DISNEY NEWS ROUNDUP: Food & Wine Dates & Details; Halloween Party Dates & Details; Special 30th Anniversary Menu at California Grill & More
This week we got important dates for two of Walt Disney World’s most popular offerings, Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party and the EPCOT Food & Wine Festival! California Grill is celebrating its 30th Anniversary with a special menu, and Jodi Benson surprised Disney Cast Members when she got a sneak peek at the upcoming “The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure.” Learn about these stories and more below.
1 – Dates and Teasers Announced for Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party in 2025
Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is our favorite special event, and we finally have the dates for the 2025 season! Disney has also released more information about what you can expect at this year’s parties! Learn more at the link below.
Click here for the dates and more details on Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party.
2 – 2025 EPCOT Food & Wine Festival Dates and Details Announced
EPCOT’s most popular festival, the Food & Wine Festival, will run this fall. It will feature more than 35 Festival Marketplaces, family scavenger hunts, and more! You can catch all the details at the link below.
Click here for the dates and other details for the 2025 EPCOT Food & Wine Festival.
3 – California Grill Celebrates 30 Years at Walt Disney World
Since 1995, guests have ascended to the 15th floor of Disney’s Contemporary Resort to dine at California Grill, Walt Disney World Resort’s first signature dining experience. Renowned for its innovative, market-inspired cuisine, legendary wines, and sweeping views of Magic Kingdom Park and Seven Seas Lagoon, California Grill celebrates 30 unforgettable years of culinary magic with a special menu. Learn more at the link below.
Click here for more on the special 30th anniversary menu at California Grill.
4 – Jodi Benson Surprises Cast of The Litter Mermaid a Musical Adventure
Disney Legend and original voice of Ariel, Jodi Benson, recently surprised the cast of The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure, which will debut on May 27 at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Check out the photos below!
5 – Baby Backpacks on Butterflies at the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival
As a world-class leader in animal care, Disney continues to break ground using cutting-edge technology to improve animal care and help save wildlife. Disney’s scientists are pioneering the use of tiny radio telemetry tags to advance research on the North American monarch butterfly to help protect this iconic and cherished species.
This research, which takes place in the theme park for EPCOT visitors to see, is facilitated at Butterfly Landing presented by AdventHealth during the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival. Data gathered during the festival will be shared with facilities across the nation through the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Saving Animals From Extinction (SAFE) program, focusing on the protection of the North American monarch butterfly species. Over the past two decades, monarch numbers in North America have declined, prompting the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to join state and federal agencies to take steps to conserve the monarch butterfly.
Disney is leading the collection of research on monarch butterfly migration patterns and feeding behaviors to help maintain a healthy, genetically diverse, and sustainable species population for the future. The mini radio telemetry tags are gently and carefully attached to the butterfly’s wing by scientists for a better understanding of migration patterns and the monarch’s preference for different milkweed. The tags are roughly the same size as a tiny grain of rice and tracks radio waves, similar to the technology used in phones and GPS.
The technology allows researchers to track the butterfly’s movements so we can learn more about their preference for different types of milkweeds. A major threat to the monarch butterfly species is their increasing exposure to a parasite commonly known as OE, which occurs when monarch butterflies feed on tropical milkweed. While native milkweed dies in the winter, tropical milkweed does not. When monarch butterfly larvae hatch on the tropical milkweed leaves, they ingest high levels OE. Infecting monarchs, the debilitating OE parasite negatively impacts almost every aspect of butterfly life, and research estimates that about 80% of Florida monarchs are exposed to OE. Disney Conservation Director Dr. Zak Gezon is the Program Lead for the AZA’s SAFE program for the monarch butterfly, which has been adopted by over 100 other AZA-accredited facilities nationwide. The trailblazing SAFE program for monarchs seeks to recover and sustain monarch populations by fostering healthy breeding and migratory environments in addition to safe places to be dormant for the winter. It also strives to inform how facilities can provide the best habitat for the monarch butterfly so they can avoid setbacks like OE. Guests can see the research in action inside Butterfly Landing at the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival, which runs through June 2.
