Tagged: florida

Walt Disney World's First 50 Years—Through the Lens of Orlando's Newspaper

Nowadays, Florida's Walt Disney World—the most popular theme park destination on the planet—cultivates its global image through heavyweight marketing, synergistic sister brands, and a…

Walt Disney World’s 50th Birthday Is an Anticlimax—So When Should You Go?

In 2021, Walt Disney World in Florida turns a half-century old. On October 1, 1971, Walt Disney's brother and business partner, Roy, dedicated the East Coast version of California's…

The Prices for Disney's New Star Wars Hotel Are Out of This World

Disney’s groundbreaking Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser hotel sounds like the coolest idea in hotels since pillows. Starting next spring, the new luxury hotel, which was recently…

Going to Disney Is Different Now. Someone Should Warn You About These 10 Things

The return of travel brings the return of reassuring old habits. Just as some people feel incomplete until they can root for their favorite baseball team in person again at their local…

Royal Caribbean Yanks Newest Ship from Haifa, but Will Politics Ruin a Florida Homecoming?

Americans who had hoped to spend some quality summer time aboard Royal Caribbean's newest megaship, Odyssey of the Seas, might now get their shot. In late winter, the cruise line…

Harry Truman’s Key West Home Now Offering Spins in His Presidential Limo

Harry S Truman paid 11 visits to Key West, Florida, during the years of his presidency, 1945–53. He'd spend his leisure hours fishing and, like many a Key West tourist since, looking…

Travel Search Site Kayak Opening Its First-Ever Hotel

Kayak, the travel search aggregator that sells airfare, hotel stays, car rentals, and other vacation-related offerings, is opening its own hotel. The 52-room Kayak Miami Beach will be…

“One Night in Miami” Puts Historic Black Hotel in Spotlight—and You Can Visit

The new film One Night in Miami, now streaming on Amazon Prime, depicts a 1964 meeting of four African American icons—boxer Cassius Clay (soon to rename himself Muhammad Ali), civil…

Disney World Guts Guest Benefits at Its Hotels: Why Would You Stay Now?

From a value standpoint, it's already a highly debatable decision to stay within the borders of Walt Disney World at a Disney-owned hotel. Those properties easily cost at least twice…

Key West Cruise Ban Poised to Be Overruled

We have an update on the Key West cruise ban. Remember in November when the people of that Florida city decided that cruises were more of a headache than they were worth? On Election…

Yikes! “Brain-Eating Amoeba” Is Moving North from Southern U.S. Lakes

A deadly "brain-eating amoeba" that thrives in warm lakes and rivers has long been a cause for concern among vacationers who take dips in natural swimming holes in Southern U.S. states…

Writers in Residence: How to Visit Where Great American Authors Lived and Worked

Though the best way to engage with great authors of the past is, of course, to read their work, there’s plenty to gain from visiting the places where they lived and scribbled. Touring…

Why Key West's Ban on Big Ships Will Change Caribbean Cruises

Once a quiet fishing village and quirky haven for writers, artists, and free spirits, the Florida Straits city of Key West veered toward tourist-trap territory starting in the…

The World's Most Scenic Airports: A Ranking to Send Your Wanderlust Soaring

At this point, we'd probably feel awe gazing upon strip malls and empty parking lots as long as we got to see them from an airplane window again. So we might just burst looking at the…

Now You Can Dine on a Sandbar in the Florida Keys During Sunset

For anybody in search of a dining venue with guaranteed social distancing, a sandbar in the Gulf of Mexico seems like a safe bet. A luxury resort in the Florida Keys has set up a…

Ghouls of the Road: Drive-Through Haunts Are a Frightful Halloween Trend

Given the still-raging pandemic and the looming U.S. presidential election, there's plenty to fear this fall, even with the cancellation of haunted houses and other Halloween…

CDC Extends Ban on Cruising in U.S. Waters Into the Autumn

The Centers for Disease Control has again extended its ban on cruising in American waters. The previous ban was scheduled to expire on September 15, a few days before the official end…

Meet Orlando’s New Safety Mascot: Social Distancing Skunk Ape at Gatorland

Orlando's Gatorland, a wildlife park and venerable locus of Florida kitsch, reopened to visitors on May 23, getting the jump on the region's larger, younger, slicker family-friendly…

Florida Beachgoers Share the Sand with the Grim Reaper

Florida-based attorney Daniel Uhlfelder recently tweeted that he planned to start traveling around his state's beaches dressed as Death to send a message. And no, that message is not…

Too Soon? Jacksonville, Florida, Already Reopening Beaches

Jacksonville, Florida, is among the first locations in the United States to loosen social distancing restrictions—the city's beaches reopened to the public Friday at 5pm. According to…

Spring Breaker Who Vowed to Party Despite COVID-19: I Was Wrong

Remember that die-hard spring breaker who went viral on the internet last week for saying he wouldn't mind going viral in a literal sense for the noble cause of partying? "If I get…

A First Timer's Guide to Sanibel Island, Florida's Nature Escape

Note: This gallery was published before Sanibel Island was devastated by Hurricane Ian in September, 2022.The shrimp-shaped slice of sand known as Sanibel Island floats along Florida’s…

Miami’s New Museum of Graffiti Gives a Permanent Home to Street Art

By its nature, graffiti tends to be a here-today-gone-tomorrow type of art form. But a new museum in Miami aims to preserve the history and celebrate the artistry of a movement that…

High-Speed Trains to Connect Miami's Cruise Port and Orlando

The possibility of a car-free Florida vacation just rolled a little closer to reality.Brightline, which currently operates high-speed rail service connecting Miami, Fort Lauderdale,…

Key West Hotels Introduce "Underwater Library" with Waterproof Books

Reading while lounging next to bodies of water is so popular it spawned a whole literary genre. But here's the thing about beach reads: There's a very real chance you'll ruin the book…