Disney Festival of Holidays Celebrates Holiday Traditions and Cultural Diversity at Disney California Adventure Park

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At Disney California Adventure Park, the popular Disney Festival of Holidays is back with new elements to entertain guests, including the sights, sounds and tastes of diverse cultural festivities along with plenty of holiday magic.

Disney Festival of Holidays is a heartwarming celebration of the holiday season that is inspired by diverse cultural festivities and meaningful traditions associated with Christmas, Navidad, Hanukkah, Diwali, Kwanzaa and Three Kings Day (Jan. 3-6, 2020). This contemporary seasonal celebration brings guests together for a uniquely Disney festival, running from Nov. 8, 2019-Jan. 6, 2020.

New entertainment has been added to Disney Festival of Holidays this year, including the cheerful “Mickey’s Happy Holidays” character celebration with beloved Disney and Pixar pals. Plus, new holiday music from The Suffragettes, who perform chart-topping holiday hits, join the Holiday Sunset Concerts. This new holiday entertainment adds to the daily lineup of special Festival of Holidays performing ensembles that range from an a cappella group with a soulful sound to a dance company that brings a fun and interactive dance party for all.

At Disney Festival of Holidays, guests discover something around every corner, from festive food and beverage in eight marketplace locations to fun craft-making and the universal languages of music and dance. Younger guests will enjoy fun games, cookie decorating, face painting and kid crafts that will introduce children to the significance of these holiday traditions.

Festival of Holidays Entertainment

  • New this year is “Mickey’s Happy Holidays,” a cheerful, seasonal character celebration with Mickey Mouse and friends. Guests will dance and sing along to high-energy music with favorite Disney and Pixar characters, as they march to the merry rhythms of the Holiday Toy Drummers. Mickey, Minnie, Chip n’ Dale, Goofy and Clarabelle all don new Festival of Holidays attire, specifically for the “Mickey’s Happy Holidays” celebration. The Country Bears and the Pixar characters also sport fun seasonal overlays for this show. “Mickey’s Happy Holidays” runs twice daily, with show moments at Paradise Gardens Park and Carthay Circle.
  • In the evenings, the Holiday Sunset Concerts features holiday entertainment for all ages at the Palisades Stage at Paradise Gardens Park. New this year, the Holiday Sunset Concerts feature The Suffragettes, an exciting festival band that rocks the holidays with chart-topping hits. The Suffragettes, join the popular Phat Cat Swinger, the West Coast’s “Little-Big Band,” presenting a fresh new twist on their swinging selection of holiday tunes. Guests will enjoy The Suffragettes on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday nights, and Phat Cat Swinger Wednesday through Saturday nights.
  • The popular “Disney ¡Viva Navidad! Street Party” is back, hosted by The Three Caballeros. This popular celebration features folklórico and samba dancers, live musicians, and Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse in their fiesta best.
  • Guests will sing along with the GRAMMY® Award-winning Mariachi Divas and their signature repertoire of catchy, bilingual holiday tunes as they perform at the Pacific Wharf.
  • Mostly Kosher celebrates Hanukkah and showcases an uplifting and eclectic musical tapestry that weaves together klezmer, Latin, jazz and rock at Sonoma Terrace.
  • The spirited performers of Blue13 Dance Company turn up the fun with traditional Indian dances that celebrate Diwali and build to a Bollywood-inspired party for all at the Palisades Stage.
  • The Sound delivers an a capella performance celebrating Kwanzaa and Christmas with soulful and heartwarming vocal performances of classic holiday songs at Pacific Wharf and the Palisades Stage.
  • At the Obelisk, the mischievous Holiday Toy Drummers march to their own merry beat as they perform precision drills with holiday
  • Guests can meet Santa and his holly, jolly and joyful elves at Santa’s Holiday Visit at Redwood Creek Challenge Trail.
  • Guests may also meet and greet favorite characters at Disney Festival of Holidays, including Mickey, Minnie, The Three Caballeros, Chip n’ Dale, Goofy, the Country Bears and Princess Elena of Avalor.
  • Additionally, guests in the park or at home can enjoy the sounds of the festival with the Disney Festival of Holidays playlist, a specially-curated Apple Music® playlist within the Play Disney Parks app.*

Festival Foods Marketplace

The Festival Foods Marketplace features the season’s eatings, with holiday comfort dishes that span cultures and family traditions from around the globe. From new items like the plant-based Shepherd’s upside-down pie to returning favorites like holiday stuffing mac & cheese, the food and beverage at the eight marketplace locations will tempt guests as they stroll through Disney California Adventure, from Carthay Circle through Paradise Gardens Park.

For added fun, guests may pick up a Disney Festival of Holidays Tasting Passport at any of the Festival Foods Marketplace kiosks and receive stamps as they taste their way through the unique cuisines. Guests who collect all the marketplace stamps will receive a special completion stamp. Additionally, guests may choose to purchase a Sip and Savor Pass as they taste their way through eight food or non-alcoholic beverages from the participating Festival Food Marketplaces, as well as other participating locations, including the festival carts.

The kiosk names and menu items include:

  • Brews & Bites— Chorizo queso fundido with house-made tortilla chips, beer flights and beer by the glass
  • Favorite Things—Glazed ham shanks with honey crumble, holiday stuffing mac & cheese, gingerbread Mickey cookie, warm Bourbon cider with house-made Bourbon-infused marshmallow, beer by the glass
  • Holiday Duets—Braised pork belly adobo with garlic fried rice, shrimp and grits with Andouille sausage, holiday Mickey and Minnie cookies, cranberry sangria, churro toffee cold brew
  • Making Spirits Bright— Caramelized apple cake with Dannon® Oikos® Greek Yogurt crème anglaise and salted caramel sauce, hot cocoa marshmallow macaron, white and red wine flights, sparkling wine, mimosa flight which includes apple, pomegranate and cran-blackberry
  • Merry Mashups— Turkey and stuffing tamale with cranberry relish, pork al pastor naan taco with pineapple pico and cilantro-lime Dannon® Oikos® Greek Yogurt  crema, churro yule log, house-made horchata (non-alcoholic and alcoholic options), “habanero” hibiscus margarita
  • Grandma’s Recipes— Shepherd’s upside-down pie, curried cauliflower and chicken with black garlic, crimson pear beer cocktail, Navidad punch
  • Winter Sliderland— Fried turkey slider with cranberry slaw, beef pot roast on potato roll with horseradish cream, warm peppermint chocolate float, bourbon cranberry cocktail
  • A Twist on Tradition— Reimagined beef wellington, reuben potato tots with Russian dressing and rye toast, vanilla pear mule, white and red wine

In addition, Paradise Garden Grill offers seasonal specials for Disney ¡Viva Navidad! including pozole, street style tacos and torta al pastor. This year, a number of additional food locations are participating in special Disney Festival of Holidays menu items as well, with the loaded latke at Smokejumpers Grill, a pecan pie churro at Willie’s Churro Cart and pumpkin soup at Pacific Wharf Café, among others.

Guests may pick up the Festival of Holidays food guide or check the Disneyland app for a full list of offerings. Mobile ordering through the Disneyland app may also be available for some holiday food offerings, at select locations.

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