Young man, young man yak in one bush or two, E.P.C.O.T.
Click to expand...

But EPCOT has five letters and YMCA has only four. This cannot work musically.

...until you’re at least up to France in E.P.C.O.T!
 
Michaelson

Michaelson

Well-Known Member
Well, I have to say this kind of behavior isn't confined to just the Wine festival.

We go every year during the Arts festival, and when at EPCOT later in the afternoon/evening toward the weekend, the same kind of behavior can be witnessed. We saw a bunch of college aged girls drunk as skunks standing around cussing like drunken sailors in the middle of an area families were trying to eat their dinner. Real class acts. We left for other locations.

Regards! Michaelson
 
jaklgreen

jaklgreen

Well-Known Member
wdwfan4ver said:
On October 6th of this year, there was a streamer on youtube that went to party for the senses at Epcot. That Streamer was in Epcot before going into the old Millennium Village building for the event. That streamer was showing more than half of the guests at very packed Epcot were drunk by 6.30 at night with some even having problems standing up. October 6th was on a Saturday.
Click to expand...

Oh wow, I was at the PFTS that night. But I sprung for the wine view lounge and got Minnie Van service to the back of the building so I missed all of that. Good thing. I always hated that they made the PFTS on a Sat night because of the crowds.
 
MickeyLuv'r

MickeyLuv'r

Well-Known Member
Smiley/OCD said:
Oh, great...so in addition to the bag checks at the gate which so many on here find intrusive, WDW will be adding breathalyzers to the process...LOL
Click to expand...

I doubt it. Disney provides many options for buying alcohol within walking distance of Epcot.

People staying at the Boardwalk, say, can easily obtain alcohol at: AbracadaBar, Belle Vue Lounge, Big river Grille and Brewing Works, In-room dining, ESPN, Flying Fish, Leaping Horse, Trattoria Del Forno - and those are just options located AT the Boardwalk hotel. The Swan, Dolphin, BC/YC, and HS offer many more.

Further, any adult staying Club Level at the Boardwalk can obtain beer and wine there.

I haven't checked recently, but I think the gift shops still sell liquor.

There are also several merchants that will deliver alcohol directly to one's hotel room.

Any adult can also pack liquor in their luggage when they arrive, if they don't want to pay WDW prices.

These aren't new options. Adults don't have to be stone cold sober to enter Epcot.
 
Horizons '83

Horizons '83

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
Michaelson said:
Well, I have to say this kind of behavior isn't confined to just the Wine festival.

We go every year during the Arts festival, and when at EPCOT later in the afternoon/evening toward the weekend, the same kind of behavior can be witnessed. We saw a bunch of college aged girls drunk as skunks standing around cussing like drunken sailors in the middle of an area families were trying to eat their dinner. Real class acts. We left for other locations.

Regards! Michaelson
Click to expand...
What boggles my mind is that college aged folks would pay a $100 cover charge to get hammered off 12 dollar drinks. When I was in college, I would never pay 100 bucks to get in a bar, heck I was drinking miller lite for 2 bucks.
 
T

thomas998

Well-Known Member
Smiley/OCD said:
We learned a very important lesson about the F & W festival about 4 years ago (and WE LOVE the festival), if you're there for the week, it's best to stay out of Epcot on the weekends...i.e. Friday thru Sunday. When we were there, there were SCORES of large groups 10 or more/group with matching t-shirts that said things like "drinking my way thru Disney in the Disney font, making total A***S out of themselves. And we're not talking about twenty somethings, we're talking about noodnicks in their 40's & 50's. After that, we made it a point to avoid world showcase at ALL costs during the weekends.
Click to expand...
Very true... but if your there and the only option for EPCOT is the weekends then just try to do as early in the day as possible the worst doesn't happen until closer to sunset, last year we hit EPCOT on a Sunday and it wasn't that bad until about 3 in the afternoon and then it started getting worse and worse until the evening when it was unbearable, but unfortunately because of the fastpasses we had we needed to be there on a Sunday evening.
 
baymenxpac

baymenxpac

Well-Known Member
TJ Vazquez said:
What boggles my mind is that college aged folks would pay a $100 cover charge to get hammered off 12 dollar drinks. When I was in college, I would never pay 100 bucks to get in a bar, heck I was drinking miller lite for 2 bucks.
Click to expand...

miller lite? lucky! in college, we couldn't afford that good of beer. keystone light, natty light. i put offensively cheap vodka through a brita filter once to try to improve the taste.
 
