Now Reading: Candlelight Processional 2026: Dining Packages and How to Get a Seat
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Candlelight Processional 2026: Dining Packages and How to Get a Seat
Candlelight Processional 2026: Dining Packages and How to Get a Seat
The Candlelight Processional is a celebrity narrator reading the Christmas story, backed by a mass choir and a full orchestra, at the America Gardens Theatre in EPCOT’s World Showcase.
It runs nightly through EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays, which is 27 November to 30 December in 2026. There is no extra ticket to watch it. Getting a seat is the hard part.
The 2026 narrators and their dates
Disney announced the 2026 lineup on 6 October. Each narrator covers a set run of nights, so if one of them is your reason for going, book around their dates.
| Dates | Narrator |
|---|---|
| 27 and 28 November | To be announced |
| 29 November to 1 December | Gary Sinise |
| 2 and 3 December | Benjamin Bratt (new for 2026) |
| 4 and 5 December | Whoopi Goldberg |
| 6 and 7 December | Robin Roberts (new for 2026) |
| 8 and 9 December | Jason Kelce (new for 2026) |
| 10 to 12 December | Neil Patrick Harris |
| 13 and 14 December | Josh Groban (new for 2026) |
| 15 and 16 December | Lauren Daigle |
| 17 to 19 December | Ralph Macchio |
| 20 and 21 December | Henry Winkler |
| 22 and 23 December | Lacey Chabert (new for 2026) |
| 24 and 25 December | Jodi Benson |
| 26 and 27 December | Simu Liu |
| 28 to 30 December | Eva Longoria |
Five names are new this year: Benjamin Bratt, Robin Roberts, Jason Kelce, Josh Groban and Lacey Chabert. The first two nights are still to be announced.
Lineup and showtimes from the Disney Parks Blog, published 6 October 2026, checked on 10 October 2026. Narrators can change, so check Disney’s page close to your date.
Two ways to get a seat
The theatre holds a little over 1,000 people per performance, and between 50% and 75% of it is held for dining package guests. Standby competes for what is left.
The dining package
You book a meal at a participating EPCOT restaurant and get a guaranteed seat at one performance. It is the only way to know in advance that you are getting in.
How the booking works, which catches people out: you choose the showtime first, then the restaurant. Availability is filtered by the show you picked, not the other way round. Booking opened on 14 October 2026, the date Disney gave.
A credit card guarantee is required. In 2025, cancelling with less than 2 hours’ notice or not turning up cost $10 per person on the booking; Disney has not yet restated that charge for 2026.
Standby
Free, and genuinely viable if you pick your moment. For a well-known narrator, people start queuing in the early afternoon for the 4.45pm show. For a less famous name on a weekday, 45 minutes is often enough.
Two things that work:
- Take the last show. The final performance of the night is consistently the easiest to get into, because a lot of day guests have already left.
- Use the standing room. There is space behind the seating with a view from above the seated area. You will not sit down, and you will see and hear the whole thing without surrendering your afternoon to a queue.
Candlelight Processional dining package prices for 2026
Disney has published the 2026 prices. They exclude tax and gratuity, and booking opened on 14 October 2026.
| Restaurant | Pavilion | Adult (10+) | Child (3 to 9) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Akershus Royal Banquet Hall | Norway | $87 | $59 |
| Biergarten Restaurant | Germany | $75 | $40 |
| Chefs de France | France | $89 | $37 |
| Coral Reef Restaurant | The Living Seas | $82 | $34 |
| Garden Grill Restaurant | The Land | $73 breakfast, $86 lunch and dinner | $46 breakfast, $55 lunch and dinner |
| La CrĂŞperie de Paris | France | $59 | $31 |
| La Hacienda de San Angel | Mexico | $86 | $37 |
| Le Cellier Steakhouse | Canada | $109 | $44 |
| Nine Dragons Restaurant | China | $70 | $30 |
| Regal Eagle Smokehouse (same-day packages only) | American Adventure | $43 | $26 |
| Rose & Crown Dining Room | United Kingdom | $68 | $31 |
| Shiki-Sai: Sushi Izakaya | Japan | $85 | $40 |
| Spice Road Table | Morocco | $63 | $26 |
| Teppan Edo | Japan | $89 | $40 |
| Tutto Italia Ristorante | Italy | $85 | $36 |
| Via Napoli Ristorante e Pizzeria | Italy | $71 | $33 |
Prices as Disney lists them for the 2026 festival, checked on 26 September 2026. Tax and gratuity are extra. Confirm the price when you book.