6 – Memorial Day
This Memorial Day, Promenade at Sunset Walk is set to host its annual Memorial 4 Day Weekend Event, with exciting entertainment and new activities for the entire family. From May 23 to 26, between 5 to 11:30 p.m., guests can enjoy a variety of live music, street performers, markets, ongoing events and dining in the heart of Kissimmee. See below for the full weekend details and RSVP HERE. The event is FREE to attend.
Also, during the weekend festivities, in honor of National BBQ Month, Lizzie’s Memphis Style BBQ is hosting its Lizzie’s Big Pit BBQ Eating Contest. The first 8 people to register get 10 minutes to devour a plate of menu favorites like pulled pork and smoked brisket at 5 p.m. Prizes include a $150 gift card, a t-shirt, social media shoutouts, and bragging rights. Participants must be 18+, and it’s first come, first served beginning at 3:30 p.m.
Additionally, guests can enjoy over 30 venues, some of which will offer their own Memorial Day specials. Please see below for full details:
- Cowboy Chicken: Wild West Rewards Members get $5 off a 24 pack of wings – offer expires May 25
- Rock & Brews: All active duty military and veterans will receive 25% off their bill all Memorial Day Weekend
4 Day Weekend Schedule:
- Friday, May 23 (5 – 11:30 p.m.):
- DJ K1X
- Osaka Fall/li>
- Promenade Racing Car & Truck Show
- Saturday, May 24 (5 – 11:30 p.m.):
- DJ Flatline
- Rhythm Me Up
- Show Car Saturday Night
- Sunset Saturday Artisan Market
- Sunday, May 25 (5 – 11:30 p.m.):
- Monday, May 26 (5 – 11:30 p.m.):
- DJ K1X
- Blue Stone Circle
What’s New and Happening Now at Walt Disney World Resort
Now – June 2 – EPCOT Flower and Garden Festival
Click here for the 11 Things You Don’t Want to Miss at the 2025 EPCOT Flower and Garden Festival.
Click here for the Menus for the 20205 EPCOT Flower and Garden Festival.
Coming to Walt Disney World
17 Changes Coming to Walt Disney World in 2025 and Beyond
2025 – Reimagined ‘The Little Mermaid’ Live Show Coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Click here for more on the upcoming Little Mermaid show at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
D23 Horizons Projects Announced for Walt Disney World
Click here to learn more about the Villains’ land coming to Magic Kingdom.
Click here to learn more about the Monsters, Inc. land coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Click here to learn more about the Cars expansion in Frontierland in Magic Kingdom!
Click here to learn more about Tropical Americas Coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
Click here to learn more about the new nighttime parade coming to Magic Kingdom.
Click here to learn more about the lounges coming to Magic Kingdom and EPCOT!
Click here to learn more about Test Track reopening in 2025.
New & Coming Soon to Disney Cruise Line
Now Open – Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point – DCL’s Newest Private Island
Click here for an overview of Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point and what you need to know.
Click here for the menus for Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point.
Disney Treasure – Now Sailing
Click here for an overview of the Disney Treasure.
Click here for Dining on the Disney Treasure – What You Need to Know.
Upper Deck Fun on the Disney Treasure – What You Need to Know.
The Haunted Mansion Parlor on The Disney Treasure – Step into the Best Disney Cruise Line Venue Yet!
Entertainment on the Disney Treasure – What You Need to Know
Visit the links below to view our Instagram Story during our Preview Cruise to get a look at the Disney Treasure:
Itineraries in 2025-2026
Click here to learn about Disney Cruise Lines’ summer 2025 itineraries.
Click here for details on Fall 2025 and Spring 2025 itineraries; now booking!
Click here to learn more about the 2026 summer itineraries with Disney Cruise Line.
Disney Destiny – Sailing November 2025
So Many Updates! 10 Exclusive Offerings Coming to the Disney Destiny That We’re Excited For
Everything New Coming to the Disney Destiny Sailing in November 2025
The Disney Destiny – An Overview of What You Can Expect on Disney Cruise Line’s Upcoming Ship
Disney Adventure, Sailing from Singapore
Click here for the grand reveal of the Disney Adventure, sailing in 2025!
Click here for details about the Disney Adventure, sailing from Singapore in 2025.
D23 Horizons Announcements
For a no obligation, FREE Quote on a Disney vacation package, please contact our travel partner Magical Vacation Planner at 407-442-0227 (407-442-0215 for Spanish). You can also request a FREE quote online by Clicking HERE.