Disney Hollywood Studios Archives - Your Mileage May Vary

All-Immersive Star Wars Hotel & Experience, “Galactic Starcruiser,” Scheduled To Open At WDW in 2021

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…

Star Wars has been very good for the Walt Disney Company since it purchased Lucasfilms for $4 billion in 2012. They’ve profited greatly from the movies and merchandise it’s made off the brand, to say nothing of the Galaxy’s Edge lands they built at Disneyland in California and WDW’s Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Florida in mid-late 2019.

While the lands were still being built, Disney announced an immersive hotel that would eventually be built alongside the Florida version of Galaxy’s Edge, but there were only scant details.

Well, they’ve just announced a few things about it…

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Impressions From My First Visit To Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge At Disney’s Hollywood Studios In Orlando

Bright suns!

If you didn’t know, that’s how the residents on Batuu greet each other. You know Batuu, the remote planet that’s home to the Black Spire Outpost. If you’d prefer, you can just call it the new Star Wars land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park.

A Disney Cast Member offered to bring me as his +1 and I got a chance to see the land shortly after it opened. Previews are exactly that, a time when park operations get a chance to see how things go with a crowd of people. Disney was able to limit the number of guests by making Cast Members sign up for a time online. The slots filled up quickly but we managed to get an afternoon entry time and a reservation at Oga’s Cantina. The other special option was a visit to Savi’s Workshop, which I’ll get to later.

Even if you only got an entry time to Galaxy’s Edge without any extras, everyone seemed to be having a great time. There are still some kinks to work out but here are my thoughts after my visit.

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Two Travel Bloggers Are Taking On A Crazy Disney World Challenge To Raise Money For Charity

Sharon and I have done some crazy Disney things. I once ran from park to park to park to park on Fourth of July to get a limited edition pin from each location, back when we still did the pin thing. We’ve waited outside the Animal Kingdom entry plaza in our car at 3AM to be there for the grand opening. If we had passes at the time, I would have tried to stay for the day when Magic Kingdom was open for 24 hours straight, Speaking of 24 hours, for my first trip to Disneyland, I flew from NYC to LA on a 6AM flight (waking up at 4AM) and went straight to the park for the day, staying until the the 1AM closing. That was 24 hours straight being awake with the time change. “What’s jet lag?” I asked at the time?

However, the task that Ed from Pizza in Motion and Summer (Mommy Points) from TPG Family are attempting to complete is simply insane. The only thing keeping me from saying they’re crazy is that they’re using the challenge to raise money for one of the most wonderful charities in Central Florida.

Continue reading “Two Travel Bloggers Are Taking On A Crazy Disney World Challenge To Raise Money For Charity”

Bicoastal Disney Openings, Visiting Liverpool With A Beatle, A New Way To Search for Flights & More

And here it is, Sunday again. Hope y’all have had a good week! Here are some travel articles we’ve recently seen that we think you may enjoy.

Nick at Frequent Miler wrote about a new search function on one of my favorite websites, Google Flights. You’re now able to search for airfares that allow you to put a carry on bag in the overhead bin. So it’ll eliminate basic economy fares that don’t allow bin access and add the bag charge to flights that charge extra for the privilege (like Spirit and Frontier).
Caroline from Frugal Travel Guy wrote about the best places to stay in Cuba on points and miles. The hotels available for points redemption are slim if you are an American who can even visit under the current travel restrictions. Personally, I’d strongly suggest staying at a casa particular instead of a chain resort. You can go to any island in the Caribbean and stay at a resort. If you’re going to Cuba, spend some time with the people. You’ll never forget it.

sharon-and-joe-in-cuba — Sharon & Joe in Havana, March 2016

Have you ever been on a flight where the person sitting near you is eating something that has a strong smell?. You know, something fishy, spicy or just nasty smelling? Well, what if you’re inadvertently that person? Road Warriorette was in that position and you can read about how she handled it.
Pixar Pier at Disney California Adventure is now officially open and Attractions Magazine has given us a front car view of the re-imagineed Incredibles Incredicoaster.
Not to be outdone by is sister park on the west coast, Walt Disney World is preparing for the June 30th grand opening of Toy Story Land at Disney Hollywood Studios. WDW News Today shared some photos and video of the new land at nighttime.
Gary from View from the Wing wrote about how Delta may be looking at Austin, TX as their next focus city. Flights to Austin are getting really expensive so more competition in the market will be welcome. All the easier for us to fly there for some water park action and Texas BBQ.
As a Starbucks junkie, I rack up a fair amount of stars in the Starbucks Rewards program (but I’m not tempted to get their credit card). Lucky at One Mile At A Time wrote about how you’ll finally be able to redeem those stars for free items at many new locations, including airports.
Doctor of Credit wrote about how a Google Express offer for free shipping has been extended until the end of June. This can combine with an AMEX offer which makes it more valuable. I stocked up on some Tide detergent and Kleenex and saved $20 off a $60 order. If you’ve never used Google Express, you can sign up with our code and save an additional $10 off your first order.
Jon from No Mas Coach wrote about a recent stay at the Jackson Lake Lodge. I’m a huge fan of National Park lodges. It was nice to see another one I can add to the list of ones I want to visit.
In case you haven’t seen it yet, I’d recommend watching the 20 minute video of Paul McCartney going around Liverpool with James Corden. We visited many of the same sites on our Beatles Fab Four Taxi Tour, when we spent the day touring the town with some of our UK friends. I’d strongly suggest visiting the town if you get the chance and the Taxi Tour is a wonderful way to get to see all the Beatles sights.

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