The spread is wide because the cheapest, Regal Eagle Smokehouse at $43, is sold only as a same-day package and does not count towards the dining plan, while the dearest, Le Cellier at $109, counts as two table-service meals, as does Akershus.
Worth knowing: the package includes the meal and the seat. Reserved fireworks viewing is not part of it, whatever the price.
Showtimes
In 2026 the show runs nightly at 4.45pm, 6.30pm and 8pm at the America Gardens Theatre, according to Disney.
Is it worth it?
If you have any interest in the music, yes. A full orchestra and a mass choir is a scale of live performance you do not otherwise get in a theme park, and it is included with admission.
The dining package is the part that needs thought. Paying $43 to $109 a head for adults for a meal you would not otherwise have chosen, to guarantee a seat you might have got for free, only makes sense if a specific narrator matters to you or you are visiting in the last two weeks of December when standby is at its worst.
For an early December weekday with a narrator you have not heard of, save the money and queue.
See the Festival of the Holidays guide for the rest of what is on, the full events calendar, and the EPCOT guide.
Sources
- Disney Parks Blog, 2026 Candlelight Processional celebrity narrators list and dates. Published 6 October 2026, retrieved 10 October 2026.
- Disney Parks Blog, 2026 EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays dates and details. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
- Walt Disney World, Candlelight Dinner Packages, 2026 prices and booking date. Retrieved 26 September 2026.
- Walt Disney World, Candlelight dinner packages. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
We check every date and price against Disney’s own listings before publishing, and say so plainly when Disney has not announced something. How we work is set out in our editorial standards.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Candlelight Processional 2026 schedule?
The Candlelight Processional runs nightly from 27 November to 30 December 2026 at the America Gardens Theatre in EPCOT, with shows at 4.45pm, 6.30pm and 8pm. It’s part of the EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays. Each celebrity narrator covers a set run of 2 or 3 nights, and Disney hasn’t named the narrator for 27 and 28 November yet.
Who are the 2026 Candlelight Processional narrators?
Disney announced the 2026 lineup on 6 October: Gary Sinise, Benjamin Bratt, Whoopi Goldberg, Robin Roberts, Jason Kelce, Neil Patrick Harris, Josh Groban, Lauren Daigle, Ralph Macchio, Henry Winkler, Lacey Chabert, Jodi Benson, Simu Liu and Eva Longoria, each on set dates. The first two nights, 27 and 28 November, are still to be announced.
Do you need a ticket for the Candlelight Processional?
You need valid EPCOT admission, and the show is included with it, so there’s no separate Candlelight ticket. Seating is first come, first served across the 3 nightly shows. The only way to guarantee a seat is a dining package, which starts at $43 for adults, and that price doesn’t cover park admission.
How much is the Candlelight Processional dining package?
Disney’s 2026 Candlelight dining packages cost $43 to $109 for adults and $26 to $59 for children aged 3 to 9, before tax and gratuity. The cheapest is Regal Eagle Smokehouse, sold as a same-day package only. The dearest is Le Cellier Steakhouse at $109, which uses 2 table-service meals if you’re on a Disney dining plan.
What’s included in the Candlelight Processional dining package?
Each package includes 1 guaranteed seat per person at a Candlelight show later that day, plus a meal at one of 16 EPCOT restaurants. At most of them that’s an entrĂ©e and dessert or a buffet, with a soft drink or, for guests 21 and over, an alcoholic one. You collect a seating badge at the restaurant after your meal.
When do Candlelight Processional dining packages go on sale?
Booking for the 2026 Candlelight dining packages opened on 14 October 2026, the date Disney gave. Reservations need a credit card guarantee, and Disney warns that packages may not be available on peak dates. For a last-minute plan, Regal Eagle Smokehouse sells same-day packages, and Disney says to check availability with the restaurant on the day.
Can you see the Candlelight Processional without a dining package?
Yes. Guests without a package are seated first come, first served at the 3 nightly shows, at 4.45pm, 6.30pm and 8pm, while package holders use a separate queue into a reserved section. Disney says standby seating depends on availability because capacity is limited, so queue early on the nights of a famous narrator.
How long is the Candlelight Processional?
Disney doesn’t publish a running time for the Candlelight Processional. Its 3 nightly shows start at 4.45pm, 6.30pm and 8pm, so the closest pair are 90 minutes apart, and each performance plus the seating changeover has to fit inside that gap. Allow extra time for queuing, especially if you don’t have a dining package.
