F & W At Epcot.

No , you don't need any kind of ticket to buy food. There are special events & cooking seminars that you have to pay extra for and register in advance for. The DFB started listing stuff around June 12 last years so I would say around then.

Yes to the first question - once you're in the park you can purchase food from any and all booths whenever you like, no extra ticket required.

As for the second question, mid to late summer if I recall correctly, although there will be some info before then.

Be sure and check out the Belgian beer!

Keep checking this link. Information will be added as it becomes available.

http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2014-epcot-food-and-wine-festival/

As I understand, you can use either QM or snacks (as they are noted) OR you can swipe the magic band to charge it to your room. We plan to keep a running tab on my phone so we don't have any surprises, but we are really trying not to carry much if any cash.

What everyone else says but also might be worth checking out 2013 festival so you know what to expect?

Also not sure if you know but they also offer free eat to the beat concerts which re different artists from the 70's, 80's and 90's and they are usually quite good, seen as your a man of music thought this might be right up your street?

They do put mini gift cards on wrist bands that you can reload. It really was an easy way to budget. We used our snack credits last year to sample the items over $5 and paid out of pocket for the items under $5.

The only extra event we booked was the Parisian breakfast hosted at Chef de France. It was awesome for us.

this is a site that you can watch a blog and he does all kinds of Disney trips, but he also does a country a day review of f&w and it gives you a good idea of what they have at each booth. most countries have been there for years so most will be there next year. http://travelwithrick.com/

Thanks everyone...

I am looking forward to this! Tell me more about it. I've only read one review of it. I love firsthand info!

I just watched the first few minutes of this and now I am starving, guess it's time to get out of bed...

It gets expensive! Once the food list is out I would suggest going through them, picking maybe 10 booths and then scaring yourself with how much it will cost!! Great way though to taste loads of different things. I was rather partial to the ice champagne last year it was gorgeous and putting ice in it worked so well... Oh I can feel a glass of white wine calling

Oh, yeah, it can get really pricey. When I went alone, I managed F&W on maybe $35 per day, eating only festival booth food with no adult beverages (I was driving). A year later, with hubby and I using Disney transportation and enjoying a drink or three, we easily topped $100 per day for the two of us.

Oh yeah!! Those little booths can be expensive, so expect to spend more than your daily normal allowance for food. The food is just amazing!! And you will want to try everything!!!

I love that mini gift card! Ocarina sent me one when she went last years for getting her sending her the Maleficent gift card.

Definitely check out the Disney Food Blog for menus, photos and reviews. I went for the first time last year and there were soooo many amazing offerings. My sister and I went for 2 full days and ate every meal and snack (except breakfast) at the booths...we probably didn't even get to half of them! I agree with Sally-Ann that it's best to go through the menus (once they come out) and choose your top 10 or so. We did this and it helped us to not get overwhelmed. We felt like we got to try everything we really wanted even though we didn't get to every country.

As far as special events (things you have to pay separate for), we went to the 3D Dessert Discovery Party and loved it! So many great desserts and drinks, a fun band (playing all candy-themed songs!), and afterwards we got VIP viewing for the fireworks along with 3D glasses that made them even more special!

yes do not watch if you are hungry

Yep, used all our snack credits last year there...yummm. And we did catch a concert. Smash Mouth!

We did this too and loved it. It may not be quite as beneficial now that you can charge to your room on the magic band (since the main conveinance factor came from not having to dig out your cc or room key), but it still was a useful tip for budgeting since you could put whatever amount you were willing to spend on the gift card. As others have said, it was also really helpful to go through the booth offerings ahead of time so you can setup a priority list of what to try. I made an excel sheet with each food and drink item listed by booth with price, description, and picture (if available on DFB) and then DH and I went through and highlighted those in yellow that we MUST try and those in blue that would be nice to try.