Epcot · Jeremy Thompson · CC BY 2.0 · cropped
Walt Disney World confirmed in its Disney Parks Blog Foodie Guide that Cheers to Cheese, an interactive exhibit inside CommuniCore Hall at EPCOT, opens September 18, 2026, and runs through November 8. The same window brings The Wedge, hosted by Dairy Does More, into the hall during the EPCOT International Food and Wine Festival, which already started August 27 and continues through November 21.
If your park days fall before September 18, you will miss both the exhibit and that marketplace. If they fall on or after that Friday, plan CommuniCore Hall as a stop, not a maybe. Festival food still needs valid EPCOT admission, and the first planning step is still an EPCOT ticket that actually covers the date you want.
- Opens: September 18, 2026, inside CommuniCore Hall.
- Closes: November 8, 2026, two weeks before the festival ends.
- Also that day: The Wedge marketplace, hosted by Dairy Does More.
- Festival window: August 27 to November 21, 2026, included with EPCOT admission.
- This week: Guests on property September 14 to 17 still see GoofyCore, not the cheese exhibit.
CommuniCore Hall Switches Over on September 18
Disney is rotating the hall on a hard date, not a soft overlay. Blog Mickey reported that CommuniCore Hall spent Cool Kids Summer as GoofyCore, a dance and activity space, and that the cheese exhibit is the next programmed use of the room. Crews need that summer show to finish before the hall can change over.
That matters if you already hold park reservations this week. A visit on Monday through Thursday still lands in the old setup. Friday, September 18, is the first day Disney has published for Cheers to Cheese and The Wedge. Do not treat a Food and Wine ticket as proof that the hall already flipped.
CommuniCore Hall has used this pattern since it opened in 2024. Festival retail, holiday meet and greets, and seasonal parties have all occupied the same World Celebration building. The cheese exhibit is another timed use of that room, not a permanent attraction you can count on in 2027.
Cheers to Cheese Inside World Celebration
Disney describes Cheers to Cheese as an interactive exhibit that celebrates cheese history and trivia throughout CommuniCore Hall. The official Foodie Guide tells guests to say Cheers to Cheese and then discover fun facts around the space. Blog Mickey added that Disney is framing corners of the hall as different wedges of the experience.
What Disney has not promised is a tasting inside the exhibit itself. The Foodie Guide points food and drink to The Wedge, not to a sample at every display. Plan the hall as a walk-through exhibit plus a separate marketplace, not as a hidden kitchen.
The exhibit is also shorter than the festival. Food and Wine runs 87 days. Cheers to Cheese occupies only September 18 through November 8. Guests who come for opening weekend in late August, or who wait until the last two weeks of November, will see the festival without this hall experience.
The Wedge Opens the Same Day
The Wedge, hosted by Dairy Does More, is the new CommuniCore Hall marketplace on the same September 18 to November 8 calendar. Disney’s Foodie Guide lists a selection of cheeses with Proudly Wisconsin Cheese accompaniments, a wine and cheese pairing, and a non-alcoholic Cannoli Milk Shake topped with chocolate shavings, a cannoli shell, and a maraschino cherry.
Savory plates are built around smoked cheddar. Disney lists Crab and Corn Macaroni and Cheese with bacon, crab seasoning, roasted corn, herbed panko, and jalapeños, a three-cheese macaroni with smoked cheddar sauce and herbed panko, and a cheesesteak macaroni with shaved beef, peppers, and onions. WDW Magazine notes the crab dish is a 30th-anniversary nod to a 2015 festival plate.
Those plates sit beside Emile’s Fromage Montage, the returning cheese stroll across Global Marketplaces. Buy five marked cheese items, collect Festival Passport stamps, and Disney still sends you to Shimmering Sips for a festival treat. The Wedge is extra inventory in the hall, not a replacement for that walk.
Festival Timing for Guests Already Booked
The useful split is three windows. August 27 through September 17 is Food and Wine without Cheers to Cheese or The Wedge. September 18 through November 8 is the only span that stacks the exhibit, The Wedge, Fromage Montage, and the rest of the marketplaces. November 9 through November 21 keeps the festival open after the hall program ends.
If cheese is the reason you chose EPCOT, move a park day into that middle window. If you are already on property this week for other parks, do not reroute a Magic Kingdom or Hollywood Studios day solely to see a hall that has not changed yet. Come back to EPCOT on or after September 18.
Parking and arrival still follow the usual EPCOT pattern. Festival crowds concentrate around World Showcase later in the day, so a morning arrival still helps if you want CommuniCore Hall before the marketplaces back up. Use the EPCOT parking guide for cost and lot flow, then walk World Celebration first.
Tickets, Reservations, and Extra Costs
WDW Magazine states that festival admission is included with valid EPCOT admission, and that a theme park reservation may still be required depending on ticket type. Annual Passholders do not buy a separate festival ticket, but blockout dates and reservation rules still apply. Confirm the date on the ticket, not on a festival poster.
Food, drinks, merchandise, scavenger-hunt maps, and dining packages cost extra. Disney is also selling exclusive Disney Gift Card wristlets during the festival, with a minimum $15 activation, at EPCOT merchandise locations. Those wristlets work at Global Marketplaces and anywhere a Disney Gift Card is accepted.
Do not treat The Wedge as a table-service reservation. It is a festival marketplace. If you want a sit-down meal the same day, book that separately and keep CommuniCore Hall as a flexible stop between World Showcase booths.
| If you… | What to do |
|---|---|
| Visit EPCOT September 14 to 17 | Expect GoofyCore, not Cheers to Cheese. Keep the day, or move EPCOT to September 18 or later. |
| Want the exhibit and The Wedge | Park at EPCOT between September 18 and November 8, then go to CommuniCore Hall first. |
| Only care about Food and Wine booths | Any festival date through November 21 works. The hall is optional. |
| Arrive after November 8 | The festival continues through November 21, but the cheese exhibit and The Wedge are gone. |
September 18 is the hall switch. Cheers to Cheese and The Wedge begin. Do not assume they are up during the first three weeks of Food and Wine.
November 8 is the hall close. The exhibit and The Wedge end while the rest of the festival still has 13 days left.
November 21 is the festival close. After that date, neither the marketplaces nor the cheese exhibit are part of a normal EPCOT day.
When does Cheers to Cheese open at EPCOT?
Disney’s Foodie Guide sets the exhibit for September 18 through November 8, 2026, inside CommuniCore Hall during the EPCOT International Food and Wine Festival.
Is Cheers to Cheese included with EPCOT admission?
Yes. Festival admission is included with valid EPCOT admission. Food, drinks, and merchandise at The Wedge and other marketplaces cost extra.
What is The Wedge at CommuniCore Hall?
The Wedge is a new Dairy Does More marketplace opening September 18 with cheese plates, macaroni and cheese dishes, a wine and cheese pairing, and a Cannoli Milk Shake.
Can I see Cheers to Cheese on opening weekend of Food and Wine?
No. The festival started August 27, but the exhibit and The Wedge do not open until September 18, after GoofyCore finishes its summer run. Keep late August and early September for other marketplaces if that is already your trip.
