Expanding on the popular ¡VIVA NAVIDAD! celebration that comes for the Disney Holidays, Disney California Adventure park has introduced the new FESTIVAL OF HOLIDAYS celebration. The expansive new offering packs a great punch and adds needed variety since the removal of the Big Thunder Ranch at Disneyland.
Holidays celebrated throughout the Festival:
- Diwali, the Eastern festival of lights
- Hanukkah
- Christmas/Navidad
- Kwanzaa
- Three Kings Day/Dia de los Reyes
The new event celebrates several holiday seasons with a festive food and beverages festival, craft-making areas, and the a bunch of great entertainment.
Have a look at all the goings on… ENJOY!
Festival Foods Marketplace:
From chile pozole to adobo pork bao and mini turkey pot pies, the food and drink at 14 marketplace locations offer a great variety of treats along the DCA Performance Corridor from Carthay Circle to Paradise Garden.
Menu items include:
- Heritage Cottage – braised beef short ribs, sausages and sauerkraut, vanilla rice pudding
- Making Spirits Bright – wines by the glass and tasting flights, warm holiday spiced wines, sparkling juice
- Nosh & Nibbles – brisket potato croquette, sweet spiced noodle kugel, Reuben potato smash
- Good Fortune’s Feast – adobo pork bao, smoked duck and vegetable spring roll, chilled papaya shrimp salad, winter mint milk tea
- Spice Salutations – chicken and potato curry, carrot and chickpea fritters, cardamom and saffron sweet cheese tart, mango lassi
- Brews & Bites – local seasonal and international beers and tasting flights, holiday cheese ball with crackers and pretzels
- Mistletoe Morsels – holiday Swedish meatballs, classic crab cake, shrimp cocktail martini, holiday eggnog cocktail, merry berry sherbet punch.
- Southern Hope Holidays – grilled spicy chicken sausage, mac and cheese, sweet potato pie, hard lemonade, cranberry sweet tea
- Winter Sliderland – roasted turkey slider, Kalua pork slider, praline & bourbon whoopee pie, hard cider, sparkling juice
- Fiesta en Familia – green chile pozole, red chile pozole, fresh fish ceviche, guava aqua frescha
- Yuletide Yummies – mini turkey pot pie, pesto puff pastry twist, gingerbread Bundt cake, eggnog cheesecake, mocha yule log, raspberry Linzer tart, sticky toffee pudding, inspired wines and flavorful beers by glass and flight, frozen chocolate milk, pumpkin spice hot chocolate
- Mosaic Delights – roasted lamb, mini falafel donuts, baklava, iced Moroccan mint tea
- Abuelita’s Kitchen – chicken cilantro tamale, beef and cheese tamale, chorizo bean sopes, spiced peanut brittle, pomegranate margarita
- Treats for Santa – cookie decorating, harvest puff pastry, cookies, panettenes, peppermint bark, fudge, warm bourbon cider, white hot chocolate, holiday fruit punch
In addition, Paradise Garden Grill will offer some seasonal specials for Disney ¡Viva Navidad! including torta al pastor, street style tacos and chicken mole.
Shopping
Various carts and merchants can be found throughout the festival.
More to Explore
There’s also various other things to explore including photo ops, face painting, and more.
AP Exclusive Offerings
On the back trail behind Grizzly River Run, you can find the AP Exclusive area setup that includes a backdrop for photos, coloring pages, and an exclusive BUTTON.
Santa’s Holiday Visit at Redwood Creek
Santa will be greeting guests in the rustic foresty backdrop of the Redwood Creek adventure trail. Joyful elves have transformed Redwood Creek Challenge Trail into a jolly playground of holiday fun and games.
Read more: PICTORIAL: Santa’s Holiday Visit surprisingly awesome addition to the #DisneyHolidays
Entertainment
The daily lineup of entertainment includes nearly 50 performances of nine unique shows, with more than 100 artists rejoicing in the holiday season. They include special Disney characters, cavalcades and performing ensembles that range from a Klezmer band with a global sound to traditional Indian dancers.
World of Color – Season of Light
The dazzling new spectacle brightens the night on Paradise Bay during Festival of Holidays.
Disney ¡Viva Navidad!
Returning once again, the high energy street party hosted by The Three Caballeros (Donald Duck, Jose Carioca and Pancho). Mickey and Minnie join the fun, dressed in their fiesta best, along with folklorico and samba dancers. Additional Disney ¡Viva Navidad! highlights include holiday foods, crafts, Disney character experiences and Latin American bands.
Read more: PICTORIAL: ¡Viva Navidad! expands with more merriment for the 2016 #DisneyHolidays
Princess Elena’s Musical Grand Arrival
This uplifting musical cavalcade welcomes the adventurous and kindhearted Princess from the Disney Channel show “Elena of Avalor.” Along with her royal dancers and magical friend Skylar they celebrate the holiday.
Read more: WATCH: Princess Elena’s Musical Grand Arrival brings new cheer, songs to #DisneyHolidays
More Entertainment
- Blue13 Dance Company turns up the fun with traditional Indian dances that build to a Bollywood party for all.
- Mischievous Holiday Toy Drummers march to their own merry beat as they perform precision drills with holiday cheer.
- The GRAMMY® Award-winning Mariachi Divas celebrate the holidays with their signature repertoire of catchy bilingual tunes.
- Mostly Kosher Klezmer band showcases an entertaining and eclectic musical tapestry that weaves together jazz, Latin rock and hip-hop.
- RAISE, an uplifting a cappella vocal group, brings its powerful harmonious R&B spin to new and popular holiday songs.
- Santa’s Candy Cane Elves stilt walkers.
The Disney Holidays celebration enchants the Disneyland Resort from November 10 – January 8, 2017.
