Universal Orlando just made a move that feels impossible to ignore.
For years, EPCOT has basically owned “festival season” in Orlando. Between food booths, seasonal drinks, and rotating entertainment, Disney has turned EPCOT into a year-round event machine. And honestly, it works. Guests plan entire trips around festivals like the International Festival of the Arts and the Flower & Garden Festival.
But now Universal is stepping directly into that same space.
Universal Orlando’s Mardi Gras celebration will officially run February 7 through April 4, and with the full menu now revealed, it’s clear this isn’t just a parade-and-beads situation anymore. Universal is treating Mardi Gras like a full festival experience—one that just so happens to overlap with EPCOT’s busiest seasonal calendar.
That timing is no accident.
Mardi Gras will run head-to-head with the final weeks of the EPCOT International Festival of the Arts (ending February 23) and will also overlap with the beginning of the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival(running March 4 through June 1). Universal is basically creating its own alternative for guests who want seasonal food, drinks, and entertainment without needing to step foot inside EPCOT.
And the food lineup is a major part of that strategy.
Universal’s Mardi Gras booths will feature international-style dishes inspired by locations like Mexico, Brazil, Jamaica, Chile, Austria, Puerto Rico, and Ireland, along with New Orleans-inspired favorites. Guests can expect festival-style options like flautas, ceviche, jerk chicken, schnitzel, shepherd’s pie, and sweet treats like king cake and beignets.
The drinks also look designed to grab attention.
Universal is leaning hard into specialty cocktails and themed beverages, including rum punches, frozen drinks, and even over-the-top Bloody Mary options that feel like they were made for social media.
But the biggest competitive push might be the entertainment.
Universal’s 2026 concert lineup includes major names like Kaskade, Portugal. The Man, Joey Fatone & AJ McLean, Shaggy, Bebe Rexha, Zedd, Barenaked Ladies, and The All-American Rejects.
At this point, Mardi Gras isn’t just an event—it’s Universal’s answer to EPCOT festival season.
And if Universal keeps building this up year after year, Disney may not be the only resort dominating Orlando’s spring festival crowds anymore.
