A Practical Guide to the Craft Beer Festival at SeaWorld, Orlando

The popular annual festival generally takes place on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays only — from around the beginning of August, through (and including) Labor Day (the first Monday in September). However, SeaWorld has been known to extend the festival all the way until the end of October!

We update the date range for the Craft Beer Festival on the Mealtrip Event Information page just as soon as we hear about any changes. It's always a good idea to check with the official SeaWorld Special Event Calendar page to see if the festival is taking place on the day you're going to visit.


The food and beer kiosk are said to be open from noon to park close, but we've noticed on some Fridays, they don't open until 2:00pm. Here again, it's best to check on the official SeaWorld site for the most up-to-date information (but in all honesty, they don't seem to publish food kiosk "open and close times" beyond what I've already posted here). It's safe to say, by 2pm, most of the booths should be open.

Local musicians are also usually part of the festival and perform at various times, beginning in the afternoon, on small stages near some of the more popular booth locations.

Well … "adults" would be my first group. You need to be 21 or older to enjoy any of the festival's namesake, "craft beer" or any of the other alcoholic beverages.

SeaWorld has been doing a good job of offering "mocktail" versions of the various cocktails that are offered at some of the booths… but there's not nearly as many choices, when compared to all the beers that are available.

Will the teen to 21 group like it? Hard to say really… each person is going to be different of course, but if they like sampling various foods, this is a great introduction to what a "food festival" can be like. There's not really anything I'd classify as a "super exotic ingredient" used in the food items, and there's usually something for everyone at the larger booths. It's pretty common to find a shrimp something, a couple of sliders, a taco or a quesadilla, some form of a hot dog, and several desserts.

Younger than teens? My guess is, probably not so much. However... there is a larger beer booth area over by Sesame Street Land, which provides for a great "tag-team parent swap out" setup, with one adult enjoying a beverage, while the other is enjoying Sesame Street Land with the younglings.

There's actually several answers to this question. Naturally, you have to get into SeaWorld first — that falls outside the scope of this article. While SeaWorld does have a high single day-ticket price, they run sales a couple times a year to make that a little more affordable. They also have a great Fun Card and Annual Pass system that really does save if you're going to visit multiple times in a one year period.

Once you're in SeaWorld, there's a couple different ways to purchase food and beer samples at the Craft Beer Festival — some are quite a bit better than others.

À la Carte and Out-of-Pocket

The first, is "a la carte / out of pocket" — basically this is just walking up to a Craft Beer Festival kiosk and paying for one or two things based on the menu board prices.



Honestly, I wouldn't purchase any of the food items if I had to buy them individually — I always get one of the lanyards. The individual menu board prices are very close to what a whole entree at one of the counter service locations cost. Yes, most of the food items at the festival booths are better than the main entree items at SeaWorld's counter service restaurants — but the portion size is smaller.

In a counter service restaurant like Voyager's Smokehouse or Expedition Café, the entree platters generally come with some small "side item" as well, so you're getting "Ribs and French Fries" or "Chicken Tenders with French Fries" etc.

Paying the full retail menu prices for festival food at SeaWorld will add up very quickly.

The Sampler Lanyard

So what's a better way to pay? SeaWorld has this great Sampler Lanyard system which ends up being a pretty great deal if you plan on purchasing at least five (or more) food and beverage items from the Craft Beer Festival booths.

The Sampler Lanyard is a plastic punch card that has a barcode on the back and comes with a free lanyard so you can wear it around your neck. The whole idea is, you can pre-purchase a number of samples at once — for a discount, when compared to paying the full menu price. The more samples you pre-purchase this way ... the less expensive each food and beverage sample ends up being.

You just walk up to any of the Craft Beer Festival booths, order one food item… and the cast member will scan the barcode on the back of your Sampler Lanyard and "punch out" one of the entitlement numbers on the front. Once all of the numbers are "punched out" — you know there's no more sample entitlements left on that Sampler Lanyard.

