• START HERE!
    • ABOUT CARLY
    • CONTACT
  • FASHION
  • BODY POSITIVITY
  • GIRL POWER
  • SD LIFE
  • DISNEY
  • SHOP MY INSTAGRAM
  • SHOP MY FAVES

Lipgloss and Crayons

Disney

Disneyland Festivals

This post may contain affiliate links. Purchasing through them helps support this website. This post may also contain items gifted for consideration.

Planning a Disneyland vacation? This is the ultimate guide to Disneyland Festivals……special times that are especially fun to experience Disney magic and some truly unique experiences at your favorite theme parks .

Disneyland Festivals: the ultimate guide to all festivals at Disneyland Resort and Disney California Adventure

Throughout the years disney california adventure park has become many things. Most enduringly it is a cultural hub for celebrating the diversity of California's people. That celebration has taken shape in many ways as seasonal Disneyland festivals. Celebrations like Dia De Los Muertos bring a lot of festivity to the disneyland park . But there are three major events that make up even bigger festivals that take place throughout the year. These events include food and drink marketplaces and plenty of entertainment to enjoy. There are also a variety of commemorative souvenirs that you can pick up in the parks and around the resort. Whether you begin the Lunar New Year with a trip to Disneyland, or you enjoy celebrating the year's end with an especially festive holiday season, there is always a special celebration just around the corner. Especially if that corner comes somewhere between November and March!

Disneyland Festivals: Halloween

August is usually the start of Halloween and there are plenty of Halloween activities and attractions around the Disneyland resort. But these events don't quite have the same presence that the following Disneyland festivals have.

If you'd like to make sure you can experience one of the fantastic Disneyland Festivals during your next visit to the Disneyland resort, here is a rundown of the three major events. This brief overview should help you know what to expect throughout the year at Disney California Adventure and Disneyland and when you should visit for the type of celebration you would like to enjoy.

Want to Book a Disneyland Trip? Click here for discount tickets and hotel packages!

The Best Disneyland Festivals

Lunar New Year : The First of the Year's Disneyland Festivals

The first festival event of the year at the Disneyland resort is appropriately a new year celebration. However, this event is unique among Disneyland festivals because it's specifically linked to the diverse heritage of California, specifically the Chinese influence on state history. From the Pacific Wharf to Paradise Gardens, Disney California Adventure frequently features dining and entertainment inspired by Latin American and Chinese cultures. During the Lunar New Year, Paradise Gardens transforms into a festival like no other at Disney parks around the world.

Disneyland Festivals : Lunar New Year is the first festival of the year and absolutely magical!

Characters and Crafts

Beginning January 20 and running until February 15, Disney California Adventure will be celebrating the year of the rabbit. The festival includes a Lunar New Year procession starring Mulan and Mushu. Note: mulan's lunar new year procession is a truly unique offering…..and something not to miss! Mickey and Minnie will also be wearing traditional attire and Raya from Raya and the Last Dragon will greet guests in the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail. Paradise Gardens will celebrate the festival with a character meet and greet at its bamboo and peach blossom decorated pavilion and the Lucky Wishes Wall will offer an opportunity to take part in the display of ornamental lanterns with some wishes of your own. My personal favorite characters last year were the three little pigs in chinese culture themed attire. They were SO unique and special!

Lunar New Year is the first of the Disneyland Festivals each year and it's a total blast, filled with amazing cultural activities and food!

The Lucky Wishes wall is the official starting point for the Lunar New Year Festivities, but there are places all around to join in on the celebration. Although it is the year of the rabbit for the Chinese, The Vietnamese year of the cat also gets a nod during this event. Near the lucky wishes wall, you can usually find chinese calligraphy artists doing chinese zodiac calendar writing. It's a really fun, and totally free festival experience that you can take home with you!

Disneyland Festivals Food

In addition to the lanterns, there are other crafts for kids and plenty of commemorative merchandise to shop and enjoy. But the biggest draw for this festival is the innovative cuisine offered throughout the park. Find special menu items at participating restaurants and the Lunar New Year Marketplaces. There, you can use a Sip and Savor pass to sample the 6 locations at Paradise Gardens Park including the new Bamboo Blessings and Wrapped with Love marketplaces. Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean are the three Asian cuisines represented at these Lunar New Year marketplaces.