Smiley/OCD

Smiley/OCD

Well-Known Member
thomas998 said:
Very true... but if your there and the only option for EPCOT is the weekends then just try to do as early in the day as possible the worst doesn't happen until closer to sunset, last year we hit EPCOT on a Sunday and it wasn't that bad until about 3 in the afternoon and then it started getting worse and worse until the evening when it was unbearable, but unfortunately because of the fastpasses we had we needed to be there on a Sunday evening.
Click to expand...
I agree, but that's where the pre-planning comes in...if you have no choice, you have no choice. If you know you'll be there during F & W, don't book FP+'s during that time at WS. If it's a last resort, and you wouldn't be able to go any other time, then so be it...just be prepared.
 
Smiley/OCD

Smiley/OCD

Well-Known Member
MickeyLuv'r said:
I doubt it. Disney provides many options for buying alcohol within walking distance of Epcot.

People staying at the Boardwalk, say, can easily obtain alcohol at: AbracadaBar, Belle Vue Lounge, Big river Grille and Brewing Works, In-room dining, ESPN, Flying Fish, Leaping Horse, Trattoria Del Forno - and those are just options located AT the Boardwalk hotel. The Swan, Dolphin, BC/YC, and HS offer many more.

Further, any adult staying Club Level at the Boardwalk can obtain beer and wine there.

I haven't checked recently, but I think the gift shops still sell liquor.

There are also several merchants that will deliver alcohol directly to one's hotel room.

Any adult can also pack liquor in their luggage when they arrive, if they don't want to pay WDW prices.

These aren't new options. Adults don't have to be stone cold sober to enter Epcot.
Click to expand...
That was meant as a sarcastic joke....I'm sorry you didn't get it (hence the LOL after my comment)
 
mf1972

mf1972

Well-Known Member
of all the times i’ve gone to F&W festival, i’ve never experienced any bad drunks. only incident i did see was a rowdy group of 20 somethings, not drunk, but very noisy in the UK pavilion outside rose & crown.
they were being watched by 2 security guards & a CM in a shirt & tie. they made their presence known.
 
TomDisney

TomDisney

Active Member
The funny thing is that one of the reasons floating around for shutting down Pleasure Island was because it didn't fit with the Disney image. I would see fewer drunks at PI than at EPCOT during F&W.
 
Last edited:
Phonedave

Phonedave

Well-Known Member
MickeyLuv'r said:
Ideally, I'd like to think most of us can sense hyperbole when we read it. (Though to be honest, these days I'm not quite as confident on that front as I once was.)

I haven't been to F&W for some time, but I didn't really care for what I saw the last time I did. Alas, it wasn't just the drinking, I just wasn't very impressed by any of it. I'm lucky, I suppose, that I don't have to go all the way to Epcot to get a Belgian waffle or a spinach pie. My local mall food court has excellent versions of both, with shorter lines, and better prices/portion sizes. (Though technically, it is now called a food "hall" instead of a food "court." I guess "hall" sounds more upscale to some folks.)

For that matter, I don't generally frequent dirty nightclubs either.

What I can say is that I didn't really care to see the impact that F&W had on the vibe of Epcot, and that my opinion should be just as valid as those who say they like F&W.

My opinion doesn't invalidate your opinion. Nor does yours invalidate mine. I'd like to think people read these boards to hear different views, not just one side or the other.
Click to expand...