For the 2022 Craft Beer Festival, there's three Sampler Lanyards available — but one of those lanyards is only available to Annual Passholders…

• 8-Item Sampler Lanyard is $55.00 ($58.58, including sales tax)
• 12-Item Sampler Lanyard is $70.00 ($74.55, including sales tax)
• Passholder Exclusive 15-Item Sampler Lanyard is $70.00 ($74.55, including sales tax)

PHOTO CAPTION
The out-of-pocket menu board price on the Brisket Mac & Cheese is $11.99, but if you purchase it with a 12-Sampler Lanyard entitlement... it comes out to just $6.22! (Which is what we feel is a more realistic price for the culinary level of the Craft Beer Festival samples.)

With the 8-Item Sampler Lanyard — you can select 8 food or beverage samples at any of the Craft Beer Festival booths. This makes the  cost of each sample $7.33!

With the 12-Item Sampler Lanyard — you can select 12 food or beverage samples at any of the Craft Beer Festival booths. That makes the cost of each sample just $6.22!

With the 15-Item Sampler Lanyard (which is only available to Annual Passholders) — you can select 15 food or beverage samples at any of the Craft Beer Festival booths. That makes the average cost of each sample just $4.97!

So for example — if on the menu board, you read that the Brisket Mac & Cheese item costs $11.99 (which is about what most of the savory food items cost) — buying five such items — would end up costing more than just getting the 8-Item Sampler Lanyard.

The 12 and 15 Sampler Lanyards are an even better deal — they very nearly make the food items 50% off!

The Sampler Lanyard can be shared between your party … so that person number one, two, and three, can get three different things at any particular booth, and three "punches" will taken out of your Sampler Lanyard.

Each Sampler Lanyard is also good for the duration of the festival (but it's not still valid for next year's festival) — so you don't even have to use all your sampler entitlements on a single day visit. This is great news for Annual Passholders and honestly — it's one of the best perks. It's really fun getting to visit the festival on multiple occasions and getting a couple beers and a couple food items… each time you visit!

A Note About Drink Samples with the Sampler Lanyard

Most of the menu boards show beer prices that are served in 20oz. cups. This is where the Sampler Lanyard gets a little confusing. The cup of beer you will get when using a Sampler Lanyard is 7oz. (about 1/3 of the size of a "full" glass).

The small 7oz. sample cups — are not available to purchase when paying "out-of-pocket"… so the only way you can get a smaller 7oz, sample of beer (and most of the cocktails), is by using a Sampler Lanyard.

If you want a full sized beer in a 20oz cup — you'll have to pay the full "out-of-pocket" menu board price ...  there are no discounts for the larger beer cups.

Wine and hard liquor cups, (like the whiskey samples), are completly different sizes... and are generally smaller. It's a good idea to ask, and see the cup size first ... if you're interested in one of those beverages.

So it really depends on how much beer you can drink. Personally, I find the 7oz samples nice, because I can try a couple different beers for relatively the same price as one large beer. If you drink a lot of beer though — money-wise, you're probably better off purchasing the 20oz beer with cash or a credit card, and not using the Sampler Lanyard.

Most of this festival takes place outside, with guests walking around the south-end of SeaWorld. The various festival kiosks are spread out over a large area.



There has been a trend over the years, to move some of the beer samples inside the various counter service restaurants and bars at SeaWorld — I'm not actually a fan of the idea, but I "get it" from a marketing standpoint.

How it usually plays out is — that not everyone knows how it's supposed to work. Do you stand in line just to get a beer sample (at lunch time, those lines can be long) ... do you skip the line and get in a special shorter line for beer samples (which kind of ticks off everyone else standing in line to get food)???

Sadly, there isn't always a cast member "on the ground" in each location that knows how it's supposed to work either — and it usually causes some hiccup in what would otherwise be a rather easy process — if all the special food and beverage samples were available only at the kiosks. I tend to avoid the "in-restaurants" sample locations, and just stick to the kiosk.

An overhead map of where each of the festival's kiosks are located is usually published about three weeks before the festival begins. Any other non-kiosk locations are marked on the map as well (for example… a couple counter service restaurants or lounges might offer some beers that are special for the festival).

It's actually pretty extensive, when compared to other SeaWorld and Busch Gardens locations across the US ... but it's not really up with something like an Epcot Food & Wine Festival menu or the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival menu.

At the SeaWorld, Orlando Craft Beer Festival — they have always tried to feature some items that were cooked (or baked) with beer… even if it's just used a simple sauce, meat glaze or adding Guinness Chocolate frosting to a cupcake, for example.