Disneyland Festivals : the first of the year is Lunar New Year, filled with food and amazing entertainment!

There is even a six-minute pre show, Hurry Home– Lunar New Year Celebration. This tale of a lantern's journey underscored by Academy Award-winning composer Tan Dan is exactly the thing to kick off the event. More celebrating by live performers at the Paradise Gardens Bandstand adds even more to the festivities, which are likely to entertain you for most of your day in the park.

Food and Wine Festival

Disneyland Food and Wine Festival : The second of each year's Disneyland Festivals this is a ton of fun for kids and adults!

The first festival to make its way over to Disney California Adventure from the east coast park of EPCOT was Food and Wine. Little known fact: DCA was originally intended to be a west coast counterpart to EPCOT called Westcot. Disney California Adventure has changed a lot since its inception and even after its 2001 opening, but some signs of the park's original purpose to educate guests on California's unique history and industries still remain. The Food and Wine festival fits in with Disney California Adventure's Napa Valley scene like a glove.

Disney california food and wine is the most natural celebration among Disneyland festivals. It fits the Disney California Adventure theme so well, it ought to be a year-round event. Unlike the International Food and Wine Festival at EPCOT, this is not a fall festival but an early spring event. It begins on March 3 and runs until April 25, 2023. The festival is primarily composed of good food, good wine, culinary demonstrations, and live musical performances. One highlight of this year's disney california adventure food & wine is the limited-time return of the original Soarin' Over California attraction.

Food and Wine Disneyland Festivals Marketplaces

The Festival marketplaces for this event are double in size compared to those at the Lunar New Year celebration. These marketplaces are located on the trail to Avengers Campus on the east side of Grizzly Peak. There are 12 in all and they each offer something different for your palate. There are also an additional 12 dining locations that participate in the Sip and Savor event. Sip and Savor passes include 8 entitlements for tasting menu portions of food and nonalcoholic beverage offerings. They are valid for multiple visits throughout the duration of the festival but expire after April 25.

Near Pacific Wharf on the southside of Grizzly Peak is Sonoma Terrace. This outdoor patio is the official place to enjoy snacks and drinks during the day right in the middle of the park. However, there are plenty of other activity zones and demonstrations for families throughout the park (don't miss visiting with chef goofy and participating in alice's wonderland bakery unbirthday party ).

Disneyland Food and Wine Festival : Don't forget to visit Chef Goofy!

Drinks

Food and Wine used to be mostly about wine, but now there are all kinds of different cocktails to enjoy. There are even mixology education and tasting seminars along with those dedicated to exploring beer and wine. These 45-minute sessions are hosted by mixologists, sommeliers, and brew masters and are a great way to learn more while tasting fantastic libations.

More Disneyland Festival Fun

The festival continues outside of the park gates and into the hotels as well. You'll find artist signings and a variety of festival merchandise all around the Disneyland resort including in the Downtown Disney district. Seminars, including Trader Sam's Tiki Mixology Class, take place at the resort hotels.

Festival of the Holidays: Year End for Disneyland Festivals

Disneyland Festival of the Holidays : The last of the Disneyland Festivals each year, is filled with holiday food and fun!

Festival of the Holidays is another one of the Disneyland festivals borrowed from EPCOT in Walt Disney World. But, just as with Food and Wine, Disney California Adventure put its own unique twist on the celebrated seasonal event. While the festival is multicultural and celebrates an inclusive mix of holidays, the primary cultural focus here is Mexico. The event includes the Viva Navidad street party and Three Kings Day. Beginning in mid-November and ending in January, Festival of the Holidays is the longest-running among the three Disneyland festivals that occur annually.

Festive Foods Marketplace

There are 9 locations within the Festive Foods Marketplace and they are scattered along the thoroughfare from Carthay Circle Restaurant to Paradise Gardens. As with the other festivals, you can purchase sip and savor entitlements. These entitlements come with a long series of disclosures and policies, but they are generally good for tasting portions of items at participating locations and they are valid throughout the duration of the event. If you are a Magic Key holder and you can get in regularly, you'll be able to use the same Sip and Savor pass on multiple dates as long as you still have entitlements. You will also receive a special price and lanyard.

