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Finally, the heat is starting to break a little bit. Vacations are wrapping up and people are heading home. Tourist season in Orlando is winding down. Fall triggers not only shorter wait lines for rides and restaurants at the theme parks, but also the time when Disney revs up for their biggest annual events.

The first really big one of the year is Disney's Night of Joy in September. Night of Joy is two nights dedicated to contemporary Christian music. This year the event will be held Septemberr 9th and 10th at Disney's Hollywood Studios. Live music begins at 7:00 p.m. each night and lasts until about 12:30 a.m. Tickets are on sale now, and in fact, have been since March 1st.

Artists and bands performing this year include Newsboys, Kutless, Tomlin, Leeland, Superchick, Skillet, MercyMe, Jars of Clay, Flyleaf, Mandisa, and four bands will be performing at Night of Joy for the first time- Grits, NEEDTOBREATHE, Family Force 5, and P.O.D.

Give me the scoop: Several stages are set up throughout the park and people gather around them to enjoy the mini-concerts. Most stage areas have seating, but they fill up quickly, so be prepared to stand for the most popular artists. Many of the park rides and attractions remain open during the event, so in between performances, you can still catch the best the park has to offer.

In order to get the best deal on the Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party, check out our discounted Disney World packages. You will be able to find the best deals by purchasing your theme park tickets and your lodging together.

The next big event in the Fall at Disney is Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at the Magic Kingdom. It actually begins mid September and runs through most of October.

Give me the scoop: The Disney Magic Kingdom event is designed to be a kid-friendly version of the more mature Halloween events. Tickets are on sale now and cost a little less the earlier you go. Halloween night is the most expensive night to go, as the ticket prices run about $5.00 higher. September and early October are the time when you'll find the least expensive ticket prices.

Now on to an adult event... the annual International Food and Wine Festival at Epcot. It is normally held in late September through the first week of November. This event celebrates the culinary specialties of each of the nations represented at the theme park. As you walk through each “country” you'll pass by booths set up to distribute select items representing traditional fare from that part of the world.

This event also has live music. This year you can hear and see Boyz II Men, Kool & The Gang, Los Lobos and many other artists. Some new acts will appear for the first time at the Festival including Richard Marx, Vanessa Carlton and John Waite.

Give me the scoop: Regular admission gets you into the park and all of its usual attractions. You do have to pay extra for the foods you try at the booths described above, but you can get full for $20. Serving sizes are not super small, about Hot Pocket size in many cases (empanadas in Argentina, keftas in Morrocco). Make sure to leave room for dessert as well. You can get the map of the booths as well as what they're serving beforehand to help you strategize your eating.

It is interesting we have quite a few guests who go to the Food and Wine Festival every year, and they spend over 20 days here in Orlando. There is truly something new to do every day. In fact, most of the guests who stay with us for this event end up renting one of our Disney vacation homes. Many of them choose to use the house to entertain by having a dinner party or two while they are in town.

Not as publicized, but a must-do is the Festival of the Masters. This event takes place at Downtown Disney. If you're not familiar with Downtown Disney, it is an outdoor, shopping, dining, and entertainment district. It costs nothing to get in and there is plenty to do and see, all with the excellent customer service and family-friendliness of Disney. There are themed restaurants such as The Rainforest Café and Planet Hollywood, a movie theatre, hot air balloon ride (brand new this year) and Cirque du Soleil.

The Festival of the Masters is an open-air art festival. To qualify, participants must be award-winning artists. This year it will be held from November 13th through 15th. There is no cost to meander through the sidewalks lined with art. Besides the art on exhibit, there are plenty of activities and entertainment to keep the whole family happy all day and night.

Every day there are live music performances throughout the district. There is a DJ dance party at the Dock Stage every afternoon where kids can get down and release some energy. Free face painting and balloons are available outside of the Cirque du Soleil tent where you can meet some of the La Nouba performers. If that's not enough to keep you busy all day, there's the amazing Lego Land where kids can build their own Lego creations and tons of shopping.

Give me the scoop: Not only is art on display, it is available for purchase, in case you're in the market. You can spend hours at the festival without spending any money, so it's really a must-do.


** Please note, for many of the events listed above you will need separated Disney World tickets. We sell many of the tickets for these events and we can even have them delivered for a small fee if you stay at one of the Orlando hotels which we represent.

Also, if you are interested in Winter events at Disney, be sure to check out our Disney Winter events calendar.

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