We still go to F&W, but we no longer go for the WS booths. We may hit a few select ones that we want to try, but for the most part I find the offerings lackluster and not worth the price (from both a portion size and a quality standpoint). The crowds just add to the issue.

We actually go mainly for the curated events - the lunches, dinners, talks, and wine and cheese pairings.

It gets pricey, we only go for along weekend roughly every other year.
 
C

celluloid

Well-Known Member
baskinthemagic said:
View attachment 324332

Come on everyone...You know the tune!! Sing along with me!!

E.P.C.O.T.
(To the tune of Village People's YMCA)

Young man, there's no need to feel down
I said, young man, pick yourself off the ground
I said, young man, 'cause you're in Drunky- town
There's no need to be unhappy

Young man, there's a place you can go
I said, young man, where you’ll spend lots of dough
You can stay there, at least until 9
By then you’ll sure feel so fine!

It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.
It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.

They have every drink so all imbibers enjoy
Parents hide all your good girls and boys

It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.
It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.

You can drink yourself sick, you can have a good meal
You can do whatever you feel

Young man, are you listening to me?
I said, young man, come go drinkin’ with me
I said, young man, you can drink ‘round the world
But you got to know this one thing

No man should do it all by himself
I said, young man, no fun in pride of yourself
And just go there, to E.P.C.O.T.
Start now and drink all day with me

It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.
It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.

They have every drink so all imbibers enjoy
So parents hide your good girls and boys

It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.
It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.

You can drink yourself sick, you can have a good meal
You can do whatever you feel

I said Young man, is that puke on your shoes?
I said, I see, that you’re all black-n-blue
And I sure see, scooter tracks across you
and a black eye. What. Did. You. Do?

That's when someone came up to me
And said, young man, can I buy you a drink?
Such a great place, called E.P.C.O.T
The next drink’s just 10 feet from me

It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.
It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.

They have every drink so all imbibers enjoy
So parents hide your good girls and boys

E.P.C.O.T you’ll find me at E.P.C.O.T

Young man, young man, there's no need to feel down
Young man, young man, pick yourself off the ground

E.P.C.O.T. It's fun to drink at E.P.C.O.T.

Young man, young man, are you listening to me
Young man, young man, what do you wanna drink?

E.P.C.O.T., you'll find it E.P.C.O.T.

No man should do it all by himself
I said, young man, no fun in pride of yourself
E.P.C.O.T. and just go drink at E.P.C.O.T.

Young man, young man go mop off your shoes
Young man, young man yak in one bush or two, E.P.C.O.T.
Click to expand...

As a frequent parody writer for fun and a concerned theme park fan, thank you so much for that.
 
Paper straw fan

Paper straw fan

Well-Known Member
Here’s the thing to me with some of the rebuttals- yes, you can get ‘slammed’ at several other places that serve alcohol, but for the most part, people don’t, because said places are not conducive to drinking. There’s a reason people drink in excess in bars and not Chuck E Cheese or the gas station- the social element, variety of drinks, and atmosphere. You really don’t see people sloshed at HS or MK because even the places w alcohol are small and have limited options- who wants to sit there in BOG and get lit on Amstel lights and gray stuff? It’s kind of a logical fallacy statement

And while I don’t think it resembles a biker bar on a Friday night, the atmosphere in the WS at times feels like a powder keg- where you really don’t want to get bumped into the wrong person and have Mr. .25 BAC want to fight because you spilled his $12 drink.

In a way it feels a lot like a pro football game. Tens of thousands of people crammed into a small space, many of them past their limits w drinking, in a hot and sometimes contentious environment. And then probably way too many getting back into their cars and driving when they shouldn’t. As with F&W, I have no idea why people would want to pay into the hundreds of dollars at either event just to wind up getting brown out drunk and only vaguely recalling the entire thing later.

I’m not trying to be the fun police, but they could stand to dial it down a bit. That many people getting that liquored up is occasionally asking for trouble.
 

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