Viva Navidad

The Viva Navidad street party includes lots of live entertainment, including Folklorico and samba dancers. Mickey mouse and minnie mouse dress up in fiesta attire and Mirabelle from Encanto also joins in the fun.

Paradise Gardens becomes festooned with papel picado banners and pinatas. This is the same location for Plaza De La Familia, which is part of a Dia De Los Muertos celebration. It's not a full-fledged festival, but takes place just prior to the Festival of the Holidays.

Disneyland Festival of the Holidays : The last of the Disneyland Festivals each year, is filled with holiday characters!

Disneyland Festivals Entertainment

Disneyland Festival of the Holidays : The last of the Disneyland Festivals each year, don't forget to visit Santa!

All Disneyland festivals tend to feature stirring entertainment. Festival of the Holidays has some of the most exciting and culturally diverse performances. First, Toy Soldiers march and Mickey leads a dance party, but you'll also enjoy character sightings such as Encanto's Mirabelle. Meanwhile, bands liven up the streets with holiday spirit including artists who celebrate Diwali (Blue13 Dance Company) Kwanzaa (a capella group, The Mistletoes), and Hanukkah (Mostly Kosher). The Latin sounds of Mariachi Divas and Tina and the Sounds of Celebration bring dynamic and energizing live music performances, while Phat Cat Swinger offers a cool twist on some old holiday favorites.

Perhaps the best sighting of all is witnessing Santa on the Redwood Challenge Trail. Don't leave the festival without saying hello to old Saint Nick!

Whichever of the disneyland festivals you choose to visit for…..a few reminders:

  1. You'll need both a ticket and theme park reservation for each day. I suggest trying to select disney california adventure as your starting park for most festivals. The only exception? If you want to do haunted mansion holiday during the winter festival. If so, book Disneyland first and try to get on it as early as possible.
  2. The disneyland app will be your guide to all special events and performances. It will be totally up to date. I'd suggest arriving to any specific live performances a bit early to get a good seat.
  3. The first day of any disneyland festivals tend to be the busiest days of the year , people are often excited about new offerings and festival-inspired dishes . If you want lower crowds, visit towards the end of any festival dates .

Which of the disneyland festivals is YOUR favorite? Leave your answer in the comments!

0 Leave a Comment

Subscribe to L&C Weekly!

Reader Interactions

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Previous A Perfect Family Seattle Weekend Trip
Next Palm Springs Weekend Getaway : The Perfect Itinerary

Related Posts

Disney Holidays: Our Top Picks for Disneyland Christmas...

The Ultimate Guide to Disneyland Character Dining

Gluten-Free Disneyland Menu Options and Locations

Disney Princess Breakfast Adventures:What You Need to K...