We've noticed in recent years at the other parks in the company's family (Busch Gardens, Williamsburg, etc.) the menu has been reduced to a handful of items, most of which fall into a "popcorn, pretzel and wings" category. So in comparison — the 15 item menu is quite diverse.

I really do like the food that's being offered here at the Craft Beer Festival… most of it pairs well with any beer, it's not pretentious, and they do try and use beer in many of the recipes to some degree. I wouldn't call it "street food" per say… it's more like "pub food"… keeping in mind that the menu is designed for a wide, general, them park audience.


You'll find things like Mac & Cheese with some kind of meat on top, Quesadillas or Tacos, a Shrimp item or two, some Sliders, Ribs or other BBQ type of meat — and although there's not a German themed area at SeaWorld Orlando, there's usually a German-ish kiosk over by Mama's Pretzel Kitchen that has Bratwurst and pretzel themed items.

If you're a vegetarian or have to watch your gluten intake — this festival is going to be a challenge. I really think SeaWorld is missing an opportunity on this point — vegetarian based items are surging in popularity these days… and I honesty think it's a trend that's here to stay. In years past, there have been a couple of vegetarian-based items (I'm still craving those "Crispy Buffalo Cauliflower Bites" from a previous Craft Beer Festival) — but the number of vegetarian items has been dwindling since the festival started. We hope it's not a trend… but unless I've totally missed something there wasn't a single food item that was marked as "vegetarian" on the 2022 menu.

The menu for each festival is published a couple of weeks before the festival starts… we re-organize that in an easy to read, mostly text list along with a map — which makes it a little easier to see what's available at each year's festival.

The Craft Beer menu at the festival includes many beers from Florida-based breweries, and I'd even go so far as to say it's more "Central Florida" based breweries than anything. There's a few larger, more nationally known labels like Florida's Funky Buddha and Tampa's Cigar City as well. Even larger names like Yuengling and Sam Adams are also present.

There has been a wine kiosk and a hard liquor kiosk (usually whiskey) in recent years as well — and cocktails — both frozen and in liquid form are available at most booths for those that don't like beer. I know it's a "Craft Beer" festival, but I really do like all the options — most park guests are in family groups, and not everyone likes beer, so it's nice that everyone can find something at each booth.

As far as the beer varieties — once again, you kind of have to keep in mind that this is a theme park, which is designed for the masses — the selections are very much geared toward being the ones that sell well… and not the crazy, unusual, "something you've never tried before" kind of beers.

There have been in the past, but not so much recently. We have seen special beer themed dinners at Sharks Underwater Grill one year. Other parks in the system have done special VIP Craft Beer Tours and one-on-one "Speakeasy / sit down pub food and beverage pairing" type of events as part of their beer festivals.

There was a pricey $100 per person VIP Craft Beer Tour on the SeaWorld, Orlando docket for 2022, but it was pulled from the schedule at the last minute.

Just like with the menus, we usually know two or three weeks before the festival starts, if there's going to be any extra special events at the Craft Beer Festival — the best place to find links and more info about those would be our main Craft Beer Festival Event Information page.

Special events do tend to require reservations and pre-payment for booking, so we like posting that information as soon as possible.

Most of the entertainment at the SeaWorld, Orlando Craft Beer Festival comes in the form of local musician on smaller stages that are located around the park, usually near some of the larger seating areas and lounges. We've seen small Craft Beer Festival stages set up near Flamecraft Bar, Glacier Bar, Mama's Pretzel Kitchen, and the secret area behind "Unnamed Gift Shop" (close to Panini Shore Cafe).

The local musicians here in Central Florida are quite good, and some have a large local following as well. It's fun to see a duo or solo artist that's normally a headliners act at a local lounge or bar that normally brings in hundreds of people show up at SeaWorld. Most of the park guests walking around are from all over the world and think the small stages are just part of the every day setup.

