Category: Travel Places

Orlando international airport closures

Orlando international airport closures

The Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA), working in conjunction with more than 40 airlines that service Orlando International Airport (MCO), has decided that out of an abundance of caution in anticipation of Hurricane Ian, the final commercial flight at MCO will depart tomorrow morning at 10:30 a.m.

If you have a flight scheduled after this time, you’ll have to work with your booking source to reschedule. Orlando is currently under a Hurricane Watch status.

Other Florida airports are due to close or have altered operations as well. Double check if you’re due to fly this week.

For more details on Orlando:

© Orlando International Airport

Updates to Disney Cruise Line Health & Safety Policies

Disney cruise ships

Disney Cruise Lines has announced that beginning Oct. 14, 2022, for Disney WonderDisney DreamDisney Fantasy, and Disney Wish sailings and Nov. 7, 2022 for Disney Magic sailings, Disney Cruise Line will no longer require Guests to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 at the time of sailing, however, it is highly recommended.

All Guests ages 5 years and older who are not fully vaccinated (Unvaccinated Guests) will need to submit proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken 1-2 days before the sail date. So, if you are vaccinated, you will no longer need to test before sailing. Guests ages 4 years of age and younger do not require testing either.

To be exempt from testing requirements, fully vaccinated Guests must upload their proof of vaccination to the Inspire Diagnostics Safe Passage website by midnight prior to embarkation day. Unvaccinated Guests must upload a negative COVID-19 test result to the Inspire Diagnostics Safe Passage website by midnight prior to embarkation day. Uploading proof of vaccination or a COVID-19 test result is a requirement for adults and children, except for those ages 4 and younger. 

Fully vaccinated Guests are not required to be tested between back-to-back sailings anymore. Guests ages 5 years and older who are not fully vaccinated and traveling on back-to-back sailings will be required to complete a COVID-19 test between sailings, arranged by Disney Cruise Line.

If this changes your mind for a currently booked sailing, guests booked on the Disney WonderDisney Dream, Disney Fantasy or Disney Wish October 14, 2022, through January 31, 2023, may modify or cancel their sailing by October 11, 2022 without any Disney-imposed cancellation fees. You should’ve received an email this morning from DCL with this information as well.

Visit the Know Before You Go section of the DCL website for the latest information and answers to many frequently asked questions. These requirements can still change anytime.

If you would like to chat about this or anything related to Disney cruises, or would like me to help you plan your next Disney cruise, feel free to contact me below. We can’t wait for our next sailing!


©Disney Cruise Lines

EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays

EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays

Disney World has announced the 2022 EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays! It will begin this year on November 25, 2022 with additional holiday foods, activities, and merch.

One of the most popular events of the festival is the Candlelight Processional. You can see “a celebrity narrator tell the story of Christmas, recounting the biblical tale of a savior born in Bethlehem. Woven into the production are stirring songs of hope and joy performed by the orchestra and massed choir.”

Shows take place at 5:15 PM, 7:00 PM or 8:30 PM at the America Gardens Theatre at EPCOT at no additional cost besides your park ticket. It is a very beautiful production!

The schedule of celebrity narrators is subject to change, but here are the ones that have been revealed so far. Certain ones can get very popular so plan to line up very early or book a dining package that includes tickets to the show.

  • 11/25 – 11/26: Simu Liu
  • 11/27 – 11/29: Chita Rivera
  • 11/30 – 12/1: Raul Esparza (NEW)
  • 12/2 – 12/3: Whoopi Goldberg
  • 12/4 – 12/6: Isabella Rossellini
  • 12/7 – 12/9: Daymond John
  • 12/10 – 12/12: Josh Gad (NEW)
  • 12/13 – 12/14: Gloria Estefan (NEW)
  • 12/15 – 12/18: Neil Patrick Harris
  • 12/19 – 12/20: Mariska Hargitay (NEW)
  • 12/21 – 12/23: Cal Ripken Jr.
  • 12/24 – 12/26: Marie Osmond
  • 12/27 – 12/28: Courtney Vance
  • 12/29 – 12/30: Angela Bassett

Note: narrators can change. Check the official Disney festival page for the most recent updates on the schedule and additional details about the festival.

This is another fun EPCOT festival that we love. Feel free to contact me if you want to chat more about this or if you want me to help plan your trip.

Happy Holidays!

Candlelight Processional

©Disney

Disney waiving change fees due to Hurricane Ian

NOAA Hurricane Ian
NOAA

Due to the impending landfall of Hurricane Ian on the Orlando area, Disney World has announced that they are waiving all change and cancellation fees for dining and resort reservations between Sept 26 – Oct 3, 2022.

Some resorts and the water parks have already been announced with closures as well.

For the latest updates on Disney World weather related events, go to:

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/experience-updates/weather-updates/

I hope you’ll be safe if you’re within the path of the hurricane!

New Disney Cruises to Hawaii and the South Pacific

Disney cruise to South Pacific

Breaking news!!

Disney Cruise Line just announced that the Wonder will be sailing to the South Pacific and Hawaii from late 2023 to 2024!