Primary Sidebar

Search

NEW? START HERE

DISCLAIMER

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

🧮 Anyone in your house working on their multipl 🧮 Anyone in your house working on their multiplication tables? #ad 🧮⠀⠀Lydia is in third grade and that means.....times tables. I’ve gotta be honest, flash cards were just not cutting it for us. ⠀⠀So I dove into her @Amazon Fire Kids Tablet and found some really great multiplication games that are included in her @Amazonkids Plus Membership. ⠀⠀Reminder, an Amazon Kids+ membership is included for the first year when you buy any Amazon kids device, then costs just $4.99 a month after that. It includes ebooks, audiobooks, games and movies (I’ve talked a TON about the books and audiobooks that are included, so I’m excited to share a math⠀option).⠀⠀Our current favorite multiplication games:⠀⠀1️⃣ Multiplication Memorizer⠀⠀2️⃣ Multiplication Kids⠀⠀3️⃣ Pinkfong Fun Times⠀⠀Now, anyone in your house? And how are you practicing? #AmazonKidsPlus
❤️Where did you go on your first date? Like… ❤️Where did you go on your first date? Like….first one you ever went on?⠀🍔For me? It was a fancy hamburger place in my hometown, followed by a walk along the San Francisco Bay (pretty good for a date planned by a 17 year old boy).⠀❤️Over on stories, we are talking all things dating (past and current) and romantic relationships.  This is gonna be a fun one……. Come join in! We’re making this a regular coffee chat each Tuesday!⠀⠀⠀⠀☕️So, five of you will get a coffee on me.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀Want to join in?⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀1) like this post⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀2) answer the polls in stories⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀3) tag a friend, or tell me where your first date was……..⠀
The way I laughed out loud when I spotted this lit The way I laughed out loud when I spotted this little area during our day at Knott’s Berry Farm……. (teachers, you get it right?!?)I mean, HAD TO TAKE A PHOTO (or 20). This weekend was the start of Peanuts Celebration at Knott’s Berry Farm and we spent a day immersed in all things Snoopy.  From the rides in Camp Snoopy to the adorable new shows to the ACTUAL PIGS in Pigpen’s Pig Pen there was so much to do…..I’m so glad that Knott’s invited us to check it all out!Now, who is YOUR favorite Peanuts character? (Lydia’s is Sally, she’s actually playing her in a school play TODAY — the timing, right?) @knottsberryfarm #knottspeanutscelebration
✨ Happy 100th Disney!✨⠀ ⠀ 💜The people a ✨ Happy 100th Disney!✨⠀⠀💜The people are the magic.  Yesterday was filled with friends and food and fun and feet (sore ones after walking around from dawn to way past dusk)…….and as Lydia and I tucked ourselves into bed last night……I felt so much gratitude.  Our happy place has brought so much joy into our lives and so many people that enrich each moment.⠀⠀✨The Disney 100 Celebration will be happening ALL YEAR, and I feel like we still have so much to see and do.⠀⠀💜Favorite Moments and Experiences from our day one of Disney 100:⠀🚂riding Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railroad: I avoided ALLLLLL spoilers (there are some in this carousel btw), and had seen NONE of the attraction until we stepped into the queue…. it was absolutely adorable and I can’t WAIT to ride it again, plus when we exited the ride…..some of the team that created it were at the exit and seeing their smiles? ABSOLUTE DISNEY MAGIC.⠀🌅seeing the sun rise over the castle bright and early⠀💕running into friends every 5 minutes, it felt like a giant reunion⠀👗characters in their costumes, not going to lie….we didn’t wait in lines for them….they were length, but we gave a wave as we walked by and they looked stunning⠀⠀✨When is your next Disney trip???
🏰Dreaming of Dancing in Front of the Castle for 🏰Dreaming of Dancing in Front of the Castle for Spring Break?🏰⠀⠀📷A few castle photo tips:⠀1️⃣side, not center……both sides of the castle have lovely little spots that provide a great view of the castle and moat, but avoid the crowd (plus you can get some nice flattering light into the mid morning or in the late afternoon)⠀2️⃣want to be closer to the front? Sit on the back of the benches built into the moat entrance, you’ll be a bit elevated, it gives a great angle and a better view of the castle herself ⠀3️⃣if you REALLY want that walking into the castle shot…..this is something you can do during early entry time if you are staying on property ⠀⠀🧳Now, let’s talk Spring Break tips in collaboration with @themeparkfrog :⠀🚨This is IT.  Red alert.  If you’re hoping to visit the Happiest Place on Earth for Spring Break….BOOK IT NOW.  Spring Break is around the corner, and the more you plan, the happier you’ll be (trust me).⠀⠀To do (in order):⠀1️⃣book your hotel, theme park tickets and rental car: for the best deal, you can do this as a bundle with Undercover Tourist (you’ll save a TON this way….I’m sharing more in stories)⠀2️⃣once you have your trip dates….book dining.  At Disneyland you can book 60 days in advance (which means, NOW and coming up very soon for Spring Break).⠀3️⃣ If you want to do something special like the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, you can ALSO book that 60 days in advance.⠀⠀✨So, are you ready? Blue skies, sunshine, and Disney Magic guaranteed. What are YOUR spring break plans?
  • Collaborate
  • Speaking
  • Contact Carly
  • PRESS
  • Privacy Policy
  • Fashion
  • Body Positivity
  • Girl Power
  • SD Life
  • Disney
  • Travel
  • Highlights

© 2019 LIPGLOSS AND CRAYONS  |  SITE DESIGN: MLL DESIGN STUDIO  & FUZE BRANDING