Disney needed a vehicle to generate excitement at its theme parks for its new acquisition and May The Fourth Be With You did just that. Theme park goers were encouraged to dress up in Star Wars character costumes.
Disney Image
Now the unofficial holiday has taken off and become a cultural phenomenon. Social media is flooded with Stars Wars memes every May 4th. Specialty apparel such as t-shirts, posters, mugs, and just about everything else is hawked online and in brick-and-mortar stores.
Of course, Disney stills makes a big deal of it with commemorative pins and events at its theme parks around the world. So get into it. It’s fun! I have. Take a look at my tongue-n-cheek video below as my better half was driving me around town. 😂 May The Fourth Be With You!
My video tour of the Magic Kingdom had one mission: Have fun and experience more attractions with the least amount of time waiting in line. A trip to Walt Disney World is often survival of the fittest. You will walk a lot, sweat profusely, and be among throngs of people. However, with some planning, before and during your trip, you can have an enjoyable, fun time. I independently tested a mobile app called Lines created by TouringPlans.com, a subscription website that costs me under $20 a year. (NOTE: I did not receive any compensation for doing this story.) Lines helped me navigate the Magic Kingdom by recommending the best days and times to visit the park based on crowd levels and attraction wait times.
A big green thumbs-up goes to Disney World’s landscape imagineers and design crew for executing the 2022 EPCOT International Flower and Garden Festival. The Orlando, Florida theme park is so bright and so green Alice really is in Wonderland here. (Tip: Hang out in World Showcase’s United Kingdom tea garden and Alice will make an appearance).
Flower & Garden Festival Video
What You Need To Know
This year’s festival is the longest running ever — a whopping 125 days, ending July 4. That’s quite a feat since spring annual flowers often succumb to Florida’s scorching heat in early May. Still, Disney goes all-in to keep flowers looking fresh and in bloom the entire time. Around 300 acres of EPCOT is devoted to festival gardens, landscapes, exhibits, and fun experiences, according to Disney.
A free pocket-size festival guide (see the slideshow below) is available at EPCOT’s entrances and select kiosks around the park. It’s an easy read and gives you a layout where all the sights are located. The festival is included in the regular park admission. There are no additional charges.
Complete Guide
Welcome, Page 1
Pages 2 & 3
Pages 4 & 5
Pages 6 & 7
Pages 8 & 9
Pages 10 & 11
Pages 12 & 13
Pages 14 & 15
Pages 16 & 17
Pages 18 & 19
Pages 20 & 21
Pages 22 & 23
Pages 24 & 25
Pages 26 & 27
Pages 28 & 29
Pages 30 & 31
Page 32
Green Giants
The topiaries are the stars of the festival. Some are towering in size and scale and can weigh several thousand pounds each. Bigger than life! There’s a dueling Captain Hook and Peter Pan, with Tick Tock Croc just a few feet away. Close to 100 topiaries, mostly iconic Disney characters, are all around the park. It takes months to prepare and decorate the topiaries, which typically are made of welded metal frames covered with chicken wire and sphagnum peat moss. Drip line irrigators are weaved into the frames before they’re filled in with green creeping plant plugs such as jasmine and fig. Plants of color are then mixed in. Water-based paint is either brushed or sprayed on for fine detail and definition of character faces.
Country Gardens
Exploring World Showcase is a great way to see gardening displays from different countries. For example, my favorite is the United Kingdom, with its finely manicured Shakespeare garden. Then just around a corner, there are the flowing flower beds in the UK’s tea garden. You’ll also find a Winnie the Pooh topiary, and Tigger, too!
Kids Play
New in 2022 is the Bambi Butterfly Garden. This outdoor screen-covered exhibit is full of butterflies. Some will even land on your head. It’s a great way for kids to learn about the environment and how butterflies benefit our world. The festival’s Play Full Garden integrates a playground with flower and vegetable gardens. Kids are literally surrounded by greenery as they’re having fun on the play gym.
Let’s Eat
What would any festival at EPCOT be without food? There’s plenty of it, too. Just like the International Food and Wine Festival, you can eat and drink your way around World Showcase. Food portions are sample size and each menu item is priced separately. For the flower and garden event, some specialty food booths are open. I liked the Flavor Full Kitchen booth, especially the sweet roasted corn-on-the-cob with garlic spread. Simply delicious! There’s also The Honey Bee-stro and The Citrus Blossom, with food and drinks made with natural honey and citrus.
Garden Party
At night the outdoor Garden Rocks Concert series ramps up with three performances beginning at 5:30pm. The series features a mix of oldies and current musical acts, including emerging talent from the Orlando area.
Things I’d Like To See
The annual International Flower and Garden Festival is now 29-years-old. I remember going to the first festival. Back then I recall there were more exhibits and demonstrations throughout the day specifically for the average home gardener. I’d like to see this again, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic caused a boom in home gardening. According to research by the National Gardening Association, 18.3 million – seven percent of the U.S. population – gardened for the first time in 2020. The demand was so great, some seed companies sold out their inventories. With that in mind, here are some exhibit and demonstration ideas to make the next festival even better:
How to start a home garden
The A,B,C’s of composting
What vegetables to plant and when
What grows best in the soil where you live
Sustainable gardening
Raised bed gardening
Container gardening
Hydroponic gardening
Natural garden pest control
Q&A with a Disney horticultural expert
Here’s hoping the 30th festival, a milestone anniversary, will be even better in 2023!
