Articles

Theme Park

Article / Passportable

Fully Revised for 2022, Our Guide to Disney World, Universal, and Orlando Is Now on Shelves

In July 2020, months before Covid-19 vaccination was available, grateful crowds tearfully swarmed back into the theme parks of Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando. Nothing, it…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Disney's New Star Wars Hotel Slammed As "a Galactic Failure"

For years, Americans have watched the price of a Disney vacation climb upward, and yet the parks remained packed. When it came to Disney charging luxury rates, it seemed the sky was…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

The Glitchy Genie+/ Lightning Lane System Arrives at Disneyland

In October, Florida's Walt Disney World rolled out its paid version of the formerly free FastPass system, now called Lightning Lane. The Disney company had delayed expanding the new…

Article / Theme Park

Can a Computer-Literate Great-Grandmother Figure Out Disney World's Genie+?

I took a 70-something who has been going to Disney World for 50 years back to the Magic Kingdom to see if she could figure out Disney's new booking and itinerary system.

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Cirque du Soleil's New "Drawn to Life" Is the Best Show at Walt Disney World

At the end of 2017, French-Canadian entertainment juggernaut Cirque du Soleil closed La Nouba, the family-friendly acrobatics spectacular that played on Walt Disney World resort…

Article / Slideshows

Look Inside Walt Disney World's Swan Reserve Hotel

In early 1990, when Florida's Walt Disney World cut the ribbons on the 1,509-room Dolphin and the 756-room Swan hotels, the resort made architecture history. The two towering…

Article / Theme Park

Disney's Pay-to-Skip-Lines System Launches: 10 Crucial Discoveries from the Reactions

Lightning Lane, Disney's new automated system that charges visitors extra to jump the line, has debuted at Walt Disney World. Here's what observers learned about how it works (and…

Article / Slideshows

Make The Delicious Drinks, Cocktails, and Mocktails from Disney’s U.S. Parks

LeFou’s Brew at Magic Kingdom, Peanut Butter and Jelly Milkshakes at Disney's Hollywood Studios, Frozen Sunshine from Beaches Cream at Disney's Beach Club —Disney certainly knows how…

Article / Slideshows

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…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

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…

Article / Theme Park

Disney Officially Kills FastPass, Will Charge Extra to Use the New "Lightning Lane"

As part of a huge shake-up of its systems and pricing, Disney launches tech that will monetize access to shorter lines.

Article / Passportable

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…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

3 Ways Disney's New Paid FastPass System Is Problematic

Update, August 24, 2021: After this story was published, Disney expanded paid FastPass to its theme parks in the United States. For coverage, read Disney Officially Kills FastPass,…

Article / Slideshows

9 Ghost Towns to Explore During Road Trips Through the American West

To the triumphalist tale of America’s westward expansion, ghost towns offer a chilly rejoinder: Sometimes things don’t work out. The gold mine runs out of gold, the train begins…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

As Disney World Strips Away Its Perks, What Will Replacing Them Cost You?

This week, it was confirmed that Disney Parks will receive a $580 million tax break from the state of Florida to relocate about 2,000 key workers from Southern California, where the…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

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…

Article / Passportable

Almost Fully Assembled, Legoland New York to Open This Summer

Legoland New York Resort, a 150-acre theme park devoted to colorful plastic bricks in the Hudson Valley north of New York City, was supposed to open on July 4, 2020. But like an older…

Article / Family & Kids

Make Your Summer Vacation Reservations Now—Or You Could Overpay or Get Shut Out

2021 is turning into a year unlike any other. With so many people vacationing domestically, it's never been more important for travelers to make early bookings.

Article / Health, Insurance, Security

How Soon After Receiving the Vaccine Can You Travel?

Can you start traveling as soon as you're vaccinated for the coronavirus? The answer is complicated, balancing personal risk and the safety of others. 

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Disneyland Finally Sets Reopening Target—But Don't Buy Plane Tickets Just Yet

After a closure that has lasted since March 14, 2020, California's Disneyland has finally set its sights on reopening. Disney CEO Bob Chapek announced to shareholders that he hopes…

Article / Passportable

Endless Summer: More Theme Parks Now Staying Open Year-Round

Outside of Florida and Southern California, where the weather allows theme parks to stay open year-round (provided there's no plague on), the standard operating procedure at most parks…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

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…

Article / Passportable

SoCal's Six Dazzling Holiday Drive-Throughs, from Stranger Things to Elf on the Shelf

The notion that Southern Californians spend all their time in their cars is a tired cliché—but in 2020, it feels freshly apt. As one of the few options for getting out of the house…

Article / Slideshows

Make the Great Treats from Disney's U.S. Parks: Cookbook Excerpt!

Dole Whip at Magic Kingdom , Mickey Pretzels at Disney’s Hollywood Studios , Frozen Lemonade at Disney’s Animal Kingdom —Disney has so much to offer, and one of its best attractions is…

Article / Arthur Frommer Online

Disney Will Never Be the Same: A Litany of Layoff Devastation

This week, there was an employment cataclysm at Walt Disney World and Disneyland. In one day, the company axed nearly every worker with a speaking role in its U.S. parks. As part of…