Funny personal experience story… I try and take photos of at least one group each year for our coverage here on the Mealtrip site. And one year there was a great solo artist performing over near Flamecraft Bar — just the normal crowd was gathered at the bar — and as is typical in a theme park… most people are just walking by trying to get to the next ride or attraction. The end of each song only collects a smattering of applause. I took this guy's photo from a couple of different angles to use on the site… but when I posted his photo on Instagram and tagged his account — it literally was one of "the" most liked photos that whole year — because this guy's band has a very large, very "like" happy social media following. So — you never know who you're going to see or hear while strolling around the Craft Beer Festival.

If I'm ever in a spot where I see someone playing, I stop and listen to a couple of songs, and give them the much needed applause that's hard to come by in this type of setting. These are hard working musicians — many of which aren't used to working outdoors in 90% humidity — and they do appreciate it.

That's going to be different for each person. Strictly from a food festival standpoint (we do tend to focus on food here at Mealtrip), the Craft Beer Festival had been our favorite food-based festival at SeaWorld for a couple of years. In recant years … it's tied for second place with the Christmas Celebration Food booths — while the much larger Seven Seas Food Festival takes the number one spot.

Casual Vacationers

If you're going to be visiting SeaWorld, Orlando as part of your trip to Central Florida anyway, and you like beer — then heck yeah! What's not to like about extra food and beer all over the place. In all honesty — the food at the booths is usually better than the food at any of the parks counter service locations. If timed right, you can totally just eat at the booths all day and avoid the counter service locations all together. Depending on how much you eat and how you pay for everything (we recommend the Sampler Lanyard), it might actually end up being less expensive too.

Experienced Beer Connoisseurs

If you're a hard-core craft beer connoisseur — the Craft Beer Festival at SeaWorld may not be worth going out of your way to visit. The craft beer selections have been made to sell to the masses, so you're probably not going to find some new variety that you've never tried before. And… let's face it… the "pale ale" from a Central Florida brewer isn't going to be "thaaaaat" much different than the "place ale" from an Ohio brewer.

When it first started, there were actually brewery reps on-site for each of the weekends, in little tents here and there — which is one of the things you see at non-theme park beer festivals. It's a great chance to talk to someone who works for the brewery you're interested in — getting to know their process and culture is an important part of trying different craft beers. We haven't seen this at SeaWorld for several years in a row now though.

However… if you go to a lot of beer festivals and are going to be at SeaWorld anyway… why not? Drinking beer and trying food samples is always fun, and actually — some of the food is actually quite good. You really can't go wrong with BBQ Meat on Mac and Cheese!

Children (Pre-Teen)

Probably not. There's not really much they're going to understand — I wouldn't guess, but what do I know? Teens that enjoy sampling different food items… yeah, they might like the festival a little more… and some of the booths do have mocktail versions of the cocktails, so those are fun to sample as well.

It is worth mentioning again though… there is a larger "Beer Garden" area set up right next to Sesame Street Land. While not being set up "for children" — I have noticed quite a few parents tag-teaming with their kids – so the kids can play longer in Sesame Street Land, while one parent or the other can enjoy a beer. I'm just saying.

Annual Passholders and Weekend Park Stroll-Around

Heck yeah! Get a big Sampler Lanyard and go on a couple of different days. SeaWorld is pretty safe and well lit, the sidewalks are in good shape, it's a fantastic place to walk around, and then you get to stop, eat food and drink beer here and there. It's a win-win-win. The only down-side to this festival is — it's still kind of warm outside. If you're new to Florida — it's stinking hot in August and it rains often. A late afternoon walk around is better than right at noon… as long as it isn't stormy out.

If lightning starts getting close or weather radar indicates bad weather is approaching … SeaWorld shuts down most rides, attractions, and shows — which puts quite a few people out in the sidewalk areas just kind of milling around. They don't usually close the food booths though (unless it gets really bad), but it does "appear" to get more crowded — mostly because there's nothing else for anyone to do. My suggestion, avoid rainy days if possible.

Yes! Everything I've mentioned here is all "in addition to" all the rides, attractions and shows that are normally available every day at SeaWorld — so the Craft Beer Festival doesn't take any of that away. In fact — we've noticed some festivals and holiday periods tend to overlap, so you might get some of the Electric Ocean festival or SeaWorld's Halloween Spooktacular happening at the same time as the Craft Beer Festival — so there's even more to do! Late summer and early fall is a great time to visit SeaWorld, Orlando!