Australia n New Zealand cruises
Disney sailings

Booking begins:
October 3, 2022: Platinum Castaway Club Members & Golden Oak Members
October 4, 2022: Gold Castaway Club Members
October 5, 2022: Silver Castaway Club Members, eligible Disney Vacation Club Members and Adventure Insiders
October 6, 2022: All Guests

For more details, view the Disney Cruise Line page:

Feel free to contact me if you’d like me to help book your cruise. These are going to go fast so book as soon as your window opens!

©Disney

Disney Cruise Line Offer for Disney+ Members

Disney Cruise Line

Beginning September 8, 2022, Disney+ subscribers can a book special offer for Disney Cruise Line.

As a special offer for Disney+ subscribers, third and fourth guests sail free with two full-fare guests in the same stateroom on select Disney Cruise Line voyages! The Disney+ subscriber must be the primary name on the booking.

This offer is available for select staterooms and sailings on the Disney Magic, Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy departing Jan. – April 2023 and does not include taxes, fees and port expenses for each guest, which are due at time of final payment. The number of staterooms allocated for this offer is limited.

The following sailings are not eligible for this offer:

Disney Magic: Jan. 2 & March 13, 2023
Disney Dream: Jan. 2 & April 10, 2023
Disney Fantasy: March 11 & 25, 2023

Contact me ASAP if you are interested. Bookings open tomorrow, Sept 8th, and will be limited. This is a great rare deal for DCL!

Disney+ offer ad.

© Disney Cruise Line

August Disney Trip

Guess what?!? We just got back from an amazing cruise on the brand new Disney Wish ship! Here’s a pic of the Grand Hall. The chandelier and surrounding lights along the railings light up to various songs throughout the night. So magical!

The entire ship is themed as a “castle at sea”. Everything was gorgeous, the cast members and service were top-notch, as usual, the food was delicious, and the activities were plentiful and fun. In many ways, there are many similarities that you come to expect on a Disney ship, yet also many differences from the other Disney ships to keep things interesting. This is definitely most unique though and worth checking out. We had a great experience!

I’ll post more details soon on this site, but in the meantime, check out some of the thousands of pics I took on my Instagram. There are many more to come!

If you have any specific questions or would like me to help you plan your next cruise, feel free to contact me below.

Disney Announced Fall and Winter 2023 Cruises

Very Merrytime Cruises

Disney Cruise Line has announced the itineraries for the rest of 2023! This includes all of the Halloween and Christmas themed sailings!

Some notable changes include the Dream doing sailings out of New York now and the Magic going over to do sailings out of San Diego. The itineraries show sailings for all 5 DCL ships, including the newest Wish ship.

Bookings start next week! It’s always cheapest to book when they’re first released because prices will increase as they fill up and certain cabin categories or popular sailings will sell out quick! Deposits are fully refundable if you need to cancel before your paid in full date, usually 90-120 days before sailing, so you still have over a year to save up if you book now.

Here are the opening dates for bookings according to your Castaway Club or other affinity group status, starting at 8am ET. You’re automatically a Silver member after you complete your first DCL cruise, and will progress to Gold and Platinum after 5 and 10 cruises, respectively. If you’ve never sailed DCL before, you would have to wait until the General Public date.

  • Monday, July 25, 2022 – Platinum and Golden Oak members
  • Tuesday, July 26, 2022 – Gold members
  • Wednesday, July 27, 2022 – Silver, DVC, and Adventure Insider members
  • Thursday, July 28, 2022 – General Public

View the full list of new itineraries on the DCL site:

We love sailing on the Disney ships! They’re all gorgeous and immaculately clean. All of the itineraries provide so many fun activities in a family friendly environment. The service on the ships is always top notch! There are so many other features that we love about Disney cruises. Yes, they do cost more than most other cruise lines, but for us, it’s worth it. You’d have to weigh what you’re looking for in a cruise experience. For us, this is a case of “you get what you pay for”.

I often hear folks asking which cruise is best or which ship is best. I say you can’t go wrong with any of them. The big deciding factors are how many days you can spend, what locations you want to go to or sail out of, what are some key favorite Disney characters (different themed shows and restaurants), or which ships you haven’t been on yet.

Perhaps if this is your very first cruise ever, start with the smaller ships, the Magic and Wonder, just because they’re easier to figure out and find your way around on board. However, the larger ships aren’t all that confusing, just a tad more walking to get around. The shorter 3 night sailings are good for “dipping your toes in the water”, no pun intended, if you want to try out a cruise, but on the flip side, it’s impossible to do everything on a short cruise and if it’s your first time, by the time you figure things out, it’s time to sadly leave, so I think you’re not getting a good taste of how great the cruises can be. 4 nights are slightly better in that case. Yes, that one additional day makes a noticeable difference. Our favorite are the 7 nights since it gives you a few days to figure out the ship, get settled, and then also relax more. However, any cruise is better than no cruise!

It almost doesn’t matter where the ship is going. The ports are almost just a bonus for us. We sail DCL because of the ships, and usually just stay on the ships. There’s so much to do, even on the port days. Each one offers a slightly different experience with different Broadway quality stage shows and different themed restaurants. We’ve done all four of the classic ships and loved them all, and will be experiencing the newest Wish ship soon! We can’t wait! I have cruise info and trip recaps (click on the Menu above) on my site and will post info about the Wish asap.

If you’re going to book any sailings, try to do so as soon as your booking window opens. If you want me to help do your booking or just chat about Disney or any other cruises, feel free to contact me below. Bon voyage!