EPCOT 2024 Festival of the Holidays Opens with New Offerings at CommuniCore Hall and Plaza

Nov 29, 2024 in "Epcot International Festival of the Holidays"

Gallery / 6 Photos
2024 EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays CommuniCore Hall and Plaza

Posted: Friday November 29, 2024 11:00am ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

The EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays begins today, and for the first time, CommuniCore Hall and Plaza are at the heart of the celebration with several new offerings.

2024 EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays CommuniCore Hall and Plaza

Inside CommuniCore Hall, a gingerbread Spaceship Earth has taken center stage. This impressive 8-foot-tall creation, crafted by the EPCOT Pastry Team and Walt Disney Imagineering, mirrors the park’s iconic geodesic sphere. Made from nearly 1,000 gingerbread triangles, the display incorporates over 240 pounds of honey dough, 55 pounds of dark chocolate, and 100 pounds of royal icing. The sphere lights up and plays festive music, while guests can search for 11 hidden Mickeys symbolizing the World Showcase countries.

Gingerbread Spaceship Earth

The hall is also dressed for the season, with its Glittering Grove by Balsam Hill providing a shimmering backdrop of holiday trees. Exclusive festival merchandise is available inside, offering guests the chance to bring home a piece of the celebration.

2024 EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays CommuniCore Hall and Plaza

The Experimental Prototype Cookies of Tomorrow, a new Holiday Kitchen, serves decorated cookies, including a gingerbread triangle decorating kit inspired by the Spaceship Earth display.

2024 EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays CommuniCore Hall and Plaza

Experimental Prototype Cookies of Tomorrow Menu

Outside in CommuniCore Plaza, snowflake decorating stations invite guests of all ages to get creative, while the JOYFUL! A Celebration of the Season performance has found a new home on the plaza’s stage. The live show blends gospel, R&B, and holiday classics.

Foodies will appreciate the Favorites of Festivals Past kitchen, which is offering nostalgic dishes from previous EPCOT festivals just outside the hall.

Festival Favorites Kiosk

Festival Favorites Menu

Along the walkway between the Imagination! pavilion and World Showcase, Scentsy’s snow globe garden fills the air with the aromas of the holidays, adding an extra sensory layer to the festivities.

Scentsy’s snow globe garden

Discuss on the Forums

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Starship82410 hours ago

You can always try the 1 PM drop, it's almost always easier to get.

Cliff10 hours ago

Wow,...for me, when I do get denied, it's usually really fast...no joke 3-5 seconds tops. I have two phones and I use the app on Version and AT&T (iPhone and S23 Ultra) Seems to be no difference. Strange. Again, my last try was Feb 2024 and it goes backwards from there (2023 all the way to first app roll-out) I'm always on International Drive and always on Saturday and Sunday mornings (never on week days) and I have maybe had a 1 out of 5 success rate over the years? I dunno, maybe my hit rate is an unlucky statistical outlier number that is not normal? There were many days when I was at Epcot and tried to ride Guardians but struck out on the 7am lottery but was determined to NOT pay extra to ride it. Fascinating...

Mr. Sullivan10 hours ago

Just because you didn’t get a boarding group doesn’t make it a scam. It’s you vs. on average 45,000 other people. Not to mention the phones and wifi connections and all that play a part in it. Those odds aren’t always going to be in your favor. It’s just the way it is. I personally rather enjoy VQ. I wouldn’t be gutted if it went away, but it’s an easy system to make use of when you’ve taken the time to understand the quirks and particulars.

THEMEPARKPIONEER11 hours ago

It would be a disaster or the shell size would have to be compromised, I’m used to here on Long Island they’ll launch large fireworks 100 feet from the crowd 😂😂😂😂

brideck11 hours ago

I will say that it's pretty dependent on the responsiveness of your phone. On my old phone, the VQ refresh button came back promptly, so I was my group's designated VQ getter -- I would routinely get single-digit boarding party numbers at the 7 AM drop. My new phone is actually a little less responsive, so I can't reliably get through the refresh sequence in a timely manner, but other people in my group can, so we use their phones now instead. Try different phones ahead of time, see which one is the quickest to refresh, and stick with that.

networkpro12 hours ago

They use to be geo location and turnstile locked, but now it's just limited to park reservation .

bmr159112 hours ago

Nope. I consistently get them sitting on an airplane in New Orleans about to fly down.

Cliff12 hours ago

Does VQ capture your GPS location and weight your lottery shot based on if you are staying inside the park or not? I never stay in the parks, I'm always out on International Drive. When refreshing, does the app favor certain hotels inside the property? How can 80 boarding groups be filled instantly on a constant basis at 7:00 & 3 seconds? It only takes less 3 seconds to fill 80 groups? Question for others: When staying "outside" the parks, are your VQ attempts also immediately rejected at the stroke of 7:00am? (on a regular basis)

JMcMahonEsq13 hours ago

How stupid do you have to be to not be able to click a button on an app? 10-20 VQ seats? You realize with every VQ going back to Rise, each day there are usually at least 80 boarding group, with each boarding group being full of people that managed to work their phone and get into the VQ. I mean your either just talking out your butt, or purposefully being stupid as to how VQ works

DisneyFanatic1214 hours ago

I need to get out to Tokyo Disneyland! I’ll make it there someday, heard so many good things about it and they got Splash which is awesome. As for VQs in 2024, they went up and down in terms of availability, but I even snagged a few GotG VQs at 7/8pm (from the 1pm drop)! I refuse to buy Genie+, so VQs are the closest I’ll get to “skipping the line” nowadays

Cliff15 hours ago

I don't know the metrics but I think they vary by ride and by park attendance (or expected attendance). In the past, I have tried to get Tron maybe 7 or 8 times and I hit it once in the morning. I have tried Guardians maybe 15 times and I have gotten a total of 2 morning lottery hits and 1 afternoon hit. Of all the virtual que's I have ever tried,...I dunno, 90% were failures only 3 seconds of availability. Granted, I stopped going to WDW as of Feb of 2024. So I can't speak for almost all of 2024. Maybe Virtual Que was MUCH better in 2024 then before that time. My entire 2024 WDW budget went to Tokyo Disneyland & Disney Seas this year. (I flew there specifically to ride "Splash Mountain" again) My entire 2025 WDW annual pass and hotel/food budget has now moved to Universal for the first time ever. So,..no WDW for me in 2025. (No reservations, no lightning lane, no virtual ques, no more headache) and I think I'm back to Tokyo in 2026 because I had so much fun in "their" Disney! (I think it's cheaper too! Single day park ticket is $65 dollars and those parks are stunning)

peter1143516 hours ago

I’ve never had a problem getting a VQ for any virtual queue attraction. They give out thousands.

DisneyFanatic1216 hours ago

When you walk past a VQ ride like TBA, everyone in the VQ line got a VQ for the day. They give out a TON of VQs in a day, to the point that I’ve never failed to get a virtual queue. Now, the value of a VQ is up for debate for sure. For me, it’s incredibly easy to secure a VQ and the VQ line is generally manageable. It allows me to experience high-demand rides without having to wait insane amounts of time. Once the VQ rides go to standby, I won’t ride them really anymore. But I think VQ support overall is probably close to 50/50, tilting towards the standby side.